Marco Island, Ft. Myers & Boca Grande

Capt. Scott Hughes
August 1, 2002
Fort Myers - Saltwater Fishing Report

Excellent Fishing Continues !

The past two weeks produced good catches almost every day. The only days that we didn't catch much were the days that I didn't fish. Tarpon fishing is getting hot in the Pine Island area and snook and mangrove snapper are just as good down in the 10,000 Islands. I spit my time this week between the two area so I have much to report on.

Out of Charlotte Harbor the tarpon fishing is very solid. We are catching multiple fish every day with very few below the 100-pound mark. Thread herring are the bait of choice but i have reports of other guides hooking them on DOA baitbusters. The key term there is "hooking" I'm not sure what their land ratio has been. We have been landing over 50% of the tarpon for July. It has been a combination of good angling and the new Owner SSW circle hooks.

Also out of the Ft Myers area backcountry fishing has been spotty for redfish. Good catches were reported on the west wall for a couple of days and then the next few they are gone. Snook fishing is still good on the outside but the big number days are getting fewer and father between. Look for these fish to be moving farther into the sound and into the harbor.

Out of Marco Island snook and snapper fishing on the inside is great. We used large scaled sardines one day to land 11 nice snook to 34 inches along with some jacks and trout and the next trip we used small beach shiners to catch 13 nice snook and 9 huge mangrove snapper between 13-16 inches. We also mixed in the usual jacks, ladyfish and trout. Hit the points with current and a little depth for the snapper and some snook will be around there also. The larger snook that I have catching have been near the beaches.

The fishing should continue to be excellent as long as this fair weather holds. It has been hot but as long as the fish are biting I can deal with heat. It's funny, you don't think about how hot it is when your casting at rolling tarpon.

Good Luck!

Capt. Scott Hughes

Blackwater Charters

941-628-4247 cell

863-946-9171 home

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