Reef & Wreck Fishing Charters – Marathon, FL Keys
Our customers love catching Snapper on the reef!
Customers always ask us, “what’s biting? or “what should we fish for?” While every day is different, during the winter months, our most suggested charter fishing trip is a 3/4 day reef and wreck. This trip always seems to satisfy new anglers, families, and many of our repeat customers.
One of the reasons the Florida Keys has such great fishing is that there is a massive reef all along our coastline. These reefs are home to many fish. In deeper water, there are a variety of artificial reefs, such as sunken vessels and airplanes that large fish call home.
The reef offers us a wide variety of delicious fish.
The reason reef and wreck charters are so popular is that they can provide the best of both experiences we have to offer. In Marathon, Florida, we can reach the reef and sunken wrecks without traveling far. Less time driving means more time fishing which makes this combination a great option.
We found that 6 hours is typically the perfect time to hit the reef to catch dinner, then head to the wrecks to fight something bigger. Below is what to expect on a six-hour 3/4 Reef and Wreck fishing charter.
Smaller Mutton Snappers are caught on the reef, larger ones on the wrecks.
Surprisingly many fishing Captains hire fishing charters when on vacation in a new place. Because we also pay for fishing charters from time to time, we make it a point to treat each charter as we would expect to be treated ourselves. For instance, we will already depart the dock on nearly every trip loaded with live bait. We do not spend our customers’ paid time catching bait for your fishing trip or future trips. We save an hour or more of your trip catching live bait on our own time. This is crucial to achieving the full experience of this combination trip.
On most reef and wreck trips, you can expect your Captain to head straight to one of our favorite spots on the reef. If conditions suggest reef fishing will not be productive, he might suggest an alternative, but this is a rare occurrence. The reef will provide hands-on light tackle fishing.
We will teach you as we go along what we are doing and why. We welcome questions! We enjoy teaching you what we are doing and why. We want you to come back, or at the very least, as you enjoy your freshly caught meal, you know how and why you accomplished a great catch. The reef, as described in other articles, is filled with many types of fish, both big and small. Light tackle, quality tackle, and no expense is spared, which is crucial when fishing for these fish that have seen many presentations by many fishermen prior to us fishing for them.
Once everyone is satisfied with the amount, quality, quantity, and overall experience on the reef. We then pull the anchor and start the HUNT.
Most wrecks are only 2 miles from the reef in depths of 100 to 250 feet. The trip’s wreck portion is where you can land a fish of a lifetime. The species vary, but they all are significantly larger than what we catch on the reef. The wreck is home to large sharks, mutton snappers, african pompano, king mackerel, amberjacks, goliath, and black groupers, to name a few.
African Pompano are usually found in the vicinity of a sunken wreck.
Generally, we will fish two live baits on the bottom and teach you what to watch to look for. Once hooked up to one of these fish, get ready because these fish fight extremely hard! Not only are these fish trying to escape from you, but most of the time, they are swimming frantically away from huge sharks looking for an easy meal.
Always wind fast, predators want to eat your catch!
The battle with these giant fish often involves passing the rod to another angler while resting. Our Captains will maneuver the boat to help you land the fish. Once you have tired the fish out, we will gaff, net, or scoop the fish by hand, depending on the situation. It is a rush for everyone on the boat to witness these battles!
While the bottom rods are down with live bait depending on conditions we may show you how to vertical jig, cast a top water lure or hold a rod with a live bait on the surface. Most of the surface baits will land Sailfish, Kingfish, Big Barracudas and sharks. You just never know till you go!
If you are headed to the Keys and you are interested in a six hour reef and wreck trip you have several options. You can book online , call us at 305.903.5764 , or visit our contact page. We would love to take you and your loved ones fishing and make some memories that last a lifetime!
