by Capt. Bill D’Antuono
As sportsmen, we must adapt to and deal with Mother Nature in all her forms. Just days before Christmas a ‘Meteo-Tsumani’ blasted Southwest Florida and brought storm surge and 25 foot waves onto our beaches. Winds were recorded over 50mph and the gulf was stirred up and looked like a glass of chocolate milk, even 100 miles offshore.
Needless to say, diving has been tough the past month or so. But as advantageous as I am, we have to take the good with the bad. The change in seasons and weather patterns also stirs up the fish. The snapper fishing has been phenomenal and cobia have been schooling around deeper wrecks. Water has since cleared up and clarity has improved. Even so, my dive trips have been limited to deeper water because of the visibility since the last Okeechobee releases in July so this is nothing new. In years past, winter time diving presented clear water, but it all depends on weather patterns and this being an El Niño year means more turbidity in the Gulf.
We have recently seen some stellar days on the water. With seas less than two feet, getting out on the water and finding fish has not been a problem in recent weeks. Water temperature is still hovering around 70 degrees and air temps can be near 80 and makes for comfortable wintertime diving. I have been targeting deeper wrecks hunting cobia, snapper, and grouper. I try to find new spots along the way and it’s always nice having divers willing to check out new spots; they tend to be most productive and keep away from more populated, pressured areas. Stay tuned with our latest catches on my Instagram @OffshoreNaples and Facebook @BillDantuono pages. Leave a comment there or shoot me a message if you have any questions about spearfishing. I look forward to talking to new clients and promoting diving in Southwest Florida. Till next time.
