The ups and Downs of Spring April 1-15, 2026

Welcome back everyone and it's been a strange spring so far.  The typical windy spring days have been few, the air cooler than normal, the mullet run delayed and tarpon have been MIA.  Well, that sounds like a downer but in reality it's been good and it's been fun.  The first half of the month I have been all over the place, from fly fishing for bonefish, tarpon fishing, shark fishing and mixed bag fishing.  Overall it's been good fishing this month.  There are permit around and the numbers will grow as it gets warmer, the tarpon fishing has been tough, but the bonefishing has been good with lots of fish on the oceanside flats.  I haven't been snook fishing but filling their place have been pompano, jacks, lots of barracudas and the flats have had a ton of lemon sharks for those wanting a cool experience with some hard fighting fish on the flats.  To round up the April fishing, ladyfish have been THICK!  They have been gobbling up flies, lures and top waters.  There have been many trips where we fished for ladyfish for a bit and the clients were having so much fun they didn't want to move on to something else.  I can't blame them, they fight hard, jump tons and are really aggressive.  Since they are related to the tarpon, I do want to mention that there have been more and more small tarpon showing up and that fishing will just get better.  That's it for the first two weeks of April, I'll be back at the end of the month to give you the scoop on what transpired then.  Take care guys!

Capt. Mo Estevez 

786-853-1409

www.MiamiBonefishing.com

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

Out with March with a bang! March 16-31, 2026

As we end the month of March we had a cold front to deal with, high winds, no wind, cold and heat, what a crazy month!  Thankfully, fish still have to eat so it has been a good month with a few ups and downs towards the end.  Bonefishing has generally been good, tarpon not so good, permit have been around, shark fishing has been solid and the finger channels kept the clients and me busy.  

On one trip recently with regular client Jake and his two friends Antonio and Nil we started slow and ended on fire.  We were looking for tarpon and there were none to be found, a sadly recurring theme this month as tarpon have been inconsistent, but we ended the trip with the guys releasing 10 bonefish.  Insane!  The last trip of the month I had Jesse and 14 year old Miles who wanted tarpon.  Ha, Miles hooked three monster tarpon but all three came off for different reasons.  A heartbreaker yes but man was it exciting!  

In the finger channels we've been catching tons of look downs (weird but super cool fish), snappers, jacks and barracudas.  The sharks on the flats have been on a tear and showing up in big numbers and along shorelines and small back bays the ladyfish have been super fun on lures and especially on flies.  

April will be another solid month so stick around and watch for mid April's report in a few weeks.  

Capt. Mo Estevez 

786-853-1409

www.MiamiBonefishing.com

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

It's Spring! March 1-15, 2026

This first half of March has been very interesting and just as expected in some ways. March is typically a windy month and that has been the case so far with two exceptions. We have been averaging winds between 15 to 20 miles an hour and although that sounds like pretty tough fishing, it’s actually been very manageable and we’ve been doing well on a number of species in spite of the wind. 

The tarpon fishing out of Key Biscayne should be pretty solid right now but only a few resident fish have been around with none of the big migratory fish 100 pounds plus making an appearance yet. I am hoping this is just a short term issue and the second half of March starts to give us many more opportunities at them. However, taking the place of these tarpon have been bonefish and permit, and those are two species I cannot complain about. In addition to really good bonefishing, pompano are starting to show up and we have done pretty well catching a number of different species for clients that wanted to just catch a lot of fish such as lady fish, barracudas, snappers and yellow jacks. We had two really calm days on Friday and Saturday and we were able to capitalize on them. On Friday Manuel made a pinpoint cast at a tailing permit early morning in really calm conditions and the permit seeing his favorite food flutter in front of his face couldn’t help but swallow the live blue crab.  Manuel was able to land a 20 pound greedy permit and it was amazing! His buddy Jimmy also ended up landing a really nice bonefish before it was time to head back to the marina. On Saturday clients Ernie, Miguel and Frandy jumped on the boat and almost immediately upon arriving at our first spot there were tails everywhere, and the guys proceeded to land four bonefish in the first hour and a half of the trip. Pretty amazing fishing and pretty amazing start to a great day.  

I'm starting to see the first wave of migrating mullet and the large mullet muds they create.  This is a great sign as the fishing around these giant schools of mullet can be super fun and it'll just get better as March continues.  That's what's been happening in Miami's inshore and flats fishing and make sure to check back in at the end of the month for the end of month report.  See ya!

Capt. Mo Estevez 

786-853-1409

www.MiamiBonefishing.com

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

It's Finally Over! February 16-28, 2026

It's not often I say that about month's end but this has been a tough month.  With the steady cold fronts dropping air and water temps into unusual lows, the fishing has been tough.  The cold water temps made fishing a challenge on most trips making us really work for the fish we caught. With that being said, I had plenty of good trips.  The good news is that we are now in March and the weather is warm, the skies clear and the forecasts are calling for a warmer than normal March.  What a relief! 

While I sound pessimistic, there were bonefish caught at the end of the month including Raul from Argentina landing 5 bonefish on fly and to close out the month, Shawn from Australia also hooked three on fly.  Also on the flats, the lemon sharks and bigger barracudas were on the prowl and eating whatever we threw at them with 12 year old Max and Max enjoying the fights with these fish.  

The tarpon fishing will the one of the features of March so stay tuned and see what the first half of March has in store. See you soon! 

Capt. Mo Estevez 

786-853-1409

www.MiamiBonefishing.com

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

Burrr, This was not good! February 1-15, 2026

Burr, it’s been cold and the last two weeks have definitely been slower fishing because of it. However, with this nice warming trend, everything is starting to get back on track. The bonefish are starting to jump on the flats, tarpon are beginning to roll again and plenty of sharks on the flats for those that want a solid fight. Mixed in to all this have been nice yellow jacks, snappers of different varieties and an occasional half dozen look down’s to add to the fun. I can’t tell you how happy I am that It’s starting to warm up again because it looked bleak for a little while there. I never did see any dead bonefish, but I saw plenty of dead lady fish, barracudas, parrot fish, and pin fish all over the bottom of the bay and floating around the bay with the tide. It was a pretty sad site, but I never did see any dead game fish so we’re good. Stick around and check back at the end of the month for the end of month report. 

Capt. Mo Estevez 

786-853-1409

www.MiamiBonefishing.com

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

This is how to wrap up January, January 1-31, 2026

Sure it's been cold and windy but the fish have to eat and my clients have decided to go for it and it's paid off.  More tarpon are moving in with the cold and they have been in a good mood.  Night time tarpon are stacking up on the bridges while days time tarpon have been prowling their usual day time spots.  Bonefishing slowed down the last few days due to the cold but before the cold front it has been pretty good. I haven't been snook fishing but there have been other species to fill in the gap such as some pompano, mackerel, ladyfish, jacks and snappers.  While the wind has made us pick our spots, those spots have been solid producing a bunch of species while staying out of the wind.  This last cold front will slow down bonefishing for a few days and add permit to that as well but it should keep all the aforementioned species active and willing to give us a nice fight.  Stay warm everyone and I'll let you know how the first half of February is soon enough.  

Capt. Mo Estevez 

786-853-1409

www.MiamiBonefishing.com

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

And it continues! January 1-15, 2026

Yes, we've a cold front in January. No it's not strange but it is strange that we've only had one.  The weather has been spectacular and the fishing on fire.  There was a bit off a dip after the last cold front but the ship quickly righted itself and all is well now.  The species list has been long starting with bonefish and tarpon but adding to the list so far this month has been pompano, jacks, yellow jacks, snappers, moon fish and a few more to keep the rods bent and the action going.  We've hooked a couple of permit but they didn't seem to make it to the boat.  So, fishing has been really good, it's been fun and there have been a lot of species making our days full of action and laughs.  Stay warm and stay tuned for my next report.  

Capt. Mo Estevez 

786-853-1409

www.MiamiBonefishing.com

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing