Fishing Report for Indian River & St. Lucie River - Offshore

The dolphin bite offshore has really improved in the past ten days. A lot of boats have been filling their coolers with several dolphin almost every day. One charter boat had fifteen fis h to filet last Saturday along with two sailfish. The depths ranged from ninety feet to well over two hundred feet. The key is to look for a color change and or a weed line. If you cannot find a weed line look for scattered weed and flying fish. The sailfish bite is not like it was last year this time. Maybe with this latest cold front it will pick up. The live bait situation has been on and off, so have some ballyhoo along in case you need it. Some wahoo are being taken on both live baits and trolled ballyhoo. My neighbor brought in a twenty-two pounder the other day. The Spanish mackerel bite is still on at Peck’s Lake and should last another six weeks or so. Jacks , ladyfish, snapper, and an occasional pompano are being caught inside the inlet and up into the rivers .February 1st is the opening of snook season. Cool water temperatures will slow these aggressive fish down. Look for them to be more active as it warms up. The deeper holes around the bridges are a good place to start. Flair hawks bounced slowly off the bottom should work well while it is still cold. Deep trolled plugs dragged through the shadow line are also a good bet. More later.