South Florida Weekly Fishing Report - July 21, 2022

Offshore

Off Jensen Beach, the sailfish bite remains consistent with plenty of dolphin in the mix as well as a lot of bonito.

Alec at the Snook Nook said it's been hard to get baits intended for other species past them in some cases.

There have been a few wahoo caught off the Jensen area with the top reported fish hitting a very impressive 70 pounds.

On the bottom in the area there's been good action for mangrove and mutton snapper. Though the stronger-than-ideal currents recently have made it a little tricky, anglers are catching fish using live pilchards.

There have been a few amberjack in the mix.

Off Jupiter, Capt. Bill Taylor said the bottom bite for yellowtail snapper has been really good the past few days. He said they've been using squid and threadfin herring for bait and doing well.

Capt. Bill said the mutton snapper bite has been decent. He said they caught nearly two dozen on Monday. Unfortunately for them, most were short and had to released. He did say that four or five were keepers.

The bonito bite, which had been red hot off Jupiter recently, seemed to cool down a bit on Tuesday morning. They may be still around, but they were not around Captain Bill's boat, the Black Dog.

If you're out on the water and it seems a bit hazy, it's the blanket of Saharan dust that is currently rolling over us.

Though the thick sargassum off the Boynton Beach area made it a bit tough to troll, there were reports of wahoo being caught last weekend as the full moon continued waning into a gibbous moon.

Capt. Bruce Cyr said the fishing has been tough in the area with most boats reporting having to run farther and cover more ground to find fish.

There have been some decent numbers of bonito in the south county area. They are being found in 120 to 200 feet of water and are hitting drifted sardines.

Yellowtail, lane and mangrove snapper are being found along the area reefs in 45 to 75 feet. They are being caught on cut sardines fished on the bottom.

Whether it's a monster or a minnow, if you've got a good fishing photo send it to eritz@pbpost.com

Inshore

At the St. Lucie Inlet, the snook bite is still excellent. Live baits, especially croakers, have been pure gold the past few weeks.

If you need croakers, the Snook Nook has got you covered.

The snook action has been good under the docks along the St. Lucie River. The snook are using the docks, especially the deeper docks with some current flowing, as a way to avoid the heat and wait in ambush.

The tarpon bite continues to improve in the area. Anglers have been parking at Bathtub Beach and walking down to the inlet to fish the north side.

They are having good luck using three-inch white paddle tails by No Live Bait Needed. Alec at the Snook Nook said they work incredibly well and that it's crazy the amount they are selling right now.

Tarpon are being caught at the Crossroads area.

Using live shrimp or small, live pilchards, anglers are getting mangrove and even a few Cubera snapper around the Jensen and Stuart Causeways.

Along the beaches in Jupiter now is an excellent time to fish for snook.

Pete Schulz of Fishing Headquarters in Jupiter said the best bet is to work the first trough using a three- to four-inch rubber swimbait attached to 40-pound-test leader.

Fishing in the early morning or late afternoon and standing just along the water, but not actually in it, cast out to the first trough and then slowly work that bait along the bottom right up to the sand. Sometimes snook will actually chase those baits onto the beach.

Another excellent species to target right now along the Jupiter coastline are mangrove snapper. They are spawning this time of year. They can be voracious predators and in addition to the spawn, they are staying closer to the beaches to target baby sea turtles after they hatch.

The mangrove snapper aren't being picky and will hit pilchards, sardines and ballyhoo, alive or dead.

Lake Okeechobee

Capt. Larry Wright had his clients fishing in the Kissimmee River on Tuesday saying that with the consistent southeast winds the lake was just a bit too choppy.

Using live shiners, he said they caught 13 bass, one mudfish, one gar and four catfish. He joked that they had caught a "variety pack."

He said one of the catfish was pretty impressive at 25 pounds.

If fishing in the river and going with an artificial, in the early mornings work a top water lure near the edge of the peanut grass. After that bite slows down, switch to chatter baits and start focusing on the drop off.

Capt. Larry said even when the wind isn't making the lake too choppy, the fishing has been a little slow.

He believes that at 13 feet, the water level is too low right now and that it needs another two feet to be optimum.

If you are fishing the lake, the bite at first light is the best and working the outside grassline, where there's a good mix of bullrush and Kissimmee grass, has been producing decent action and the bigger largemouth bass.

All fishing report information courtesy of Alec at the Snook Nook in Jensen Beach, Fishing Headquarters in Jupiter, Black Dog Fishing Charter, Capt. Bruce Cyr and Capt. Larry Wright.

Eddie Ritz is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at eritz@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: South Florida Weekly Fishing Report - July 21, 2022