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Marathon, Florida Keys

Capt. Bob Brown
January 14, 2001
Marathon - Saltwater Fishing Report

Dolphin & Sailfish on the Rip!

Every once in a while a good condition for catching offshore fish moves into our area in close to the reef. The gulfstream current that moves along the Keys sometimes throws eddies in towards the islands and a "current rip" is created. Usually along this current edge, there is debris, sargasso weed, and other grass that builds up. This creates a hiding place for small fish and the larger fish gather as well to feed on the smaller ones and so on. The other day off of Marathon and the entire Keys, a classic "rip" came in along the reef edge in about 150ft. of water with all kinds of weed, debris, tons of flying fish, lots of Frigate birds, and lots of Dolphin. The dolphin were pushing up flying fish all over the place and some nice schools were in the area. We caught several nice Dolphin in the 15-20 lb. class and a few other "schoolies" that we kept for dinner. The rest of the Dolphin were released as we were really targeting Sailfish. We did manage to hook up a double header Sailfish and landed one. Several other boats were also hooking up Sails in the vacinity of this rip and lots of Dolphin were caught by the local charter fleet that day. A cold front that rolled in the following day wiped out the rip and slowed the Sails for the day. Today was a different story though, as the Sailfish were biting and we had 5 or 6 opportunities on a half day trip. For some reason we were having trouble hooking up the fish, but did manage to hook up and catch one as Mike Anderson of Lima, OH. caught his first Sailfish.

The King Mackerel fishing has been red hot off of Marathon lately in the 60-160ft. range. Lots of school sized Kings have been showing up in traditional hot spots and a few big "smokers" up to 40lb. have been hanging along the reef edge. Lots of Spanish and Cero Mackerel have been in the shallow waters of Florida Bay and from Hawk's Channel to the reef on the ocean side. Mangrove Snappers have been biting in Florida Bay and around the bridges and patch reefs. Yellowtail Snapper have been biting on the ocean side when the current has been running with the wind. A few nice sized Grouper (some up to 40lb!) have been coming off of the deeper rocky areas on the Atlantic side in 120-200ft. of water. Live bait is the best bet for the big Groups.

Looks like a nice stretch of weather is in the forecast for the Keys and the fishing should keep improving with the warming trend. Look for the Tarpon action to start heating up with the temps and lots more Sailfish when our breeze turns to the E/SE. For more information on fishing in the Marathon and middle Keys area check out our website. Good luck in all of your fishing adventures!

Capt. Bob Brown, Jr.

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Light tackle sportfishing for Sailfish, Tarpon, and other sport fish in the middle Florida Keys. Since 1980 Capt Bob has been putting anglers on the big fish! Offshore, reef/wreck, Gulf wrecks, and Tarpon fishing. Live bait specialist, tournament winners!

Contact Info:

Sundance Sportfishing Adventures
PO Box 504345
Marathon, FL 33050
Phone: 800-282-1712
Alt. Phone: 305-289-1542
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