Marco Island Fishing Report 10-24-15

October 24, 2015 - Posted by admin Whew! Wow, has it been windy! We are on a week straight stretch of 15 mph North-Northeast winds that have turned up the 10k Islands quite a bit. The good, is that the pilchards are everywhere right now and they are perfect size for redfish and smaller snook. One throw of the net and you'll have more than you need and my recommendation is not to get overexcited with how much you have and cram it all in your livewell, as most livewells just can't handle a ton of the oxygen sensitive scaled sardines. Simply keep what you need for bait and chum for the day and they'll last with the cooling water temps. Redfish remain the targeted species with isolated bunches of fish on the outside points and pockets. The tried and true popping cork with 1/4 or 1/8 oz split shot or egg sinker on a 3/0 circle hook is just about all you need to have some fun. I have opted to use a free sliding egg sinker the last few years in lieu of a split shot and it really works well. It will not crimp your leader like a split shot and while lead is "soft" by nature, I have seen it nick my leader, so the free floating egg sinker rigged up knocker rig style works great under a popping cork. I also put a small rubber bobber stop on the leader to peg my popping cork so that it does not slide down the leader when the cork gets worn and it also serves as a stop for the egg sinker when I free line the pilchards. Give it a try, you'll love it. Until next time, tight lines and screaming drags.