Some happy clients ,Big red snapper

February is usually a bitter cold month here in Daytona Beach , its looking up this year with our fronts not  producing much punch. The winds tend to calm down fast after they pass and within a day or so after it passes it warms back up into the middle 70s.  You couldn’t ask for better fishing weather . This warm weather means water temps don’t drop into cold enough temps to slow down the bite, this is shaping up to be a awesome month ahead .

I have recently took clients to all areas of the river from up around daytona beach ,in spruce creek ,to all the way down to mosquito lagoon and out offshore with awesome fishing success.  We have landed lots of redfish in the skinny water up in the lagoon to catching good numbers of grouper up around ponce inlet in some deep holes as well as other mixed bag catches of trout, flounder, sheephead,drum and lots of bluefish. The reds have been around oyster bars feeding on shrimp or cutbait preferably mullet, they will also eat artificial, like nuclear shrimp or new penny shad flavored baits. In the north end of the river up around New Smyrna and Daytona Beach I have had most of my success catching fish using live bait.

I prefer most of all manhadden or small pinfish , and fiddler crabs, putting a little more weight on than usual helps to get to the bottom faster avoiding the millions of bluefish that will try and eat everything you throw out. I call them saltwater parahna, they will eat each other feeding  these fish are very aggressive .  Finding deeper holes in this area have been my best success catching good size grouper and sometimes an occasional snook.  Big drum like these deep dropoffs as well ,the sheephead have been in good numbers around pilings of docks and seawalls using the fiddler crabs and shrimp are the best bet.

I have had several trips recently to the offshore reefs and wrecks just outside Ponce Inlet ,the results have been unreal.  I loaded up baits inside the river again using my favorite live bait , hooking up on really huge red snapper one after another and mixed in some grouper, mango snapper, weakfish, trigger fish, seabass, and if the sun is out and warm that day occasionally a big cobia will come cruising by for a snack. This one fish will feed an entire family they range 20 pounds up to 80 pounds and exceptionally tasty.  If you have been fishing here in Daytona Beach before but haven’t tried different places to fish and of course not caught fish then you better get on board with me and let me show you what our waters have to offer. I have studied every body of water here and know when and where to catch these fish. Thank you for reading and if you have any questions ever, feel free to contact me ,enjoy your vacation ,come fish with me and catch a memory of a lifetime ,Capt. Brad