By: Joe Sheaffer
Dealing with the summer heat in Southwest Florida can be quite a challenge during our fishing adventures. Our hot months are much longer than areas up north. As anglers in this environment, we need to adapt to the warmer temperatures throughout this season. Many Anglers fish early, calling it a day before noon. Some fishermen fish later during the evening or even at night to beat the heat, hopefully finding fish that are a bit more aggressive. Many of us have limited opportunities to fish and go when we can. That has been my trend of late and it can be a struggle fishing during the heat. I typically use artificial lures and grinding out a few fish on my outings of late has been the norm. I don’t usually fish with live bait and trying to find fish that may react to my lure presentation is inconsistent at best. If you’re like me and you fish the windows that you have, there are keys that we can focus on that can help improve our chances. Key #1, try to fish as early as you can, if the dawn of the day isn’t possible, then mid to late morning is still better than the middle of the day. Finding shady areas along the mangroves will still present opportunities to catch fish shallow before they bury themselves under the mangroves. Key #2, fishing tide changes or windier areas can definitely be productive. Fish will position themselves near current areas to feed, that can offset other conditions including heat. Focus on the down current areas especially if the flow is being disrupted by some type of structure. Key #3 Points and Funnel areas tie in with current. Fish like points and funnel areas because there will be some current around these areas and structures. Wind can be the catalyst creating current flow. Key #4 Fishing around bait pods and Mullet schools. If there is bait, usually there will be a predator or two around looking for a meal. Many times, predators will hang with Mullet schools, not so much to eat them but the Mullet spook other bait fish that Reds and Snook will feed on. Key #5 Last but not least, cover water, Power Fishing. Many times, I focus on these keys as I cover water, focusing on current areas, points, structure and even Mullet schools. Even when conditions are tough and the bite is inconsistent, I usually can find a few fish to make for a successful day on the water. Stay cool, keep casting and good luck!