Capt. Mike Slattery
941-626-6946
Redfish!!! It's been an awesome spring fishing season so far. We are starting to see "lots" of Redfish moving throughout the bay. We are even seeing some "breeder" sized fish, not just the smaller juvenile fish we would expect coming back from Red Tide. We are not allowed to keep the redfish in Charlotte harbor, but it's great to allow clients opportunities to catch them. With our redfish population on the rebound, it's a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!
Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946
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Our spring fishing has kicked off with a bang!!! This years relentless winter, has given way to an "Oven baked" spring!!! We had temperatures this week, that started in the low 50's, and rose to nearly 90 degrees!!! Those rising temperatures, have made the fish respond positively!!!
Morning half days are producing a good bite for keeper trout, and snook on deeper shorelines, because the tides are still in the winter solstice... But, the afternoons... with the turn and help from the westerly winds, and a healthy incoming tide, have been producing redfish, snook, and trout... with incredible consistency!!! It's a fun time to go fishing in South West Florida!!! Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 The pompano fishing in the bay remains strong. With the forecast calling for highs in the low 80's for the next 10 days, we anticipate bait fishing to kick off within that time frame. Transitioning nto spring conditions Snook, redfish, and trout are our bread and butter trips. With spring conditions on the horizon, it's a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!
Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 The pompano fishing throughout the bay has been as good as I've seen this winter, in my 15 years of professional guiding!!! For that, I'm continuing to ride them through the remainder of this trend.
As we progress into spring, our water temperature will rise, bait will move in from offshore, and we will start our "bread at butter" snook, trout, and redfish routine. Until then, it's pompano and fresh fish dinners for our respective guests. It's a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!! Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 Happy New Year fishing followers!!!
Our 2023 season ended with some incredibly cool and unusual weather. We had a low pressure system move into the Gulf the week before Christmas, and it was followed by the coolest temperatures of 2023. That set us up for some winter time conditions. When our water temperature falls under 68°, we turn our attention to some "off brand" species. Pompano are available throughout the bay, during these cold temperatures of the winter season. Working diligently to jig the deep water flats, produces a high rate of by-catch, and the value of the target species is worth the hunt. With the right guide service, winter time can be a fun and tasty time to fish in South West Florida!!! Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 With the winter winds bringing cold air down from the north, our winter season has started early this year.
When our inshore water temperature drops under 70 degrees, our inshore fishing changes. We put up our live bait rods, and break out the Jiggs!!! Jigging the bay for pompano, can be some really fun fishing, that can produce some excellent table faire. Pompano are typically found on our beach front, traversing the passes and sand bars. But, when the big north blows happen, and the water temperature drops, they move inshore!!! We concentrate our efforts on the sandy bottom channels that make up the bay, and use a solid drifting technique to maximize our coverage as we search for schools. The by-catch is but not limited to: trout, flounder, jacks, bluefish, mackerel, and my favorite, the "lovely Lady" fish!!! Because winter has come early, and the pompano are in the bay, it's an fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!! Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 We have finally progressed through our late season push of summer travelers. With school starting back up, and the summer heat continuing to warm the Gulf of Mexico, we continued to concentrate on our late summer time trends. Limits of mangrove snapper are being caught on most trips. Snook fishing is strong as ever. Schools of redfish are beginning to show up throughout the harbor. With a tropical system looming in the south west Caribbean, our locals have their attention fixed to the forecast. With all that said, we can use the rain, and it remains a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!
Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 The summer heat has set in!!! The good thing is, we know just what to do when that happens!!! Our summer time snook fishing is about as good as it could get!!! Early morning days with 20-30 fish, along with some big fish mixed in is common on a good tide!!!
Mangrove snapper are the targeted species to take home for dinner, a trend tat should hold strong into the month of August. Tarpon, are still holding in the passes, and are starting to stage in the harbor system for a fall feed. Capt. Mike Slattery Who likes to cat BIG fish??? Because if you do, now is that time to fish Manasota Key, Palm Island, and Boca Grande!!! Giant tarpon are all over our fishery, and feeding hard on the falling tides in our passes. Free lining of crab, is the ticket to getting tight, but you have to play the tides to win at this game. Beach fishing has been harder than typical. We have incredibly clear water throughout the fishery, and the beach bite has been tough in sun lit conditions. The most productive time has been early morning, when the light is low, and the fish can't "study" the bait.
Big snook fishing has been rough over the last few weeks. Bites are aggressive, but again due to the clarity, the fish are spooky. We have still been able to land some good ones, but the anglers on the rod, must capitalize on the opportunity of the bite!!! It's an incredible time to go fishing in South West Florida!!! Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 We have entered the "Goldilocks zone"... That's what I like to call the time of year, before the summer rain starts and the water becomes "gin clear" with freshwater run off. Also, the water temperature is just right for fish to be aggressive but not too warm to make them lethargic!!! The perfect match of clarity and temperature, matched with good tides, equals quality outings with productive opportunities throughout the fishery.
Tarpon on the beach front and passes, and good packs of Big Snook gathering for a summer spawn. When you have the right conditions, targeting both can be done in a half day trip!!! Only 4 hrs, to land bucket list trophy fish!!! It's a great time to go fishing in South West Florida!!! Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 |
Capt. Mike
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