By Captain Bill D’Antuono:
After all the relentless winds settled we are finally headed straight into summer. There are no excuses, get in the water now. Gag grouper is now open, which changed from a July 1st to June 1st opener last year. Size is now 24 inches, so be very selective when targeting this species. A truly exciting fish to hunt and they can be spotted on almost every dive site in the Gulf.
Gag grouper make for a challenging hunt. Fast, nimble and smart, they take some know-how to get one in the boat. One thing you can try is to just ignore them and wait for them to come around. Chances are, all the commotion of shooting a mangrove snapper could draw one in. Of course, if you have an accurate shot take it, but one aggressive look and they’ll make a move for the open sand and be gone. If this happens, try swimming off into the sand and make them go back to the structure.
Recent trips have been productive. Cobia have moved into the northern Gulf, but have been hanging around if you know where to find them. Reports of a monster 65lb cobia were taken along with a 15lb cubera. Permit have shown up as expected, and red grouper are headed back into shallow water.
Water temperatures are rising steadily. Finding good visibility can be challenging and heavily dependent on the tides. The key, find deeper water & work different areas & depths to find better visibility. Keep checking my website and social media our latest catch.
Capt. Bill is a dive master at SCUBAdventures in Naples, in 2013 his efforts helped to lift a 50-year ban on spearfishing in Collier County waters, he is the founder of the Naples Spearfishing League and is available as a local spearfishing guide. You can contact Bill at naplesspearfishingleague@gmail.com – www.spearfishingnaplesFL.com or visit him at SCUBAdventures.