Marco Island Fishing Reports (May 2026)

Steve G.
Marco Island, Florida
Reported 2 months ago

Permit and tarpon are going really well. Lots of action.

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Steve G. Marco Island, Florida Reported 2 months ago

Permit and tarpon are going really well. Lots of action.

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Mike W.
Chicago, Illinois
Reported 2 months ago

The inshore bite has been slow, but it's starting to heat up with the warm weather coming in Offshore the water clarity has affected the conditions for the last couple weeks, but we're now finally getting the water clear that were used to the wind has kicked up so we're...

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Mike W. Chicago, Illinois Reported 2 months ago

The inshore bite has been slow, but it's starting to heat up with the warm weather coming in

Offshore the water clarity has affected the conditions for the last couple weeks, but we're now finally getting the water clear that were used to the wind has kicked up so we're unsure what it'll bring. The Boat will be grounded for offshore for a couple days at least

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Mike M.
Everglades City, Florida
Reported 3 months ago

Fishing through all of these cold fronts, there is one thing that has been consistent. That has been live shrimp. If you use live shrimp, you will get plenty of action. Sheepshead are in all the rock holes and on the oyster bars. Incoming tides are best. We have been...

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Mike M. Everglades City, Florida Reported 3 months ago

Fishing through all of these cold fronts, there is one thing that has been consistent. That has been live shrimp. If you use live shrimp, you will get plenty of action. Sheepshead are in all the rock holes and on the oyster bars. Incoming tides are best. We have been catching Reds, Black Drum, Snapper, Seatrout, and even some Goliaths using Shrimp. Snook fishing has been a little tougher, with the back country being the only place to find them right now. This should be changing next month if we get some consistently warmer weather. Of course, the big Tarpon are showing up, and those numbers should also increase.

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Tim R.
Naples, Florida
Reported 3 months ago

The fishing in Naples and Southwest Florida has been outstanding, with the fish into a nice wintertime pattern, despite the warm tropical weather. In the backcountry, we have been bouncing jigs and drifting shrimp on the bottom of the deep holes surrounded by shallow flats, and getting rewarded with all...

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Tim R. Naples, Florida Reported 3 months ago

The fishing in Naples and Southwest Florida has been outstanding, with the fish into a nice wintertime pattern, despite the warm tropical weather.

In the backcountry, we have been bouncing jigs and drifting shrimp on the bottom of the deep holes surrounded by shallow flats, and getting rewarded with all kinds of fish, big and small. Redfish, black drum, sheepshead, big seatrout, big mangrove snapper, jewfish (golaith grouper) and jack crevalle have been the predominant characters in the show, and they have kept bends in the rods, smiles on faces, and yummy delights on dinner plates!

The only species we have not been tangling with, have been snook and tarpon. And with another strong cold front heading down shortly, I don't expect to see those fish in the back waters, but one never knows!

In the meantime, we will keep on enjoying some outstanding fishing, fun, and fish dinners in the foreseeable future!

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Steve G.
Marco Island, Florida
Reported 3 months ago

Tarpon fishing has slowed down due to the colder weather. Sheepshead has been really good. This week will be some of the best shelling of the year with all the high winds.

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Steve G. Marco Island, Florida Reported 3 months ago

Tarpon fishing has slowed down due to the colder weather. Sheepshead has been really good. This week will be some of the best shelling of the year with all the high winds.

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Perry B.
Naples, Florida
Reported 3 months ago

Our wintertime fishery here in Naples, FL is shaping up exactly how it should, with a few added bonuses showing up early. We’ve been following our typical winter pattern of capitalizing on the windows in between passing cold fronts, and it has been paying off in a big way. Offshore...

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Perry B. Naples, Florida Reported 3 months ago

Our wintertime fishery here in Naples, FL is shaping up exactly how it should, with a few added bonuses showing up early. We’ve been following our typical winter pattern of capitalizing on the windows in between passing cold fronts, and it has been paying off in a big way.
Offshore action has been excellent with a wide variety of species in the cooler water. We’ve been blessed with some of the best King Mackerel fishing we’ve seen in years. Chumming them up and throwing artificials has been an absolute blast. These fish are a riot on light tackle, and watching them sky out of the water on topwater plugs truly never gets old.
The deeper wrecks have been holding their usual winter residents as well, with plenty of Amberjacksto pull on and some Cobia mixed in. On top of that, the snapper bite has been outstanding for those looking to bring home dinner. Big Mangroves, Lane Snapper, and Yellowtails have been common on our offshore trips.
Nearshore, we’ve been treated to an unexpected bonus for January — giant free-swimming Permit. We’ve had shots at some true giants recently, fish we typically don’t see until summertime. This is just the beginning, as the Permit fishery is set to explode over the next month, and we’re anticipating an epic spring and summer with these fish.
There’s also been no shortage of jacks on the nearshore wrecks, providing plenty of hard-pulling action. The nearshore meat bite has been strong as well, with quality Sheepshead fired up in the cooler temps — some of the best table fare around.
Inshore, we’re in full winter mode with cooler water temps. I

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Tim R.
Naples, Florida
Reported 4 months ago

Despite the chilly temps this morning, the fishing has been red hot! In addition to countless jack crevalle and ladyfish, both trips hammered speckled searout, Mangrove Snapper, sheepshead, jewfish, black drum, redfish, Pompano, and even a permit on tipped jigs. I love this kind of fishing because everyone stays busy...

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Tim R. Naples, Florida Reported 4 months ago

Despite the chilly temps this morning, the fishing has been red hot! In addition to countless jack crevalle and ladyfish, both trips hammered speckled searout, Mangrove Snapper, sheepshead, jewfish, black drum, redfish, Pompano, and even a permit on tipped jigs. I love this kind of fishing because everyone stays busy casting, working on their retrieve, and getting non-stop action. It wasn't uncommon today for double, triple, and even quadruple hookups!

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Jesse C.
Fort Myers Beach, Florida
Reported 4 months ago

Great action mostly right in calm back water any time of the day

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Jesse C. Fort Myers Beach, Florida Reported 4 months ago

Great action mostly right in calm back water any time of the day

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