July Forecast: Port Canaveral Offshore/Nearshore

JUNE RECAP

Last month was a bit of a rollercoaster ride with epic fishing to kick the month off, a lull in the middle, and right back on top to round out the end of June. When it was good, it seemed like you could have shot a spitball at the plotter and as long as it landed inside of 100 ft of water you could stop the boat and catch fish. King mackerel, cobia, dolphin fish, mangroves, sail fish, sharks, cudas, bonito, jack crevalle. This was absolutely epic summertime fishing. As the month rolled on, we did see a drastic decline of the bottom fishing. Slow bottom fishing in the summer typically coincides with thermo-cline conditions. It was also getting a little difficult to track down the kings toward the middle of the month with some unexpected dirty water. It was definitely a very strange turn without having any major storms or sea conditions. The lull only lasted a week or so and we ended the month back on top with clean water and fantastic fishing very close in.

NEARSHORE

For those of us that are a little older, the question at one time was “Where’s the beef?” The question right now is “Where’s the bait?” Historically, we are inundated with pogy pods by this time of the year, with scaly minnow and threadfin schools up and down the beach, out to the shoal, and inside the port. Right now, we literally have one large school of pogies inside the port that have taken a beating for a straight month and a sparse amount of threadfins on the outside of the shipping channel. My only guess is that the bottom is cold but not cold enough to push the bait our way. If that is not the problem, then we unfortunately have something more sinister at work as a result of nonstop dredging, cruise ships, beach restoration, etc., but I really hope they are just going to show up late or this year is just an outlier.

All that being said, the fishing nearshore is fantastic when you can catch live bait. The buoy line holds the keys to the kingdom right now, but I have to acknowledge the changes that I see, even if for no other reason than to document it on the record. So, where did all the big fish go? Summertime live bait trolling for king mackerel out of Port Canaveral was known for SMOKER king fish. Every fish was 20 lbs or better, but now, we mainly just see 5 to 12 lb fish. I am happy to see a lot of them, but something is off. By the same token, where are all the cobia? Are they hiding somewhere with the bait, or are they also gone?

Enough of that pessimism and optimism, no one is here to read about my worries, so let’s talk about the good things to expect and how we go about catching them. I haven’t seen it in at least ten years or so, but we have king mackerel inside the port. There are a few big ones and I am assuming they are following the same, one giant school of pogies they can find leading them into both the middle and back-turning basins. The key to catching these fish is bait and patience. Get up early and put a net on those pogies or troll some spoons along the beach and bring a couple bluefish back into the Port for bait. This is a real treat and might not ever happen again. It just might be cool to tell your grandkids one day as you are standing at the top of a twenty-story cruise ship, point down and say, “I caught a 30 lb kingfish there once.”

There’s also all the live bait trolling action you could ever want just outside the buoy line, with kings, bonitos, jack crevalle, sharks and barracudas all in the mix. Meanwhile, tarpon are along the beach in a big way, but right this minute it is very tough to “match the hatch.” I can only assume they are dialed into glass minnows because I have put live pogies and threadfins across hundred of them without so much as a sniff. I’m no fly fisherman, but this might be a great opportunity for those that are. If you don’t have your own boat then I suggest getting hooked up with Captain Alex Hughey of All Water Adventures. These tarpon will turn on to pogies eventually, but probably not until they show along the beach.

Shark fishing will be really good with a lot of blacknose, blacktips, and all different sizes of hammerheads being caught. Hammerhead is a super cool shark to catch, but don’t forget the rules and be sure to leave them in the water for the photos.

OFFSHORE

This month the nearshore forecast is the offshore forecast because that is where the action is. This has to be said for those who are taking their families on a fishing charter for Summer vacation or taking them out on their personal boat. I see this a lot where a group decides to charter and that one guy ruins it for everyone. He is known as “That Guy.” Don’t be that guy, no one likes him and he really brings down what could be a wonderful day. No matter how hardcore you think you are and how much you think you know or how many you use to catch, and you only want to catch the so called “more desirable” species such as grouper, mahi, and wahoo. It’s over, gone and finished. It is especially over in the summer. This time of year it HAS to be about calm oceans and fun, fast-action fishing. If you don’t enjoy watching a king mackerel leap 10 ft in the air as it strikes your bait, experiencing the power and explosion of a jack crevalle, or the thrill of fighting a shark, or the excitement of throwing a bait into a school of bonito, then don’t fish out of Canaveral this time of year. Maybe even give up fishing altogether and just go grocery shopping.

We are all about the fun and keeping it exciting for everyone. We absolutely love taking families, friends, tourist and locals that just love to be on the water and catching cool fish. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good mahi run or to pull on groupers and sight fish cobia. All that is awesome, for sure, but don’t get caught up in just that. Enjoy the fish that are actually here and biting, and just have fun on the water. This is what we like to do here at Sea Leveler. We like to have fun and just enjoy the day, showing great people great fishing. We will fish for all species, but just be sure you have realistic expectations for yourself, your friends and family. Make sure everyone is on the same page on a charter or on a personal boat.

Now let’s talk about the five-day red snapper season — or if you prefer, the five-day red snapper joke. Catching them should be easy with such few days. Trust your bottom machine and if the five days manage to fall on a full moon or thermocline, then you need to be the first to big structure. Lighten up and float down into the suspended fish. Hopefully they will be biting on the bottom. If the bottom bite turns back on, then use large baits. The bigger bait will result in a larger snapper allowing you to make the most of your one fish limit. In addition, a large bait might just also score you a fat grouper — and that doesn’t hurt anyone’s feelings.

We look forward to calm seas and great action this July!