Deep Sea Fishing Ft Lauderdale, Florida / June Update
Fishing in Fort Lauderdale during the month of June is nothing short of epic. There is plenty of activity inshore and offshore. Whether we are making a deep drop for Daytime Swordfish in 1,800 ft of water or trolling offshore for Mahi, the Lady Pamela II fleet will find the action. The Kingfish, Mahi – Mahi (Dolphin fish), Grouper, Amberjack, Wahoo, Barracuda, Blakfin Tuna and Bonito will show themselves and stretch your line. Not only will you be putting fresh fish in the box for dinner, the occasional summertime Sailfish might just creep up on your bait and start jumping within feet of the boat. Sailfish are still being spotted offshore; we like to call them the Summertime Spindlebeaks in Ft Lauderdale, Florida.
Fort Lauderdale houses several shipwrecks and reefs anywhere from 200 ft to 350 ft of water. The reef and wreck fish just can’t get enough of the summertime heat. Amberjacks, Game Sharks and Groupers are just waiting for you to drop bait on their front door. Early in the morning from 7 AM – 10 AM, is when fresh bonito strips and new seawitches attract the most amount of King Mackerel offshore Ft Lauderdale. Deploy your trolling spread 90 ft below the surface in 90 – 150 ft of blue water and the fish will eat. A 40 lb Amberjack on the line will show you who’s boss, can you imagine what it’s like to hook up with a 10 ft Game Shark? The Lady Pamela II has been very successful catching big fish on the wrecks and reefs this month.
Summertime is Mahi time. On June 1st, I fished on a private boat out of Fort Lauderdale and we hooked up with 30 Mahi – Mahi offshore in 300-900 ft of water. Several of them were too short in size but we didn’t go home empty handed. June is well-known for its solid Dolphin bite as it is peak season from now until the end of July. The seas lay down, the water heats up and the weed lines drift on the surface. Weed lines can run for miles and are always a good sign when searching for Dolphin fish offshore. Come across a weed stack and chances are, you will have a run in with a school of 30+ beautiful blue-ish green Dorado’s looking to eat. They put up one hell of a fight and fillets make for a great meal. Fresh Mahi – Mahi is a true South Florida souvenir.
June truly offers a mixed bag of fish offshore in Ft Lauderdale, Florida. Warsaw Groupers, Black Groupers and Jew Fish are commonly caught during the summer months while deep sea fishing the wrecks in Fort Lauderdale. Around the full moon on slick, calm days, the Grouper tend to come off the wreck and eat your Bluerunner and Speedo baits. Not only is the Grouper bite just right around the full moon, the Wahoo like to play as well. When conditions are perfect, expect a few shots at some nice Wahoo fish.
In the late afternoon, the inshore bite is hot and heavy for giant Tarpon in the Intracoastal. In a 4 hr period, 5 to 6 bites by rolling Tarpon is common. During the last week in May, we went 1 for 4 on the Tarpon bite, landed a Barracuda in the mix and battled with a Stingray on the line; talk about exciting, non-stop action, in the cockpit and from the bridge.
On Sunday, June 6th, I led the Lady Pamela II offshore Fort Lauderdale for a all day Daytime Swordfishing charter. Before making the hour run east into the Gulfstream offshore, we loaded up on live bait. Once we reached our destination, we started to make our first Swordfish drop and put out a few surface baits for good measure. The Mahi would not leave us alone. We caught 10 Dolphin before the Swordfish bait made it down deep. We ended the day with three wicked Swordfish bites. They all managed to pull the hook but they did give our anglers a little taste of the fight.
June is also the time of year when we head across to the Bahamas for sportfishing expeditions. The weather is perfect, the seas are calm and the fishing is nearly endless. The yellow eye snapper bite is red hot in 850 ft water. You can reach your limit in no time and leave ’em biting for the following day. While deep sea fishing in the Bahamas, expect to catch monster size Mahi – Mahi, Wahoo on the troll, giant Amberjacks on the wrecks and Blue Marlin jumping within feet of the boat. How can you go wrong? You can’t.
For Memorial Day Weekend, I headed over to Bimini, Bahamas with friends and family for a little R & R and fresh conch salad. Seas were flatter than you could imagine, it only took us a little over an hour to arrive in our 27 footer. For the majority of our crossing through the Gulfstream, a weedline was by our side. Once we saw a spec of land, lines went in the water and dinner went in the cooler, fresh Dolphin. Later on in the day, I learned that my buddy Sean had hooked up with a Blue Marlin earlier in the morning. While hearing about the Blue bite, I was distracted by all the traffic on the dock with Mutton’s, Mutton’s and more Mutton’s (Mutton Snapper). The Mutton Snapper spawn from June through August. Around the full moon with an outgoing tide on the edge of the reef, live/dead pilchards and dead goggs do the trick anywhere from 80 – 110 ft down. With a 30 ft floral carbon leader, an 8 oz lead and a sharp, 6.0 hook, you will hook up with many Mutton Snappers in the 6 – 12 lb range. Wish I had fish pictures to share!
Interested in sport fishing the Bahamas? We are your gateway to the Bahamas, call today.
Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045
