by Capt. Craig Korczynksi, Contributing Writer
Happy July 4th to all you anglers. This month offers explosive inshore action for anglers. Summer fishing is in full swing. The key to successful catching is early morning and late evening fishing as water temperatures are cooler. Stay cool, drink water and load up on the sun block, its summer time.
The snook are striking with a bang; the spawn is on. Snook are schooled up in the inlets and along deep channels and beach fronts. Live bait schools are prevalent just about everywhere you look and the key to fishing is match the hatch. Greenies are the bait of choice for snook, but pinfish and mullet will set you apart from others. DOA lures work great for snook along the beaches; nothing beats a DOA C.A.L. 4” jerk bait in glow holographic or pearl color. Mirror lure twitch baits are also a great bait while fishing the beaches or drop offs where snook are lurking. The size of the snook ranges from 5 to 30 pounds.
This time of year, the silver king action is fantastic. Tarpon are along the beaches in the ICW and all through our deep channels. They tend to school up in pods; early morning risers get the best shots at bigger fish, as they are less spooky. The fish on the beach range from 50 to 120 pounds. The silver kings in the inlet and ICW are willing to devour any greenie in their path, but don’t shy away from artificial DOA bait busters and DOA terror eyz in root beer or pearl; they provoke drag screaming action. Fly anglers can battle fish as they are chummed up boat side. This can lead to close combat fishing that will get your blood flowing.
Local flats and bays are also great areas to target trout, jacks, and drum as they roam seawalls and docks pilings in search of a meal. Live baits or DOA C.A.L. 3” shad tail in gold and glow or figi chix trigger the fish to strike. Drum will strike DOA shrimp or DOA C.A.L. 3” shad on 1/8 ounce jig head in gold glitter or glow holographic.
The peacock bass will offer anglers plenty of sight fishing action. Fly, DOA shrimp and live shiners are great tools to entice the peacock to strike. Peacock are very aggressive and can be found on beds near shorelines and seawalls. The warm weather really triggers the peacock bass, the hotter the better. Schools of peacock bass are not uncommon to see, and they can range in size from 2 to 7 pounds.
Well that is the fishing report hope you all enjoyed. Get out there and get your drags screaming. Tight Lines! Capt. Craig Korczynksi PhlatsInshoreFishing.com 561-644-4371,visit us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.