All things considered, September was a great month for fishing in the Lower Keys. We ended the month with a close call from Hurricane Helene, but we got lucky and it just missed us. The weather was still bad enough to keep us off the water for a few days, but we were back out catching fish shortly after it passed. The bonefish and tarpon fishing continue to be great and the permit fishing continues to be slow. Most of the tarpon are smaller, like 10-30lbs, but we still have a few big fish around. The flats fishing should be good for another month or so, until the cold fronts start and then it will get harder and less consistent. It has started to feel like fall the last few weeks, as a lot of different baitfish schools began showing up in the backcountry and the water is also starting to cool off after these last two storms brushed past us. Also, the birds of prey began their migration south and we spotted a few Kestrels, Cooper’s Hawks, Red-shouldered Hawks and a few others.
