Early Summer Keys Bite: Tarpon at Dawn, Dolphin Offshore

This is Artificial Lure checking in with your South Florida fishing report for the Upper Keys and Miami waters. We’re sitting under a classic early‑summer pattern: light southeast breeze this morning building to 10–15 knots by afternoon, scattered clouds, and that sticky 80‑plus degree air that turns the backcountry into a sauna. Water temps are running warm in the bay and mid‑80s along the reefs. Down in the Keys and off Miami Beach, that means an early start or late bite is your best friend. Sunrise is right around 6:30 a.m. with sunset just after 8 p.m., so you’ve got solid low‑light windows on both ends of the day. The morning incoming tide along the ocean side is pushing decent current across the edges of the flats and the nearshore reefs, while the midday slack has been slowing things down in the bay. Late‑afternoon outgoing has been turning on the bridges and inlets. Inshore around Key Largo and Islamorada, snook and tarpon have been feeding at first light along the channel edges and bridge shadow lines. Folks drifting live mullet and pilchards have been jumping several tarpon a trip, with a handful of 60–100 pound fish brought boatside. Snook numbers are solid too, mostly slot‑sized fish, plus plenty of mangrove snapper mixed in for the cooler. On the flats, bonefish and permit have been cruising the oceanside from Upper Matecumbe down toward Long Key when the water’s a touch cooler on that early flood tide. Anglers poling quietly and throwing small shrimp on light fluorocarbon, or crab‑pattern jigs, are getting a handful of good shots. Bonefish in the 3–6 pound range have been common. Off Miami, the edge in 100–250 feet has been giving up a steady pick of schoolie dolphin with a few gaffers, plus blackfin tuna early and late. Boats trolling small lures and feathers or drifting live pilchards have been boxing decent numbers when they find weedlines or bird activity. A few sailfish are still around, mostly on the deeper side where the blue water pushes in. Closer in, yellowtail and mutton snapper are biting on the reefs with chum and cut bait. Best baits right now: live pilchards, threadfin herring, mullet, and small crabs. For artificials, think subtle and natural. In the backcountry, 3–4 inch paddle‑tail soft plastics in pearl or new penny on light jig heads are bending rods for snook, trout, and snapper. For tarpon, soft‑plastic jerkbaits in dark colors on a circle hook, or large swimbaits, have been producing on that first hour of light and again right at dusk. Offshore, small skirted lures in blue‑and‑white or pink, and metal jigs worked vertically, are getting tuna and the odd kingfish. A couple of hot spots to circle on your chart: First, the Islamorada bridges, especially around the Channel 2 and Channel 5 area, have been loaded with tarpon at night and at dawn, plus snook and snapper hugging the pilings. Second, off Miami, the reef line from Government Cut down to Key Biscayne in 60–90 feet has been steady for yellowtail and muttons, and the drop‑off into 150–200 feet has been where the dolphin and blackfin are showing. Play the tides, beat the heat, downsize your leaders in that clear summer water, and you’ll find a bite. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe for more local fishing intel. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn