Weekend Fishing Outlook 2/14-2/17

Lots of stuff going on this long weekend...Valentines Day, Miami Boat Show, Presidents Day Monday, and I'm sure a host of other things.  The weather looks like it is going to try and cooperate, and overall it should be a nice weekend for some fishing!

OFFSHORE- The fishing was a little on the slow side most of the week.  Friday and Saturday look to be on the rougher side, but Sunday as of now looks like ideal conditions.  Sunday, as of now, has lighter NE winds and 2-3' seas in the forecast.  The sailfish and dolphin, which bit good last weekend, all but vanished for the most part this week.  The best news was the showing of some BIG kingfish.  Kings in the fifty pound range were caught north of Palm Beach Inlet.  Fishing live goggle eyes and blue runners seemed to produce the most bites from the kingfish.  Snapper fishing remained fair most of the week.  Capt. Eric (http://www.freighttrainfishing.com/) caught a few snapper on his afternoon trip Thursday, but they did have to deal with an almost 4 knot current.  Don't forget grouper season is currently closed.  It hurts to let a big fat keeper grouper go, but the fine for getting caught with a grouper out of season will hurt even more.  While the fishing was slow this week, I fully expect this weekend to produce some nice fishing!

INSHORE- Snook fishing improved a little this week.  The full moon will have the snook bite slower during the day, but the night bite should be good.  Bridges with deeper channels and strong current will be the spots to fish.  The snook are not clicked over into spring mode yet, so they are moving a little slow.  Fish your jigs and swimbaits slower and near the bottom for the best results.  The flats around Munyon Island were still holding some fish this week.  Scattered snook, trout, jacks, and ladyfish made up the bulk of the action.  Topwater lures early in the morning and DOA shrimp during the day are great bait choices.  Flats fishing reports up north (Ft. PIerce especially) have been very good for anybody looking to make the drive.

SURF/PIER- Large schools of glass minnows invaded the surf from Jupiter to Palm Beach Inlets this week.  WIth the massive schools of baits came a whole host of fish.  Loads of Jacks, Bluefish, Spanish Mackerel, scattered snook, and Spinner Sharks came in with the Glass Minnows.  Small spoons and Gotcha lures are great choices for the bluefish, mackerel, and jacks.  Best baits for the spinner sharks are live baits or fresh chunks of bait.  (For an exciting charter consider going kite fishing for spinner sharks.  Crazy bites on top, and the acrobatics of the spinners on light tackle make them great fun.  Our friend Capt. James http://fishcastings.com/ is great at catching the spinner sharks along the beach)