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Capt. Mo Estevez 

786-853-1409

www.MiamiBonefishing.com (16' Flats Boat)

www.MiamiBayFishingCharters.com (22' Bay Boat)

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing @MiamiBayFishingCharters

The slick has started! May 1-15, 2026

It's May, it's hot and it's slick!  I mean it is slick clam, no wind in the mornings and tails everywhere.  May is the month when we start our summer pattern of windless mornings, warming water and lots of bonefish, permit and tarpon early morning.  This has been the case the first couple of weeks this month, as it should be.  Here's the run down.  

There have been plenty of juvenile tarpon working the shorelines that will take popper flies or top water lures.  These juvenile tarpon have taken the place of the big migratory tarpon around Key Biscayne that sued to be the main stay of our tarpon season.  

Bonefishing has been excellent, especially early mornings as we take advantage of the calm mornings making it easier to spot their tails and dorsal fins as they move along the shallow flats.  

Permit are a steady target for those wanting the ultimate challenge.  Permit have been on both sides of the bay, the mainland shoreline and the ocean side flats.  

I haven't been snook fishing since the three mentioned above have taken up most of my time but early mornings are the best times to target them along creeks and shorelines.  

We have been catching pompano pretty regularly mixed in with small permit, jacks, snappers and lady fish.  The lady fish have been a blast on a fly rod as they crush flies and make their big jumps.  

The fishing for barracuda has been good with plenty of big ones in the 20 pound range being caught on live jacks and we have been seeing plenty of sharks but especially hammerhead and bull sharks in the channels and black tips, lemon and nurse sharks on the flats.  

That's he run down of the last two weeks.  Stay tuned for another report at the end of the month.  

Capt. Mo Estevez 

786-853-1409

www.MiamiBonefishing.com (16' Flats Boat)

www.MiamiBayFishingCharters.com (22' Bay Boat)

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing @MiamiBayFishingCharters

Dad Son Team December 16, 2022

A local client of mine referred Long and his dad Carl to me when they came into town so today was the day we would fish and what a blast we had.  They really could care less what they caught and weren't interested in taking fish to eat so I suggested we give bonefish a shot.  We gave it a shot and the bonefish responded being very nice and giving the guys a great show.  The guys caught 5 bonefish hooked 7 and were impressed with the speed and power of these incredible fish.  The weather has been perfect and the water temps are in the mid 70's, it doesn't get better than that plus now Long and Carl view their local fish in N.Y. with different eyes.  :)

Capt. Mo Estevez

http://www.miamibonefishing.com/

786-853-1409

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

What a way to break him in December 11, 2022

Ok, I realize the title sounds bad but read on.  

Mike emailed me at the last minute asking if I was available Sunday afternoon.  Ouch, that is the worst time to fish in Miami due to the heavy boat traffic and the water being pounded all day by boaters and fishermen alike but I said yes.  We met up in Homestead after his meeting and we were idling out of the channel by 1:20pm.  This was a fly fishing trip so we talked about it and decided to target easier species first in order to get him acclimated to strip striking and saltwater fly fishing generally as this was his first time in the salt.  Incredibly, not only did we have perfect weather that kept getting better as the trip progressed but there were hardly any boats out.  I took him to a wreck where he caught yellow jacks, blue runners and trigger fish on fly and practiced his double haul and strip striking.  Once he had some practice and with an hour and change left in the trip we turned our attention to bone fishing.  It didn't take long until he got his first take but the fish didn't get the hook.  But the second fish, oh the second fish crushed the fly as we watched him wake behind the fly, create a swirl as he at the fly and made a blistering run around some obstruction in the water that almost broke us off.  After a few minutes Mike's bonefish was in the landing net for a photo op and we ran back with big smiles.  Wow, congrats Mike! 

Capt. Mo Estevez

http://www.miamibonefishing.com/

786-853-1409

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

The Roller Coaster December 6, 2022

Great one day, OK the next, that's how it's been the week.  Today I had Peter for a 6 hour trip for an all around mixed bag of fishing.  We started off bone fishing and after much work we landed one and missed a couple of bites.  This wasn't great based on how it's been it was slow however, any time you catch a bone fish it's a great day.  Anyway, we tried snook fishing but the water level was really high and they were tucked deep into the mangroves.  Moving off to find bait I located a huge school of pilchards and quickly loaded up the live well.  Fishing two wrecks and a channel proved slow so I took one more awing at it in a channel that I hadn't fished in a while and there we landed three nice yellow jacks, a small black grouper and lost a big grouper to the rocks.  The trip wrapped up with a little more bone fishing where we drew a blank.  

Capt. Mo Estevez

http://www.miamibonefishing.com/

786-853-1409

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

Toughing it out May 21, 2022

Today was a 180 degree difference from yesterday with high winds, very cloudy conditions and the threat of rain all trip long as Ash and Parker fished with me.  They wanted bonefish, tarpon and permit and some fly fishing but they were wise and listed to their guide as I explained our best bets given the conditions.  With that in mind we were limited as to where we could fish but we made the most of it.  The first two bonefish spots were dead slow so off to spot three.  I changed tactics here and they scored hooking 5 bonefish and landing two.  Nice!  The trip ended in the mangroves trying to get a snook on fly but it didn't quite work out.  

Capt. Mo Estevez

http://www.miamibonefishing.com/

786-853-1409

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

Tyler's Christmas Gift December 26, 2021

 Boy have I been busy but I took Christmas Eve and Christmas day off but I was back to work today.  Steve has fished with me a few times this year and his son Tyler joined him today.  After bending the rod a bit on snappers and the like we hit the flats when the tide was right.  Tyler hadn't caught a bonefish before so I was eager to get him one.  Well, just like his dad that seems to attract fish, Tyler got his first bonefish and then upgraded with a bigger one before the trip was over.  First try!  

Capt. Mo Estevez

http://www.miamibonefishing.com/

786-853-1409

Follow me on Instagram @MiamiBonefishing

Redemption is so sweet! July 3, 2020 Report

I really needed this one. Two years ago David fished with me and got a bonefish. Today we were on the hunt for bonefish and permit under ideal conditions. But, I have to admit, I was still haunted by the big bonefish we lost on Monday so I was eager to make up for it and kick off my 4th of July weekend on the right note. David brought his friend Jeff and I took them to a bonefish and permit spot but the tide was really high for bonefish. Part of the issue was that I was running an hour late because of the number of boats trying to launch in the morning. Just crazy! Anyway, we saw some bonefish schools but they were too far away so off to spot 2 where there were some bonefish but many more permit. They had a bunch of shots but the permit were trickier than usual so off to spot three. That was the magic spot as I was able to locate a number of schools of big bonefish tailing and mudding in a foot of water. One school moved up and started feeding and moving to the left. David make the perfect cast and the school moved over his shrimp. As it unfolded I saw a fish tail on his shrimp, a puff of mud and a screaming drag. Yes! I had to pole after the big bonefish that was making a really long run and then it turned toward us and wrapped around one of the PowerPoles. Oh no! I was able to work a miracle and free the fish and moments later David was holding the big bonefish in his hands. Wow, what a relief and he just got a bigger bonefish than last time. Cool! We ended the day with a few more shots for Jeff and then headed back to the ramp. What a great day, great weather and great guys! Happy 4th of July!

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

Fish of a lifetime!!!! June 24, 2020

DANG!!! Don't know what else to say! My morning started with regular local client Alec on the bow on the hunt for bonefish, tarpon and permit under absolutely slick calm perfect conditions. We targeted bonefish first and there were tons of schools moving through, tailing, waking and getting us all excited. After quite a few shots Alec was starting to feel the tension of this super tough game we play on the flats. However, he's a seasoned veteran and has caught plenty of bonefish with me before so he kept his head in the game. Another school moves in, big tailing and waking fish and I pole him into position but they disappear but I can see their subtle movements. I tell Alec where to cast, he makes a perfect cast and moments later he's on. Boy is he on! The bonefish starts punishing the drag as I poled like a mad man after it until he ended his initial run of over 50 yards. When we finally got him to the boat and into the landing net we realized he was about 14lbs, 14 POUNDS! Definitely a career fish for me as a guide and the fish of a lifetime for Alec. The rest of the trip we focused on permit and tarpon having shots at both but never connecting. Wow, I will sleep in giant bonefish glory tonight!

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

First Timer with a Solid June 19, 2020 Report

Fishing in the Everglades has been so good I just have to keep going back and today Gianfranco joined me. Gianfranco is by no means an angler but he likes the outdoors so he was up for something different. I handed him a light bonefish rod with an artificial lure and showed him how to cast and work the lure. In no time he was on his own and working it just fine. After working the lure for a bit and not catching anything I hear "Oh!" and the drag screamed as a nice snook jumps out of the water. Well, turns out it was the biggest snook of the day and more were to come. Once the magical part of the tide was over with we called it a day after catching some redfish, about a dozen or more snook, trout and a nice jack completing a grand slam and a great day. Summer snooking is what's on my mind right now!

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

She asked "Why is yours so small?" June 1, 2020 Report Video

It's a tough life being a man and being asked that question. Thankfully for me she was referring to the snook I was catching compared to hers. Whew, what a relief! It all started when my fiance', who's now hooked on fishing, asked me to go back to Flamingo in the Everglades and go fishing. OK, so I set the alarm for 5:30am but when it went off there was no moving her. However, we decided to do an afternoon trip instead and it worked out great. By the time we got to Flamingo, it was windy and the water was dirty but still fishable. She was adamant about using bait while I stuck to lures and the fishing was a bit better than I expected. She got three big snook, two on bait and one on lures and two redfish. I managed about 5 smaller snook on lures. Hence her question! I was glad she landed some really nice fish that she refused to take pictures with and we had a great time. Oh, we ended up at home after 9pm!

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

March 6, 2016 Report (Insane action) (Video!)

Chris is from Massachusetts and came down to Miami for 3 days just to fish and today was the day. Our first stop was of course for tarpon and while we found a ton of tarpon at two different spots we could not buy a bite. I was beginning to take this personally but none of the other boats could buy a bite either. Not sure if this makes me feel better. However, while tarpon fishing Chris landed a huge sheepshead and a nice Barracuda within seconds and we were off to a hot start. From that moment on the rods remained bent almost constantly with a number of different species. Then I started to mark the spinner sharks on my Raymarine and we decided to target them instead. Using a live 2 pound jack and 50 pound class spinning tackle we dropped one down and it did not last two minutes before Chris had a ferocious strike and an amazing drag burning run before we lost the first fish. Chris wanted a spinner shark so we dedicated the rest of our time to getting him one so we repeated the process. I all we hooked 7 spinner sharks and landed the last one we hooked. The take on the last one was amazing as we can see the live jack struggling on the surface and a big spinner shark coming in from about a hundred feet zigzagging looking for the live jack. Within 40 feet we could see another 2 spinner sharks and within 10 feet all 3 spinner sharks looked like a squadron of fighters as they bolted towards the jack. A large explosion later the rod doubled over the reel started to scream and Chris was on shark number 7. After an hour and 20 minute fight he released the big spinner shark at almost 200 pounds and at that point it was time to head in. Chris you will have sore arms tomorrow!

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

March 5, 2016 Report (Video!)

Today started slow on my full day with local angler and regular client Alec and his brother Kevin. Finding tarpon, and lots of them, we couldn't buy a bite but Kevin caught the biggest sheepshead I've ever seen. I checked out another 5-6 tarpon spots to no avail. Temporarily shelving the search for tarpon, we focused on smaller predators and caught some sea trout. Halfway through the trip we went back to the morning's first spot and the tarpon were still there but the spinner sharks were in thick. Trying hard for tarpon and not getting any bites, we shifted our focus to spinner sharks. It didn't take long for Alec to hook up to a big shark that gave the Quantum Boca 60 drag a workout before breaking off. Kevin was up on deck and he got a take but early on in the fight the spinner shark spit the bait. What a way to end a day that started off slow!

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

March 4, 2016 Report (Video!)

Being off yesterday and with the fresh memories of the epic fishing day we had on Wednesday I was eager to get regular client David and his son Tommy out. Our first few drifts provided just a few tarpon and no hook ups but the morning wouldn't continue this way for long. As we changed it up the rods starting bending and the drags started to get burned up. There were schools of different species of fish around the boat but most wouldn't reach the boat as spinner sharks were in thick. We took advantage of the situation and got numerous hook ups on high flying spinner sharks and what a sweet sound hearing the drag scream non-stop until having to chase these fish down to prevent from getting spooled. Today was another day where my guys were worn out before the end of the trip. At one point we had a double header and another time when chasing a fish down for David the other rod got hit twice with both times the fish making a long run then spitting the hook, one of the few times I looked forward to losing a fish, twice! I love it!

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

March 2, 2016 Report (Video!)

Today was the day that I've been waiting for since mid February because it was the day when Biscayne Bay finally went off! The morning started with George from New York, a regular client of mine, and his friend and coworker Joe meeting up at the marina at 6 a.m. We scooted off to South Beach in our search for Tarpon and once again there were tons of fish around with one big difference, the water temperature having increased about two degrees and the fish were friendlier than usual. George quickly hooked up to about an 80 pounder that gave us twoo savage jumps before spitting the hook. Drifting through waiting for another bite we were quickly distracted by big schools of spinner sharks. Taking advantage of the opportunity presented to us we quickly rigged up for them and proceeded to have an absolutely banner morning. We landed two and hook between seven and nine sharks. Most jacks and mutton snapper that we hooked wouldn't last long as we reeled them up to the boat and the spinner sharks making quick work of them. Close to the end of the trip I prepared for another drift or two when the guys said they've had enough, were exhausted and didn't think they could catch another fish. That is what fishing in Miami is all about and that is what I've been waiting for! Spring is here and its Tarpon time in Miami!

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

January 10, 2016 Report (Tarpon Video!)

Fishing today with Yuri from Russia was a lot of fun. He had booked me because he wanted to learn how to fish insore and I was more than happy to share my techniques with him. Since it has been cool in Miami I decided to run to South Beach to see if the migrating tarpon we're moving in yet but after spending some time off the beach the answer was a No. Deciding to fish close by and work our way back towards the marina on our four our trip the next spot was a magical spot since the first cast produced the first fish of the day. It was a special fish however because it was Yuri's first tarpon. After a number of jumps and a 20 minute fight on light tackle we released a nice 40 pound tarpon that left Yuri's arms sore and a big grin on his face. A few minutes later we hook the second tarpon but it came off after a long run. We switched over to some grass flats and used a number of different lures and techniques and Yuri caught sea trout, bluefish and a few mystery fish that would slam his lure but not get hooked. We ended the day with some fly casting lessons and he picked up the double haul rather quickly but with the wind increasing to 20 miles an hour it was not productive to have him cast in the open water for his first fish on fly. This was a nice day on the water today with great weather cool breeze and great company catching some nice fish.

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

January 7, 2016 Report

Arthur, his two daughters and one of his daughter's boyfriend were in town and wanted to do some fishing so I got another boat involved. We made the call to head out the day before due to weather and got a late start. On board with me was Arthur and one of his dauthers, Jo. The first goal was to get on some bonefish and we found a nice school of about a dozen fish mudding and feeding but couldn't get one. Then we headed to another spot where they caught snappers and jacks, keeping a few for shark bait. We wrapped up the trip shark fishing and Jo losing a nice spinner shark early on in the initial blistering run.

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

January 3, 2016 Report

From St. Petersburg came Ryan, his 13 year old son Andrew and his father Ed. These were great people and we had a blast laughing and catching some fish. Ed was a riot and had me rolling with laughter! The goal was to get Andrew his first bonefish on fly. We started poling a calm shallow shoreline and as expected here came a school of big fat bones making their way right to us. I positioned Andrew for an 11 o'clock shot and he fired the fly right in front of the school. Immediately he says "I'm on!" and the line rips away, then stops. Huh? Turns out it was a small barracuda. NO! There were a few fish around but then it got quite. Another two flats proved slow so we changed tactics and fished a shallow wreck. Here the action was solid and Andrew caught a grouper on fly, a mutton on fly as well as a few other species. Ryan caught a nice grouper on a lure and Ed caught a few fish as well. The day ended trying to get Andrew his bonefish but they were MIA.

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