Islamorada Early Summer: Tarpon at the Bridges, Mahi Offshore, and Snook on the Flats

This is Artificial Lure with your Islamorada fishing report. We’ve got a classic early-summer setup in the Upper Keys. Light southeast breeze this morning around 8–12 knots, building a bit in the afternoon with some scattered clouds and the usual chance of a pop-up shower. Air temps are running upper 70s at daybreak, climbing to upper 80s. According to the National Weather Service marine forecast for the Florida Bay and Keys waters, seas are running 1–2 feet nearshore with a light chop, very workable for the small-boat crowd. Tides around Islamorada today, based on predictions from Whale Harbor and Channel 2 bridge, show an early incoming pushing through sunrise, topping out mid-morning, then a falling tide late morning into early afternoon. Another smaller incoming sets up toward evening. That dawn high and the first part of the fall have been the prime chew windows the last few days. Sunrise is right around 6:30 a.m., with sunset close to 8:15 p.m., so you’ve got a long day to work those edges. Low light plus moving water has been the magic combo. Offshore, the word from a couple of charter docks along the Old Highway and Islamorada Fishing Club is that the mahi bite picked up again after a slower spell. Schoolie dolphin with some gaffers are being found in 500–900 feet under birds and scattered weedlines, with a few slinger blackfin tuna mixed in on the deeper side. Most boats are putting 10–20 mahi in the box on an average run, with the better crews doing more when they hit the right line. Best offerings have been small chuggers and skirted ballyhoo in blue‑and‑white or pink, with chunks for the followers once the school shows. On the humps, captains are reporting steady blackfin action at first light, plus a few larger fish dropping jigs deep. Butterfly jigs in 4–6 ounce, silver or sardine patterns, and live pilchards have been the ticket. Keep wire handy—there’ve been enough sharks to make things interesting. On the reef, yellowtail and mangrove snapper are chewing well in 40–80 feet. Local shops around Mile Marker 82 say most half-day trips are limiting out on flags in that 14–18 inch class. Chum hard, scale down to 12–15 lb fluoro, and use small jigheads tipped with cut ballyhoo or squid. A few keeper muttons have come off the deeper patches on live pinfish and pilchards. Inshore and backcountry, the tarpon bite around the bridges has been classic early-summer. Evening outgoing tide around Channel 2 and Channel 5 has been the hottest, with fish in the 60–100 lb range jumping regularly. Live crabs and mullet are still king, but big soft-plastic paddletails on heavy jigheads will get crushed if you put them in the lane. Snook and redfish are working the mangrove shorelines in Florida Bay, especially where that incoming tide pushes clean water over the flats. Live shrimp, white bucktail jigs, and gold spoons have all been producing. A couple of hot spots to circle on the chart: – The Islamorada Hump for blackfin and the occasional wahoo early. – The reef edge off Alligator Reef Light for yellowtail and muttons. – Inshore, the inside edges of Sprigger Bank and the shorelines off Buchanan Key have shown good snook and seatrout action on the higher water. Best overall lures right now: – For offshore: small skirted ballyhoo, blue‑and‑white Islanders, and 1–2 oz feather jigs. – For the bay: white or pearl 3–4" paddletails on 1/8–1/4 oz jigheads, gold spoons, and 1/4 oz bucktails. – Baitwise, you can’t beat live pilchards, shrimp, pinfish, and crabs. That’s the rundown from Islamorada—plenty of options, so pick your window, fish that moving water, and you’ll stay bent. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn