Big Rains making them Bite! Tarpon and Snook Fishing Success

Flamingo area

Miami Tarpon fishing has been pretty good in the month of June, even though the rains have been non stop for a couple weeks. This time of year the freshwater pushes the Snook out of the mangroves and out onto the flats and along the Gulf of Mexico where they are chasing an assortment of small baits. There has been plenty of smaller Tarpon around anywhere from the marina to the coast. The one fish that hasn't really been plentiful are the Redfish not sure what's going on with them. The Trout bite is crazy no problem catching limits up to 23 inches. Its only going to get better thru the summer!

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I am with Fred Ortiz today he's a long time friend from the Miami Sport fishing Club he is also my accountant. Fred gets over worked thru April 15 and I always try to get him out after it settles down. He always bring his fly rods he has wanted Tarponon fly for a while. Found a few Tarpon first thing and Fred had a few hits and misses but eventually he got one to the boat. We also got into a few Snook, I finally got tired of watching and picked up a rod, between us we had about 30 Snook all of Fred's were on fly rod. He also caught a Trout to give him a "Slam on Fly". I also help this poor guy out he hit something and broke his motor off of the mounts!

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I am with Terry, Fred and John down at Flamingo today. Terry is a golfing buddy and he brought his employees fishing. Fred is from San Diego and fishes allot out there' Terry and John not so much. We got into a bunch of small Tarpon again today and never got one to the boat but jumped a bunch on softjerk baits. We also had a few really big hook ups on fish one looked like a big Redfish and the other a Snook which got away. John also caught a 23 inch Trout and a 16 inch Mangrove. It was only 9:30 and we had already hooked everything that swims in the park. We went out and caught some bait and fished for Trout we caught 30 or so and we moved on looking for Snook. We made our way out to the coast and found a few Snook, Terry had one around 10 lbs. come of at the boat. John was next he hooked one which came off at the boat and then Fred finally put one in the boat. We only fished until 1 o'clock and it was time to go pretty good day. 

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I am with Isaac his wife Evelyn and there 2 daughters Sophie (6)and Cami(4).  We are fishing out of Haulover marina today. We started out with a bunch of Trout, Barracuda's, and Snappers it is a family trip and we kept the rods bent. Isaac wanted to catch Sharks so we went lookin for them. I kept some of the Cuda's for bait and our first bait got hit within 30 seconds. We had them everywhere and Isaac was having fun, he has a thing for Sharks. We let the girls fight a couple and then Isaac and Evelyn had fun when they were doubled up. The girls had enough and it was time to go they were all very happy.

The fishing will be fun all summer Tarpon will get thicker and Snook will be chasing baits along the coast it makes for a fun day. If your looking to catch Tarpon and Snook in pretty good numbers give me a call at 305 333 8149.

Captain Jim Hobales, 

www.caughtlookincharters.com

Instagram @caughtlookincharters

It's raining but Snook are Biting!

This has been a very rainy weekend but luckily not where I have been fishing. It has skirted us several times but for short periods and not having to wear rain gear. Snook bite has been on fire!

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I'm down in Key Largo today fishing with the Barrow family Kevin, Shawn Ashley and Kelly from Santa Fe, New Mexico. As we left the dock and stopped at first spot the sky turned purple and we had to make a run away from the massive storm, we sat in shell Creek and waited about five minutes for it to pass. We moved on and fished around Tarpon creek and a few other spots which produced some big Trout up to 22 inches, Snappers 14 inches, Jacks and Cuda's. It was only a morning trip and time really flew by!

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I am with Yamil and Robert today down at Flamingo, it was their first time and didn't really follow directions to get there. When Yamil text me he was still at the front gate, I went out to look for baitwhile waiting. Instead I maid a few cast and caught 7 Snook and jumped a Tarpon. Yamil called and said they were there, I picked them up and ran right back to the hot bite. It didn't take long and they were hooked up with a few 3-5 lb. Snook. I went and caught bait as they caught Trout, Jacks and Ladyfish. Once I had a bunch of Pinfish and Pilchards it was time to produce some fish. I had them casting Gulp Shrimp and it was on! The Snook were killing the Gulp Shrimp. We covered allot of water and got bites at almost all of them. There were some missed fish but they did a good job of hooking them including two caught Tarpon, 1 which jumped in the boat The catch of the day was Robert, he caught a Monster Snook which weighed 18 lbs. It wasn't a sunny hot day it was overcast and the fish just loved it. I'm not sure how many Snook were boated by them it was a bunch, throw in 20 or so Trout and then another 15 Jacks, a Shark and a giant Ray but we were really busy today.

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I am at Flamingo again today, I'm fishing with Alistair, Phillip and Dexter. Our first stop on the grass flats was to catch bait while they casted for Trout. I was throwing the net as they were pulling Trout in 3 at a time. Once we had enough bait we starting to hits a bunch of spots. Dexter had what appeared to be a big Tarpon eat his Gulp Shrimp while retrieving it,  It hit and missed but the spot was not really happening. The next spot was on fire as we approached all 3 guys made cast and all 3 hooked Snook. For the next 2 hours we caught Snook on Gulp Shrimp sometimes 1 or 2 at a time including Redfish and nice Triple Tail. These guys were Jamaicans and wanted to eat fish so all they wanted were edible fish. They had no interest in any more Tarpon or Snook just edibles. Alistair said lets go to your best Trout spot and we did. We caught at least 40 trout in the last hour up to 3 lbs. These guys were going to have a serious fish fry!

Fishing has been really good and will continue to get better thru the summer,  the Tarpon will show up on the coast here soon and that's always allot of action. The fishing down in Everglades National park (Flamingo) gets red hot as well as the temperatures but that's when they bite. I have trips designed for hardcore adults or also the family which wants a day on the water just bending rods and teaching kids what its all about. If you would like to fish with me give me a call at 305 333 8149.

Captain Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters.com

Instagram @ caught lookin charters

Winds down- Snook are Biting!

The winds have finally come down on this Memorial Day weekend!

I am with Mark and Andrew and we are going to fish Whitewater Bay today, the water outside of Flamingo still looked a little muddy. We made our way thru Coot Bay but had to stop when we saw some Mullet getting blown out of the water. we netted a few and pitched them out. It didn't take long and we had a few blow up on our baits and eventually caught a few of them. We did this for an hour or so and caught a bunch. We made our way back to the Lane River area and managed a handful more Snook and a bunch of Trout. We fished around the Midway Key and then ran out and down the coast looking for Tarpon but didn't find them in the dirty water. We fished lake Ingram and East cape and found more Snook and some small Tarpon that had no interest in our lures or baits. The hard part today was thee amount of floating grass, it was so thick the shore lines were unfishable. The temps got up into the 90s so we called it a day!

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I am fishing Florida Bay with Jack and Keith today, Keith performs with Frankie Valle and was at the Hard rock last night. We got out and action was fast and furious on our first stop. Keith had a Trout then a Snook pretty quick on Twitch n Raps, Jack followed up with a couple Trout. They quit hitting the lure so I gave them a Gulp Shrimp to bounce on the point. It didn't take long again and Keith had a Redfish hooked up. Keith had the fish coming towards the boat when a  8 foot Lemon Shark ate it and was on the run. The Shark let go and all we got back was the head. The Shark left the area and we managed a few more Snook on the Gulps! The bite was done and we left to go catch bait, we netted a live well full of Pinfish and Pilchards. The Pilchards were a gift because the Snook enjoyed them today. We had an incredible bite for 30 minutes and caught fish up to 10 lbs. We ran back to East Cape and found some Tarpon in the mouth and jumped 3 of them on Shadow Raps. I ran back to Snake bite and was looking for Redfish but only managed some small 30 lb. pesky Sharks. Keith finally got Lemon to the boat and we called it a day!

The winds have finally calmed down and the water really cleaned up in the last few days making so many more places fishable.  There were lots of baits around with birds diving on them and fish below. The key was Pilchards and baits that looked like Pilchards. When chumming let the chum work sometimes it take a while for those pilchards to arrive. I like to work the grass flats where my clients can be casting and catching fish while netting bait. The Snook will be getting active in the next few week and months plus the Tarpon should make an appearance out on the coast. If you are interested in some fun fishing this is the time of year. If you enjoy fishing back country or flats style fishing give me a call at 305 333 8149. Caught Lookin Charters covers from N. Miami Beach to Key Largo inshore and flats and all of Everglades National Park from Homestead to Everglades City.

Captain jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters.com

Instagram @ caught lookin charters

It's been another breezy week Fishing in Biscayne Bay!

It's never a good feeling when client calls as you are pulling up to ramp and says he is broke down on turnpike. That happened today, but I made the best of it! I launched the boat and went out into Florida Bay and pre fished for a tournament on Saturday. The water wasn't a good color and the wind was every bit of 25 mph. Its been so windy I have been spending most of my time in Whitewater Bay so I went and check all the old reliable spots. I hit spots that produced allot of fish even with lack of grass on the bottom and churned up mud. I was throwing a top water plug on top of a flat and had a big Redfish blow up on it. It missed it but spooked a school of Reds with it, I felt they possibly could be there on Saturday. I hit a couple more spots and decided to go home and play Golf today!

Fishing in Flamingo for Snook

I am fishing Flamingo today with Tom and his son Brad, Its windy again so I'm on the Whitewater Bay side. On our first stop we had a couple missed fish but ended up with a nice Snook. As always I asked what they would like to catch today, Tom said Snappers not what I expected but ok. I felt I could catch enough Snappers while looking for Snook, Trout and anything else. We worked our way all the way out to Ponce Bay and only saw 1 boat all day.  We did manage a bunch of Trout, Jacks, Ladyfish and of course Snappers up to 14 inches. The high light of the day was Brad hood a small 10 lb. Sand Shark and had a 9 ft. Lemon Shark stalk it and eventually eat it right under the motor. The conditions were tough but Tom took home a bag full of Snapper filets.

Great Tarpon and Snook Fishing in Flamingo

I am down in Islamorada at the world famous Lorelei Restaurant for the ABC Contractors Tournament, I am tarpon fishing with Ron Pearson and his friend Demetrius. We made the long run to Flamingo in pretty choppy conditions. We pulled up to where I had found Redfish a couple days earlier it was nasty and rough but we gave it a shot. We were chunking Ladyfish hoping to attract them but all we found we Catfish. The next spot was a commitment because it was in a poll or troll zone. I was hoping for a few Snook and a possible small Tarpon. They cast and worked hard but all we had o show for it was Jacks and Snappers. We finally got out of the wind and worked the incoming tide along the Mangroves. I had some Shrimp in the livewell and put the biggest one on for Ron. He got it up on a over hanging tree and got smashed by a really big Snook not sure what happened but the fish came off. Ron thru another Shrimp up there and the next fish must of got the line in his gills and cut him off. I decided it was time to catch some bait and go west! The spot I was really counting on was infested with mosquitos so we didn't stay there long. The next spot produced 4 good bites an had some Tarpon rolling around. Demetrius landed 2 Snook and poor Ron was Snake bit today. Ron had both fish out of the trees and I was waiting to net them and they came off. We spent the last hour Trout fishing and then had a pretty bumpy ride to get back. We only had 2 Snook and a Trout to turn in but we had some potential.

As I'm writing this the winds are down and hopefully give us a break this week. I have a couple openings for the Memorial Day weekend. Its a good time to get the wife and kids out and Caught Lookin Charters is a kid friendly fishing charter. If you would like to spend a day catching fish and enjoying nature give me a call at 305 333 8149.

Captain Jim Hobales,

www.caughlookincharters.com

Instagram @caught lookin charters

Spring is here, so is the wind!

The last few weeks the wind has continued to blow in from 15 to 30 mph and it has made fishing difficult. The fact is I have been fishing and producing some decent hook ups and catches. The last week or so I have fished both Flamingo and locally in and around Miami Beach. The mullet schools have been thick and there have been some fish busting them occasionally. On a couple occasions I even found some Pilchards and turned them into something bigger. The late afternoon/evening bite was tough between the high winds and serious sea weed, although we did manage a few very large Tarpon hook ups. The weed was really thick and our baits would constantly be fouled up, these weeds were from Key Biscayne all the way up to Haulover. The bridges did produce some excellent action when mullet schools were pushing thru.

The inshore of Biscayne Bay is still producing Snook, Trout, Jacks, Snappers, Cuda's and Sharks most in the Mullet muds.

I also did some Bass fishing out in the Glade's last week.  We caught Bass up to 3.8 lbs., Peacock Bass to 2lbs, Pickerels, Mudfish and Oscars all on Rapalas and Senko's

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I am at Flamingo with the Crumb family Greg, Lisa, Logan's friend  Mike. It was 55 at the dock this morning so the ride out was cool and of course the wind was blowing.  We started out pretty good with a couple Snook, Trout and 13" Snappers on Twitch in Raps. It was nice the kids could cast like pros and they were having there own little completion. The early bite was productive then during the middle of the day with high water and winds it was slow. Today was a 10 hour day, Greg said they wanted to fish late when we spoke on the phone. It worked out because as the tide went out the fish turned on. We sight fished a Tarpon and some Sharks when the water got low and clear. We had netted some small finger Mullet and it was time to for them to go to work. We put them out and it didn't take long Greg had a big Snook blow up on his Mullet but missed it. We had the Snook blasting our bait out of water but not eating them. We finally got one hooked up and Mike is doing a great job of fight the 36 inch big girl. I netted it we took some pictures and I watched s Mike released the fish very gently. It is nice to see when  the kids aren't about killing fish but releasing them. They turned off after that and we made our way in.

I have been on a hot streak lately with some very good young anglers and it makes the day easy. I am a kid friendly charter guide if your kids are great anglers it will be fun. If they are beginners I will teach them the correct techniques that way its enjoyable for the rest of there fishing days. It will also make it easier on you, the parents!

If you are interested in fishing Biscayne Bay, Flamingo, or in the in the back country of Whtitewater Bay for Snook, Tarpon and everything else that swims give me a call at 305 333 8149.

Thanks,

Capt. Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters

Instagram @caught lookin charters

The last 2 weeks have been very windy and although my clients have caught fish, it has been no where near what this time of year is known for.  We usually get wind this time of year but there has been very few days under 20 mph. which limits some of the areas we can fish. I have spent most of the last couple weeks deep back country and on the coast around the Shark River. A combination between live baits and artificial lures have produced Tarpon, Snook, Redfish, Sharks big and Small and lots of and some really big Trout for my customers.  

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 I am fishing Whitewater Bay on a half a day today with Sebastian and Steve from Quebec, Canada. We started out with some small Tarpon that we jumped off right before the bugs got us. We ran back into the Lane River area and caught our first Snook while spooking out several more. We only had half day so we moved around quickly and started to bend the rods. They didn't care what they caught as long as it bent the rods!  It was windy and we had some rain coming in from the Keys direction so I kept moving north. There was an incredible Trout bite today with a couple Snook thrown in and they were very happy with just catching. Eventually we got hit by a couple rain squalls and serious rain, we hid as best as we could and when I got the chance I made a run for it and headed back.

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I am fishing out of Haulover today, I met John, Mike and their nephew Nick. On our stop Nick hooked up pretty nice Snook on a Rapala Shadow Rap shorty after Mike hooked one but it threw the lure. We caught a few Jacks and Cudas's but no more Snook bites. We ran down and fished a Mullet mud around 36 St. and had a really good morning. I had some finger Mullet and Nick was first to hook up with a really big Trout, Mike cast behind it and hood a Trout that was trailing it. These were two really big Trout, Nicks was 25 inches. The bite was on not only for Trout but we had some big Mangroves in there eating Rapala Sub walk lures. We also had Barracuda's and a couple Bonnet head Sharks eat our Mullet. It was a great bite and slowed as the tide filled in so we headed in.

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I am with Flamingo today with the Twilla's, Mark and his 2 sons Ryder and Will,  it is breezy again and I'm in Whitewater Bay. We started out pretty quick catching a bunch of Trout, Jacks and Ladyfish. While sitting there a massive school of finger Mullet poured thru. I threw the net once and got more than we could use. I ran to the open water where I could use the bait, we had a few big Bull Sharks eat our Mullet while Mark hooked a few really decent fish off the back of the boat. His drag was screaming and all I saw was a Snook in the air, shortly after he had another hit it right next to the boat. On the next cast he caught a 23 inch Trout. The bite was good for a half hour with the boys hooking Sharks on the front of the boat. I made a long cast at something moving in the water and had a king sized Snook eat it, I handed the road to Ryder and it got him into the trees. We bounced around looking for bigger fish and finally hooked another big Snook which threw the hook. It was a action packed day and the guys had enough. They were going to South Beach tonight.

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I am with the Drippe family Mike , Marie and son Matt, we are fishing Flamingo for the net 3 days. Mike told me when he booked the trip all they want is rod bending action, lots of Sharks, Trout and Ladyfish. I said no problem. We fished all areas of the park from the rivers to the east, rivers to the north and south, all of Whitewater Bay, the Gulf of Mexico and East Cape Canal and Lake Ingram. We did this in winds blowing in the 20 mph everyday! We caught fish in most of those places. Their son Matt was a pleasure to fish with he was @ 10 years old and had skills. He could cast and fight fish with technique of an older skilled angler. We had Back Country Slams but could manage to get our Tarpon into the boat. He picked up a Gulp Shrimp on a jig in East Cape Canal and he managed a pretty nice Snook while we bait fishing. I heard the drag pealing out and didn't even know he was fishing back there. We managed about 15 different species and that was what Mike wanted for his wife and sons first trip to the park, they kept track of every fish they caught. Mike wanted Matt to get a big Shark before we left and he did we had a crazy bite for an hour, we had them swarming around the boat and sight fished a few big ones for Matt. Matt ended the trip with a 150 Lemon Shark.

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I am fishing the next 2 days with Ed, Lewis and Russ we wanted to fish out front of Flamingo but winds are @25 mph today so we are in Whitewater Bay. On our first stop Lewis had a nice Trout and Russ had a Snook both came off at the boat. This always makes me worry when you loose the first fish. We moved on and the next spot was full of Trout after 20 or so I said lets go. It is windy and we are working points, really no Snook bite but Trout are killing it. It is hard to find areas that are protected enough to work but we managed. I had found Pilchards a couple days ago but not thick today so we settle for mullet. The Sharks were deadly today, if we put out a mullet good chance a Shark ate it. Ed had a 9 foot Bull Shark eat a mullet and fought it for 45 minutes before handing the rod to Lewis who fought it for 30 more. This Shark had to go 250 and dragged us out to the Gulf of Mexico about a half a mile. We had it right under the boat the cork was right there when the fish finally got thru the leader. We caught some more little Lemon Sharks while Snook fishing but no Snook. We had lots of by catch today but the quality was not there.

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I'm with Ed, Lewis and Russ again today and its still windy. I had a game plan go up catch a few baits and run up the rivers to the east. Russ got a Snook while catching bait, the Snook were feeding pretty good but not eating our lures. We made the run and on Lewis first cast he got hit but no fish! Ed cast up in same area gets hit no fish! We worked the area hard and Lewis finally got a Redfish. We made a move and the next spot was good 2 days before. I didn't have the pilchards today only finger mullet which got slammed a couple times. Russ caught a Redfish on a Gulp Shrimp jig and also had a few follow ups. Ed got slammed under a tree on a mullet, the pop was loud but the fish missed the bait. Lewis had a fish chasing his bait which ends up being a 4 foot bull Shark after 20 minutes its gone! We ended the day on a couple different Trout spots, we bent the rods for the last hour catching some of the smallest Trout I have ever seen on that spot.

The rain is coming its time to go!

Even with the winds blowing20 - 30 mph we still managed to have some fun fish catching days. When clients book there trip they count on great Florida weather, well some times its not perfect. My job is to do the best I can possibly do to catch them the fish they dream about. I can do this for you if you have a dream call me at 305 333 8149.

Capt. Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters

Instagram@ caught lookin charters

Tarpon are Here, so are Sharks!

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 I am fishing Flamingo back country (Whitewater Bay)with the Stretcher family today, it is breezy again today but manageable. We bounced around lookin for action, we used a combination of live Shrimp, lures, finger Mullet and Pilchards. The first spot produced a little of everything mostly Trout but with 4 people casting it adds up quickly. Greg caught a nice Redfish to go along with a bunch of Trout and Snappers. We ended up out on the coast where we caught amore Trout, Jacks and a Snook by live Chumming. We also had some Sharks eat our baits but it was very slow today.

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I am Whitewater Bay again today with Brian Williams his dad Joe and son Nick. I should of started out front today but I knew where the bait was and I figured I would run around and hit the Tarpon when I got some mullet. We caught all the regulars on the way up to Shark River including Trout, Jacks, Ladyfish and a Small Cobia. The Snook were none existent back there for a couple days and the conditions are really good. Tons of bait and really good looking water but no Snook! I made our way out to the Gulf of Mexico and found some rolling Tarpon and waited for a big Snook bite but the Sharks got in on us. Brian and Nick didn't mind fighting them catching a couple Lemons and Black tips up to around 9 feet long. I had a live 1 1/2 lb. Ladyfish in the livewell and rigged it up for Tarpon. It sat out there for a few minutes and we had a big wake approaching. The fish circled the bait and really made it nervous, then we saw what it was. The giant 10 ft. Tiger Shark rose to the surface and smashed the Ladyfish cutting it off right behind the head. I then pitched it back out and caught one of the smaller Black tips that roam around out there. I had gota text telling me where there where a bunch of Tarpon so we headed that way only to get side tracked looking for Triple Tails. There weren't many around but we caught one and then ran in lookin for Tarpon. It was late and they wanted more Trout so we head to the Trout flats caught a bunch along with Nick land in 50 lb. Spinner Shark that was hooked in Pec Fin this made it fight allot harder. We landed the Shark and it tried to come over the side and bite me, that was enough we headed in.

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I am with Espn Mike today fishing Flamingo. My intentions were to put in on the FL. Bay side but the wind was cranking. I launched the boat on the Whitewater Bay side and headed out didn't go far and found a bunch of 10 -25 lb. Tarpon. We got one to the boat and hooked and jumped 8 or 10 more. I had really good conditions for Snook so we looking for them. On the first spot the bait was all over this bar between 2 islands while Mike was castingwe ahead a blow up 50 ft. behind us and another around the corner and then another across from us. They were there but we didn't get any bites! We moved on and kept going at it but the bite sucked. We kept on fishing and made our way out to the coast. There were some Tarpon free jumping and rolling so we put out a few live Mullet but the Shark ate every one. It was pretty windy and we didn't get any real casting opportunities at them.

We changed it up some, I handed Mike a Rapala Skitter Walk and we work down a shoreline. We started seeing a few fish and Mike sight casted a big Trout that was cruising. It had been kind of quite and all of a sudden we were into a few fish. Mike had a Tarpon blow up on his lure and miss it but it was awesome to watch. I said lets go try the spot we left earlier. We set up and he had 3 or 4 hits finally catching a Snook. mike was worried about missing his flight so we packed it in and headed to the dock.

It don't sound like fishing is all that great but we are catching lots of fish in some tough weather conditions. The spring Snook bite should get really hot with the amount of bait pushing down the west coast. There are plenty of Tarpon around Miami and the beaches as well. The winds will start calm down in the next week which is perfect since the Tarpon are in pretty good. I like to catch Tarpon whether is with lures or bait and if you feel the same give me a call at 305 333 9149. 

Capt. Jim Hobales, 

www.caughtlookincharters.com

follow on Instagram @Caught Lookin Charters

Fun week!

The last week has been interesting I have either fished North Biscayne Bay, Government Cut or Holiday Park for Bass. The Trout fishing has been really good for bigger Trout in the 22 to 25 inch range. The Tarpon are around and they seemed to bite late the one night I was out. The Cut always produces something if you drop a shrimp to the bottom Mangrove Snappers, Yellowtails, Hog Snappers, Mutton Snappers, Spanish Hogfish and Groupers are the by catch while waiting on Tarpon.

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 I am fishing Biscayne Bay with Greg and his 90 yr old Dad Warren who wanted to catch Sea Trout. He had caught all the fresh water species of Trout and wanted to add Sea Troutto the list. We left Haulover and hit a few spots on the way south, I rigged up a shrimp on a cork and pitched it up against a sea wall and showed Warren where it needed to be. It took all of about 30 seconds before a Snook ate the Shrimp and was running away. It ran into a bridge piling and that was It!  The next spot produced quickly Greg was throwing a Rapala and hooked a 23 inch Trout shortly later he caught another. We moved on and now it was Warrens turn he caught his Sea Trout and many more using Pilchards. he also caught a big Bluefish, a couple Cuda's and Mangrove Snappers. It was only a half day so we headed in.

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I am fishing with Ed and Sara tonight looking for Tarpon in and around Government Cut. We managed a bunch of fish off the bottom while waiting for things to get right. Ed did have a big bite and the fish ran up the ledge and cut him off that is a Tarpon trick. That was our only big bite for the night. We stayed out until 9 o'clock and I heard they bit later.

Luc is here from S. Africa fishing with his friend Serge

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I fished Holiday Park today with Serge, Luc, Rob and Robert. It was Serge's birthday present from his wife Dawn. These guys were allot of fun and we put a "hurtin on the fish". The fish weren't giants but the rods bent constantly and these guys were loving it. They caught 25 Bass up to 2-8 lbs., 1 chain Pickerel and 30 or so Oscars which hit and pull hard on light tackle. Great morning fun guys!

Serge having a great Birthday with his friends!

I am fishing with Sam Rose one of my regular customers for the last 10 years he brought his friend Kirk today. We started out in Government Cut and caught a decent Spanish Mackerel and a Blue Runner right off the bat. We were waiting for the tide to switch and once it did we got one Tarpon hookup. It didn't last long one jump and gone. That was it except for a couple Trigger fish. it was getting bumpy and Sam is in his 80's and set let's go somewhere calmer. We ran inside to the piling flat and got on the fish pretty good, first Sam caught a 15 inch Mangrove on a Shadow Rap. Kirk hooked up and had a big Trout pulling drag and really shaking its head. I got the net out for this one, it measure right at 25 inches a monster. All of sudden the surface erupted with Mullet and big Jacks all over them first Kirk hooked one which let the hook go. They blew up again and Sam cast right into the Blow ups and hooked one he couldn't stop. Of course he had it on the lightest rod in the boat, it took us about 25 minutes to get it boat side. as I was netting it ran one more time and nicked the side of the boat and cut Sam off. He was done, but we got a great look at it. I guessed it between 18 and 20 lbs. Sam sat and told stories while Kirk hooked several more fish in the 22 to 24 inch range. There were also as bunch of not so big Trout. 

Big Trout have been active!

If you enjoy fishing, catching and sightseeing while on the water it is the right time of year to get out there. There is a bunch of action and its just fun fishing. I will be doing allot more Tarpon fishing in the next few weeks but its been fun this week. If you have kids and they want to get out on spring break I'm your guy, if your serious about Tarpon, Snook I'm also your guy.

Give me a call at 305 333 8149 and we can get it it done!

Thanks ,

Capt. Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters.com

follow on Instagram @ caught lookin charters

A little bit of Winter left !

90 year old Warren and his son Greg, North Biscayne Bay. 

This past week has been a mix of species from North Miami to Everglades National Park (Flamingo). The winds have continued to effect the fishing but when it has come down there have been Snook, Trout, Tripletails and lots of cast at Tarpon. The water temps have been anywhere from 66 to 73 degrees and throw in the winds and cold fronts it set our Tarpon fishing back a week or so. The cool weather really sparked the Trout fishing with 50 fish days no problem. It seems like things are ready to bust loose in the back country, there is allot of Mullet stacking up in some of the bays. The Snook are hitting Rapala's fished around the windy points. The Tripletails haven't been really plentiful but the ones I'm finding are giant, this will only get better.  The next 3 months are all about Tarpon make plans early because it does get busy!

It should be long before we get into a big Tarpon Bite and the Snook wont be far behind. If you are interested in fishing Biscayne Bay, Government Cut or Flamingo for Tarpon  give me a call at 305 333 8149.

Capt. Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters.com

Follow on Instagram @caughtlookincharters

Flats Fishing in Miami and making it happen in heavy winds!

We have not had much of a winter but our spring winds are in full force! The last 2 weeks have seen some very windy days with winds in the 20 mph and up and of course those are the days I have been booked. I learned a long time ago our windy weather is always better than where my clients came from this time of year. The S.W. to N.W. winds eliminate half the areas we like to fish in Florida Bay, the Gulf of Mexico or Whitewater Bay. With all that being said we still find and catch fish.

Fishing Flamingo on Windy Days Won't Stop Us!

I am with fishing Flamingo with Chris his son Chris and father in law Anthony. I had told Chris it might be better to put it of for the next day but they were leaving the following day. We headed out in windy conditions East at 20 plus and I was scrambling already. We headed out west into the East Cape area to get out of the wind, but now it started to rain. It wasn't easy but little Chris caught a Snook so our hopes were up. We fished all over the place and ended up salvaging the day with Trout, Jacks and Ladyfish. It didn't get any better so we called it early.

Fishing Flamingo Biscayne Bay

I am fishing Flamingo today with Ezra, his sons Robert and Jacob and their friend Gali, It wasn't supposed to be blowing today but it is. I launched on the Fl. Bay side because I didn't feel the wind, but while waiting for customers it picked up. I should of pulled it out and put in on back country side, instead I tried out side and ended up running north around into Whitewater Bay. It wasn't so bad but a N.W. swell on the water made for a slow ride. We got up into the creeks and got into a good Trout, Jack and Ladyfish bite. We found some Pilchards so I hit all my spots looking to chum up some Snook. It didn't happen today but we found more Trout with the live chum. The kids were happy because the rods were bending but it was tough. We fished lots of  spots and got a few here and a few there making a dent day but 25 mph never makes it easy.

Fishing Flamingo Backcountry Snook Ladyfish

I am fishing Flamingo with Keith Marks and his son Tim today. We started out in the back country because again today it blowing over 20 but its out of the east which gives me some options. The tide is a negative low tide and there's not a lot of water anywhere. I ran thru the east side of back country which is protected and lots of spot to fish, only one problem no water on all the spots. I hit a deeper area and got into some small Ladyfish which we kept for bait. While we were working an island there was a big mud, the mud was made by a school of a few hundred Spadefish. Keith made a cast into the school and something ripped off line after a few wrong guesses a Spadefish showed itself. I have never seen them in the back country but plenty of them on the flats out front.  

I made my way deep into back country rivers and eventually got into a Snook bite. We had a 30 minute window where the Snook turned on and we caught 2 out of 5. The wind was gusting well into the 30 mph range and it was actually cool. We continued casting but the bite was over. I made a run out into the Gulf of Mexico and it kind of Paid off, we had 3 bites. The first was Shark that was off to the races Tim fought it for 20 minutes until he was cut off. I rigged up another live Ladyfish we sat around for a while and the bait was nervous and then it got hit. Keith fought the fish for a minute or so and the bait came back with circle hooked turned into bait. The bait was scaled and it was a probably a big Snook by the way it looked. One more bait and we watched as a giant Bull Shark circled and knocked the Ladyfish out of the water a couple times and then swam away. We had a long ride back into a nasty bay so we called it.  

Its looking better this week so hopefully the fishing will get red hot, It shouldn't take long for the water to get back up over 70 degrees and get the fish eating again. If your interested catching some fish and having an adventure give me a call at 305 333 8149

Capt. Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharers.com

follow on Instagram @ Caught Lookin Charters

Snook are biting in Biscayne Bay!

It's been a busy and really good week for Bay fishing down at Flamingo. I have fished every condition and wind direction and for the most part have produced great catches of Snook, Tarpon, Redfish and Trout. My anglers have used live Shrimp, Mullet, Pilchards and artificials like Rapalas and Gulp Shrimp. Every one of these baits have produce Snook over the 10 lb. mark. and plenty of smaller fish. The Tripletails have finally shown up in good numbers out on the buoys so we are eating good now. There were some Tarpon around in the back country and out in the Gulf of Mexico.

Fishing Flamingo With Felix and Sons

I am fishing Flamingo today with Felix and his sons J.C. and Alex, we ran out west we had a full moon and a super low tide. I wanted to catch the incoming and look for some Snook, black drum and maybe a Tarpon. We sat out the and nothing was going on and that's when I decided to run to where I had caught some tarpon 2 days before. I ran to a bait spot but no luck then we ran about 10 miles out of the way to another bait spot and found the silver flashes.  We netted a bunch of bait and ran back another 10 miles and put them to work. it all paid off with J.C. hooking the first Snook and it was big weighing 12 lbs. The bite wasn't fast and furious but we were patient and Alex hooked a monster the fish ran in and around everything she could but we managed to boat this 36 inch and 18 lbs. trophy. We finished off the day trying to get Felix his Snook but he caught everything but a Snook. The full moon was a minimal factor today, the Tarpon that were their the day before never showed them self.

 Flamingo fishing Tarpon and Snook

 I am with Tim K. from Colorado again today down at Flamingo, he had a great time last week and wanted to get out again before going home. We started out pretty quick with a good Snook and then went looking for Tarpon. We found some in crystal clear water but only managed a Shark hook up. I decided to run up the coast a bit and we had a couple more Snook on live finger mullet Tim was enjoying it. The winds picked up from the NW at 20 plus and made things tough. We fished a bunch of areas and caught some fish but things were tough. We got a late start today and it was getting dark so it was time to get in.

Flamingo fishing, Trout for dinner!

 I am with Bob Jim and Billy down at Flamingo, they wanted to catch some fish to have a Valentines days fish fry for the wife's. We tried for Redfish first but it didn't happen. I then ran out to a grassy area for Trout, we got on a slow bite but had 20 or so but only 7 keepers. I said we going out for Tripletail hey didn't really now what they were. We got out and found a nice one and then another they had dinner but we kept looking. We probably saw a dozen or so  which was nice because they haven't been out there. We cast at them over and over having different things spook them. We ran back and caught the incoming tide and really killed the big Trout. We must of caught 50 or so keeping a total of 12 for their dinner party.  It was time to go and clean fish!

I am with Jeff today at Flamingo and his day started out with a 10 lb. Snook on a Gulp Shrimp, pressures off already. We continued to catch different species like Trout Jacks Ladyfishand a couple more Snook but the winds were killing us. I worked the lee of every island and it kept his rod bent, Jeff was extremely happy with the way the day went.

Biscayne Bay fishing trip!

 I am part of a 3 boat trip today out of Biscayne Bay. We have the Yamaha Motor Corp. executives in town for the boat show. We pick them up on the Miami River and ran south to Stiltsville . We had some live bait Pilchards and Shrimp. We put them to work and caught a bunch of Barracudas, Jacks and Mangrove Snappers . It was a short morning they had a meeting in Ft Lauderdale so we were done at 113

I got a call and was asked if I was interested in running the new Sea Vee Bay boat at the Boat show, I said yes and worked the boat show for 3 days.

The fishing has been good, lots of big fish and its only getting better. Caught Lookin Charters is a kid friendly / family oriented as well as hard core guide service . If you are interested in a great day on the water catching fish give me a call at 305 333 8149.

follow on Instagram @Caught Lookin Charters

Capt. Jim Hobales

www.caughtlookincharters.com

Good weather produces multi specie days in Flamingo!

I am fishing Flamingo today with Brian and Papo, we got an early start and were set up in a creek before the crowds got there. The Tarpon were rolling all around us as they pitched live Shrimp into some run offs and trees. We had a few small snapper bites and then Brian hooked a Snook but it wasn't happening, the creek was getting busy so I decided to leave. Brian had asked about Cobia's so we ran off shore and fished an area they cruise thru. We set up and had some action from Snappers, Mackerel, Grouper, Grunts and few that we couldn't stop as we waited for a Cobia to pop up. Eventually we had a couple follow our baits up but refused to eat. We changed it up and ran some traps for Tripletails only finding one that wasn't big enough to even catch. We ended the day catching Trout,Mackerel, Jacks and Ladyfish. On the way in we stopped one last spot and Papo hooked a big Snook, there was some excitement for a few minutes and then the fish threw the Gulp jig. We laughed it off but that kind of hurt, we headed only to find out other people fishing today didn't do so great. It made us feel a little better!

Flamingo Tarpon Fishing Successful!

 I am with Tim from Colorado and his friend Paul who lives here, we are down at Flamingo. I decided to go back country today hoping to find some Tarpon laid up. On our first couple spots we had no tide movement so we kept moving north.  I was just trying to bend their rods before looking for Tarpon, well it happened. Paul is hooked up to a big old Snook which ate a Shadow Rap Shad, the fish exploded and took of on a couple long runs but ran under a log. We trolling motored up on it and it spooked off and cut us off. I was keeping an eye open for Tarpon blowing up but only saw a few. I ran to my bait spot and found some big Pilchards and quickly put them to use. I set up in a river and thru a handful of live chummers out and we were on, Tim had a Tarpon doing what Tarpon do. It didn't last long and the Tarpon threw the hook. I put another big bait on and as soon as it hit the water it was eaten. Paul had a Tarpon hooked up and it is jumping all over the place and it thru the hook. I baited up again and this time Paul is hooked up solid and the fish is running and staying down, this helps allot. The Tarpon put up a good fight and e eventfully released it at boat side. We had one more hook up and jump off.

Playing with the Tarpon we missed the incoming tide down at the creeks, by the time we got there the tide was way up into the trees. We ran back in to Whitewater Bay and a Redfish spot and they were there, not giants but they were Redfish. Time and Paul both caught 2 each and we moved on. I wanted to chum up some Snook on the way in only to find Trout, Jacks and Ladyfish. I said I got one last spot and we emptied the live well attempting to chum them up. nothing happening then all of a suddenly Tim is hooked up to a big fish which is trying to get him under the trees. I was telling him pull this way pull that way and we got it out and what a nice fish it was. With all the pilchards I threw out this Snook ate a Gulp Shrimp, go figure. It says it right on the jar "Gulp it out fishes live bait".

The guys were tired and we headed in, Paul was quite the story teller from the minute he got on the boat until he left he had stories interesting guy!

Fishing is pretty good for everything, you can try for all the species which people like to do or sit and target one particular fish like Tarpon or Snook. I like to catch fish and put smiles on my customers face its all up to you. Give me a call at 305 333 8149 and lets let's go catch some.

Capt. Jim Hobales,

www.caughtlookincharters.com

follow Instagram @caughtlookincharters

Good fishing days and Hard fishing days in Biscayne Bay

I am in Government cut this morning with my son James and his friend Danny. It is the day before the cold front come thru and it warm, calm and the fish are biting. We started out pretty quick with some Mutton Snappers, Hog Snappers, Mangrove Snappers, Yellowtails, a giant Sheephead, big Jacks, Mackerels, and finished it off with a couple of Permit hook ups. The Tarpon were all around us but no bites from them. We were done at 1100 A.M. and got Danny home in time for work.

I am with Mark and Andrew today in Government cut, it cold today with a strong North wind. Running to G. Cut my pipe stand in the livewell popped out and all my shrimp got suck out of the live well so I had to make a 10 mile run back to get more shrimp. The Tarpon were really thick when we first got into the cut just before 7 A.M. I was marking a big school. It took an hour to get more shrimp and when I got back no Tarpon any where. the 3 or 4 boats in there looking couldn't find them. we settled fishing for the other species and hoped we would get a Tarpon or Permit bite.  We caught Mangroves up to 18 inches, Spanish Hogfish, Grunts, a really big Porgy and a couple Mutton Snappers. The wind was making it tough but we managed a good half day of catching dinner.

Flamingo today, plenty of Snook and Redfish

 I am down at Flamingo today and we have some really nasty weather, its 49 degrees, winds out of the N.W. at25 and oh yeah its raining. I pulled up and see my customer Chris Peterson and his grand kids Tian and Nicole and her boyfriend Nick. Chris prepared them for the weather all in heavy foul weather gear only Nicole was in sandals. It was a cold,wet ride and raining out west where we were heading.  We waited it out but couldn't find many fish for most of the day. The tides were extremely low and we worked all the run offs we could, the tide was so low the run offs were up above the water. The prize catch was a keeper Trout and some Snappers. I kept moving around and finally the tide started coming in and we found an area that had fish they only bit for about 40 minutes but we did get 4 Snook and a Redfish and more Snappers. It was 1 o'clock and Tian had the shakes, Nicole was freezing so we called it a day.

They came to Florida from Washington State for some warm weather!

Calm today - Rough Tomorrow in Biscayne Bay

I am fishing out of Haulover Marina with David, Mike, Jeff and Charlie. David said he would of like to catch Tarpon when we spoke on the phone. Our first stop Jeff hooked a really nice Snook which we ended up loosing when it jumped. We ran to Government Cut to fish the out going tide in pretty calm conditions. We set up along with a few other boats and instantly had a bite Mike caught a good sized Yellowtail. This bite continued with Mackerels ,Grouper, and a couple fish that were eaten on the way up. Its hard to fish 4 guys without someone being left out! Jeff, Mike , and Charlie had the right spots because the were constantly hooked up. all of a sudden we had 3 Biscayne rods double over, all 3 were Tarpon. Its time like these you pray for but we had a couple issues, a circle hook broke , a troll right straightened and the third fish jumped off. I got them rigged right back up and within minutes we had a rod doubled over Charlie grabbed the rod and fought the fish for 20 minutes we finally saw the big silver slab of his Permit. The funny thing is he didn't even know what it was! We had a couple more fish and 1 other Tarpon hook up but the winds picked up over 20 and the bite shut down. We worked our way back towards Haulover Marina but there some bad weather following us, this was an incredible 1/2 day trip.

I am fishing Flamingo today with Scott and his son James, it is his birthday. The forecast is windy really windy! We launched the boat into the back country side and made our way out. We stopped in Coot Bay and started the day off with some great Trout action. I wanted to get up into Whitewater Bay before the winds got really bad and blind cast for some Tarpon. We gave it a half hour or so but I could see they wanted something else. I hit every spot I have and with the exception of , Jacks, Snappers and Ladyfish there was no bite. The water was muddy with winds pushing across so the baits never even got into the strike zone. The difference ended up being finding some cleaner water somewhat out of the 30 mph winds over on the east side.  We stuck it out for the full day and had some laughs. I told Scott I have been fishing back there along time and that's the roughest day I have ever fished. Once it gets over 25mph,  I know now its not really fishable.

Cold weather days produce! Plenty Black DRum and Snook

I am with Bob and Charlie today and we are fishing Flamingo, the weather is nice but there is a full moon and a breeze. The past weekend cold front packed the fish together in holes and creeks which makes it easy when you find them. Today was that day and we started out with a great Snook bite which lasted for an hour until we moved on. The next spot we got into the Black Drum and some larger Snook. There were a couple of big bites which never got into the boat! Bob had a giant Black Drum he fought for about 8 minutes and the hook fell out of its mouth, this was a giant! Charlie had a big bite also but his turned into a Snook, when the fish broke the surface we saw the 40 inch Snook. The excitement took over an the fish fell off the hook as well as we attempted to net it. There were plenty of fish today and the guys were tired and out of beer.

I am down at Flamingo today with "Pepe" and Jose Luis today. The conditions have warmed up a bit and the breeze was down first thing in the morning. We stayed with the same pattern as the previous week but it was slow today, I had a few boats in the area and I never saw any quality fish caught. I kept moving around until I found some hungry fish The first was a small black Drum and then a few cast later a bigger Drum. The Trout turned on as we were waiting for a tide switch, we caught them on Shrimp, Gulp Shrimp and plugs. We moved around some and finally got into where we wanted to be. The Snook were blowing up finger mullet so I netted some. These fish are hard to get to because of the trees that block the spot but eventually we got one to eat. We tried for more but no luck so we moved on. As we were running a pretty big storm came thru but it calmed the wind for about 30 minutes. That's when I noticed what I thought were big Tarpon blowing up Mullet as I was wrong they were giant Snook. Jose Luis was throwing a Gulp Shrimp up against the shoreline and had a nice Snook but it wasn't what was blowing up mullet. Pepe says I'm on and the rod doubled over but the fish let go. We put a fresh Mullet on and this time it was the Snook form Hell. This 20 plus pound monster ate the bait and jumped head first into the motor bouncing off it. The next moves had Pepe running around in circles, we had the beautiful monster laying sideways. One last surge before we could get the net on it and it nicked the side of my boat and was gone. I really wanted that fish but S@#t happen.

Fishing is fun right now it is mostly down at Flamingo because the winds have been brutally Strong. The Shrimp are running at night and that means Tarpon and Snook should eat them in the inlets and along the beach, but the winds need to come down some.

Flamingo is as good as it gets as well, Snook, Black Drum,Trout and Redfish. There has been numbers of Cobias and Triple Tails in the in the garbage can In the cleaning room so the bite is on. Give me a call at 305 333 8149 if you up to catching some quality fish.

Follow me @ Instagram Caught Lookin Charters

Capt Jimbo

www.caughtlookincharters.com

Happy New Year!

This year has started out cool and windy I've already been changing and cancelling a couple dates. The bonus of he cool days is its going to put the fish in a winter pattern finally although no one was complaining about the late season warmth. The nice part of last week was there were still plenty of Tarpon after the cold snap. This weeks colder weather will hole up the fish down at Flamingo and the push the Tarpon into Government Cut. These are the best 2 choices of where to fish in the next few months.   

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I am fishing with my good friend John Paul Rochfort and his family from Canada. He brings his grandson Michel every year and we hook him up with a little bit of everything we can in N. Biscayne Bay. He also had his daughter and her husband along for the ride. Michel is 6 and is crazy about fishing! The winds today are @ 20 mph so we stayed in some of the more protected areas. Michel caught a big Jack right off the bat and then every one got in on the act with big Jacks. Michel was casting a Gulp Shrimp and hooked a really nice Barracuda that had him screaming. It was tough finding and area that the wind wasn't blowing waves of the sides. We ran down the 36 St. flats and caught some Trout, Jacks, Ladyfish and Cuda's.

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I am fishing with the O'Quinn family David and his twin sons Arron and Jacob today down at Flamingo. We fished a little deeper water and watched as the Tarpon blew up the mullet as they came by. Jacob had a good hit which ended up being either a Dog Snapper or a Cubera, it had great colors of gold, orange and red, but wasn't a Mangrove. We caught several other mangroves out of the same spot and I showed the guys the difference. David caught a 25 inch Redfish and we had some fish we never saw break off. I netted some mullet and had 1 get busted by a Tarpon but missed it and never came back for it. It was only a half day and they wanted to really bend the rods. I ran to a Trout spot and we bent the rods for the last hour with Trout, Snappers Ladyfish and Jacks. They were happy and it was time to go!

It's that time of year to bundle up some in the morning but the fish should be easy to find in numbers, this goes for the Flamingo area and also Government Cut. Remember when its breezy on the beach there is usually areas we can fish down at Flamingo. We have Whitewater Bay which is just full of places to hide and not so great days . The big Tarpon will show up In Whitewater Bay after a few days of warm weather and the water temps this is an awesome fishery. These fish can go from 70 lbs.and as big as 180 lbs. and allot of time we are sight casting them. If interested give me a call at 305 333 8149.

follow me on Instagram @ CaughtLookinCharters
Capt.. Jim Hobales
www.caughtlookincharters.com

Bye bye 2016!

This was a 43 inch Snook, that was starving. This fish has no belly

The end of 2016 was warm and that means the Tarpon were around in big numbers at Flamingo but today 12-30-16 is the end of it. It cooled down over night and got windy which will knock water temps down. The great part is they will be back in a couple days when it warms up. 2016 produce some big Snook for Caught Lookin Charters most out of WhitewaterBay in the Back country and I hope to continue producing them in 2017

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I am fishing with long time client Sam Rose and his son Mike today. On the way to pick them up on Fischer Island I noticed the mullet schools grey hounding on the flats. I pulled in and saw 30 lb. Jacks and 100 lb. Sharks busting up the mullet schools. I picked up Sam and Mike at the dock and headed back but it didn't last much longer. We did get shots at a few Sharks and Jacks but the were don eating. We stayed in the bay because it was blowing @20- 25 today. Mike was having a good time catching Trout, Jacks, Ladyfish, Cuda's and Snapper.

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I am with Andy and his son Alex today, I picked them up in Bal Harbor and immediately got into fish busting baits. I gave them some lures and we doubled up on giant Ladyfish , we did 4 or 5 time and moved on. I had netted some pilchards and we went chumming the canals and sea walls. this produced a bunch of  2 - 3 lb. Jacks which was all Alex could handle with a broken right hand. We got into a bunch of Trout and got a real good father son picture with a giant Snook.

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I am down at Flamingo today part of a 4 boat site seeing and some fishing, I'm with Jenn her son Luke and Carter and Niece Sam. I showed them everything I could Flamingos, Pelicans brown and white, Egrets and Herons. They wanted Crocodiles, so we went and found them. Once we finished we went fishing and whacked he Trout Jacks, Ladyfish and a Redfish. The only person who had fished before was Luke so I made sure everyone caught their share of fish. Jenn had told me Carter was Autistic so I made sure he had a great time catching his first couple fish. It was a short trip so we headed back to Flamingo marina.

I am down at Flamingo today with Shaun O'Neal his son Ethan his friend Harvey and Mitch. We started out chasing some fish that were busting baits but never seem to catch up to the, they were moving quick. This morning it was 52 degrees at the dock its  our first cold day of the year. I took advantage of the drop in temps both air and water almost 10 degrees different than 2 day ago.  I went to the deeper area of East Cape Canal and fished knocker rigs on the bottom. I gave Ethan a Gulp Shrimp to work slow and deep, it paid off Ethan hooked a really big Snook, his first. The big cold Snook fought very hard and stayed deep keeping us in suspense. The Snook came to the surface and there was allot of screaming. I grabbed the net and made Ethan's day!

We revived the Snook and went back to fishing that's when the Black drum turned on. Every was hooked up and we caught a bunch of nice ones up to 5 lbs. Shaun had this nice one which gave him a great fight.  We ran around showing them the whole park coming in from the back country. We found some Trout and caught 4 at a time for over an hour. The rest of the day was tough the winds were in the 25 mph range and made fishing tough in the back country even though we put all kinds of fish in the boat. The guys were beat and we made our way in it was a long day!

The big Tarpon are in the back country and once the water temps come back up they will start eating again.

This is my last report for 2016 and I'm glad to have a couple big Snook in the pictures, because this was a banner year for me and big Snook.

I have a Pathfinder 22 which handle the hard core angler needs , it also handles a Family of 4 kids included. If you need a kid friendly charter I'm it give me a call at 305 333 8149.

You can follow me on Instagram @ Caught Lookin Charters!

Happy New Year,

Captain Jim Hobales

www.CaughtLookinCharters

Full moon = slow bite

The last few weeks have been on the slow side but when I have been book we catching some fish. There has been plenty of bait plus the shrimp are on the bigger side so baits have been no issue, the funny thing is with all the bait we catch allot of fish on lures. We have been catching fish on Gulp Shrimp and Rapala Shadow Raps as well. The water temps have been dropping and that will pack the fish into deeper holes.

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 I am with Terry, John Jeff, and Alfredo down at Flamingo. We started out on some really decent sized Tarpon throwing jerk baits and live mullet at them and never got a look. It was fun and we put a few Jacks in the boat but the Tarpon didn't play. We moved on because they were inexperienced and bending rods was more important. I showed them allot of the park and they all loved it none of them had ever been here. We did allot this day and weren't really rewarded much until the end of the day. I saved the Trout fishing for last and we banged them up good catch 30 or so with 5 between 20 and 23 inches. The Jacks Ladyfish and Snapper made for a good feeding frenzy. We ended the day catching a big Lemon Shark and watching Bull Sharks destroy the mullet right next to our boat. This was a full day and the 2 cases of beer they brought were gone.

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I am fish the Everglades City area the next 2 day with Pam and Denise, I met them at the Rod and Gun Club and Immediately got into fish blowing up Pilchards. We warmed up by catching Jacks and Ladyfish and then moved on. The conditions were pretty tough today wind was @ 25 mph and kept changing directions. We got on a good Trout bite while looking for Redfish but finding anything out of the wind was tough. We fished a bunch of points and oyster bars which produced more Trout and a Small Snook. We worked hard caught plenty of fish but not the Snook and Redfish we were looking for. The windy conditions made it hard to find bait and the fish really didn't respond to live shrimp.

On day 2 The conditions where totally opposite it was flat calm, the bait was every where and so were the Mackerel's, Bluefish and Ladyfish. We netted a live well full of pilchards and went to one of my chumming spots. The first bait that hit the water produced a Redfish for Denise. We had a few big blow ups in the chum but couldn't get them to eat so we moved on. We were making a move and for the mother load of Mac's they broke out their fly rods for this. We did this for a couple hours and they were loving it. It was nice because the Mac's were up to 4 lb.'sand 2 - 3 lb. Bluefish. We went threw some flies but that's the cost of fishing those fish.

I hit all my spots and only had 1 nice Snook eat a bait fishing was difficult at best. I think I went right today and maybe should of went left saw a couple reports of people further south and seemed like there was some king of bite. We ended the day back into the Mac's and wore them out , Pam loves the Mac's. The big super full moon got the best of me this time!

Fall is here, so are fish!

The past 10 days have been as windy down here as it gets with not many fishing days. The wind finally came down and I had a few afternoon trips out of Biscayne Bay and Made the best of them.

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Evans and Jackie from Dallas are here for a seminar and Jackie surprised Evans with a fishing trip. We started out on some schooling Jacks, Jackie had never caught a fish so she was excited. We went looking for Tarpon and they just weren't active. I said let s go find some Snook. It didn't take long and we had 2 incredible bites landing 1 Snook weighing 10 lbs. The bite wasn't crazy but we did watch some Snook blowing up Shrimp in the shadow line of a bridge. We threw live bait and a some glow shrimps but no bites. We called it a night @ 10pm.

Evans said one of his friends at the seminar might want to go tomorrow and I said tell him to call he did first thing in the morning.

George called and we set it up and I met him and Laura, we got out at 3:30 and found bait which hasn't been easy. We started chumminga shore line that holds Snook , Jacks and other species but today was only Jacks today. It wasn't bad for non anglers we put 20 or so 1-3 lb. Jacks in the boat on bait and lures. We went looking for Tarpon and found the mother load. we had mullet and Pilchards but never got a bite. We moved on and a friend saw me and said there was a great bite going on in the inlet. I said thanks and was on my way, that's when George said we want to go in.

I dropped them off and headed to the inlet where I hooked up immediately in 40 minutes I had 2 Snook, 2 Tarpon to 20 lbs. and 2 lost fish. I just wish they would of stayed!

We are in headed into some good time in the next month, water and air temps are both comfortable . Its actually cool at night and early in the morning which will turn on lots of fish.

We will be catching lots of quality fish between Biscayne Bay and Flamingo down in Everglades National Park. If you want to experience something deep into nature in a national park you need to see Flamingo down at Everglades National Park.

If you are staying on Miami Beach and down want to make the drive then Biscayne Bay iscloser and has plenty of fish also. Hopefully your excited about coming down to South Florida and catching some fish if you are call me at 305 333 8149.

Capt. Jimbo

www.Caughtlookincharters.com

Fall is here!

Miami Beach area.

This past few weeks have been ok, we were waiting for the big mullet runs. The thing that happens every year is it's flat calm then gets windy and then the mullet push down the beach and inside the bays. Well we had some mullet push threw N. Biscayne Bay but really nothing great following.  I did have a couple days down the beach following football field size mullet schools with giant Tarpon exploding from the bottom up through the school. There were Jacks , Blue fish and Sharks mixed in but Tarpon is the Target! They were moving really fast and they Tarpon weren't interested.

The inside of Biscayne Bay is holding some Trout, Jacks, Ladyfish and a few Snook but for the most part its been pretty tough. This is the reason I prefer fishing Flamingo there is some much more to do down in the FloridaBay , Whitewater Bay and The Gulf of Mexico. The baits have been running down the Gulf of Mexico where there have been plenty of Tarpon blowing them up, there also has been Pilchards and I lucked into some Menhaden. The Menhaden get destroyed by the Snook, big Snook! I was with Bob and Charlie this week and found Pilchards, Herring, Menhaden and Mullet. The fish really enjoyed the Menhaden but when we started chumming with Pilchards we turned the water white with foam lots of fun lots of fish. They caught Jacks, big Snappers, Redfish and Trout. We fished a long day, we had some interesting weather which made the day difficult. The key is to stick it out and use the baits we found, and it produced plenty of Snook.

The bait schools are moving through on both coast and its allot of fun but its hard keeping up with them. The water temps at are starting to drop and that's what we wait for these next few weeks are going to be fun.

If your are looking for a fun day on the water give me a call at 305 333 8149. Caught Lookin Charters is a kid friendly and will teach your kids the proper way to cast and catch, while you enjoy yourself.