April is a great month for catching migratory species like dolphin and cobia. Also, the bait schools will be showing up along the beaches and buoys. After catching your live bait, head offshore and start trolling ballyhoo in 60 feet of water out to 300 feet. Look for current rips and weed lines that could be holding dolphin. You’re likely to catch a sailfish as well. If its cobia or kingfish you’re after, use that live bait and slow troll the beaches or fish in depths of 60 to 90 feet. You might catch some sharks too, so use wire kingfish rigs to avoid cutoffs. Bottom fishing for grouper, snapper and amberjacks really starts heating up on the reefs and wrecks. Use live bait, cut bait, squid and butterfly jigs. Remember that groupers are catch and release only until May 1 but you can start keeping vermillion snappers again on April 1.
Don’t forget the beaches as there is still a good Spanish mackerel bite going on. Try anchoring off the beach in 25 to 30 feet of water just outside the reef and use live shrimp.
In this picture, my friends from The Fort Pierce Sport Fishing Club and I caught all of these fish in just three hours, using live shrimp and fishing in 25 feet of water just north of the inlet. WOW!
FORECAST BY: Capt. Chris Nelson
All Hooked Up Sportfishing Charters
Phone: (772) 408-3119
Email: CaptainChrisn@yahoo.com
http://www.allhookedupfishing.com
Located at Harbortown Marina, Fort Pierce, FL