Sebastian Area Offshore Fishing Report and Forecast: July 2015

Capt. Bill Stewart of the "Rogue Wave" with a big mangrove snapper caught on a spinning rod. PHOTO CREDIT: Rogue Wave
Capt. Bill Stewart of the “Rogue Wave” with a big mangrove snapper caught on a spinning rod. PHOTO CREDIT: Rogue Wave

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]here is no doubt the thermoclines have made it to Sebastian. We have had reports of water temps of 54-degrees on the bottom in 80 feet. That’s really cold and it changes things big time. Bottom fishing offshore is poor at best. Watch for snappers to push in towards the beaches. We’ve had some great days on rocks in 45 feet and less this month. Scale your tackle way down, like you would if you were going after snook, for the shallow water snapper. The best baits are live mahoras and cut bait. The cold water is doing wonders for dolphin and cobia fishing. Cobia have been easy to spot near the surface where the water is much warmer. I like a chartreuse jig or live baits for cobia. Although scattered weeds have made trolling for dolphin difficult, the catches have been impressive. Most guys have been getting them in 100 foot or less. Amberjack are usually found in 160 foot or deeper. Now many of them have pushed into the shallows. That’s right, AJ’s in 45-to-80 feet. Great fun on light tackle. Bonito can be found just outside the inlet, crashing through pods of bait fish, and will readily take a small silver spoon when presented into the middle of the feeding frenzy.