3-14-13 Islamorada Reef Fishing Report

It's been a busy couple of days around Bud n' Mary's Marina. We've had lots of families down for spring break as well as groups of friends down for some Islamorada Fishing! We had another cold front pass through the last couple of days and the wind was "howling" today around lunch time, which chased quite a few boats home early. The seas were still fishable but it was very choppy when the wind hit 25 knots and gusty. The offshore fishing charters did the best they could do, and most of them focused on anchoring down on the reef. There was a decent bite of yellowtail snapper for most boats. They aren't big fish, but they're great fighters for the size. They also make a great dinner. Many people will take a bag of fish to a local restuarant and get "hook and cook" done with their own fish. It always seems to taste better when you catch it yourself. You just bring the bag of fillets to the restuarant and they can prepare a platter of fish using multiple recipes. There was also a few king mackerel caught the past couple of days, including a couple nice ones up to 30 lbs. In addition to the yellowtail snapper there's been a couple bigger mutton snapper mixed in. Since our shallow water groupers are closed they have been all catch and release, but they are still fun to catch even though you can't keep them. These grouper include gags, reds, and blacks, which are our most common reef grouper.  The sailfish bite has been on the slow side, there's been a few fish seen the last couple days but I haven't seen any release flags flying. There was a handful of cobia caught the yesterday, but with the windy conditions it makes it difficult to find them in the shallow water for the most part. If you want a big pull, the amberjack have been fairly consistent further offshore in the Deeper water as well. Pictured are a 41.5 lb cobia caught yesterday aboard the Bn'M, the Relentless' rack of reef fish yesterday, a gag grouper released aboard the strictly business, a 20 lb king mackerel (kingfish) aboard the Bn'M, and a barracuda caught and released by a young girl aboard the Reel McCoy. Here's also a picture of a large lionfish caught aboard the Bn'M. It's an invasive species that we see a lot of while diving but this is one the first ones caught at the marina on hook and line. It looks like the weather is going to get a little better when the wind decreases a little tomorrow afternoon, so stay tuned for more Florida Keys Fishing Reports. Call us at the marina to book your Islamorada Fishing Trip Today! 305 - 664 - 2461 . Fishing is a great way to spend a day with the family while you're down on spring break! Just got a late afternoon report today from a couple boats who stayed out a little longer today, and Capt. Joey on the Fearless did an afternoon trip and the last couple hours of the day got really nice, which was unexpected, and he caught a handful of mahi and then a nice sailfish, he got a great jump shot on the camera phone too! Capt. Alex on the Kalex reported a slow morning but then had some great action by staying out for a couple extra hours with some regular customers and wound up catching a couple decent mutton snappers and a few keeper cobias, including a fat 50 lber! Things are looking better for the next few days!