Redfish Good, Grouper Hot!
Capt. Lisa Williams
September 25, 2012
Marco Island - Saltwater Fishing Report
September fishing in the 10,000 islands can be rewarding, and frustrating at the same time.
Afternoon rainstorms have kept the water temps down, but at the same time it has been difficult at times to find clean water resulting in an abundance of our whiskered friends the catfish.
Fishing for Redfish has been pretty steady here in the Marco Island area. Using anything from top water to cut bait. I am still a big fan of using what works for you, in my case that's a live shrimp on a "legend" rig, a variation on the popular Carolina rig. This is probably one of the most versatile rigs in my box. Fishing along the outer edges of the Mangrove islands, slow small movements are the key to attracting the hungry reds. Too much action only increases your chances of a break off on the oyster bottom.
Trout are still available, but Tropical Storm Debbie and Hurricane Isaac did considerable damage to the grass beds on the exposed islands making it a bit harder to find large fish.
Offshore has been the real hot spot these last few weeks, with good catches of both Gag and Red Grouper being caught in 40 + ft. depths.
Trolling has produced the largest Gag grouper using large lipped plugs on small wrecks and ledges.
As always the late summer is SHARK time here in the islands with plenty of action for both the beginner and experienced shark hunter.
Target Species:
redfish, grouper
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