2/17/15 February Florida Keys Fishing Report Backcountry

Old man winter refuses to leave us alone though that hasn't stopped anglers from enjoying the wonderful backcountry fishing here in Islamorada.  We had one the coldest days in years here recently last Saturday, and tomorrow and thursday temperatures look to drop down again even further!  The last couple days winds were southeasterly making for some rougher conditions offshore but fairly nice in the backcountry.  Overall the fishing has been pretty good considering.  Some of the backcountry fishing in the everglades has actually gotten a little better with the latest cold blast.  Several captains reported a decent snook bite as well as some drum and sheepshead mixed in this past week.  Capt. Rick Stanczyk had quite a few snook plus some black drum and big trout to make for a good day Saturday with water tempeatures in the low 60s to start the day.  Capt. Jim Willcox had similar action as well that day including a nice big snook.  Fish were feeding on shrimp in the deeper mainland canals trying to stay warm, worked very slowly on a jig.  Today Capt. Jeff Beeler reported a good all around bite with similar fish in the everglades.  The last couple days Capt. John Johansen reported a decent spanish mackerel bite further out on the edge of the gulf of mexico.  Capt. Mike Venezia and Capt. Mike Bassett yesterday reported hot mackerel fishing as well as some pompano close by in the bayside of islamorada.  The patch reef fishing has still been pretty hot too when you can get out there.  With winds swinging around back from the north it will likely be a good half day option.  Capt. Rick Stanczyk and Capt. Dave Morris reported catching their limits of hogfish a couple days ago on Sunday on a beautiful morning with light northerly winds.  Capt. Mike Venezia has reported good patch actoin as well with snapper, grouper, porgy, and hogfish.  Well the forecast through the weekend doesn't look real pretty it will be getting cold and likely windy, however the great thing about backcountry fishing is you can always find somewhere to hide and fish!  The everglades action will hopefully continue to stay good as the fish seem to be use to the cold now and the drop in temperatures may not shut things down.  It will be good patch fishing conditons for those not wanting to run for miles in the cold and wind, and for those tough enough to brave it the everglades should provide a good santuary plus good fishing in the cold.  Tarpon fishing will likely stay slow through next week, if the fronts continue to roll through.  This however should help out our fishery in the later spring/early summer as it often holds the migration back making for more fish later in the year.  Give us a call if your looking to get out fishing at 305-664-2461!

Capt. Rick Stanczyk