June in Destin means it’s time to go fishing! It also means the kick off of Red Snapper season, which has become a bigger holiday than the Fourth of July. The offshore bite in June really starts to turn on as the water warms up and we get good pushes of blue water in closer. Get your boat and tackle ready, you don’t want to miss out.
INSHORE BITE: I’ve talked with numerous customers and guides over the last couple months and all are agreement that this has been a great year for speckled trout. The grade of trout is excellent this year, the bait is plentiful and grass beds seem very healthy. These are great things to see and it’s really exciting for what the future may hold.
Many people are doing very good fishing artificial soft and hard plastic baits over the grass flats early in the morning and late in the evening. One of my favorites is the suspending Mirrolure Mirrodine. There’s been a ton of greenies and menhaden in the bayous that are terrific trout bait. You can cast net these in the back and edges of the bayous extending to the bay and also on the shallow grass flats; just look for them schooling for flipping. I like to find a good grass flat in about 5-6 ft of water and anchor up, use a chum bat to sling out some of the excess menhaden, and free line the live baits back behind the boat. You’ll have to weed through some of the bluefish and catfish, but you’ll catch plenty of nice trout this way. There’s no better bait out there for trout than croakers, so if you find them make sure you get a bunch and keep it quiet where you caught them, don’t even tell your Momma where you’re getting them, they’re not easy to find. Of course fishing at night can be a great escape from the heat and is also a great way to catch trout under the lights of docks. Use smaller baits like shrimp when fishing like this. You want to be able to toss your bait up there and not spook anything. Don’t flop a big giant pinfish up there. The redfish bite has been strong too. Just fish the same way you are for trout and you’ll be able to pick a few up like that.
OFFSHORE BITE: June 11th is the start of the state and federal red snapper season. People that have been frustrated from releasing them all year can finally get put them on ice. Don’t get stressed out about where to fish for snapper; almost everything out there that’s marked “public” holds plenty of them. Be sure to use live bait for better results at the public spots. Try and load up with cigarminnows and herring. Dial back your terminal gear using fluorocarbon leaders from 40-50lb. Keep your baits about half way in the water column; you’ll get more bites and catch bigger fish. Using smaller hooks will get you more bites too. There’s plenty of fish on these wrecks, you just need to try different techniques to catch them. We don’t have many days, so make them count.
The king mackerel bite has been terrific this year too which I really hope stays around. All the nearshore wrecks and reefs have been holding a ton of mackerel. They’ve been pretty savage too so if you can’t find the live baits, troll the dead cigar minnows or even Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnows.
BLUEWATER: So far 2019 has been a terrific for the offshore/bluewater bite. We have had a big push of pretty blue water in as close as 15 miles for over a month now. While the best fishing has been out towards the spur, the edge starting at around 28 miles has been very good too. Lots of wahoo and blackfin tuna have been stacked up along the edge. There’s been a ton of grass stacked up forming big patches and lines where you can catch all the dolphin you want. There have been quite a few billfish mixed in along the edge and further offshore as well. If you can get a crew together to make a trip, it’s a great time to do so. If the weather stays like it has been the last month or so, I predict that our offshore bite should stay very strong throughout the month of June and into July.
For more info on boats, fishing, tackle, etc, make sure and stop by the Ships Chandler in Destin, FL, 850-837-9306 or check us out on the web at www.theshipschandler.com.
CAPT. PETER WRIGHT, JR.
The Ships Chandler
646 E. Hwy 98
Destin, FL 32541
850-837-9306
www.theshipschandler.com
