Fort Myers Fishing Reports (July 2026)

Bartow, Florida

Reported 2 years ago

Sheepshead fishing is in full swing and they’re giving us some fun days on the water. These tasty, hard fighting fish are highly sought after during our winter months. They can be a tricky fish to hook, with a mouth full of human like teeth the areas to set a hook are few which can make them an even tougher target. Alongside the sheepshead we are catching reds, snapper and black drum, plenty of variety and good eating fish to catch when the weather is cold. For the next couple months we will stick to shrimp for our bait of...

Brandon D. Bartow, Florida Reported 2 years ago

Sheepshead fishing is in full swing and they’re giving us some fun days on the water. These tasty, hard fighting fish are highly sought after during our winter months. They can be a tricky fish to hook, with a mouth full of human like teeth the areas to set a hook are few which can make them an even tougher target. Alongside the sheepshead we are catching reds, snapper and black drum, plenty of variety and good eating fish to catch when the weather is cold. For the next couple months we will stick to shrimp for our bait of choice. Catching white bait these times of the year can be difficult and the fish switch their food choices to bait easier to catch like shrimp, crabs and sand fleas. Fish get slower with dropping water temps so their energy levels drop as well, they still fight like crazy and show us a great time on the water.

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Tom K.

Fort Myers, Florida

Reported 2 years ago

Fishing 50 miles offshore Sanibel. Bottom fishing for snapper, African pompano& mahi

Tom K. Fort Myers, Florida Reported 2 years ago

Fishing 50 miles offshore Sanibel. Bottom fishing for snapper, African pompano& mahi

African Pompano Fishing in Fort Myers, Florida

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Dan M.

Fort Myers, Florida

Reported 2 years ago

We are still in a bit of a transition. As the water temperature begins to drop. Soon the migration will be in full force into the back bays and estuaries and Caloosahatchee river. The trout bite has been hot with a few being caught over 20 inches. Lots of juvenile redfish around as they begin to move in from the Gulf. I also have been seeing a few permit on the Inshore grass flats. They are a lot of fun to catch as they pullback pretty hard!

Dan M. Fort Myers, Florida Reported 2 years ago

We are still in a bit of a transition. As the water temperature begins to drop. Soon the migration will be in full force into the back bays and estuaries and Caloosahatchee river. The trout bite has been hot with a few being caught over 20 inches. Lots of juvenile redfish around as they begin to move in from the Gulf. I also have been seeing a few permit on the Inshore grass flats. They are a lot of fun to catch as they pullback pretty hard!

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Brandon D.

Bartow, Florida

Reported 2 years ago

The weather is cooling down but the fishing is heating up, and it’s getting to be some of the finest fishing of the year. We are finding large schools of redfish, big hungry snook, larger slot sized trout and to top it off the sheepshead are moving inshore for the winter months. We are starting to transition over to fishing shrimp but still catching nice white bait for the big predators to eat. It’s a great time to get out and fight some fish, the winds have held us up from going offshore much but the inshore bite is just...

Brandon D. Bartow, Florida Reported 2 years ago

The weather is cooling down but the fishing is heating up, and it’s getting to be some of the finest fishing of the year. We are finding large schools of redfish, big hungry snook, larger slot sized trout and to top it off the sheepshead are moving inshore for the winter months. We are starting to transition over to fishing shrimp but still catching nice white bait for the big predators to eat. It’s a great time to get out and fight some fish, the winds have held us up from going offshore much but the inshore bite is just as good and the results speak for themselves.

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Jon F.

Fort Myers, Florida

Reported 2 years ago

The fishing is about as good as it gets right now! The shallow water bite for redfish has been WOW! Shrimp under popping corks is the ticket fished along the mangrove islands on higher water. October did not disappoint and the bite should only continue with the cooler temps coming!

Jon F. Fort Myers, Florida Reported 2 years ago

The fishing is about as good as it gets right now! The shallow water bite for redfish has been WOW! Shrimp under popping corks is the ticket fished along the mangrove islands on higher water. October did not disappoint and the bite should only continue with the cooler temps coming!

Florida Pompano Fishing in Fort Myers Beach, Florida

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Jon F.

Fort Myers, Florida

Reported 2 years ago

The shallow water backbay fishing has been crazy good past week. The cooler air temps have really turned on the redfish bite! Shrimp under popping corks has been the go-to set-up and producing good numbers and slot size fish! Trout on the grass flats in 3-5 feet of water have been chewing shrimp topped jig heads under popping corks. There have been a few slot sized fish mixed in but most have been right under slot at 14 inches. There has also been some quality bait schools along the beaches which have led to some good snook fishing as well....

Jon F. Fort Myers, Florida Reported 2 years ago

The shallow water backbay fishing has been crazy good past week. The cooler air temps have really turned on the redfish bite! Shrimp under popping corks has been the go-to set-up and producing good numbers and slot size fish! Trout on the grass flats in 3-5 feet of water have been chewing shrimp topped jig heads under popping corks. There have been a few slot sized fish mixed in but most have been right under slot at 14 inches. There has also been some quality bait schools along the beaches which have led to some good snook fishing as well. October is a great month to get out and fish in SW Florida. Come and get you some and let's bend some rods!

Redfish Fishing in Fort Myers Beach, Florida

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Kyle H.

Cape Coral, Florida

Reported 3 years ago

Big red snapper have been all over out deep. Seeing a lot of black fin tuna.

Kyle H. Cape Coral, Florida Reported 3 years ago

Big red snapper have been all over out deep. Seeing a lot of black fin tuna.

Red Snapper Fishing in Cape Coral, Florida

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Brandon D.

Bartow, Florida

Reported 3 years ago

The weather is heating up and so is the fishing. These big hungry redfish and snook are giving us some really fun days and giving us some unbelievable fights. Using white bait on a 3/0 hook and 25 lb monofilament leader fishing oyster bar edges, mangrove islands and beaches. Bait is getting a little smaller and once we see the schools of little greenbacks the snapper fishing will begin to heat up inshore. The fishing is phenomenal, we are seeing large groups of upper slot and over slot redfish and snook and they’re hungry and giving us some fun days...

Brandon D. Bartow, Florida Reported 3 years ago

The weather is heating up and so is the fishing. These big hungry redfish and snook are giving us some really fun days and giving us some unbelievable fights. Using white bait on a 3/0 hook and 25 lb monofilament leader fishing oyster bar edges, mangrove islands and beaches. Bait is getting a little smaller and once we see the schools of little greenbacks the snapper fishing will begin to heat up inshore. The fishing is phenomenal, we are seeing large groups of upper slot and over slot redfish and snook and they’re hungry and giving us some fun days on the water.

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Kyle H.

Cape Coral, Florida

Reported 3 years ago

The grouper bite has been really really good the best I have seen in years. We are getting a lot of Red Grouper over 30 inches 20lb range. American red snapper are in but the fish have been a little scattered. A lot of big Mangrove snappers being caught.

Kyle H. Cape Coral, Florida Reported 3 years ago

The grouper bite has been really really good the best I have seen in years. We are getting a lot of Red Grouper over 30 inches 20lb range. American red snapper are in but the fish have been a little scattered. A lot of big Mangrove snappers being caught.

Red Grouper Fishing in Cape Coral, Florida

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Brandon D.

Bartow, Florida

Reported 3 years ago

Nearshore has been our go-to all week long with calm water and winds. We are fishing between 6 and 9 miles out in 40-60 feet of water using live shrimp. Lanes and mangrove snapper, sheepshead, white grunt, red and gag grouper have been our main targets and we have been catching a boat full of everything. Groups have been keeping me busy baiting hooks, it’s typical to get one fish for every bait that hits the bottom and we’ve got some good fighters out there for light tackle. A two ounce knocker rig on a 3/0 circle hook and 40...

Brandon D. Bartow, Florida Reported 3 years ago

Nearshore has been our go-to all week long with calm water and winds. We are fishing between 6 and 9 miles out in 40-60 feet of water using live shrimp. Lanes and mangrove snapper, sheepshead, white grunt, red and gag grouper have been our main targets and we have been catching a boat full of everything. Groups have been keeping me busy baiting hooks, it’s typical to get one fish for every bait that hits the bottom and we’ve got some good fighters out there for light tackle. A two ounce knocker rig on a 3/0 circle hook and 40 lb leader has been the setup that has been working best for these nearshore species. We take advantage of these calm days to go nearshore, they don’t come often enough this time of year and right on schedule the next week or so is looking to be windy and choppy in the deep water. Finding the window to go is imperative.