Fort Lauderdale, FL - Offshore

Capt. David Ide
February 13, 2008
Fort Lauderdale - Saltwater Fishing Report

T.G.I.F.

Thank God It's February! What a busy month it's been so far, and we're only two weeks into it. This weather has been a bit weird to all of us, even leaving the fish confused. Action that normally takes place around the Holidays is happening right now with water temperatures at least 5 degrees warmer. The water along the beach has been about 74-76 degrees rather than 70 degrees, which we usually see in early February.

February means game fish, and they sure are moving through. Fishing has been excellent about 2-4 miles offshore in the Gulf Stream, where the current moves closer than anywhere on the eastern seaboard. Now through May we are seeing a little bit of everything; big Jacks in the inlet, Bonitos along the edge,White Marlin, huge game sharks on the wrecks such as the infamous Hammerhead shark, Thresher shark, Bull shark and yes, the occasional Mako shark bigger than you.

This is prime time! The Sailfish bite is on fire and only looking to get better!

Friday February 8th

We had our work cut out for us today. Around 9 AM, kites were out and our angler James from Sarasota was ready to get in on some action. 9:30ish we got our first bite and James made quick work. Within hours we were 9 for 10 sails and crushed the dolphin (mahi-mahi). The fish were all over the place, jumping dramatically. Captain David couldn't believe how many sails were out there. All of our bite were in 130ft of water, yet some of our buddies saw a few within only 90ft of water. Captain Pauly heard of good wreck fishing just north of where we were so we shot up there, quickly dropped a bloody king fish head and instantly got a bite. Captain David firmly believes a big Amber Jack ate the bait, and a shark got a hold of the Jack. Before we knew it, James had been fighting the Bull shark for an hour. He came up right behind the transom for a little show and then shot back down for about another 15 minutes. Finally he got tired of the war. It took the 3 of us guys to get this monster in the boat, he was a large animal (6ft long). James had never seen a sailfish jump in his life, nor a game shark fight so hard. He left a busy angler with sore arms, fresh dinner and the thrill of a lifetime!

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