From The Yak

It’s hot! Correction, it’s scorching hot!

Currently, at 4:30 pm, its 94 degrees with only a 4 mph wind ever so gently blowing out of the East. Weather.com says it feels like its 104!

Talk about a heat wave, even for the Florida Keys.

This is the kind of weather that makes you want to stay indoors, camped out in front of the air conditioning vent. Every time I try and take my dog out to do his thing he looks at me as if I’m nuts.

“I’m not going out there you idiot! I’ll cook. Look at all this fur. I think I’ll just pee on the tile floor. There, done. Go back to your computer and leave me be.”

Jeff Reilly casting to the hungry snapper.

Now, I’m not complaining about the heat- I didn’t move to the Keys to cool down, but these temperatures sure do make it difficult to enjoy my two favorite outdoor activities; fishing and kayaking.

Trust me, on days like this you don’t want to be on the water in a self-propelled plastic vessel that offers zero shade and no throttle to throw into gear when you need to create your own wind.

Your best bet when it’s this hot is to find an empty bar stool in an air-conditioned bar that has a view of the water, sip a couple of ice-cold adult beverages, wait for the sun to begin to set, and then go fishing!

The mangrove snapper fishing is off the hook right now at the reef and the best bite is in the evening and after dark.

Sunday night Jeff Reilly of Grassy Key and I headed out around 6:30 and before the sun set had our limit of grovers.

Not only that, but we were sticking quality fish in the livewell and replacing them with larger fish as we caught them. We wanted to keep fishing and weren’t ready to leave after limiting out in such a short period of time.

For those of you thinking about heading out for some nighttime snapper fishing, I highly recommend giving it a shot:

- It’s inexpensive- you won’t burn much fuel (you can find the fish 4-5 miles from the dock in the middle Keys); a couple blocks or chum; bait and your gear.

- Mangrove snapper are delicious- one of my favorite fish to eat. The mild, white flaky meat tastes great grilled, fried, baked, or however you decide to make it. Plus, you’ll have no problem loading the cooler with plenty of tasty fillets to take back home with you.

- The reef is a great place to watch the sunset- you have to see for yourself just how beautiful the sun looks as it sets behind the seven-mile bridge- a giant ball of fire disappearing into a watery horizon. Simply amazing!

- It’s fun! Snapper fishing offers constant rod-bending action for all ages and skill levels. Each time jeff and I tossed a bait into the water it got slammed. For those of you that aren’t patient anglers, this is your type of fishing.

Our snapper catch- photo from the following morning.

Nighttime Snapper Tips

Below are a few basic tips to help you catch the big nighttime mangroves.

- Find structure. Head to the reef and look for a live bottom between 30 and 50 feet of water. Last evening we fished a spot that wasn’t in our gps machine but looked promising as the depth quickly dropped from 30 to 50 and the bottom contour clearly marked structure. Trust me when I say that we have that number marked now. Head to the reef, search around a bit, and you’ll find a good spot to drop the anchor.

- Chum. Get the chum out as soon as possible and make sure you have a consistent slick heading out from the boat. Take enough chum to cover the amount of time you plan to fish and have 3 or 4 blocks on the boat to be safe. Normally there will be a fair amount of vessels fishing around where you are and the snapper will leave and move to one of their slicks if your runs out.

- Use fluorocarbon. This is not mandatory, especially if the water is stained, but it definitely helps when the fish are being a bit line shy. A 6 or 7 foot splice of 20-pound leader should get the job done.

Delicious snapper fillets.

- Fish all water columns. The snapper may be deep or they may be more towards the surface. I like to use different size jig heads (1/4 oz and 1/8 oz did the trick last night) to locate where the fish are, and also like to free-line if the fish are near the surface (free-lining before dark will also give you a shot at catching yellowtails). It’s also fun to rig a bottom rod with a lead and live bait to drop it down and stick it in the rod holder. You never know if a mutton or big black grouper may be lurking below, ready to feed.

- Take a variety of bait with you. Last night you could have drifted a gummy worm back on a jig head and likely caught a keeper snapper- they were that hungry. This is not always the case though. I like to take live bait (pilchards or small pinfish) and cut bait on every trip. Last night a majority of fish was caught on chunks of frozen ballyhoo that we had caught and frozen the week before. Fresh pinfish strips are also one of my favorite snapper baits.

- Obey the laws of the sea. Be careful and considerate while fishing and boating at night. Display the proper lights on your vessel and do not anchor up in another boat’s chum slick. Also know your limits- you’re allowed 5 mangrove snapper over 10 inches per person.

- Have fun! Nighttime snapper fishing can be a blast. Hopefully these tips will get you started and you’ll be able to make it out and bend the rod. If you don’t have your own boat and are in the Keys visiting, go to www.TryCharterFishing.com and we’ll find a trip for you.

Tight Lines!