We are having an awesome sailfish season in Fort Lauderdale this year. They are snapping! Cooler temperatures this month are getting the sailfish active and hunting, all over the reef and edge of the Gulfstream. The blue water gets pushed in pretty close this time of year and generally forms a nice current edge where the green water meets the blue. The blue water side of this current edge is a great area to set up for kite fishing. Live goggle eyes, threadfin, mullet, and tinker mackerel are all great live baits to use while kite fishing. They stay lively for a long time on the kite, and they put off great vibrations/fish-in-distress signals. When that sailfish comes up on your kite bait and sticks that hairdo up, it’s the most exciting few seconds in sportfishing.
Tuna, dolphin, and wahoo are all biting well just outside the reef this month. Trolling is a great way to cover a lot of ground, looking for some fish. I like to troll between 120-250′ of water, up and down the coast, until I figure out what depths the fish are biting best at on that day. Fish a double hooked swimming ballyhoo on a deep line and you’ll have a good shot at big wahoo. A lot of big wahoos get caught this time of year. Bluefish also sometimes migrate northward up our coastline this month. Following right with them are big game sharks like hammerhead and mako, feeding on them at will. This is the beginning of our big shark fishing season which will last through to the end of May. There’s a great variety and a lot of action fishing in South Florida this month. Tight lines and good fishing!
Capt. Rod Roydhouse
