So far July has been excellant for inshore and offshore anglers.
Offshore- Our recent offshore trips have been limiting on Red Grouper in the 12-15 lb range, with a few bigger ones mixed in. The fish seem to be concentrated in the 80-90ft range on patchy hard bottom areas. As of June 1st anglers must use circle hooks while bottom fishing, this, along with a good venting and dehooking tool can drastically reduce the mortality of any undersize fish. The circle hooks also allow for a perfect hook up in the side of the fish’s mouth almost every time, anglers on my trips have been catching more Grouper with these, than with the old ”J” hooks. The Snapper bite continues to take the main stage, with American Red’s from 8-15lbs and Mango’s from 4-6lbs. We’ve been using live whitebait and light tackle to produce non stop action. The Black Grouper have moved to deeper water and are being taken on big live bait, the biggest fish are looking for a 6-10″ Grunt. Lastly, the Goliath Grouper are happily taking over every ledge and wreck they can find, these ‘catch and release’ fish provide a challenge for anyone interested in a back workout. The fish have been ranging in size between 100-200lbs.
Inshore- The Tarpon are still holding steady off the beaches, although the schools seem to be thining a bit. Snook have been cooperating in and around the major passes, these fish are closed for harvest, so be sure to handle them carefully before releasing. Shad and big Pigfish(Grunt) are still the ticket for the big Linesiders, get up early to improve your chances.
I’ve had several trips lately, both Offshore and Inshore, with parents and their kids (ranging from 6-16 years old). It’s always so refreshing to see the enthusiasm and excitement of a young angler catching fish, it’s also extremely encouraging to watch them release their trophy catch, not because they have to, but because they want to. These kids are extremely conservation minded, whether they know it or not, and that is very, very refreshing. - Thanks for reading-Capt. Brandon
With the May winds behind us, the offshore fishing is heating up. The winds and seas have been nominal making for a fast ride to the blue water. With water temps increasing rapidly, most of the productive offshore spots will be between 90-160 feet deep. Black grouper have moved out to around 100 ft, Red grouper have been cooperating around 80 ft, all of our 3/4 day and full day trips have been limiting out on Reds pretty quickly. The Snapper bite continues to be on fire, some huge Mangrove and Red Snapper have been hitting the icebox on our recent trips. We’ve also been getting some small schoolie Dolphin (Mahi Mahi) while we’re bottom fishing, which is a nice bonus. The key to bringing home a cooler full of fish has been moving from spot to spot when the fish stop biting. The weather should stay consistent for the remainder of June, so book a trip and get offshore. - Capt. Brandon
Most of our trips lately have been nearshore,due to high winds and seas. The fishing has been good early in the morning or later in the evening, before the heat begins to slow the bite. Most nearshore trips are getting large Trout, Spanish Macks, Mangrove Snapper, Shark, Snook, and a few shots at Tarpon. As the water heats up, it will become increasingly important to get out early. On last week’s 2.5 hour kids trip we managed several nice fish including a Goliath Grouper, that was released unharmed. The wind is forcasted to be light the next few weeks, so now is a great time to get out for Grouper and Red Snapper. Thanks for reading-Capt. Brandon
The offshore fishing continues to be great. The wrecks from 90-120 feet of water have been producing large Black (Gag) Grouper, Amberjack, and Snapper. The Grouper bite has been good in the 45-55 foot range on natural hard bottom and ledges. Our 1/2 day trip from last weekend caught several Grouper in the 15-20lb range in 45 feet of water. With summertime approaching fast, now is a great time to get offshore and take advantage of the transitional weather. Red Snapper seasons opens soon, reserve your trip now to ensure the best fishing of the season. Thanks for reading-Capt. Brandon
The winds have been blowing lately, meaning more time to spend inshore fishing. The redfish action has been steady using live bait on area grass flats and aroung high tide oyster beds ( the usual spots). Snook have been moving out to the passes and beaches to their summer hangouts. These fish are very picky and downsizing leaders will be the best bet. Several 1/2 day trips have been getting plenty of shots a day at these fish, with most ranging between 8-15lbs with some over 20lbs. The winds are forecasted to remain steady around 15knots for the upcoming week, so it’s a great time to grab the light tackle and go inshore fishing. Thanks for reading- Capt. Brandon Fraley
-We have chartered with Capt. Brandon three times now, and are extremely satisfied with Fish Eye Charters. The first trip we stayed inshore and caught Redfish and Snook, we brought our 5year old son, who caught his first Redfish! The last two trips were offshore for Grouper and Amberjack. We caught our limit of Grouper on both trips (even though I missed most of the big ones in the rocks), but even more importantly had a great time. Capt. Brandon was very patient with our son and us (my wife and I). I definitely recommend Brandon and Fish Eye Charters. Paul Musenugle-Michigan
-Hey Capt Brandon, thanks for the trip! Thanks for the patience with the kids, they still talk about that “giant” shark they caught. We will see you again this October. Erin and Jack Tyler
-My brothers and I charter 6-8 times a year in the Clearwater area, usually with different captains. We recently tried Capt. Brandon and Fish Eye Charters. What a breath of fresh air!!!!! When we got their he had already caught over 200 live baits (that Morning) and the boat was loaded and ready to go. We were even 30 minutes early! By our second stop offshore we caught more grouper and snapper than we have on any other charter. We now only use Brandon because we know our money is well spent. Thanks Brandon, we’ll see you next month- Jon, Tim, and Neil Bilk
The offshore fishing is nothing short of excellant right now. We had six trips this week out to 60 miles offshore. Each one produced large numbers of keeper grouper, cobia, amberjack, and mangrove snapper among others. The weather is great and looks to be holding for the next week. We should have some photos up from our last trip shortly, in the gallery. Thanks for reading- Capt. Brandon
Large amounts of whitebait, threadfins and just about everything else has infiltrated the west central region. With the bait comes the predators, Kingfish, grouper,Blackfin Tuna, cobia -offshore and schools of reds -inshore. The Kingfish bite has been excellant on natural hardbottom around 30 feet deep. These fish are ranging between 8 and 20lbs and can be caught using live threadfins and small blue runners, either drifting or slow trolling. Several area captains have been slaying the redfish on area flats on an incoming tide, using whitebait. Find an area with a lot of mullet, patchy grass and sand bottom, and the reds aren’t too far behind. The grouper bite is on fire from 50-75 feet, mostly gag’s taken on live bait. The Blackfin Tuna are in 90-130 feet of water, anchor over your favorite wreck chum and put out the flatline, using floro leaders will help your hookup ratio, live sardines are the ticket. -Capt. Brandon - www.fisheyefishing.com
