Report for Naples, Marco Island and the Ten Thousand Islands
Capt. Matt Hoover
November 1, 2000
Marco Island - Saltwater Fishing Report
Fall Migration
This past week left us with cool and calm weather. The breeze would pick up later in the afternoon but it wasn’t a major factor. There is a variety of fish out there. Fall is the time when all manners of species congregate to get fat for the winter months.
The bait is everywhere. It should be. It is migration time and the predator fish will follow. Snook are still cooperating quite nicely. We have had to work a little harder for them. I had anglers “Bluecard Bob” and friends fishing with me for two days. They are intense fishermen. They pitched live bait and left no stone unturned. They caught plenty of small to medium sized snook. A couple of fish were keepers. We did catch a few redfish on live bait each day but they just don’t seem to be here in great numbers.
There are pompano showing up in greater numbers now. We are catching them on tube jigs. Yellow Don’s PotBelly jigs work great too. I like to cut the hair shorter on Don’s jigs. Pink is also a color that produces. Pompano have been showing up in the passes throughout Marco and the Ten Thousand Islands. Learn to bump the jig slow along the bottom. When you feel a tap, don’t hesitate to set the hook. We have also been catching large trout on jigs in the deeper runs along the islands on jigs. The grass on the outside of the islands has been producing too. Expect to catch a mackerel or two in the process.
I spent the day flyfishing with Marcos’ own Don Phillips and Don O’Hagen. We had to struggle to muster up a snook and a few jacks. We did hook a red but it spit the hook. Don O’Hagen also threw the fly to a laid up tarpon that we came across but it wasn’t meant to be. There aren’t very many fish in the “skinny water” to speak of. That can make the catching end of flyfishing difficult. I have heard similar reports from other guides. We are in a transitional period. The water temperature has dropped considerably and those cool temps can put fish on the move. Throwing live bait seems to be the method that has been producing the best catches.
The weather has been outstanding and the overall fishing has been fair to good. It should remain that way until the first cold fronts of winter show up. That may not happen until December, as was the case last year. I’m up for that. I’ll see you on the water.
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