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 Some really cool temperatures moved into the area over the Christmas and New Year holiday. The blustery winds and cooler temperatures had the pompano moving throughout the bay nicely. A delicious fish to target, their table fair is top 5 in my book. They are also really fun to catch, will hit a jig like a sack of bricks!!! With cooler temperatures on the horizon, and a full box of jigs, it's a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!
Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 www.palmislandoutfitters.com www.charlotteharborchronicles.com 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 With September rains, the inland and harbor water temperature have started to fall. This triggers all of our inshore gamefish, to start moving into a fantastic fall trend. Trout can be found in abundance, over the deep water grasses on the bar edges throughout the harbor.
Snook have started to move from the passes and beaches, into traditional trends heading for warm water refuge for a fall feed looking forward to winter time. Redfish can be found scattered throughout the harbor and bays, most fish caught on shorelines are under slot... But, big schools of over slot breeding fish are starting to pop up throughout the fishery on moon tides. Like most fall seasons, it's a fantastic time to be fishing in South West Florida!!! Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 With red tide still looming at our door step at our areas beaches, we have still been catching consistent fish in the back country of Charlotte Harbor. Because of the restriction of tidal flows to certain areas, there are areas of safe refuge for the fish during bouts with red tide.
Our goal as anglers, is the zero in on those areas, and concentrate our efforts to fish clean water. Snook, redfish and lots of big trout were caught this week. Spotted sea trout upward of 25" landed this week on multiple trips. Snook and redfish were smaller, but fun to catch and kept steady action. The water temperature is almost 80 degrees, and we will have an area of high pressure overhead starting next week. That will make our winds turn east for a few days and hopefully blow the dirty water out in the Gulf. Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 We have had beautiful weather here in South West Florida the last week or so. But, the last cold front brought some Red Tide to our shores and in our bays. We are optimistic that another week of warm temperatures and East winds with help the red tide move out in the Gulf, and off of the beaches.
Meanwhile... We have been fishing South in the harbor system where the red tide has not been able to get. Trout, Snook, and Redfish are our target species, and we are finding plenty of them. The water is warming up daily, and with more warm temperatures in the weeks forecast, it a fantastic time to go Fishing in South West Florida. Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 The fall season has arrived... With lots of rain this month, the water temperature has started to fall. Lots of snook are starting to move and stage in close proximity to our passes, and the outer edges of the backcountry. Large schools of redfish are being found throughout the harbor and bays. Trout are being found over the deeper grasses in high flow areas. Tarpon are staging in the deeper pockets of the harbor for a late season feed before winter. For all those reasons, fall is a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!
Capt. Mike Slattery 941-626-6946 |
Capt. Mike
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