Stuart Area Offshore and Inshore

The record setting cold temperatures have finally left the area but they took their toll on the fish. Dead fish have been floating on the Indian and St. Lucie Rivers for the past few days. We saw snook of all sizes along with grouper, catfish, and all types of bait fish. The Florida Wildlife Commission delayed the opening of snook season until September 1st. We ventured out one cold afternoon and the only fish that were biting near the inlet were bluefish. They were thick and hungry. We caught some trolling spoons and we also caught them while trying to jig for pompano. Now that the warm up has started, we are seeing some pompano near the beaches. The Spanish mackerel bite has improved as the water temps go up. The only bright spot in the cold weather has been the spectacular sailfish bite. Old tournament records were broken last week at the Pelican Yacht Club sailfish tournament. They fished it in wind chills in the twenties and thirties when no one else would want to be out on the water. The fishing should really pick up as we approach the eighties by the end of the week. Tomorrow we are going to try some bottom fishing. More later.