Along with the holiday season also comes winter fishing conditions. There will still be some days with temperatures getting into the upper seventies and even eighties along with cooler days in the sixties or colder when the cold fronts come through. The tides are getting stronger and in this area of Florida will fluctuate up to seven feet or more from high to low. Throughout the winter there also will be dominate northeast winds and these winds can govern the tidal flow. These conditions will have a direct effect on the fishing and knowing the habits of the fish will help make for a successful day.

There have already been a couple of fronts that have come through the area and a couple of those days the fishing was tough but on average snook fishing has been pretty consistent with us catching a lot of fish 18 to 26 inches. There have been a few missed opportunities on much larger fish with a couple of people I have brought out, but that’s the nature of the game with snook fishing. There’s a reason that snook are called “Bass on Steroids”. Most people are satisfied with catching just the medium sized snook. Along with the snook fishing, sea trout have been pretty abundant and I’ve been catching them on all my outings. Most of the fish have been a nice size 18 to 20” and a couple over 20”. The weather and tides have prevented me lately from paddling out to some of the barrier islands where there have been good sized redfish being caught. In the bay area’s I’ve caught a few 18 to around 24”. I don’t usually target them but there have been a lot of sharks around and I see them often, including bull, blacktip and lemon’s. Some other fish around and being caught are jacks and ladyfish, gag grouper, mangrove snappers, sheepshead and I caught a couple of smaller barracudas one morning in the bay.

Happy Holidays! And “Catch the Experience”

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