Southbound Sportfishing Key West Report January 22nd
Capt. Richard Houde
January 23, 2011
Key West - Saltwater Fishing Report
Conditions have finally lined up and fishing was red hot the last few days. The combination of the full moon, calm seas, East current and clean water all came together this week and fishing went off. The bite is on for Sailfish, Wahoo and Black Fin Tuna. Saturday was non-stop action! West of Key West in 120 to 180 ft of water you didn't have to wait long for a bite. Most of the Black Fin Tuna have been good size, mostly in the 15-20lb. Single hookups were not uncommon, but more often than not, 2,3 or ever 4 fish were hitting at a time.
The wahoos have been over due. They were expected around the full moon in November and again in December but didn't show. The full moon was again this week and this time we weren't disappointed. Good catches of Wahoo were reported by the trolling boats from East to West off Key West. Multiple hooks ups, known as "Wolf packs" were not quite as common as I would hope, but there were a few. Most of the wahoo bites were single or doubles, but there were definitely enough to go around. I heard of a few fish in the 50lb range, but most of the ones were catching have been in the mid 30lb range. That's still a respectable fish any day!
Sailfish have been mixed in with the wahoo and Black Fin Tuna. The fast trolling speeds that are preferred for Wahoo and Tuna are usually a bit fast for Sails, but some fish just can't resist. Most of the Sailfish are of the "full sized" variety, 40-60lbs, not the 10-20lb juveniles that we tend to see in the fall.
There were still a good number of small Dolphin being caught during the past week as should be expected with the South winds we've had. That should drop off with the passing cold front, but expect it to pick up again if the wind goes to the south for a day or two.
Kingfish and Cero Mackerel are still being found on the reef when the action is needed.
The cold front that passed through the Key West area on Saturday night is not expected to be a very strong one. It will probably not affect the fishing to any great degree or for any length of time. Expect red hot fishing to return as soon as the weather clears. If the weather service is correct, Sunday should be good, and the early part of the coming week should be right back to red hot fishing.
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