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The good news is that fishing for sailfish is very good when the wind blows north to northeast. They are biting well on live ballyhoo as well as on kites with blue runners and goggle eyes. And, there are plenty of kingfish mixed in.
When the wind blows east and southeast, it's time to target dolphin. Even this late in the season, there are plenty of dolphin to be found while trolling weed lines at the reef edge.
The reef has gotten pretty churned up with the steady winds of late. When conditions settle down, the snapper and grouper bite should be excellent.
The same holds true for the patches and channel humps. Give these venues some time to recover, and the fishing will improve.
A real go-to right now is mackerel fishing in the bay. It has been awesome. If you're looking to load your smoker with Spanish mackerel, your opportunity is right now. And, if you'd like our recipe for smoked fish dip, drop us an email at SeaSquared@bellsouth.net.
In Marathon, the mackerel action is red-hot 8 to 10 miles out in the grasses in 8 to 10 feet of water. Shrimp or cut baits, such as blue runners or pinfish, will do the trick. You will also have success with small bucktails and spoons.
While you're in the bay, load up on good size, good tasting mangrove snapper as well.
The week's best catches
Back in Marathon for the winter fishing season, Capt. Bob Brown, of Sundance Sportfishing out of the 7 Mile Marina, put his anglers on sailfish, kingfish and dolphin.
Jim, from Indianapolis, caught his first sailfish - one of two released that day. Doug Brown, from Marblehead OH, caught a huge 31-pound kingfish along with plenty of bonito and a large dolphin that was cooked for dinner that evening.
Having no idea what to expect on their first Florida Keys fishing trip with us on the SeaSquared, Wayne and Peggy Fox, from Ludington MI, were delighted with their catch of four gorgeous hogfish, including a whopper at 18 inches, along with a 25-pound kingfish.
Capt. Kevin Wilson, of Knee Deep Charters out of Geiger Key Marina in the Lower Keys, has been having success with fishing for yellowtail snapper, and added an 11-pound black grouper to the catch on one outing.
Casting Contest
Capt. Spider's Casting for Charity is taking a week off, but will return December 15 at the 7 Mile Marina/Salty's Waterfront Grill at mile marker 47.5 bayside in Marathon. The fun contest runs from 6 to 8 p.m. and will benefit Toyz for Keyz Kidz. Please bring a new, unwrapped toy. Capt. Chris Johnson specializes in offshore, gulf/bay, bottom, wreck and reef fishing with SeaSquared Charters out of the 7 Mile Marina in Marathon. You can reach him at 305.743.5305, SeaSquared@bellsouth.net and www.SeaSquared-Charters.com.