March at Big Easy Charters is preparation time. We go through all our safety gear, check all bilge pumps, and running and spotlights. Basically, all the things that get overlooked during the rough winter months. We do it now before the weather gets nice and we’re too busy fishing.
March should be some awesome fishing. Plenty of cobia all up and down the 85- and 90-foot reefs. They’ll be biting pretty much anything you throw at them, from live pilchards, thread fin, croakers and grunts to jigs.
The snapper—mutton, mangrove, and lane— should be fired up too. Don’t overlook the 60-foot reefs as well if the water clears. We’ve had some great mangrove catches in there already in February.
Offshore trolling should have some scattered dolphin and wahoo on the color changes, along with the occasional blackfin tuna and sailfish. If you’re a smaller boat and don’t want to venture far, there should be some lane snapper and other smaller action around the Sebastian Inlet Sportfishing Association artificial reefs. You can find coordinates to all of these on the internet. There’s some fun fishing on them! Sometimes they hold everything—king and Spanish mackerel, lane and mangrove snapper, and cobia. You might have to scale down to a lighter leader and lead weight. Maybe even pick up some shrimp but it’ll be worth it.
Keep in mind this year will be the busiest ever. With the massive influx of people to our area, the impact to our fishery will be incredibly strong. You’ll find you’ll do better to look for places to fish where there are less boats than if you follow the crowd. You know the ol’ saying “fortune favors the bold”. Mostly make it safe and make it fun. Keep in mind all the shortages, especially tackle and bait that has to be shipped. This is a good time to hit your local tackle shop and stock up. Hooks, leader, and bait can be as scarce and as important as toilet paper lol.
That’s it for now, “Fish On Gotta Go!”
FORECAST BY: Capt. Terry Wildey
Big Easy Fishing Charters
Phone: (772) 538 – 1072
Email: captwildey@bellsouth.net
www.bigeasyfishingcharters.com
