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Report for Naples, Marco Island and the Ten Thousand Islands
Capt. Matt Hoover
March 11, 2002
Marco Island - Saltwater Fishing Report
Clear Skies
Southwest Florida breathed a sigh of relief as the last front finally loosened its grip. Warm, sunny skies returned to our portion of the country. Water temperatures started to climb ever so slowly and anglers got down to business.
By the end of last Thursday, the skies cleared and the air temperature went to the eighties. Grumpy moods were replaced by smiles. Chatter resumed at all the local tackle shops. We were back in business. I don’t think that I have ever seen so many boats on the water in the Marco and Ten Thousand Islands area as I have seen this past weekend. Amazingly, everybody was courteous and in great spirits. Almost everyone I talked to caught fish.
Once again, trout and pompano stole the show. Guides and anglers did well with pompano on jigs tipped with shrimp in the passes of Marco and the islands too. Most of us use tube jigs or Don’s Potbelly jigs. Trim back the hair to the bend in the hook and you are in business. You can expect ladyfish, jacks and a few trout when you are jigging for pompano.
Trout of all sizes were active this week over the grass flats and deeper spots throughout the islands. Popping corks and shrimp or jigs are the methods of attack. I had several days where we hit our limits in an hour with trout. That gave us time to beat the bushes.
We used jigs with sassy shad type bodies along the mangrove shorelines. The water temperature is not quite where it should be so there isn’t a lot of snook yet. We managed to catch several snook every day, but they were mostly small. Each outing did give up a redfish or two. By the weekend, small to medium sized jacks started pounding the baits. Ladyfish kept the rods bent on every point that we went to as well. Their return is always a good sign.
I have heard reports that anglers are seeing and hooking large tarpon way south of us. If the temperatures continue to climb, the tarpon will be in our playground real soon. There are many methods to catching tarpon and I will keep you posted on what seems to be working as we go along.
It appears that we are out of the woods with we cold temperatures. Wind and rain can always be a problem, but I think it is safe to store your snowmobile suit. The action is going to start to heat up. So will the traffic. Florida is shrinking at an alarming rate. Let’s be good boys and girls while we are boating. I’ll see you on the water.
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