Take Stock in Children Tournament

09 23-16 thru 09-25-16

I am down in Key Largo at the captains meeting tonight and as usual we are having a few beers and decide not to fish starting after captains meeting. This tournament starts @ 7 P.M. after captains meeting and runs thru Sunday 4 P.M.,  you can fish straight thru Sunday.

I'm fishing with my son James and friend Paul Abolafia, we got an early start on Sat. morning onlyto have an issue with motor, I had changed the water separator the day before. The separator wasn't getting fuel and thanks to Captain Pete Silot for the helping hand. Once we got going it didn't take long and Paul landed our first couple Snook, they measure 27 and 27 1/2 not really what I wanted. I had been on some really big fish for the last few weeks and haven't been in there for a week so I was expecting them to be there. It was tough they just weren't there! I wasn't in panic mode yet we took a ride and found a few nice Redfish. James caught a 26 1/2 " fish and Paul followed up with a 23" Red. We had one giant fish today, this fish hit the lure as it hit the water. This fish would of made a difference for us and we wouldn't of had to chase a big Snook on Sunday.

We caught everything today Tarpon, Snook, Redfish, Sharks, Ladyfish and Snappers but our inches aren't what we need. We got back to Paul's house in Key Largo @9 pm and we were beat.

Sunday morning Started out pretty good with a couple good Trout measuring 20 inches, from there back to the main spot and we fished yesterday. The bite started out quick there with a couple Redfish all @ 24 inches and then the bad news!

Our day changed when my son got a Text about Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez, just couldn't believe it. We are big Marlins fans at my house and appreciated Jose's fun attitude on the field.  Coincidently our boats share the same name although spelled different. He will be missed!

The Small Snook were plentiful but where were the big girls! We caught allot of fish again today including a 40 lb. Tarpon, loads of Snook, Redfish and giant Jacks and Mackerel

We didn't think we had a chance but went to awards ceremony for dinner, awards and auction. we had a good time and congratulations to the winners, see you next year.

Capt. Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters

Follow me on Instagram @caughtlookincharters

Harvest moon was tough on daytime fishing!

091716

I'm fishing the 23rd annual Firefighter and friends Redfish tournament out of Port of the Islands today. I am with my brother and his sons Mark and Andrew. This past weeks Harvest moon was a giant, bright and had allot of tide movement, it also made fishing a bit tough during daylight hours. The fish did bite for a short period of time on Saturday, we had a 30 minute spurt of good action on bigger fish but smaller the rest of the day.  It was impressive on how low the tides got today, it seemed like the fishing would of been much better. We did have some Snook all were on the small side and we lost a couple really good Redfish. This is the curse of tournament fishing! It was Mark and Andrews first tournament and they got some experience both good and bad.

091916

I am fishing Flamingo today with Jimmy Muniz and he has dreams about catching a Tarpon. I started out in Coot Bay looking for some little guys, we had some shots but they just weren't interested. He told me he had never caught Snook or Redfish before either so I said lets go find some. It was kind of easy before we got out of coot bay we had a very small Redfish and a couple 22 inch Snook. We ran up north and just hit everything and had a good time putting a dozen Snook in the boat.  He did hook up to a monster that ran thru some roots and finally got him into a tree but showed itself enough to know what it was. It was my big fish spot! The day was full of fish Jacks, Snappers, Ladyfish, Trout, Snook and Redfish. It wasn't his first time there but it was his first time catching fish.

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I am fishing Flamingo today with Ross, he usually brings his wife Mindy his good luck charm . Today he has his best friends Al and Scotty they aren't anglers, at 9 A.M. Al asked if it was time to go, Ross is a die hard angler and we stay late usually. I could see Al wasn't all that crazy about being there but enjoyed the sights. We fished hard and Ross caught a few fish Redfish and Snook. We had to get these guys involved some how! Al was perfectly happy sleeping on the back of the boat while we put some baits out for Tarpon.

We are still waiting on the mullet to make their way down here to Miami Beach area, once it does it will get crazy for a couple weeks. The fishing will get back on track the next few days once that big moon starts to fade. Ill be down in Key Largo fishing the Take stock in Children's tournament this weekend. We are at the time of year where it can be average today and fantastic tomorrow all depends on tides where your at. If you want to get in on some of this action give me a call at 305 333 8149

Capt. Jimbo

Hurricane Bite!

The past week was effected by Hurricane Hermine. It didn't really hurt us weather wise but some of the things that go along with big storms is barometric pressure and wind made for some good and tough times. There was periods early in the tides that really produced some great action and then it wood just quit. I was lucky enough to catch fish in those while they were biting. The winds were blowing pretty good some mornings and that's the benefit of fishing Everglades National Park we have the back country of Whitewater Bay. When it's windy find where the tide is moving and fish the points, this really produces fish, every one isn't a monster but there's always a chance.

082916

 I'm fishing with Bruce Carlton at Flamingo today, when we pulled up it was blowing @20 mphso we launched in Whitewater Bay. We started out with a couple small Tarpon and then moved on. We ran east and north and started to hit all the points while storms pounded Key Largo and move north thru Homestead. we had some incredible Snook action while the sky's were blue once they got over cast and the tide slowed it was over. We tried everything and everywhere but it was nasty and there was no bite. It was time to leave!

090116

I am with good friend Mario Hernandez, he has one of his customers with him today. He brought Jim and his son Chase from Sanford, Fl. to experience the Glades. It was really windy this morning and the storm which has been spinning around out in the Caribbean finally turned in to Hurricane Hermine. The action was good early on again today with a pretty nice Snook, Trout and Snapper bite. This was a different experience for me today because Jim had a prostatic left arm but it didn't slow him down. He had the hot hand catching Snook, an 8 lb.. Jack and some big Mangrove Snappers. Mario and Chase got into the action catching a few more Snook, Jack Ladyfish and Snappers. The winds are steadily increasing up to 30 mph but we continue hitting windy points. It paid off Jim hooked a monster of a Snook and it was off to the races. The Snook made a good jump letting us see how big it was, it made another run and leaped up throwing the jig. Jim did a great job but it's one of those things. The weather turned for the worse and so did the fishing, I think the barometer was dropping as the storm turned into a hurricane and the bite stopped dead. It was an interesting day but we called it a day.

090316

 I am over in Everglades City today pre fishing for a tournament in 2 weeks. I have my friend Paul and his son PJ. I hit all my tournament spots and we ended up with a bunch of Snook and a couple really good Redfish. We saw some fish which gives me hope that we an do ok.

We are getting into a great time of year, mullet run time. This is when millions of mullet push down both coast and everything that swims follow them. We also have some of the best fishing of the year down at Flamingo Tarpon, Snook, Redfish and every thing else that swims. If your up to it give me a call at 305 333 8149. This is a great time of year to teach your kids how to fish there is plenty of action.

Its hot, but they are biting!

I like August it's  when all the fish come out to play. Some days it Tarpon, some days Snook, this season has been very disappointing for Redfish. This time of year its always about numbers and recently that's what I have been pursuing. This is also the slower time of year so I fish allot with family and friends. I took on a project of teaching my nephews Flamingo a couple years ago and its starting to really show. They actually took me to a spot and put me on Snook, a bunch of them. What's funny about it is it's  place people run by every day, but since they are fairly new its a as far as they go. They are learning and I am fishing a tournament with them next month.

There are fish from outside the Flamingo marina out to the coast and as far north as you want to run. I have been fishing Rapala Shadow Raps and Twitchin Raps along with some Gulp shrimp on jig heads. When there is bait I net some and there has been lots of bait around. This increases the chance of big numbers of fish although lures do really well when fished in right conditions. Everyday is different and baits that work today might night work tomorrow.

My wife was on vacation she runs the office for Biscayne rods, she hears nothing but fishing all day long. On our vacation I took her out to catch fish so she would have a few stories of her own. It was a fun day we caught a bunch of Snook and she managed a few on her own, will not take a passed rod. We hooked a bunch of Tarpon that day and she got a couple close to the boat for releases, this with a ton of Trout she got a SLAM.

I fished the BBI Tournament today for the Sheridan House Charity, the tournament is held out of Key Largo. I had 3 really great guys Kevin, Shane and David on board with me . We started out with some rolling Tarpon and a few hits and misses. We moved on caught some pilchards and turned them into some really small Snook. We caught a bunch little Snook and had some big bites as well,but they all turned into Sharks. Shane caught a 23" Redfish also. This turns in to a short day because we ran to Flamingo from Key Largo and lines out at 2 pm. The last hour was so incredible! I was looking for a big Sawfish to take big fish honors, I did it last year. This year we hooked a big Sting Ray instead  but this was a gift. As we were releasing the Ray I noticed a rolling Tarpon, and found a giant school of them. We spent the last hour hooking, jumping and almost landing Tarpon. This was a day maker but we were out of time and had to run back.

I am at Flamingo with my son James and friend Bruce, we were out for fun. I'm always trying to learn and its makes it easy when you have guys who just want to catch fish. Bruce started it off by catching a couple Snook that were busting up a bait pod. James was next but this was just the beginning. We netted some pilchards and used them for live chumming. It didn't take long James had a big Snook eat a Shadow Rap and get all into a root system. We managed to get the decent fish out. A few pics and now Bruce has one and its a good one, he was matching the hatch with a Mirrodine. Of course he was fishing the lightest rod in the boat and had the biggest fish of the day. (which is pictured above). I got in on the action and landed a big girl of my own. The full moon tide was a 5.0 tide that's allot of water. We tried several other places but there was lots of water. We called it a day.  

I am down at Flamingo with my nephews, its both of their birthdays so this was a pretty good gift. We started out quick with Tarpon we hooked, caught and jumped around 15 by 8:30 a.m.  The next stop produced a few Snook and some bait. The bait was important for the next spot, we had a strong outgoing tide and I wanted to chum up some Snook. we had super clen water and sight fished a couple Snook and once we started chumming the pilchards we go into every thing that's swims. We caught big Mangrove Snapper, Jacks, Ladyfish, Trout, Barracudas and had some what of a learning experience in a couple spots. We kept hitting places that I don't normally fish and kept coming up with fish. They said they wanted to show me something, I said ok. It's funny but they showed me something. We got into a pocket I run by everyday and it was loaded with Snook and we caught a Redfish also. It just goes to show I look at the same spots every time I run by and don't take a chance, they looked at it as an adventure and potential.

We had a live well full of pilchards and emptied the live well on the way in, we also went 2 for 8 on Tarpon.

The fishing is good down in Everglades National Park is on fire right now. With school starting and every one getting back to the grind the park will be slow during the week. If you would like to give it a try give me a call at 305 333 8149.

follow me on Instagram @caughtlookincharters

Capt. Jim Hobales

Fishing is Red Hot!

072016

I am fishing out of Haulover this afternoon with my great clients Ross, Mindy and their daughter Reggie. I got to the ramp and it was 96 degrees and waiting on the full moon to rise. We found some bait and went out looking for something to eat them. It was breezy which helped with the heat! We found some Snook and big Jacks but could not get them to react to bait or lures. We moved around and finally ran down to Government Cut only to find a really rough inlet. We gave it a shot but took a good one over the bow filling the boat with water, this might be a problem in some boats but not a Pathfinder. We kept the boat moving and all the water drained out the back. We ran inside and caught a few fish but it was tough, we waited on the moon but by then it was raining. We called it a night and sat at the dock talking for a while over a beer!

072320

I am at Flamingo today with Kathy Widener, her daughter Jackie and her husband Arron.  We started out catching bait and turned it into action on our first spot. We had a couple great bites on pinfish only to double the rod over and let go, we eventually caught one. Kathy caught a 24 inch Redfish and I was wondering if the baits were to big, which don't make sense. Jackie had a giant hit on a 6 inch pilchard, but lost it on the hook set.

I have been fishing with Kathy and her husband Rick since the beginning of my guiding career and she is a real angler. They are real strong on the hook set and I tell you her and her daughter can set a hook, sometimes to hard. The Snook bite wasn't really happening and I told them we had to wait on the tide and as soon as it started to come in. Guess what, The fish started to eat and the rods stayed bent the rest of the days. The Tarpon were everywhere and every time we drifted a bait pass a certain spot it got hit by a Tarpon. Meanwhile quietly on the back of the boat Arron is just getting crushed on every cast by big Jacks and up to 15 inch Snapper. Arron let the girls have the front and was happy back there. It was a frenzy for a couple hours and it just goes to show you have to be in the right place right tide phase. On this day this mother/daughter combined to catch .  "Back Country Grand Slam"

. Great job Ladies!

I just got back from my vacation and fishing has been "Red Hot" so I'm itching to get to the park. There are some great signs right now and  baits are pouring thru. If you are interested in fishing Flamingo or anywhere else give me a call give at 305 333 8149.

Capt. Jimbo,

www.caughtlookincharters.com

follow me on Instagram @caughtlookincharters

Find Bait Schools to find action!

I am fishing Flamingo with the Hernandez Family, Mario Sr., his son Oscar, his son Sebastian and cousin Mario Jr. These are some of my best friends and its becoming a tradition to fish the sons on their birthdays. I have been fishing with Oscar and his brother Mario for over 20 years as we are all members of the Miami Sport Fishing Club, its funny because now I'm fishing their sons.

We started out on a pretty good number of Tarpon rolling all around the boat, but we got nothing but a swirl behind the lure. We caught a few Barracuda's which were faster than the Tarpon. We ran out west netted some mullet and drifted Cape Sable where the Tarpon were rolling, they were not eating so we moved on. We eventually got on a bite and Grandpa Mario was hooked up to a big Snook. He told the grand kids watch him and learn, well he was constantly hooked up to something. Sebastian hooked a really nice Tripletail which were coming by us pretty good, we had a few hook ups. Mario Jr. hooked a decent Snook and Sebastian follow that up with a Tarpon. It was getting late and hot but we made a one last stop for some Trout on the way in.

I am at Flamingo today with my wife Lourdes and nephews Mark and Andrew and we are out for some action. The same Tarpon I started out on a couple days ago were gone so we moved on and caught some bait. It was an easy day because Mark is getting pretty good the things like rigging and throwing a cast net, it saves me a lot of wear and tear. We found some Snook and had 3 bites, then there was an explosion on the shore line. There was a 8 foot Bull Shark eating the fish we were trying to catch, this spot was done. We move around a little bit until we found some good action along the beaches, There was some Trout, Jacks and Ladyfish for constant action and Snook mixed in.

We got on some Tripletails and a few Sharks for Andrew and a few other species but action was constant all day. We had found loads of pilchards along the beaches and tried to put them to use. I had been on some feeding Tarpon on the incoming tide but it was hot and I decided to call it a day.

The fishing down at Flamingo is really good and should stay that way thru the next few months, if you would like to give it a try give me a call at 305 333 8149.

Follow me on Instagram @caughtlookincharters

Capt.Jim Hobales

Summer bait runs = Tarpon!

It is 4th of July today, so happy 4th and be safe. The fishing these past few days has been incredible. It seems that the bait fish are schooled up and the Tarpon are in the middle of them. This has occurred for me from Port of the Islands to East Cape Canal. There has been plenty of fish mixed in like, Snook, Mackerel, Tripletails and big Jacks. The baits have varied from Minnows, pilchards, silver Sides and finger Mullet but the one constant is the Tarpon are in them.

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I fished with Andy and his son Danny out of Everglades City, I hit a bunch of my spot until I found the bait schools outside. These were loaded with Mackerels, Jacks, Tarpon and we even got Snook mixed in. This was a short morningbut we wore them out!

070116

I am fishing Flamingo today with Ross his wife Mindy and Daughter Reggie. We started out by catching some bait and running to the beaches,  we have a couple issues, the winds are S.W., it's really grassy and water dirty. I ran until the water cleaned up some but still lots of grass. I reached into livewell and grabbed a bait, it happen to be the only Lane Snapper in there. It hit the water and the cork never came up. It pulled a good amount of line and finally jumped, it was a good fish. Mindy always has the lucky hand so today was no different. We landed the 6 Lb. Snook and took a picture and released it. It got tough after that with only a few Jacks and Ladyfish. We decided to run north and it paid off, we pulled five Snook and two 5 pound Tripletails off 1 tree. The Mosquitos found us so we moved on, as we were running along we saw a blow up and stopped. This stop paid off and turned into an incredible Tarpon bite. The Pilchards, Mullet  and Silversides were pouring thru and the Tarpon were crushing them. I thru the net and got 25 pilchards and a half hour later we were out of bait. This time I netted hundreds and we sat there for over 2 hours hooking up to 3 fish at a time. The Tarpon were striking it hard and quick and we were missing some but we eventually got them to stay hooked up. We caught several slot size Snook and some big Jacksbut this was a Tarpon Blitz.

It lasted until the tide stopped and then we made a move waiting for the tide to switch and get some water moving again. We caught a Snook or two while waiting but I needed to get Ross a better Tarpon. He was satisified with the little 10 pound fish we had caught but I had promised bigger. We had one last stop and it was full of grass. I rigged a weedless jerkbait and it worked, Ross got his hook up with a nice Tarpon. It was a good fight on light tackle so I broke out the net and scooped him up. We took some pictures and released the Tarpon, when the Tarpon swam away he knock Ross's Glasses off.  The bugs were getting worse and it was late so we called it day.

90 degrees and fish are biting!

Its getting hot but this is the time of year where it can really get good. The fishing down at Flamingo has been producing a good quality Snook bite with a few Tarpon thrown in. There is even a few fish left in the North Biscayne Bay area and Government Cut and waiting for the summer Tarpon to move in.

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I had a couple of interesting days this week, on Friday I fished with Pete Colbert and his buddy Billy. I have been back and forth with Pete for a couple months, he was e mailing me from Afghanistan. He is in the military and he along with his friends were coming here for a bachelor party . The second boat was with Capt. Alan Sherman who showed them a great day of catching Dolphin. We got into a nice school but weren't able to get one in the boat. We did catch some Jacks, Blue Runners and Bonita's. Pete had a big Permit just under the boat until the hook pulled after 25 minutes of battle.  It was only a half day so we headed in, they had a full night ahead of them.

062516

I am fishing Flamingo with my Friend Flen and his buddy's George and Roger. Flen is retired Army, we have been trying to do this for a while. We started out by catching bait and then ran out to the coast. The only issue this morning was it was a little breezy and the winds were wrapping around Cape Sable making the water a little on the dirty side. We ran until we found clean water and that's when we found fish. Flen had never fished before so anything he caught was going to be a first. It didn't take long and we had big Trout and Snook hitting our live pinfish. The bite slowed down so I made a run up north. It didn't take long to get the first bite, the key was I switched up baits. I had some giant Pilchards and man did they get slammed. The bite only lasted for about 30 minutes but it was good and Flen missed a giant Snook of a lifetime.

They wanted some fish for the cooler so we ran out front and put some Trout in the box.  The tide was slowing so I ran back in front of Flamingo and put out some live baits. We had a couple big Sharks and a Tarpon come up and play with us. It was hot and the bite had quit so we called it a day.

062616

I am with Gregg, Karl and Charlie today fishing out of Haulover Marina, I got out early because bait has been tough to find. I got lucky and found some small pilchards which were big enough to put on a hook and plenty of chummers. We had a couple good bites early on lures including a Small 30 lb. Bull Shark and a Black Tip. The Snook wanted to play and we caught a few of them on Rapala,s and a few on Pilchards. The bite slowed so we moved on and started to live chum, we had big Jacks, more Sharks and Cuda's

The beach fishing down at Flamingo is red hot right now, so if you would like to get a day in around the 4 th of July weekendgive me a call at 305 33 8149

Capt. Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters.com

follow me on Instagram @caughtlookincharters

West winds are tough but fish bite!

The fishing was effected very little after our first tropical system of the season, I am down fishing Flamingo with my nephews. We started out in Whitewater Bay where it was slow with weak tides. We made our way out to the coast and found some mullet on the way. This was good for us because the Tarpon were eating mullet. We saw a few blowing up mullet schools so we got on them with live mullet and it didn't take long. We hooked Tarpon and Sharks and then made our way to the middle cape beaches. We thru Rapala Shadow Raps and Gulp Shrimp jigs and hooked a ton of fish including Snook, Jacks, big Trout and Sharks . Once we had enough we headed back towards Flamingo but noticed the wind was calm and it got nice. We found big Jacks blowing up mullet schools,  Mark hooked a big one and then they were gone.  Next we found Tarpon rolling in the absolute most perfect conditions and thru a mullet out in front of one. It was a awesome bite the fish ate the mullet but didn't run for 20 seconds which is not normal. Andrew got on the rod and fought a 65 lb. Tarpon for 20 minutes. I let his brother Mark jump in and land the fish. This is a great picture and we ended the day on this one. Andrew had the hot hand and hooked several fish that were twice his weight.

I am fishing down at Flamingo today with Robert his brother and friend Carlos. We started out front but had low clean water. Once tide switched we made a run for the coast and found some decent looking water considering we had a west wind @ 15 mph. We had netted some pinfish on the way out and put them to work. We had 3 big Snook bites but it was slow, we managed a Jack and some Trout. We fished hard and the bite was non existent until 3 o'clock. I said lets hit one last spot hoping for a Snook or 2. I made a cast showing them where the lure needed to land and it was inhaled by a 40 lb. Tarpon. I handed the rod to Carlos, the Tarpon jumped 4 or 5 times and frayed thru the leader.  As I was looking at the leader Robert hooked up and then Larry as well. It was like this for 30 minutes we were 0 for 9 on Tarpon and we also had a few Snook blow up on their lures.  This made our day because it was slow earlier on . The guys were happy and really enjoyed the bite.

Capt. Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters.com

follow me on Instagram @caughtlookincharters

Family tournament weekend

It was a nice weekend down in Islamorada fishing the Pace Spartan fishing tournament from the captains meeting on Friday night thru Sunday when it was time to come home, I got to see a bunch of friends that I only see when I'm down there.

I'm fishing a team consisting of my son James and his friends Johnny and Danny, we ran from Islamorada to Middle Cape only to be disappointed by dirty water. two day before it was clean and we had a bunch of tarpon and Snook there but it changed. I told them just keep casting until we find the Jacks and Trout and the Snook won't be far behind and it worked out just that way.

The only problem was we caught 75 Jacks and over 50 keeper Trout while waiting for more Snook to show up. I was waiting for the tide to get higher but the wind was keeping it from coming in and I couldn't get to my spots. the winds were fairly strong and I made a bad choice on where to go because all it produced were more Trout. The short fishing day didn't work for me this time as far as putting a few more fish into the boat which would of gave a chance at winning. Having a new team not familiar to tournaments they forgot to turn in score sheet any way, again my fault I should of done it.

Big storm came thru this week and once the water clears it going to get good, bait should be pushing thru and fishing will turn on.

follow me on Instagram @Caughtlookincharters

Flamingo is Hot!

We are getting into the warm summer months but that isn't hurting us. Soon it will start to rain everyday and cool off the water, the afternoon rains always brings good fishing. There should be a bait runs out on the coast moving from the north to south, when that's happens the coastal fishing gets red hot. 

The fishing has been steady for Snook some Tarpon and the Trout bite has been unbelievable. It has still been windy the last couple weeks which helps in the back country but not so much in Florida Bay.  On most recent Trips  good friend Raul  his son little Raul. They got some really nice back country Snook on Shadow rap Shads and Twitch n Raps.  Raul Sr. Also jumped a Tarpon and between us caught 30 Trout up to 23 inches.  There was also Jacks and Mangrove Snappers all caught on Rapalas.

I fished Flamingo with my son James and his friends Johnny and Danny, it was on the breezy side and they wanted to fish the back country.  Danny started us off with a couple jumped Tarpon on Twitch n Raps and then we had a couple Snook on Rapalas Skitter walks. The winds picked up to 20 plus mph so we started to fish the points along the rivers in Whitewater Bay. I was throwing a Shadow Rap and got hit hard the fish ran out to deeper water stopped and made shard run into the trees. As we tried to get close to it I released  the pressure and it ran back out and jumped. This fish was a monster and we had a hard time getting it into the net but eventually did. We got a few pictures, weighed (20lbs)and measured this big girl 44 "s then spent 10 minutes reviving her. It was my best fish in Whitewater Bay topping my last by 2 pounds. We spent the next hour catching Trout up to 22 inches 4 at a time.   The conditions were getting bad but we managed to hook 3 more Tarpon on the way in.

Im and with Jim, Lory and their son Cory today at Flamingo, conditions were ok this morning but couldn't get them to bite. We ran around a bit found a bunch of Trout, Jacks and Snappers. The tide in the morning was week but got stronger later in the day and that's when we found the Snook Stacked up. we had a few all on artificials which makes it way more satisfying.  The tide slow and the fished turned off so we called its day.  

060116

I am fishing Flamingo today with long time friend Steve Kallio, his son Steve and his sons Tyler and Bryce.  We started out catching some bait and some decent Trout while I was throwing the net. It was really about getting the kids hooked up but we caught a bunch of fish today including Snook, Trout at least 40, Jacks, Ladyfish, Snappers and a couple Barracudas. We caught most fish on Shadow Raps and Gulp shrimp. We had plenty of bait and finally had a couple big bites late in the day on them. 

Captain Jim Hobales
www.caughtlookincharters.com
follow me on Instagram @caughtlookincharters

Flamingo is Hot!

We are getting into the warm summer months but that isn't hurting us. Soon it will start to rain everyday and cool off the water, the afternoon rains always brings good fishing. There should be a bait runs out on the coast moving from the north to south, when that's happens the coastal fishing gets red hot. 

The fishing has been steady for Snook some Tarpon and the Trout bite has been unbelievable. It has still been windy the last couple weeks which helps in the back country but not so much in Florida Bay.  On most recent Trips  good friend Raul  his son little Raul. They got some really nice back country Snook on Shadow rap Shads and Twitch n Raps.  Raul Sr. Also jumped a Tarpon and between us caught 30 Trout up to 23 inches.  THere was also Jacks and Mangrove Snappers all caught on Rapalas.

I fished Flamingo with my son James and his friends Johnny and Danny, it was on the breezy side and they wanted to fish the back country.  Danny started us off with a couple jumped Tarpon on Twitch n Raps and then we had a couple Snook on Rapalas Skitter walks. The winds picked up to 20 plus mph so we started to fish the points along the rivers in Whitewater Bay. I was throwing a Shadow Rap and got hit hard the fish ran out to deeper water stopped and made shard run into the trees. As we tried to get close to it I released  the pressure and it ran back out and jumped. This fish was a monster and we had a hard time getting it into the net but eventually did. We got a few pictures, weighed ( 20lbs)and measured this big girl 44 "s then spent 10 minutes reviving her. It was my best fish in Whitewater Bay topping my last by 2 pounds. We spent the next hour catching Trout up to 22 inches 4 at a time.   The conditions were getting bad but we managed to hook 3 more Tarpon on the way in.

Im and with Jim, Lory and their son Cory today at Flamingo, conditions were ok this morning but couldn't get them to bite. We ran around a bit found a bunch of Trout, Jacks and Snappers. The tide in the morning was week but got stronger later in the day and that's when we found the Snook Stacked up. we had a few all on artificials which makes it way more satisfying.  The tide slow and the fished turned off so we called its day.  

Captain Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters.com

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Fishing was tough but we caught lots of fish!

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I  am fishing with Dave and Phil today at Flamingo, its  part of a 3 boat 3 day group trip. We started out good today, I thru the net once and loaded up on finger mullet.  We hit a couple close spots because of the high water as we pulled up a few small Tarpon rolled in front of us. We started out throwing Twitching Raps and had some action from Snappers ,Cudas and Jacks. Dave had a big blow up on his lure but the fish missed. We put a mullet in front of a Tarpon which didn't even look at it. We ran west hitting some spots along the way and stopped at Middle Ground where we caught 30 or 40 big Trout. We kept running looking for some Tarpon in the Gulf but never finding the mother load. Everywhere we fished today was loaded up with big Trout. I hit all my Snook spots but they only had Trout. We caught tons of fish today just never getting the glamour species.

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I am with Phil Sr. and Phil Jr. and we launched in the back country of Whitewater Bay. We started out in the Lane River area and had a couple really good blow ups on top water plugs.  We got into a small pond and found a bunch of fish but couldn't capitalize on it. We netted some mullet and went looking for big fish, with the exception of some big Sharks we didn't get them. I asked if the wanted to catch a few Triple tails, they said they have never caught them. We got out into the Gulf of Mexico and the were everywhere. Every crab trap had at least one and up to 5 Triple tails. Not sure how many we caught but somewhere around 20.  Very tough day, lucky the Tripletails played!

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I am with Phil Sr. and Dave today and wear running ay north today, but first I spotted some small Tarpon on the way out. I left my remote for trolling motor in my truck so couldn't get on them. Phil made the first cast and jumped a nice one. After running back to dock we are finally on our way to Highland Beach area. I'm telling you we had great conditions and the fish weren't biting. We had Tarpon rolling around the boat and great falling water over oyster bars but it was tough. We used live Mullet, Crabs and lures but again today it was Trout. Phil did manage a nice Snook that we worked so hard for. There was really no shortage of Trout they saved the day again.

This was as tough as it gets but we still caught fish and it will get better. Snook will start to show up on the coast in the next few weeks. If your interested give me a call at 3053338149

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Good bite out of Haulover!

I am fishing out of Haulover Marina today with Logan and Caleb , the full moon always makes daytime fishing interesting.  Logan asked about Snook fishing I told him the inlets were out of the question because it was blowing 20 mph.  We got some pilchards and were on our way, we chummed with them and had a giant fish busting behind us . Unfortunately it didn't eat our baits but we caught lots of Barracuda's and Jack's. We moved around from spot to spot and finally hooked a lost a small Snook and caught a nice one. It was only a half day trip so we moved around some. Our last spot was on fire, we missed a couple Snook bites. Logan caught back to back Groupers., first a Black and then a Gag both were quality fish after a few Jacks and Snappers we called it a day.

High winds have helped Snook bite!

I have had some really good days this week fishing Whitewater Bay and north to Ponce Bay. The reason for fishing Whitewater Bay is because the winds have been very strong @ 20+ mph and I've been on a really good patter. I have had my customers throwing Rapala Twitch n Raps and Shadow Raps and eventually using finger mullet and pilchards. This pattern has produced allot of Snook, Trout, and a few Redfish while looking for or fishing for Tarpon. 

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Bob usually fishes with friend Charlie but his alarm didn't go off. Bob couldn't get a hold of him so he came alone. It wasn't windy this morning so I had big plans for Bob. We had and interesting day with lots of quality Snook, Trout, Jacks and Sharks. There was an hour of craziness with baits getting hit constantly on the change of tide. With a live well full of finger mullet the plan I had was changed by afternoon onshore wind which picked up to @ 20. We worked our way back thru Whitewater Bay and headed back.

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I am fishing Flamingo today with Ken, his son Nathan and his brother Dave. It is blowing 20 + this morningso we launched and headed back to Whitewater Bay. These guys were out for a day of fun and some dinner. We started out with some quality Trout so dinner was taken care. It was really windy so I couldn't find bait on my bait spot, not to worry I have a back up spot. I went looking for bait but wind was hurting us, so I said let cut up some ladyfish and try for a Redfish until bait shows up. We had a decent fish pick up our bait and it ran right by the boat, Ken picked up the rod and fought what ended up being about a 200 lb. Bull Shark for about 20 minutesbefore getting cut off next to the boat. While Ken was fighting the Shark the Tarpon started rolling all around us, I had the other guys start casting at them but they couldn't reach. The bait had got more active as we were waiting and a school of pilchard popped up, 1 toss with net and we were loaded up. They weren't really into the Tarpon but wanted to bend rods so that's what we did. I started to live chum and we had a few blow ups. The mullet schools were getting blown up an I set up and started to chum that spot. We really caught allot of fish there,  It was 3 at a time . The bite was mostly Trout up to 23 inches but Ken caught a nice Redfish. The tide was getting right for another spot so we made a run. It didn't take long and the rods started to bend we caught a few big Jacks, had a couple more Sharks eat our baits and go for run and then a big Snook wrapped Dave around a tree. We were an hour north so we headed back towards the dock, we hit a bunch of spots with live chum. the game plan was to find some big fish with the bait but no luck and the guys were beat, time to go.

It's only going to get better in the next few months, if you want to get in on this action give me a call at 305 333 8149.

Captain Jim Hobales

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Tarpon time but Snook are biting!

I am down at Flamingo today with Zac, he is a guide on Lake Lanier. Zac wanted a Tarpon so we went tarpon fishing. We got on them really good he had one hit a Rapalaon one of his first cast., but kind of surprised by the hit. We cast at rolling Tarpon all morning and really never got a strike. The Trout, Jacks and Ladyfish busted up his lure and even lost a couple lures to Sharks. Zac only had a short day to fish so I didn't want him to leave with out seeing different parts of the park. I took him down a shore line and got a Snook and had a big Redfish tailing on the bank. He never got a clean shot at it because the Red was cruising in and out of some dead trees. It was getting late and I wanted him to get a little bit of Snook action so we hit one last spot. The tide was really running and we were casting at an edge and they were there. He got blasted a couple time and the Snook above was the results. He was throwing a Rapala "Twitch n Rap"  and it was getting hit on every cast. Zac had a couple more blow ups and caught a couple 5 lb. Jacks to end the day on.

I am fishing with Roy and Ross today down at Flamingo. The wind was forecast to blow @ 20 mph today and we are fly fishing! The day started out with a double Ross had a Snook and Roy hooked a big Trout, this was Ross's first Snook. They kept casting but the wind was getting tough so I moved to a protected shoreline. We had a few hits and misses and Roy found a nice little Snook. The idea was Tarpon for the day so we moved on and looked for them. Spot after spot had wind blowing thru and the Tarpon weren't rolling. I gave them a choice east or west and gave them the scenarios, they chose east. I tried to put them on shorelines with the wind at their backs but it always seemed to come over their shoulder. Ross finally decided to fish a spinning rod and Roy kept up with the fly. We hit a bunch of fall downs and finally got a few more Snook while looking or Tarpon. We eventually got on the Tarpon rolling around us and once in a while blowing up on the surface. Ross kept throwing his Rapala and got blasted by a 90 lb. Tarpon which jumped 6 feet in the air. After a brief fight the Tarpon thru the lure. Roy had fish in front of him but never really got a great shot . I was throwing a bait that looks like a Ladyfish trying to figure out if the would eat anything else. It worked I had a Tarpon come up behind it and I had Roy throw his fly in there, it's funny it always works on T.V.. We stayed on them fish all day as did my friend across the way from us but they didn't turn on. We made our way back and hit a few more spots but no luck. I can tell you Roy wore himself out casting into the wind all day, I know he slept good.

The bite is pretty good right now and should only get better thru the next few months. The wind will hopefully start laying down soon although the Snook have been feeding off the points in the back country because of the wind. The Tarpon are here, the Snook are biting and I really haven't even Red fished lately so that tells you how good its been. If you like casting and hooking fish that make your reels sing give me a call at 305 333 8149

Captain Jimbo

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Cold and wet today!

I am with Pam Marmin and her friend Kathy from Colorado today. Kathy fly fishes in the rivers out west but has never fished here . We went back country this morning because I have been doing well back there. The morning started out with some Trout in the 17 inch range much bigger than the ones Kathy catches out west. Pam and Kathy were hooking fish left and right Trout, Jacks, Ladyfish and Snappers. Kathy was constant with her fly rod and caught 2 fish in the back country I had never caught before. She caught 2 Lane Snappers which aren't common back here. We went looking for Snook and Pam hooked a big one n a Shadow Rap, she stuck it good but it still thru the hook. We moved on and found some Pilchards and netted them. I ran down the coast and fished the pilchards until the light started. The weather was getting colder and there was some serious rain on the way. We started to head in but stopped a couple times on the way. We pitched some pilchards up into a tree and bam Kathy was hooked up to a her first Snook. We fished really hard but even with the pilchards we couldn't get the fish to eat. We were soaked and cold so we headed in and it was in a driving rain. As it always works out when we got to the ramp the sun came out.

2 Grand Slams, awesome day!

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I am Flamingo with Scott and Sean today, we are  fishing the Whitewater Bay back country because the winds are up out front. We started out with a couple small Tarpon and were on our way. On our second stop we got into a few Snook and a bunch of Trout, Mangroves and Ladyfish on Rapala's. We were throwing Twitchin Raps and Shadow Raps and the bite was on fire. We already had Snook, Tarpon and Trout and it was 9:30 we went looking for Redfish! We rigged up some Gulp Shrimp on 1/8 ounce jigs and went fishing the fall downs. Scott was first with a 22 inch Redfish and then Sean hooked up right after with another 23 inch Redfish. We got back to looking for Snook and Sean got another good one on a Gulp. We ran out into the Gulf of Mexico looking for some big Tarpon and we found them. We were casting at them with assorted lures and also put out a live mullet, they stayed just out of range. One of our mullet got picked up and scaled but because of the wind and the bow in the line we never saw the bite. We had one good bite there and it was a big Sawfish, 3o minutes and a break off we headed in. We made one last stop, we were back to Shadow Raps and Scott was hooked up with a big Snook. This fish was hot and trying to get back into the trees and thru the lure after a minute. I rigged a live mullet and handed the rod to Sean, he made the cast into the tree we were fishing and was on! Another big fish Sean got him next to the boat and we landed it and took some pictures. We made a few more cast and the Trout bite was insane ,we caught Trout 3 at a time for 30 minutes with the occasional Snook. It was 5 pm and time to go, Great day with 2 great brothers.

Incredible action!

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I am with Bill, Craig and Leon today and its windy again, we are in the Whitewater Bay back country. The day started off quickly with Leon putting 6 fish in the boat before the other guys, the reason I know is he kept letting them know! It was competitive between them and the fish were cooperating. We had a nice bite of Snook, Trout, Jacks, Ladyfish, and Snappers all on Twitchin Raps and Shadow Raps. It wasn't 10 o'clock and we already caught allot of fish. We found some mullet and went looking for a Tarpon. We got out into the Gulf of Mexico and put out a live finger mullet and within3 minutes we had a giant Tarpon hooked up. We did not know what it was for 30 minutes because it never came up, but it made some runs that gave it away. Eventually it jumped , it was a  big Tarpon. Only half the Tarpon jumped out, it couldn't get up out of the water. Bill did a good job and 1 hour and 20 minutes later we got it up next to boat for some photos. We had some fish hit our mullet but some how not get hooked up, we watched as a  big Snook hit he mullet 3 times and never ate it. We missed a Tarpon and another Snook didn't understand how they could keep missing the baits? The guys were bet and called it d.ay

Fishing Florida Bay

I am fishing Flamingo today with Perry and his son ALy today, I decided to fish Florida bay because the Whitewater Bay side was packed. We started out catching bait (pinfish and Pilchards). The first spot I went to had no water so I ran out west to catch incoming tide and caught some Trout,Jacks and Ladyfish. We set up a nice drift with baits out and Tarpon rolling all around us but no takers, the Sharks usually will eat all your baits but not today. We ran out and looked for some Tripletails on the crab traps and we found some. They weren't giants but most were around the keeper size. I think teaching people how find and catch Tripletails is one of the easiest things I do. Most people really get into looking for them and when they spot one they feel like they really helped out. This was the case today once Perry got the hang of it he felt like a pro we hooked a bunch and Ali got a really good one for dinner.  We moved on and went looking for Redfish and Snook . The tide was moving in but the bite really wasn't on yet, Perry says I got one! His line moving and pulling some drag . I sat there watching as the Redfish came up to the surface with a 8 foot Bull Shark right behind him that ate him. Man that's always disappointing! We kept at it and ALy was casting a new Arashi Top water lure I just got. It got slammed and we couldn't make out what it was at first all we saw was the flash. A couple minutes later a big Trout comes to the surface and then had another on come up on it. This was it for the day, the winds just picked up to 25 mph and there is no more bite. I ran back to Flamingo but high winds and muddy water just di not help us out. It was late and we called it a day.

The fish are here but the conditions keep changing , so everyday has been different. I don't mind to much but its hard to pattern them right now. They will settle in here by mid April, everyone is in Tarpon mode right now but I've been doing little of everything. If bending the rods are what you are looking for give me a call at 305 333 8149.

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