Fishing has been very good the past few weeks. Snook are in the passes, reds are in the backcountry, tarpon are hitting at first light and sharks are in the back and along the beaches.

As always this time of year the fishing is best early and late in the day. We've been heading out at daybreak and hitting the snook in the passes. Small white flies, small plugs an live bait have all been productive. Then we've been heading to the backcountry and catching reds. The reds are not huge but some fish up to 25" are being caught. The snapper fishing is getting better as we move toward late summer and live shrimp are the best baits.

My favorite tides for the backcountry sharks are a falling tide. Bulls and lemons are the most common sharks with the average size being 5-6'. My favorite are the bulls as they pull great and make a great picture when I pull them onto the deck of my boat. The lemons are fun too but they don't pull like the bulls.

August is a great time of year to fish. There is very little boat traffic and the weather is beautiful in the early morning and spectacular in the late afternoons with the thunderheads building in the east.

I've also been doing some water sports trips. As my kids are now wake boarding, water skiing and tubing I;ve mentioned to some families recently and we've been coming back to the dock after a morning of fishing and loading up with the water toys and spending a few hours boarding, tubing and skiing.

Give me a call if you'd like some nice time on the water.

Capt. Mark Ward
239-450-9230