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Report for Naples, Marco Island and the Ten Thousand Islands
Capt. Matt Hoover
August 28, 2001
Marco Island - Saltwater Fishing Report
Cooler Mornings
The early bird gets the worm. That cliché couldn’t be truer when it comes to fishing in August. The afternoons have been unbearably hot so most of the guides including myself have been only running half-day trips in the morning. We had a high falling tide most of this past week. That is just the way I like it and fishing was productive until the sun got high.
Hordes of small bait are everywhere. You can tell when the bite is on because sheets of bait will shower out of the water as a predator fish makes its kill. The bait is a mixture of small thread herring, Spanish sardines and scaled sardines. As I said last week. You can use the small stuff as bait. It is hard to throw, but it will get the job done. There are small schools of menhaden throughout the islands should you venture south of Marco. They are larger and therefor easier to throw.
This past week I started to catch a few larger snook. Some of the fish ranged twenty six to thirty three inches. Guides that I talked to had similar reports. I used live bait all week but other anglers had good success with artificial baits too.
Here is the good news. On more than one occasion this week, my anglers were able to catch more than one redfish at a spot. The redfish went from “rat” size to twenty-eight inches or so. It appears that we might enjoy catching reds with more regularity than we have seen in the past. By around eleven o’clock each day, it seemed as if someone flipped the switch. The bight would slow down until much later in the afternoon. Our fishing can be a game of degrees when it comes to water temperature.
I have seen quite a few tarpon from twenty to sixty pounds milling about. I haven’t really pursued them, but those that have had good luck using ladyfish or cutbait. I am sure that working a plug past their nose will produce results.
Trout fishing remains steady in the deeper cuts of Cape Romano. Try jigs over the grass in front and around the islands.
Fishing will continue to get better as we approach the fall season Water temperatures will cool down and the schools of bait will be everywhere. The fish will be hot on their trail. Snook season opens up on the first of the month. The water can get a little hectic the first week or so. Just remember to breathe. It’s just fishing. I’ll see you out there.
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