Pompano Beach & Ft. Lauderdale
Capt. Ryan McBride
July 10, 2007
Fort Lauderdale - Saltwater Fishing Report
Butterfly Jigging
We have been using the butterfly/vertical jigging system now for over a year and have been learning more and more ways to be successful while using the system. On some of the deep wrecks you can be pretty much guaranteed action from amberjacks and almacos, as well as groupers, muttons, cudas, kingfish and others if you can get past the jacks. On July 4 we tried them in a little different way.
My family as well as a couple other families always go camping for July 4th on a lake up in upstate NY. Every year we target lake trout slow trolling using giant flashers chains, and catch fish but usually it’s only one or two a day. This year I brought up some Butterfly and Braid jigs with the hope that we could catch them more easily. The first day we missed a fish or two but still not what we expected until one morning I kayaked over to a point with a severe drop-off. The bottom went from the shore to 150ft. depth in about 75ft. On the first drop I get 25 cranks up and get slammed, up comes a 5lb. lake trout one of the bigger fish we have caught on this lake. Next drop up 30 cranks, drop it again and line doesn’t go out, he ate it on the pause and up comes another even bigger lake trout. The next day we caught 4 more in extremely windy conditions and weren’t able to keep the jigs vertical. I have no doubt the action could have been wide open if the calm conditions exist. We also caught numerous small mouth bass when our drift brought us into the shallows
It is definitely summer. Week 7/1-7/7
It is definitely summer. The past few weeks we have stayed busy with with charters and storms chasing us around. Our normal summer pattern has come around and we have been having pretty consistent action with smaller kingfish, dolphin if the wind is more easterly, and still shots at other fish if the conditions are right. We still are averaging on sail each trip which is good in the summer as well as cudas. The best action which happens pretty much year round is on the wrecks with butterfly jigs. We have been targetting the wrecks from 200-300 feet deep with the jigs and the action has been non stop. The amberjacks and almacos have been averaging 10-20lbs and every time we have tangled with fish in the 40+lb. range as well as freight trains that could not be stopped. While some wrecks are loaded with the jacks some of the wrecks are holding some mutton snappers and if you can find the right wreck the action has been non stop. As with every summer here in florida the key to catching fish is fishing early and late (if no storms) when its not too hot.
More Fishing Reports:
