With summer officially over, anglers now get a taste of some excellent fall fishing. Fishermen are still catching the occasional wahoo, but they are few and far between. If you still want to target them, your best bet is to head out on an early morning outgoing tide and fish over the deep wrecks from 180-250 feet of water. This past summer had one of the best wahoo runs I’ve ever seen since moving to Pompano Beach from South Jersey. The last Extreme Kayak Fishing Tournament had a 71lb Wahoo win the event.
The mahi mahi bite in October is usually very solid. For kayak anglers, you don’t have to paddle that far like in the summer to catch these beauties. I have already been getting reports of nice 15-20lb dolphin being caught from 200-250 feet of water and even some nice mahi being caught shallow with a nice east wind. A tip for catching dolphin in October is to look for the big drift boats. I’ve caught some nice sized dolphin around those boats due to the fact that they put out lots of baits and chum in the water and the fish will be just far enough to where a kayak angler can pick them off.
Sailfish season is about to be in full effect. Usually, October will bring South Florida’s first cold front and with it a great sailfish bite. There have already been some nice sails caught in 80-120 feet of water. When targeting sailfish, I like to go stealthy. Use 30-40lb mono leader with a 3/0 circle hook and a nice juicy gog.
The kingfish bite has still been solid with the occasional 30 pounder being caught around 80 feet of water, although most catches have been between 10 and 20 pounds. Many have been caught right out front of Hillsboro Inlet on an outgoing tide.
If there is one thing South Florida Fishing in October is known for, it’s catching big mutton snappers at night around the October moon. October means good numbers of mutton snapper on reefs and wrecks in 50-120 feet of water. There are even reports of muttons being caught surf fishing from the beach at night between the Pompano Pier and 16th street. For kayak anglers looking to target them, make sure you have at least 2 lights on your kayak and all of your safety equipment while fishing at sun down. The great part is you do not have to go too far to catch them. Kayak anglers can also get some nice mangrove snapper while fishing for the muttons. When rigging for muttons, make sure you have at 15 to 30 feet of 40-50lb fluorocarbon leader. Use an egg sinker and strong 4/0-5/0 circle hook. It’s best to work your drift at night dragging on sandy bottom between Pompano Pier and Hillsboro Inlet, right outside the swim buoys during the moon.
The 2018 Extreme Kayak Fishing Tournament Series kicks off with the Sailfish Smackdown scheduled for January 27-28, 2018.
Joe Hector
954-895-4527
Extreme Kayak Fishing Inc.
www.extremekayakfishing.com
joe@extremekayakfishing.com