Fishing Key West in the Fall
*Typical weather patterns this time of year:
Mostly sunny with lighter winds. Tropical systems are common throughout the day but are usually more towards the afternoon. Fronts can move through later in the fall creating higher winds and some rain.
About Fall fishing in Key West
Fall fishing in Key West is wonderful. Some days are as warm as the middle of summer, and others can be a little more mild. It is safe to say it is a transition period for Key West. The warmer days are better to be out on the water a little earlier, just like in the summer time. This is because we want to beat the heat. The water temperatures can get really hot, making the fish less active. Usually in the fall, we have plenty of time to have a great morning of catching without having to worry about the heat. There are many different types of species to go after in the fall, making it some of the most favorable times to fish in Key West.
Fall Fishing in the Backcountry
Fishing the backcountry waters in the fall is something Capt. Kyle knows plenty about, since he is one of the fishing guides who stays around through this slower time of the industry. Being a slower time in Key West (business wise), will actually make it a little more peaceful while out on the water. There are a lot of fishing guides who go elsewhere in the fall, and there isn’t much business either. Some days, you won’t even see another boat for miles of where you’re fishing. This makes things easier on everyone, well, as long as the fish are there! The species differ from day to day in the fall, making for a nice changing environment daily. The species that you can get into in the fall consist of just about, everything!
- Fall species in the backcountry can include jack crevalle, blue runners, yellow jacks, mangrove/gray snapper, lane snapper, groupers, many kinds of sharks, permit, bonefish, barracuda, and some days we even get into some tarpon. This is also a great time of year to do a Marquesas Keys trip because of our sometimes calmer weather patterns.
Fall Fishing at the Reef
Like stated in the above section, the fall weather can be pretty acceptable (calmer winds) for traveling through unprotected waters throughout the day. This opens up some parts of the reef and deeper wrecks for us to fish. It can be a blast shooting out to the reef and throwing artificial lures at rock piles and structure to see what’s going to attack. There are many different bottom dwelling species that you can catch in the shallower parts of the reef on artificial lures alone. Another good way to go after some fish out there is the old fashioned way; by chumming them up from the depths. A lot of fish that live in reef and wreck environments take some enticing to get them to stay where they are at, as well as to start feeding. This is usually common in areas of deeper depths where fish are so far down there that it would be useless to drop any type of artificial lure down. It is a lot of fun and can be very active to fish any type of reef environment, as well as getting lots of fish in the cooler!
- Fall species at the reef can include: amberjack, African pompano, mangrove snapper, mutton snapper, yellowtail snapper, lane snapper, black and red grouper, goliath grouper, blackfin tuna, mahi-mahi, sailfish, mackerel, bonita, skip jack, and possible cobia.