John Preeg: Fishing is slow as we open February

It has not been a good week for fishing.

Part of the reason is simply that it is February, and this month never offers the best fishing. There also have been a combination of cold fronts, extreme low tides and a lack of baitfish. Cold mornings and some windy afternoons have not helped.

There is a fairly good trout bite south of Marco Island, and plenty of ladyfish everywhere, but otherwise, the snook are shivering, the redfish small and the sheepshead and pompano still a few weeks away. Offshore, the fishing might be even more difficult than inshore. Snapper fishing is only fair, grouper scattered and the mackerel and cobia are vacationing in Key West.

Still, this is fishing, and nothing is predictable. A temperature change of a few degrees and the cooler is full and anglers are dancing on the dock. All fishermen need to be hopeless optimists — I am one of them — and I think that it is all going to change this weekend. The bite will begin and not stop until next February.

NAPLES — Capt. Tom Shadley of the Mangrove Outfitters reported that the water is dirty on the incoming tide, but if you fish the last of the outgoing, the water is clear enough for sightfishing.

Shadley has been seeing small snook plus quite a few redfish along the shores of the back bays, and if the fly is presented correctly, the fish will take it.

There are also ladyfish everywhere, and they will inhale any lure no matter how it is presented.

Shadley fished with Dr. Don Green on Tuesday, and they landed several snook up to 24 inches while having numerous sightings of redfish, but no takers.

MARCO ISLAND — Capt. Roger Parcells has found the offshore fishing very unpredictable. There have been some bad days, but also a few very good ones.

The fishing out past 20 miles is fairly good. It is spotty in the 10- to 15-mile range, and relatively poor inside of ten miles. But even there, Parcells had one day when he boated a cooler full of snapper, some large gag grouper and a rare winter tarpon.

The backwater fishing has been moderately good when the water is clear.

Whiting and trout are biting in the passes. Snook and redfish can be found in the back bays, and there are a few sheepshead in the holes, but not as many as there should be. The mackerel have not yet schooled offshore, but there are schools of bait in the area, and this means that both the Spanish and king mackerel are not far behind. Parcells is hoping that the next few weeks will show a real improvement in the fishing.

EVERGLADES CITY — Monday and Tuesday were tough days for Capt.

Shane Miller. Miller said there was no bait in the area, and the bite was generally slow. Trout fishing was fair in the deeper holes, and there are whiting on the bottom, but the snook were completely shut down and the redfish small.

The water is dirty on the outside, but there are clear areas in the back bays, and this is where the fish are gathered.

Tides have been low and slow, and the best fishing is in the afternoon when the water temperature rises.

WIGGINS PASS — It has not been a good week of fishing in Estero Bay for Capt. Terry Davis. He has caught a few trout, but the snook and redfish are small and not hungry, and the pompano and sheepshead are not there yet in the numbers that Davis would expect at this time of year. The water is clear, and there is bait showing up on the outside, but so far the action has not been good.

The only sure target is ladyfish. These aggressive little leapers that are often referred to as the “poor man’s tarpon” are everywhere and will take a shrimp or lure any time.

FRESHWATER — I’ll admit that I am not a freshwater fishermen, and certainly no bass master, but on Monday afternoon I did drive down to the Seven Lakes area just off of Alligator Alley near Everglades City. This is one of the few areas where no boat is necessary, and myself and friend walked the banks while fishing with topwater lures.

Our catch was limited to a few small bass, but the bass were very active and fish were spraying bait in several of the lakes. I suspect a more skilled bass aficionado would have done quite well. I talked to two local anglers who were using live shiners, and they told me that on Saturday, they landed a 10-, 8-, 6- and 4-pound bass, plus some smaller fish.

That is pretty good fishing, and this is the time of year to do it.