DELAWARE

Indian River

Tog fishing on the Bandit was slow Saturday, and only a handful of the fish were taken, and the water was dirty and cold and had cooled 3 degrees, Jerry the mate said. But an 8-pounder won the pool, and the water-temp charts showed a 3-degree increase in the past days, and warmer weather was forecast, so the bite should bounce back. The boat fished from 15 miles to 30 miles from the inlet. The Bandit, sailing from Belmar, N.J. from spring through fall, is fishing for tog from Delaware for the winter, allowing anglers to bag a limit of 10 while Jersey’s limit is reduced this season. Open-boat trips leave the dock Fridays through Sundays, and call to reserve, and charters are available the rest of the week. Call: 732-692-9521. Visit Web Site.

VIRGINIA

Virginia Beach

Striped bass fishing was holding up for boats sailing from the Virginia Beach Fishing Center, although the fish recently were schooling about 5 miles south toward the North Carolina border and 2 miles offshore, Frankie Wade said.  Trolled parachutes and umbrella rigs hooked the rockfish, and no citation ones or rocks 40 pounds or larger were weighed in, but lunkers from 32 to 38 pounds were checked in.  The rockfish season lasts through March 31, and anglers at the center can either fish for them from their own boats or can book a charter. Those who lack enough people to fill a charter can sign up with the marina, and the staff will try to put them together with a group. The head boats sailed Saturday and put patrons into very good sea bassing 40 miles offshore, and lots of the customers limited out, and citation sea bass 5 pounds or larger were boated. The head boats sail on Saturdays, and some will start targeting tautog this coming weekend. Visit Web Site.

NORTH CAROLINA

Oregon Inlet

Boaters at Oregon Inlet Fishing Center were mostly stuck on land because of bad weather, but rockfishing from the marina was slow and pretty much finished for the year, Jenny Lippincott said. One boat was fishing offshore for yellowfin tuna today when she gave this report, and tilefish could be reeled in 30 miles offshore. Visit Web Site.

Hatteras

Surf casters were sometimes picking up puppy drum and speckled seatrout around False Point toward Hatteras Inlet, said Roy Kingery from The Roost Bait & Tackle at Teach’s Lair Marina. The puppies will bite cut bait like finger mackerel, and the specks will hit artificials like rubber grubs. Offshore boaters could land yellowfin tuna and blackfin tuna. Visit Web Site.

LOUISIANA

Venice

A trip to the Midnight Lump last Tuesday bagged 13 blackfin tuna and one vermilion snapper with Paradise Outfitters at the Midnight Lump, and two big yellowfin tuna were boated on other vessels that day, the fishing report on its web site said. On a charter Thursday a 50-pound wahoo was the first taker on the troll, and this would be the last wahoo landed on charters that week, but not for lack of trying. But then the charter got on anchor and had a ball catching blackfin tuna and some snappers. Another charter with Paradise that day smoked 10 blackfins and one yellowfin.  The next day on Friday a charter fished for tuna first and picked up a half-dozen blackfins in an hour and had a run-off from a large fish that was probably a yellowfin. Then the anglers trolled and trolled but couldn’t buy a bite. Another boat that day trolled for wahoos at first and hooked one that was lost when it wrapped around a rig, and Paradise thought that boat probably also scored some blackfins. Another vessel fished the lump a couple of days later on Sunday and came back with 17 blackfins and two yellowfins. The Midnight Lump, a 200-foot mound that rises in 400 feet in the Gulf of Mexico, is home to big yellowfin tuna, wahoos and blackfin tuna during winter until the fish head to deeper water. Paradise Outfitters fishes for big game and also targets rigs and wrecks for snappers, cobias, groupers, amberjacks and such species. Call: 985-845-8006. Visit Web Site.

FLORIDA

Clearwater/Tampa/Tarpon Springs

Fishing for 3- to 10-pound redfish was excellent in the shallows that were broken up with grass and sand, Capt. Rich Knox from Absolute Flats Fishing said in an e-mail. The fish grabbed Berkley Gulp shrimp on jigs, and good-sized speckled seatrout were mixed in during high tides, pouncing on Texas-rigged jerk shads. Plenty of big, gator trout also jumped on live shrimp and pilchards along the edges of the barrier islands and the banks of the Intracoastal Waterway. The weather mellowed after two harsh cold fronts last week, and air temps reached the mid 70s, and the water warmed to the mid 60s, turning on fishing for all species on the flats. In other news, the pilchard migration started, so snook were coming out of their deep, back-country winter homes and giving up good action in the river and estuary system on outgoing tides. Small tarpon from 10 to 50 pounds were also showing up in some areas and eating the larger pilchards.  Giant tarpon trips are being booked for May and June at world famous Boca Grande nearby. Call 727-376-8809 or 800-890-9373 or Visit Web Site.

Jupiter

Sailfishing was coming to an end near Jupiter, and fishing for king mackerel, wahoo, amberjacks and other fish will now take over, said Capt. Tony Matarese of Showtime Sportfishing Charters. Sailfishing was good at least through last Wednesday, and boats were coming back to the dock with 6 to 8 release flags as late as Saturday. Tony was on hiatus from fishing during the weekend, and windy weather hampered trips the past couple of days. But king mackerel fishing already started, and a few wahoo were around, and sharks would also give up a fight. Not many dolphin were biting. Call: 561-743-6942. Visit Web Site.

Miami/Fort Lauderdale/Boca Raton

Warm weather rolled in this past week and somewhat slowed the migration of fish from the north, said Capt. Ron Mallet from the Just Add Water. Air temps were in the low 80s, and the water was 74 ½  degrees, somewhat warm for this time of year. But sailfish still bit, mostly early in the day on big baits, especially tinker mackerel. Scattered, smaller dolphin were mixed in and ate live pilchards, and a few amberjacks started to show up at deep wrecks in 200 to 250 feet, chomping down on live ballyhoos or pilchards, and the a.j.’s will now begin turning on. King mackerel fishing was slow, and normally kings are biting at this time of year. Closer to shore, Spanish mackerel could be hooked on live bait, especially live shrimp, or spoons. When the weather turns rough, Ron often fishes from the inlet to the back waters, and barracudas were tearing up baits at the inlet this past week. Not many jack crevalles were holding at the inlet, but Ron saw the jacks at his dock. Ron was also seeing bait in the ocean, and he hoped that meant fish would continue to follow them from up north. The fishing changes quickly in the local area, and a look back through this year’s reports is proof, and Ron tells his customers not to go by the current report, because the bite could change by the time they arrive. Still, there’s plenty of action to be had. Call: 954-423-8700. Visit Web Site.

Islamorada

Offshore fishing was good for sailfish, cobia and king mackerel early last week on the Pretty Work, a boat that partners with Over Under Adventures, an e-mail from Over Under said. On Wednesday and Thursday the king mackerel fishing turned on, and some bigger ones showed up, such as two 30- and 40-pounders that were boated. A trip also got out for swordfish one night and caught two, missed a couple and released two sharks. A bottom-fishing trip on Friday bagged yellowtail snappers to 3 pounds. Call: 866-OUA-TUNA. Visit Web Site. 

Captain Easy Charters did lots of fishing and catching, Capt. Bruce Anderson said. Bottom fishing was very good for snappers and groupers at the reef a couple of miles from land. Farther from shore, amberjacks, including big ones to 85 and 90 pounds that charters banged this past week, were showing up at the Lump 11 miles from the dock on live bait such as blue runners and speedos. Blackfin tuna fishing was mostly slow at the Lump so far but is expected to get better. A few sailfish could be found just beyond the reef in 80 to 200 feet or 3 to 3 ½ miles out, but sailfishing’s been rather slow this year, and the season’s drawing to an end. Dolphin fishing should start to improve, and a few were around, but usually the best bite takes off in April. Charters often troll for the mahi until they find some, and then they pitch live or dead baits to the fish. Call: 305-451-9578 or 305-360-2120. Visit Web Site.

Bahamas

The Low Profile, Over Under Adventures’ new boat, arrived in its winter home at San Salvador in the Bahamas and started fishing last week, an e-mail from Over Under said. On the first day out, wahoo fishing was pretty good, and three were boated, including a 77-pounder, and the crew saw a couple of 100-pound ‘hoos come to the dock. On the second day out, wahoos were a no show, but dolphin fishing was great for 6- to 28-pounders, and some blackfin tuna were also caught. Wahoo fishing should last through mid to late March, and then dolphin, tuna and billfishing should start to dominate. But the water is unseasonably warm, so billfishing might start early. Over Under Adventures fishes from the Bahamas through spring and early summer before returning to Avalon, N.J., to sail for big game offshore for the summer and fall. Afterward the boat makes stops at North Carolina and the Florida Keys to fish before it heads back to the Bahamas. But it also partners with boats that fish from North Carolina and the Keys during the best times of year for fishing there. Call: 866-OUA-TUNA. Visit Web Site.

Back to Top