INSHORE - There has been plenty of trout being reported during the early morning hours when using top water baits, twitch baits and soft plastic baits. After about 8am try using a live pigfish. Still some redfish being taken around the mangrove shore lines t the north of Harbor Branch on the West side of the river. Try using gold spoons or chunk of ladyfish -- these have been the baits of choice. The catch and release snook action has been good along the Ft. Pierce Inlet with the bigger fish being caught on live baits like a pinfish, pigfish, mullet or greenies. The snapper bite continues to improve along the channel edges of the Intercoastal and around the local bridges with live shrimp being the bait of choice. Hopefully the shrimp shortage is almost over with the deliveries coming in on a regular basis.
OFFSHORE - This week if you were in 100 feet of water you probably missed the bite. Most of the fish reported were caught in less than 100 feet of water. I had a lot of dolphin reported in the 8 to 15 pound range and several over 20 pounds and a few over 30 pounds. A trolled ballyhoo was the way to go. I did get reports of some big kings, a few cobia in the 20 to 30 pound range, a few wahoo and a couple of sails all in the same area to the south of the Ft. Pierce Inlet in 65 to 95 feet of water. Most of those fish were caught on live baits. I did get reports from the boats that went deep saying that they caught a few dolphin, a few wahoo and even a few small tuna but the fish were not there in good numbers like they were closer inshore. The bottom fishing for snapper and grouper is on the rise with snapper to 10 pounds and grouper to 30 pounds being reported over the reefs and wrecks. Look for tarpon along the beaches in 15 to 30 feet of water when the ocean lays down a little.
Have a safe and happy 4th.
If you would like to report a catch, call me at 772-201-5770 or e-mail me at cward11605@aol.com. You can also reach me on the web at www.captjoeward.com.
Capt. Joe Ward
Capt. Joe's River Charters