Estero Bay Fishing Reports (December 2025)

Tim Daugherty
Naples, Florida
Reported: 18 hours ago

The fishing this week around Naples and Marco Island has been nothing short of fantastic, with action firing on all cylinders. Anglers booking Naples fishing charters or Marco Island fishing charters are finding steady opportunities throughout the middle islands and deep in the backcountry. As water temperatures cool, the conditions...

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Tim Daugherty Naples, Florida Reported: 18 hours ago

The fishing this week around Naples and Marco Island has been nothing short of fantastic, with action firing on all cylinders. Anglers booking Naples fishing charters or Marco Island fishing charters are finding steady opportunities throughout the middle islands and deep in the backcountry. As water temperatures cool, the conditions have been ideal for a classic winter pattern, and the fish are responding in a big way.

We’re still catching plenty of snook along the middle islands, and the snook fishing Naples and snook fishing Marco Island anglers are experiencing consistent hookups. Every year when the water temps begin to fall, those snook push farther into the backcountry, and this week is no exception. On the low incoming tides, the fish have been staging along shorelines with deep undercuts, which are producing excellent numbers. For those seeking snook fishing on artificials, fly, or live bait, expect the action to remain strong as long as the warmer weather holds.

A decent redfish bite is also underway, with reds mixed in alongside the snook. The bait fishing has been outstanding as well—live pilchards are thick on the nearshore wrecks just a mile or so off the beaches, and I am loading up with only a few throws of the cast net. With live wells full, we’re set up perfectly for action-packed days on the water. Combined with aggressive schools of jacks and plentiful mangrove snapper, anglers on Naples fishing guides trips and guided fishing trips out of Marco Island are staying busy from start to finish.

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Tim Rushing
Naples, Florida
Reported: 1 week ago

The Naples Fishing Report for December is full of fish, fun, and mild weather! We’ve been bouncing around from Naples to Marco Island and the 10,000 Islands the past several weeks, and the fishing has been outstanding. December fishing down here in Southwest Florida is always one of those special...

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Tim Rushing Naples, Florida Reported: 1 week ago

The Naples Fishing Report for December is full of fish, fun, and mild weather! We’ve been bouncing around from Naples to Marco Island and the 10,000 Islands the past several weeks, and the fishing has been outstanding. December fishing down here in Southwest Florida is always one of those special windows of time, where the skies are easter egg blue, the waters calm, and the temperatures balmy! If you want a tripletail, they are showing up all over the trap buoys. The back country is loaded with all kinds of fun things to catch, from trophies, to dinner, or loads of fish plain ol family and kid catching fun! The water has cooled down into the low 70’s and that always seems to jumpstart the fish into a frisky mood as they try to eat the waves of bait that are still present. They also start to pick up an interest in eating shrimp. The fish that seem to really start biting during this time of year are the seatrout. They love shrimp, jigs tipped with shrimp, and will eat pilchards. The weeks before the cold snap last week seemed to produce at least one nice redfish, every trip along with countless smaller snook, fun-sized tarpon, snapper and jack crevalle. That trend of nice redfish has continued. Since those couple of cold days behind the front, the fishing in Naples started producing a load of black drum, trout, nice redfish, jewfish, snapper, sheepshead and jack crevalle. We started mixing in shrimp, and jigs for bait, along with pilchards. If you want to catch something to eat, watch the kids or family have fun, or hunt a trophy it's a great time to make it happen

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Dalton Rybka
Fort Myers Beach, Florida
Reported: 1 week ago

The sheepshead bite has been on fire along with snook and trout! During these extreme winter lows the docks and grass flats have been producing

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Dalton Rybka Fort Myers Beach, Florida Reported: 1 week ago

The sheepshead bite has been on fire along with snook and trout! During these extreme winter lows the docks and grass flats have been producing

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Perry Bedell with On a Mission Fishing Charters
Naples, Florida
Reported: 2 weeks ago

November wrapped up on a high note, capped off by a busy holiday week and some incredible catches for our clients. As we transition toward winter and the water continues to cool, our offshore fishery shifts into an entirely different gear. This time of year, you truly never know what...

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Perry Bedell with On a Mission Fishing Charters Naples, Florida Reported: 2 weeks ago

November wrapped up on a high note, capped off by a busy holiday week and some incredible catches for our clients. As we transition toward winter and the water continues to cool, our offshore fishery shifts into an entirely different gear. This time of year, you truly never know what you might run into offshore—and that unpredictability is part of the fun. Just this week, we ran across a school of massive Blackfin Tuna surprisingly close to land. Encounters like these are exactly the kind of bonus opportunities winter can bring. Along with the occasional surprises, all of our reliable staples have been showing nicely too. Cobia schools have been consistent from the nearshore wrecks out to the offshore structures, and they’ll remain one of our primary targets throughout the winter season. With the cooler temperatures, big Amberjacks are also pushing in closer. These fish provide an absolute blast on rod and reel—we'll chum them up and throw artificials or flies right at them on the surface. Winter also brings some of the best bottom fishing of the entire year, and it’s prime time for serious meat runs. Grouper and Snapper will continue to be major players offshore through the coming months. On the inshore side, we’re right on the edge of switching fully into our winter pattern, transitioning from live pilchards to shrimp and jigs once the backcountry water temps reach that key threshold. Live bait is still producing well with Snook, Redfish, and plenty of Jack Crevalles. As things cool a bit more, shrimp fishing will light up with Trout, Sheepshead, Pompano, Redfish,

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Tyler Keegan
Marco Island, Florida
Reported: 1 month ago

Redfish are on fire! Nearshore bite for kingfish, snapper, and snook. Tarpon are blowing up schools of mullet!

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Tyler Keegan Marco Island, Florida Reported: 1 month ago

Redfish are on fire! Nearshore bite for kingfish, snapper, and snook. Tarpon are blowing up schools of mullet!

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Tyler Keegan
Marco Island, Florida
Reported: 4 months ago

Great snook, mangrove snapper and small tarpon bite. Redfish should be picking up really soon in good numbers!

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Tyler Keegan Marco Island, Florida Reported: 4 months ago

Great snook, mangrove snapper and small tarpon bite. Redfish should be picking up really soon in good numbers!

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Dan Muench
Fort Myers, Florida
Reported: 4 months ago

Out today with two teens. Hot. Water temp said 89 degrees! Redfish bite is still good! And some tarpon are still in the area!

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Dan Muench Fort Myers, Florida Reported: 4 months ago

Out today with two teens. Hot. Water temp said 89 degrees! Redfish bite is still good! And some tarpon are still in the area!

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James Goodman
Fort Myers, Florida
Reported: 4 months ago

Been an incredible bite for big snook fishing 6 inch live threadfin herring on 30 lb leader with a 4/0 circle hook. Pitching the mangroves on a strong tide.

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James Goodman Fort Myers, Florida Reported: 4 months ago

Been an incredible bite for big snook fishing 6 inch live threadfin herring on 30 lb leader with a 4/0 circle hook. Pitching the mangroves on a strong tide.

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