Redfish!

Fished Flamingo and Cape Sable today. We caught around 20 redfish and a bunch of speckled trout. We sight fished some of the reds on the flats while poling. We finished off the day catching some nice jacks before heading home. The weather and the fishing was fantastic.

Redfish and Specks

Headed back towards Flamingo today. Caught a ton of fish including redfish, speckled trout, jacks, ladyfish, and a small grouper. I had some help from my crew landing the flyrod redfish. We had a blast sight fishing on the flats.

Unusual Critters in Islamorada

Top pic is one of the blowfish we caught. The bottom three are of a salt water crocodile we saw sunning himself today.

Windy in the Keys

Woke up to strong northerly winds. Luckily, even when the wind blows there are fish to catch. We bent the rod today on barracudas and nice sized jacks. We also had a Spanish mackerel and a bunch of snappers, too.

Florida!

Arrived in Florida yesterday for the winter. Exhausted but exited we went out for the afternoon. We ended up jumping a small tarpon and catching a bunch of nice mangrove snapper and jacks.

Today we went back to Flamingo. We caught a bunch of speckled trout, some over 20 inches. We also had a really nice redfish. Also, as usual, the jacks and ladyfish came out to play as well. The last pic is of a pufferfish.

Openings Next Week

I have a few openings next week for single day trips in Islamorada. If you are interested give me a call.

Florida Trips this Winter

We will be fishing around Islamorada, Florida Keys all winter.  There are two main places we fish down there, the reef and Everglades National Park.  Where we fish depends on your preference and the weather.  There is always something to catch somewhere!

The reef fishing is close to where we stay and tons of fun.  We begin by setting out a chum slick and rig in a variety of ways to capitalize on the variety of fish that may show up in the slick behind the boat.  We regularly catch cero, Spanish, and king mackerel, groupers, jacks, false albacores, blackfin tuna, and sharks.  While we are anchored we also catch ballyhoo for live bait.  If the conditions permit we will slow troll or kite fish for sailfish and blackfin tuna.  The water is clear and the fishing is very visual.

Everglades National Park is one of the wonders of the world.  Even if you were not fishing, the ride and the sights are worth the trip.  The fishing is fantastic as well.  Variety is the word in the Everglades.  It is very common to catch several different species of fish in the same location.  We catch redfish, snook, tarpon, speckled trout, jacks, snappers, ladyfish, sharks, catfish, and black drum to name a few.  To catch these fish we throw soft plastic lures on jig heads or we can use live shrimp or pilchards.  Fishing can be done poling the flats or staked off in the channels.  We can also catch any of these fish on the flyrod!  This is a great way to get out of the cold at home. Daily and weekend packages available.  Any questions give me a call at 609-827-3442 or email me at CaptainJoeHughes@gmail.com. 

Cold Weather Fishing

Fished Sunday with Dave G and family. We went out in the ocean jigging. We caught a striper, a few blues, and a bunch of fluke. Too bad the fluke are out of season! The weather was cold but beautiful. The season is winding down but there are still fish to be caught.

Joe Hughes

Bluefish

Fished today with Kevin, his son Zach, and Chris. It was a beautiful day and we picked a few nice big bluefish and a few fluke. Zach did a great job of reeling in the big fish of the day, a fourteen pound bluefish.

Stripers on the Jig

Fished Saturday with Tom and friends. We caught several fish including fluke, big blues, and stripers. The fishing was not fast and furious but we picked away at them.

Blues and Bass

Fished with Dave and Frank on Sunday. We trolled and jigged a bunch of blues and stripers. It was very rough but the fish are here in force. Great day!

Striper Blitz Part Two

Fished the second trip with Mike. It was rough and not as good as the first trip. It was good though. We ended up with five stripers and over fifteen big blues. Lots of birds and blitzing action, especially in the afternoon.

Big Stripers on the Fly!

Had to do a post just on the flyfishing. It was awesome. We had huge stripers and big blues on the surface. Mike really mugged em!

Joe Hughes

Striper Blitz Part One

Fished with Mike Roth twice. The first trip was a marathon. The morning was very rough. We started the day with a slow pick of big stripers on jigs. Some of the bass were over twenty pounds. We also had a bunch of big blues on jigs as well. The wind dropped and the seas calmed as the day progressed. The afternoon brought bird plays and blitz conditions. The fishing was fast and furious. Mike got to work on the fly rod and caught over 12 stripers and blues on the fly. We also had a bunch of big fluke on jigs as well. We even had one on the fly! We ended up with over 15 stripers, over 20 blues, fifteen fluke, and a bazillion dogfish.

Florida Weekends

Starting December 26 I will be fishing in Islamorada, Florida until the first week in April. I am available for two or three day weekend charters. My three day availability is limited so if that is of interest I would make plans soon. The routine is to fly down to Fort Lauderdale Friday night and drive to the keys, fish all day Saturday, and fish until around 2 pm on Sunday. Add another full day to a three day weekend. I will also be in Islamorada from December 26-January 1 and will take single as well as multiple day charters that week. If the time period is not long enough for you, fly down sooner and stay longer if you would like! The fishing is good all winter; the species we pursue changes as the winter progresses. Weather permitting we can fish the reef and catch king mackerel, Spanish mackerel, cero mackerel, sailfish, jacks, grouper, albies, blackfin tuna, and many more. We also fish the backcountry in calm waters in Everglades National Park for a variety of species including redfish, speckled trout, snook, tarpon, ladyfish, jacks, black drum, and sharks. No matter what the weather we can go out, catch fish, and have fun. I can help with accommodations, flights, car rental, and even dinner plans. It's a long cold winter. Get south, get warm, and catch fish! Flights out of Atlantic City are very cheap right now in January. That won't last long. Any questions, even if you are mildly interested please call 609-827-3442.

Windy

Fished Sunday with Peter G and friends. The wind was howling and we couldn't go where I wanted to. The fellas wanted to give it a shot in the bay. We did. We fished bait in the deeper channels and only had two skates and one decent run-off but it came unbuttoned. The fish are here but the weather has to allow you to get to them.

Joe Hughes

Back Bay Bass

Fished yesterday with Dave W and Kevin in the backbay. Conditions were not helping our cause but we managed to catch two stripers on soft plastics.

Joe Hughes

Monster Blues and Bass

Fished with Tom S today. We headed out into the ocean in close to zero visibility. We were rewarded for our efforts. Things were slow initially because we couldn't see the birds. Once we found them it was game on. We ended up with over thirty big blues up to 17 pounds and four nice stripers. All but one of the fish were caught on jigs. I didn't take too many pics today, didn't have time! We had blitzing conditions for most of the day once we found the fish.

Big Stripers and Huge Blues

Fished today with George H and family. We finally had decent weather and headed out into the ocean. The fish cooperated and we ended up with around 5 stripers to 17 pounds and about 8 big bluefish. One of the blues was close to twenty pounds. We caught all the fish trolling and had a steady pick all day.

Stripers on Live Bait

Snuck out with Jerry and Greg last night. By request, we trolled live eels and spot along the sod banks. Beautiful night but we only had one striper for our efforts.

After the Storm

Fished Monday evening with Jim. We flyfished in the bay. The tide was too low to get onto the flats but we decided to give it a try anyway since the weather was nice. While we saw bait and even a few fish feeding we couldn't connect.

Fly Fishing in Salt Waters Magazine

When turning to page ten in my Fly Fishing in Salt Waters Magazine, I was surprised to see a picture I took of a client of mine, Mike Roth. He was holding a big bluefish he had caught on the fly with me last season in Montauk. I agree with Mike; it is a wonderful magazine. Our models that day (the fish) were cooperative even if the weather wasn't. (at the start of the day it was blowing close to thirty knots!)

Flats Fishing Continues

Fished last night with Rich and Jerry. We fished sunset and the stripers were feeding well. The wind dropped out and it was flat calm at sunset. We brought six stripers and one bluefish to the boat. All on poppers. Great bites.

Back Bay Action

Fished with Tom and Bruce today. We started out putting lots of miles on the regulator to see what was going on in the ocean. The answer was not much but it will happen soon. We recovered by coming in and switching boats and hopping in the skiff. We ended up with over a dozen stripers on poppers and one bluefish. The fish are feeding well in the shallows and will continue to do so for some time.