June's Fishing Forecast Red Hot!
Capt. Alan Sherman
June 12, 2009
Miami - Saltwater Fishing Report
South Florida's rainy season has finally taken hold and brought us some much needed heavy rain that our lawns and shrubs have needed for months. These rains spark some excellent fishing in North Biscayne Bay and Flamingo. As the freshwater enters the canal systems the salinity dams are opened to keep the canal levels from over flowing and this freshwater as it makes its way to the saltwater side of the dam becomes a feeding station for snook, sharks, snapper, redfish, barracudas, jacks, ladyfish and tarpon. Tiny baitfish and crawfish are flushed through the dams and then become stunned by the saltwater making them easy pretty for the predators. Once the freshwater has flowed into the bay for sometime the predators are pushed out over the grass flats where the brackish water is more to their liking and these fish will stay in these areas and continue to feed for most of the summer.
In Flamingo in Everglades National Park the freshwater triggers the snook, redfish, goliath groupers and other predators to flee the extreme waters of the backcountry and that puts them in Whitewater and Oyster Bays where they are easier to target. It also pushes these fish into Florida Bay and the river mouths and creeks again making them easier targets. All of this freshwater set the tone for the whole summer and by far the summer is my most favorite time to fish Flamingo. Last year and years in the past my clients have enjoyed double digit catches of snook and redfish on a single day's charter fishing Florida Bay and Whitewater and Oyster Bays.
During the summer months I suggest booking half day charters in North Biscayne Bay. I like starting if possible at 7 AM and finishing a charter to 11 AM taking advantage of the time span when the fish are more active and then also fishing from 4 in the afternoon to 8 in the early evening. Another good charter especially if the winds are down which they are a lot in the summer is a charter from 6 to 10 in the evening for some hot catch and release tarpon and snook action. Offshore fishing in Miami can be great as long as the winds stay light for kingfish, dolphins, bonitos and an occasional sailfish. When fishing Flamingo in the summer I still like the 8 hr. charters because Flamingo has so many spots to fish it allows you to be somewhere throughout the day where fish are still in a feeding mood. I also run a charter that requires traveling as much as 40 miles from the Marina to rockpiles and wrecks where permit, cobia, mackerel, large jacks and goliath groupers are available. I charge an extra $50 for this charter to cover the extra fuel but this trip can be quite exciting.
Summer is a great time to take the kids out fishing and the late afternoon or evening charter in North Biscayne Bay is a good charter for the kids.
Regardless of the charter your interested don't let the summer rains scare you off from having a fishing trip of a lifetime!
Recent Catches:
Today I am fishing Gerald and Paul and we start in North Biscayne Bay. A large school of Spanish sardines has been providing me with plenty of quality baitfish for my recent charters but today they are nowhere to be found. We head over to Haulover Inlet and I spot a lone pelican diving and yes there is bait there. We Sabiki rig enough for a few hours of offshore fishing and head out to 100 feet of water. The first bait in the water gets eaten by a 25 pound sailfish and Gerald makes quick work of the sailfish that was caught on a Daiwa Tierra 3500 reel loaded with a 14 pound Berkley braid and a Key Largo rod. A quick couple of pictures and we release the sail unharmed. Back to fishing and a half dozen missed strikes and a storm forces us to head for cover. We hide for a few minutes under the Haulover Cut Bridge and then quickly catch a few more baits and then try our luck at some snook fishing. Before we head in the guys had release three snook and Paul caught a nice 32 inch 10 pounder that was kept for dinner. Paul's fish was caught on a live free lined pilchard hooked to a #1 Mustad long shank hook.
Today I am in Flamingo with Carole Neidig and her father Walter. Walter had read a lot about Whitewater Bay but had never fished it before so that is where we would concentrate our efforts today. Casting ¼ ounce Hook Up lures tipped with Gulp shrimp and Pogy's Carole and her dad caught and released one nice redfish, six snook, two goliath groupers that had to be carefully worked out from under the mangroves, loads of snappers, jacks, ladyfish and barracudas plus at least a dozen sea trout of which six big ones were kept for dinner. Walt lost a nice redfish plus a sight casted goliath grouper and Carole pointed out a Bald eagle sitting on a tree top.
Back in Flamingo today with Mark and his 8 year old son Will. Today we are going to fish Florida Bay! We head to a baitfish flat and quickly catch a bunch of pinfish and ballyhoo and then head for our first spot. Unfortunately another fisherman has beaten us to the spot so we head to spot two. Here we use my Power Pole Anchor to hold us off an island point as we cast live baits on a Hook Up lures, live baits under a Cajun Thunder and Gulp baits on a Hook Up lure. The Cajun Thunders get a few hits but no hook ups when Will gets a big bite and is quick into a monster 10 pound redfish. The tide is running hard and the large red just won't come to the Stow Master net. I can touch the leader but I can't get the fish in the Stow Master. Each time I think we have him he runs off again. Will keeps working the fish but you just can't catch every fish you hook and this one gets away. A touched leader is a legitimate catch so Will has part of a slam under his belt. While we are getting reorganized four manatees swim right by the boat. Mark misses a couple of small snook and we are off to spot three. This is a nice grass flat and there is lots of pinfish and small ballyhoo on this flat. Will is getting a hit on almost every cast using a Cajun Thunder with a live ballyhoo. Mark is casting the Hook Up lure and constantly getting hit. Before we leave this spot we have caught a dozen sea trout with most being in the three pound class plus a Spanish mackerel, lots of snappers and a few catfish and had a giant shark check us out. The next spot is Lake Ingram where Mark catches another nice trout and Will hooks up to a 40 pound tarpon that ate a live pinfish under a Cajun Thunder. The tarpon jumps at least 4 times and makes some great runs and Will is doing a great job on the fish. Will really needs this tarpon because it is the hardest of the Grand Slam fish. The tarpon makes another head shaking jump and the leader parts and the fish is gone. We settle down and get back to fishing and quickly loose a snook and a mystery fish and catch a few catfish before heading to our last spot. Will has fallen asleep but Mark continues to cast the Hook Up lure and Gulp shrimp and catches a few snappers in this spot. We spooked two large snook but no hits so we head back to the ramp. On the way in we have a bunch of bottle nosed dolphins playing in front of the boat.
Today I am with my wife Dana and we get a late start but will try to make the best of it. We head out Haulover Inlet and catch all the bait we need and now off to the fishing grounds. We head straight out the Inlet in 120 feet of water and put our baits in the water. After six drifts in the same area we land three kings to eight pounds release six bonitos to 15 pounds, a few trigger fish and add a dolphin to the kingfish. We had over 30 strikes but lost fish to pulled hooks, cut offs and missed strikes where the fish did not eat the bait. A lot of action for four hours!
Back on the water with Jerome and his grandson's Spencer 11 and Jake seven. We head out Haulover Inlet again catch our bait and head offshore. We head for the same area as we fished the day before but the conditions are not the same and after a long drift we have two strikes and no hook ups. I decide to head offshore to look for dolphin and after running quite a few miles we spot a turtle on the surface. Recently big dolphins have been traveling with turtles but this time. This turtle is paired up with another and doing the wild thing. Quite a site to see! We spot some fish under the turtles but they turn out to be remoras of which one eat our bait spooks the turtles and as the turtles flee the remora attaches itself to a turtle and starts to strip our spinning reel. I have to grab the spool to break the line at the leader or we will lose all of our line. While we are messing around with the turtles and remoras a school of dolphin swims by and we never get a bait to them. We head inshore and spot a sailfish free jumping something they do often and fish a few baits in the area but no takers. We head back in to 120 feet of water and try our luck again. It's like someone turned on the feeding switch because almost every bait in the water gets hit. Before we head in we have landed two kingfish in the eight to 12 pound class, one big bonito, remoras and a 40 pound sailfish that the boys took turns fighting on 10 pound spin.
Again we are on the water and fishing Offshore of Haulover Inlet. I have Paul and Gerald on the boat for a seven to 11 charter. We catch our bait at the Inlet and head offshore to where the fish were biting the day before. The wind is nonexistent and the current is totally different. Our first drift we have at least 10 hits but no hook ups and the next drift two strikes and a couple of bluerunners and a remora. It's getting late so I decide to head offshore to look for dolphins but find non and now we are right outside Haulover Inlet and have time for one last drift. Within seconds we miss two more fish and then after throwing some live chum in the water and having a large fish crash a biat on the surface we hook up with a fish that might be a big black fun tuna. We are hooked up but just like that the hook pulls once again. A few more good strikes and then a group of remoras hit our bait and tangle our lines and it's time to head in.
Well that's how this past week went and you can clearly see the possibilities that South Florida has to offer fishermen during the summer.
Well that catches us up for now!
Give me a call and let's go fishing!
786-436-2064
Check out my new web site and see your monthly catches and pictures.
www.getemsportfishing.com
Check out my report in the Miami Herald's Sports section under Fishing Updates each Thursday, the Florida Sportsman Magazines South Florida Internet Fishing Report (www.floridaspotsman.com), my monthly Action Spotter Fishing Report for the South Region in the Florida Sportsman Magazine each month or tune into the Florida Sportsman Magazines Live Radio Show on 1080 WMCU on the AM dial or listen on the internet at www.1080wmcu.com every Saturday morning from 7 to 8 AM and here the up to the minute fishing forecasts from some of the top Capt.'s in South Florida like Capt. Jimbo Thomas on the Thomas Flyer, Capt. Bouncer Smith on Bouncers Dusky, Capt Skip Bradeen on the Blue Chips Too out of Whale Harbor Marina, Capt. Wayne Conn on The Reward Fleet, and more.
I have recently been wearing a lot of Columbia Sports Wear on my fishing charters and the new Blood & Guts shirts are amazing. I have had mackerel, cobia and snook just splatter me with blood and one good washing and the shirts are as good as new. Check out their web site at www.columbia.com
Sponsors: Yamaha, Bob Hewes Boats, Maverick, Minn Kota, Lowrance Electronics, Daiwa, General Motors & Chevrolet, Rapala, Mustad, Ande Lines, Pure Fishing, Gulp, Berkley, Precision Tackle, Cajun Thunders, Capt. Hank Brown's Hook Up Lures, Hydro Glow Lights, Costa Del Mar Sunglasses, Saltwater Assassins, Key Largo Rods, Lee Fisher Cast Nets, Smartshield, Master Repair in Stuart Florida, Power Pole, Stow Master Nets, superfishlight.com, Columbia Wear
Capt. Alan Sherman
"Get Em" Sportfishing Charters
786 436 2064
[email protected]
www.getemsportfishing.com
Miami Fishing Forecast:
The rains have stopped for now at least and the winds have dropped but the fishing has really turned on. Snook are schooled and biting in Flamingo and Offshore kingfish, dolphins, tunas and bonitos are chomping at the baits.
Target Species:
Snook, Tarpon, Redfish, Cobia, Kingfish, Dolphins, Permit, Sharks
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