Marco Island, Ft. Myers & Boca Grande

Capt. Scott Hughes
January 22, 2003
Fort Myers - Saltwater Fishing Report

Beat of a Different Drum!

If you want to catch some drum, come to the 10,000 Islands. We have been invaded with juvenile black and red drum. Some days we catch more reds and some days more blacks. Snook have also been consistent along with sheephead and the usual ladyfish. Trout, for some reason, this week wouldn't bite for my trips.

Redfish are the main quality fish that we are catching. Shallow water has been the key to finding the reds (red drum). A variety of jigs and live shrimp caught reds from 16-25 inches every day this week including cold front days. Find water less than two feet deep in the back bays with a mud bottom. Fishing during the middle of the day is much more productive than early morning or late afternoon.

Black drum catches were as plentiful as the reds. It's to bad most of the reds were larger than the blacks. We did manage a few to around 6-pounds. We caught the drum in the same areas as the redfish using the same lures. Bucktail jigs and grubs all worked.

We have caught snook on my last three trips into Everglades National Park. All of the snook have come from shallow mud bottom bays in the deep backcountry. They have ranged from "tiny" to around 24-inches. Live shrimp caught most of them with jigs producing a few also.

Other species that worked their way into the log books were: grouper, snappers, ladyfish, and jacks. Most were caught on jigs fished around the mangroves. A few sheephead and trout were boated also.

The forecast is calling for extreme temperatures dropping into the high 20's for Friday morning. That means that it's probably going to get in the 30's on the coast. Expect more fish to pour into the creeks and rivers. They should seek shallow mud battom bays during the high sunlight for warmth.

Good Luck!

Capt. Scott Hughes

Blackwater Charters

941-628-4247 cell

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