Summertime Fishing in the Florida Keys

Its summertime in the Florida Keys and that means the water temps are up so I like to get out on the water early and fish 1/2 day trips, you can always spend the afternoon under the h20 chasing lobster. My clients have been having some fun bottom fishing on the patch reefs and have perfect weather this summer to take the bay boat offshore a few times to catch Mani Mahi, and Blacken Tuna. In the backcountry there are still a few Tarpon around in the early morning and some good Snook fishing around the mangrove islands in the Everglades National Park. I have been finding big schools of jacks busting bait while running into the backcountry, its a great way to spend 15min bending a rod. I always keep a spin rod rigged with a bucktail jig or a flyrod with a baitfish pattern will work perfect, all you have to do is make a long cast and hold on tight. If you are flyfisherman and can’t get close enough to the school try the old bait n switch trick by casting a chugger or lure with no hooks the jacks will chase it and you can get the school to come close enough to cast the fly to. Here is a photo of Bud & his sone Hinton from Aniston Alabama bending the rod on a few jacks, they were in town to flyfish but had so much fun with the spin rods they never tried to get one on fly. The summer is a great time to get out on the water and there are lots of options weather just bending the rod or catching something for the dinner table. Capt. Greg Poland