Marathon FL Keys Report
Capt. Bob Brown
February 3, 2012
Marathon - Saltwater Fishing Report
The breezy East wind conditions have been pushing plenty of offshore fish in close to the edge of the reef lately with some good numbers of school sized Dolphin (Mahi-Mahi) showing up on weed lines and under birds in the 120-250ft. range. Some large Blackfin Tuna up to 25lb have been hitting the dock at the 7 mile marina here in Marathon mostly coming from near deep wrecks in 150-300ft of water. Live bait chumming with pilchards has been producing the Tuna and a few Sailfish as well.
Offshore fishing has been a bit more spotty but one calm day last week several boats ran out and did some swordfishing with mixed results. Smaller Swords have been eating the squids latley and most are being released by local Capts. One larger fish hit the docks that day at around 125lb. Tuna action has been excellent at the offshore humps but larger fish have been finicky with most fish being 12lb or less the last couple trips to the humps.
Plenty of King Mackerel inhabiting the reef edge lately with some as large as 60lb coming in from the Sombrero reef / Delta Shoal area. Some nice Cero mackerel have been on the patch reefs along with nice yellowtail snapper and a few decent mangrove snapper. All this action should remain excellent since the water temp has been fairly warm thanks to the mild winter weather we have been having.
Florida bay has been hot for spanish mackerel lately from 9-12 miles out in the tall grass beds. Snapper fishing has been decent as well with some nice catches coming in from the East Bahia Honda area. Shark fishing remains hot in this area also as long as water temps stay up in the 74-75 degree range.
If you want more info on fishing in the keys and the Marathon area, check out our web site! Good luck in all your fishing adventures!
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