April 26, 2016 Report (Bonefish.Video!)

Day two with Sebastian from Spain and he wanted tarpon and bonefish on fly.   Today there were no tarpon around so we focused on the bonefish flats.   It was certainly slow but we kept working hard.  At our last spot we found a ton of feeding,  mudding bonefish and after a bunch of shots Sebastian got his bonefish on fly.  It feels so good to score!  

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1408 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 25, 2016 Report

Taking Sunday off, Monday morning Sebastian and Fabiano boarded my skiff for a full day off fly fishing.   Just about every type of fishing was slow during the incoming tide.  The tarpon were around by not eating,  the trout were shut down and other areas were slow,  but not for long.  Getting to the bonefish flats at the beginning of the outgoing tide the fishing came to life.   The guys had a bunch of shots at cruising bones and mudding bones.  Unfortunately things didn't come together and didn't hook any.   We'll be back tomorrow! Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1408 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 23, 2016 Report

Danny stayed in the hotel today while Glenn and I hit the bay for an assortment of fishing opportunities.   Fishing trout flats first we caught a bunch of snapper,  trout,  barracuda and ladyfish.  With the sun angle improving we hit the bonefish flats and had shots at a bunch of schools.  One school moved through, Glenn made a great cast and the bonefish started looking for his shrimp.  Unfortunately a stupid box fish got to the shrimp first.  Urgh!  With the wind dying off the flats got slick calm and at the bottom of the tide we ended the day taking shots at tailing bonefish in supper skinny water.  

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1408 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 22, 2016 Report

I have been looking forward to this day for quite a while since Glenn is a great guy and we used to fish together pretty often but work has kept him busy back home in New York. He jumped aboard with his 12 year old son Danny and off we went for a full day of fishing in Biscayne Bay. The goal was to catch some fish but primarily catch Danny a shark so off we went caughting seatrout and a few other species before turning our attention to shark fishing. I couldn't help but start the morning off with some tarpon fishing but that proved to be slow so that was scratched after about an hour or two. Danny remained engaged and patient as we worked throughout the morning but at the 4 hour more we decided to go for Danny's shark. Spot number one proved slow but shark spot number 2 proved to be the ticket. Shortly after setting up the Sharks started to move in with Danny landing about a 3 foot shark that was too small by his standard. :-) Shark number 2 proved to be the ticket as a 6-foot plus lemon short doubled the rod and raced across the flat getting deep into the bottom of the spool before I was able to chase him down with the motor. After a brutal 30 to 40 minute fight Danny got his shark leaving him absolutely exhausted but with a big smile and sense of accomplishment. This is what it's all about!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 21, 2016 Report

Today was day 2 of the guys fishing trip out of Ocean Reef Club and I was absolutely desperate to redeem myself from yesterday. John (a different John) and Mitch jumped aboard and we had even nicer conditions today but the wind was definitely blowing hard out of the east. We poled for Bonefish and found a few fish waking in the distance but not close enough to get a shot. We decided to shark fish instead and that was the ticket. Tucking into a point of the leeward side shoreline that I really like for shark fishing we staked out and had a blast as we had tons and tons of sharks moving through and we were sight casting to them. A lot of them where acting rather crazy as they would come right up to the bait 20 feet from the boat bite it and spit it out within seconds. Really bizarre! However we did land several nice sharks and boy dose it feel good to hear the drag scream  and watch my guys in for a nice fight.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 20, 2016 Report

Today was day one of two days fishing out of the Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo for a guy's fishing trip for a group of 6 guys.   John and John are both pharmacist from Missouri and jumped a board to do some fishing in beautiful North Key Largo. We had really nice conditions but today was one of those days I would like to forget. We worked and fished hard for 4 hours doing everything from bone fishing to shark fishing and fishing for snapper and all we could manage was losing one decent fish to the bottom and one small snapper. What a tough day! Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 18, 2016 Report

It was pretty windy when Brett and his girlfriend jumped aboard this morning but conditions were definitely fishable. We started off looking for Tarpon and while we found a few rollers we did not get any bites so we quickly moved on. We decided to run down to the flats to do some shark fishing as it was definitely too windy to pole for Bonefish and permit. Having caught a few fish to use for bait and chum, we set up and waited. It took a little bit longer than I would have liked but eventually the sharks started to move in and when all was said and done,  Brett got a nice shark to the boat.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 15, 2016 Report

Regular client Joe brought along two of his friends and coworkers for a quick trip in the bay. We had absolutely beautiful conditions again and we started off fishing for sea trout since they wanted to take some fish home for dinner. It started a little slow but eventually it picked up and all the trout we caught and kept were in the 18 - 20 inch range, some really nice fish! Deciding to change it up and target sharks we hit another spot to catch bait and then fished two different shark spots that proved slow so we ended up at another spot close to the marina where the fishing was better and the guys cleaned out my Live Well from all my live shrimp. Great way to end a beautiful day!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 14, 2016 Report

From Chicago came newlyweds John and Abby. John is an experienced fisherman but I'm Abby had only fished once before when she was 12 years old. I knew exactly what to do and where to take them and she capitalized. At our first spot of the day I I taught Abby how to cast and John gave her some additional pointers and almost immediately she was on top of her game. Eventually she caught the biggest trout of the day and was definitely beating John but that would not last long. And our last spot of the day John quickly racked up back-to-back-to-back-to-back fish and although he caught more fish than Abby, she definitely caught the biggest fish of the day. These were great people and congratulations on your marriage!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 13, 2016 Report

Fishing again with Steve today we decided to change it up and fish down in South Biscayne Bay out of Homestead. The goal was to look for Bonefish early morning but there was definitely much more water along the shoreline than I had anticipated and there was enough wind just to make it difficult. So in order to wait for the tide to bottom out we decided to fish some creeks for snook. The snook were definitely there as we can see them popping, busting bait and blowing out in front of the boat as I slowly poled Steve around.  One of the instances he cast a fly into a creek mouth only to see a snook shoot from the mangroves, follow his fly as he's pushing a wake in less than a foot of water and then turn around and shoot right back into the mangroves not eating the fly. A second cast into the same creek mouth provided the same reaction but this time it ate, only to realize it was a barracuda that beat the snook to the fly. Now two hours later we decided to fish the shoreline again but there was still too much water so we hit the flats for Bonefish. Every flat we hit was empty until the last flat the day where there were a lot of Bonefish cruising around but we could not get them to eat any fly we would throw at them. Very frustrating! Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 12, 2016 Report

Today I fished with one of my regular clients Steve. The goal was to fly fish as Steve is a good fly fisherman and that is the only type of fishing he does so we started off looking for Tarpon but the fishing was definitely shut down today. Moving around we caught trout on fly and then ran down to some shipwrecks where Steve caught a bunch of yellow Jack's on fly including on surface flies and it was awesome watching them come up on the surface and destroy the fly time and again.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 11, 2016 Report

On board today for some fly-fishing was Gary and of course we started off looking for tarpon. We found a few rolling but they would not eat during the time that we fished them so after about an hour we decided to change it up and in part to get away from the increasing wind. We fished a few other spots and ended up at a shipwreck where oddly enough the fish refused to eat a fly but were gobbling up bait. Landing a number of fish and keeping a few of the smaller ones for bait we ended the trip at a shark spot where one of the live baits didn't last long in the presence of a nice spinner shark. After about a 20-minute fight Gary got his first shark to the boat and gave him quite a fight.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 9, 2016 AM & PM Report

Frank and his two boys were on vacation and a had booked me about a month ago to take them fishing and have a great time on the water. Drifting a grass flat the boys caught sea trout and other species and while we tried to target sharks, shark fishing was slow.  We went back to fishing grass flats for sea trout and kept the rods bent. Our first order of the morning was tarpon fishing and while we gave it a good effort for almost two hours we did not get a bite.

My afternoon trip was with Nate and his wife Jennifer from South Carolina. With the boat and jet-ski activity reaching an unfishable level we ran down to the flats and targeted sharks. Frustratingly we had about six big sharks in the six to seven foot range behind the boat but they refused to eat anything we would throw at them. Deciding it was time to move on we fished a shallow shipwreck and caught a number of different species many times waiting only seconds after the bait hit the water for a hookup. It was a beautiful day we were able to stay away from the crowds and had a great time.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 8, 2016 Report

This morning Jean Michelle and his girlfriend wanted a half day on the bay to do some saltwater fly-fishing.  We started off at our first Tarpon spot but the fish were holding deep where we could not reach them with a fly in the high current. We moved on to another tarpon spot that had just a few fish so off to another spot to fish for sea trout. Jean Michelle started the morning not knowing how to do the double haul but he quickly figured it out and was making some really nice long casts incredibly quickly. At the end of the trip we ended up catching a few fish on fly for him and on a spinning rod for her but it was definitely slower then I would have liked. Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 7, 2016 Report (Tarpon)

This was day 2 with Graham from the UK and this time is was a full day tarpon fishing. After tarpon fishing for 4 hours and finding them on a diet we decided to give it a rest and fish for other species. Keeping the rods bent I decided to spend the last 30 minutes tarpon fishing as something inside of me told me we should. With 5 minutes left in the trip one of the rods goes off and 160lbs of raging silver tarpon jumping over and over again towards the skiff! After a prolonged 1 1/2 hour fight, clearing two bridges, freighters, tug boats and other hazards we had the silver beast next to the boat when the braid popped. OUCH! Graham did a great job on the fish and sometimes there is heart break before ultimate glory. This one hurt!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 5, 2016 Report

This was day 2 with Scott from MD and the goal was tarpon. Unfortunately the tarpon fishing was slow. However, after fishing a number of spots catching different species including sea trout we decided to go for sharks and we had a blast. In short order Scott hooked 7 sharks with almost non-stop action! He ended up landing one int he 80lb range and losing a few much bigger. As we waited for the sharks to move in you could see them zipping in behind the boat like a fighter jet, one after another with less than five minutes wait in between. Of course, a bait dropped in front of them was immediately devoured and the drag began to sizzle. What a day to end 2 days fishing in Miami!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 4, 2016 Report

Graham from the UK had fished with me back in October and today he brought his 11 year old son Harry aboard. Wanting Harry to get off to a fast start I took him to a spot where he caught 11 fish in 13 minutes. He was counting! Afterwards we fished a few other spots catching different species including mutton snappers and red grouper. No sharks were around today to put a deep bend in a heavy rod.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409 Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBoneFishing

April 3, 2016 AM & PM Reports (Tarpon )

AM Report Today was the second consecutive day with two charters per day and once again we started off before daybreak with Jake, Jared and Jake from New Hampshire and Boston aboard before they hopped on their cruise to the Bahamas. Spot number one resulted in zero Tarpon activity although I was marking them on the Raymarine. We switched it up and caught some sea trout before changing spots. The last part of the day they ended up catching a few more fish and losing a big spinner shark at the very end. PM Report My afternoon trip was with Scott from Maryland. Last year Scott had booked me for a half day in the afternoon on Sunday and a full day on Tuesday and it was pure tarpon fishing the e tire time so now becoming a tarpon junkie that was the primary goal for Scott. We hit one tarpon  spot and that's the only one we needed to fish because at that spot Scott hooked, fought and landed a 130 pound tarpon to replicate what transpired last year. Scott did a great job fighting this fish bowing to the fish every time it jumped and after an almost hour-long fight we got it to the boat for some nice pictures and a sweet goodbye.

April 2, 2016 AM & PM Reports

AM Report Dan is from Wisconsin and had booked me about a month ago for our trip today. Being a fly fisherman but not having to learn the double haul back home, he certainly practiced and after a number of cast he was definitely on point with his fly casting. Once again we started off in the dark before first light in search of Tarpon on fly. Getting to a Tarpon spot he started to blind cast in a specific area and before long a big Tarpon came up and crushed is fly, the rod doubled over but unfortunately came off right away. What the wind increasing we decided to stay close by and look for shelter from the wind and that resulted in a number of sea trout caught on fly. Towards the end of the trip Dan had definitely become a good double hauler!. Congrats Dan!

PM Report My afternoon trip was with Alaskan native Chris who just recently moved down to Miami. The wind had now increased significantly from my morning Charter so it was a game of hide-and-seek. Hide from the wind and seek fish. Fishing definitely slowed down in the afternoon although we did catch some trout but some of the spots I wanted to fish were full of muddy water and the others were blown out from the wind. In any event Chris caught fish and we had a great time so much so that I lost track of time and we ended up getting back to the marina late.

March 31, 2016 Report

This morning Bill jumped on the boat and the target was Bonefish & Tarpon. We fished last year and it was too windy to fly fish at the time but today the winds were more manageable. We started off at First Light fishing some Tarpon spots close by the marina and were able to hook a nice 80 plus pound Tarpon right off the bat. Three or four jumps later the fish came off and the bite shut down after that. We hit the flats for the rest of the full day Charter and it was very slow. We did find a few Bonefish and a couple of permit but the flats were definitely slow today.