©1995-2010 Capt Barry Hoffman & FlatsGuide.com

fishing report

305-852-6918 home 305-393-2587 cell or email

Specializing in sight fishing for bonefish, tarpon, redfish and permit on fly or light tackle.

Capt. Barry Hoffman's

8-24-2010 I fished with one of my regulars.. Francios Peters..from France! He was hoping to do a little bonefishing on fly, after giving the tarpon a go last year. With a thick blanket of clouds, a full moon, and an approaching low pressure system, the fish were not happy. We had but a handful of shots at bonefish and got within casting range of several permit, but the glare from the clouds killed our vision when trying to make a presentation. Not much of a report, but hopefully this weekend will provide better conditions.

I know, it's been a while.since i've posted any fresh reports.. After the hectic tarpon season, i've had a chance to unwind and take a small vacation. It's Summer here in the Keys and that means it's a bit hot and humid, especially during the afternoon. My typical charter is a half day if we're fishing for bonefish,as the heat of the day tends to put them into deeper water. If one is looking to fish a longer day, the redfish don't seem to mind the warmth and can be pursued into the afternoon. . The bonefish action has been pretty good if we get an early start and look for the tailers. There have been a few small tarpon around as well. The redfish action has been good when we get those slick calm days. The reds tail lazily as they search for crabs and shrimp in the grass and mud. For those just looking to bend a rod, we've got seatrout and ladyfish on the light rods. They're not hard to catch, just a bit smaller and without the need for good casting skills. Large sharks take residence in the backcountry during the Summer, providing a good tug for those willing to spend a longer day in the Everglades National Park.

Just before my vacation, i fished with two of my favorites, Martin and Brian Davies, from England.. (actually two of the most fanatic Miami Dolphins followers I know!) We started the day looking for redfish and had a couple of shots at them. The slick calm bay soon gave way to some storms closing in on us and we had to leave. We lost the sun and ran to a quieter spot where the redfish and black drum were mudding in the soft bottom. It was tricky, but we were able to find them as they puffed up the soft bottom.. Always a pleasure Martin and Brian

We had a little family affair and took out Neal Seldman, his 9 year old son Jacob and Grandpa Seldman.. We did a little channel fishing, and caught some nice seatrout, some fair jack crevelle and a couple of ladyfish. I set out the larger rods and we caught one of two tarpon and a couple of large lemon sharks.. Jacob did a great job on his tarpon.. picts. just to the left..

Had a day of bonefishing with Kirk Teske and son, Gage. Hot humid and still, was a tough morning to find them.. an approaching low pressure just seemed to put them off as the wind blew slightly from the North.. We switched gears and found a few seatrout, then worked to put Gage on a few sharks. I struggled but finally found a few taking refuge near some shade under a stand of mangroves.. Even they were hiding from the heat! Gage caught a couple of lemon sharks up to about 40 pounds on the 10 pound spin outfits.

Jeff and Patricia Smith had bonefishing on her "bucket list" so they came down to give it a go. With a good stiff breeze from the east "YEA" we started bayside and boy were the fish happy. It had been a while since i'd seen that many fish in such big schools. Several schools numbered in size at about 80-100 in size. The fish were averaging about 9-10 pounds tailing feverishly on the incoming tide. They had a bit of trouble in the casting department, and managed to get one on, which promptly crushed out crab. We gave it another two hours, since there were so many fish, but we failed to boat any. That's bonefishing!