Nice mix of inshore species near Fort Myers, Floriida
Capt. Rob Modys
September 10, 2015
Fort Myers - Saltwater Fishing Report
Summer is officially over in most parts of the country but not in southwest Florida. As a matter of fact, warm weather will still be with us for another month or two. However, the days are getting shorter and the fish know that Fall is right around the corner and that puts them in a feeding mood. That makes this time of year one of the best times to wet a line, so get out there and enjoy!
Capt. Alex Dolinski of Spot On Charters said the good morning tides, and the fact that the water temperatures have dropped a bit in Estero Bay, has put the bait fish on the move. They are schooling up around the passes and the grass flats. Spanish mackerel, seatrout and jacks have been chasing these bait schools and will hit topwater lures in the early morning. Once the mid morning bite slows, switch to soft plastics and work them slowly over the flats. Mangrove snapper, snook and redfish have been steady around the mangroves on the higher tides. They've been hitting live shrimp under a float or cut ladyfish on the bottom. Pompano and flounder have been showing up in the passes on the outgoing tide. Use a yellow or red 1/8 ounce lead head jig tipped with shrimp and it shouldn't take long to hook up.
Capt. Neil Eisner of Fishing The Flats Charters said that working the early morning outgoing tides this past week found anglers plenty of action. Live shrimp on a yellow jig and a slow retrieve was best for snook. Look for them near mangrove edges and shorelines. Redfish and mangrove snapper can be found up under the mangrove overhangs. Work the pockets and small coves that also have moving water. It's important to have current. If the water isn't moving you probably aren't going to get a bite.
Capt. Jon Fetter of Catching The Cure Charters said this past week provided anglers with plenty of opportunities in both Estero Bay and the nearshore waters. The passes were loaded with pompano, spanish mackerel, whiting and even small sharks. Bouncing shrimp tipped jig heads along the bottom worked best. The deeper cuts were holding mangrove snapper with a few in the keeper size range. Redfish, snapper and the occasional snook can be found in the back bays along the oyster bars and mangrove islands. The shallow grass flats proved to be a good place to find redfish. Live shrimp on jigs worked well along with free-lined pinfish. Anglers looking for seatrout can work the grass flats in 4 to 6 feet of water using shrimp under popping corks or bouncing artificials along the bottom.
Capt. Greg Stamper of Snook Stamp Charters said that redfishing was good this week with plenty of fish caught, both big and small. They were obliged to take artificial lures of both subsurface and topwater variety, as well as the usual cut baits. Tarpon took up most of his anglers time this week with fish cruising in the deep water passes and along the beaches. They were there preying on the huge schools of minnows. His anglers caught several in the 50 to 80 pound range. The bite was best in the early morning hours on cut baits and big artificial twitch baits being worked from the beach out toward the boat. The snook bite this week was interesting. Snook could be found in their usual haunts, but the pressure of opening week seemed to have put them on edge. The rains continue to cloud up the water periodically but it's gotten better than the previous week, so site casting both snook and redfish was possible. Triple tail, cobia and the occasional kingfish are biting in the nearshore waters as are thousands of spanish mackerel and jacks.
More Fishing Reports:
