August 22, 2022 Fishing Report

Tarpon, tarpon everywhere! The last few weeks have seen a huge influx of tarpon off the beaches. From 2 feet of water out to 50 feet the tarpon have been very active following schools of baitfish. It’s gotten so crazy that fly fisherman off the beach are getting in on the action! These fish are ranging from 40 pounds to well over 100 pounds so make sure you eat your Wheaties and make sure you drink plenty of water before and after you battle one of these bad boys.

Tarpon Fishing in New Smyrna Beach and Ponce Inlet is much different than fishing in many other places. Our tarpon here go absolute crazy when the conditions are right.  When the bait is thick off the beaches, the tarpon become super active allowing anglers to catch them on everything including artificial lures and flies. Many times you can see the fish actively chasing the the bait on the surface which only adds to the excitement! It’s hard to not get excited when you see a dozen tarpon or more jumping out of the water eating  baitfish that are schooled up. It’s like real life  DISCOVERY CHANNEL!

Currently we are in a typical summer pattern where the weather has been consistent for weeks and the water conditions couldn’t be better for cruising the beach in search of tarpon. The key here is finding the bait schools the tarpon follow. Some days the water clarity is amazing and if you didn’t know any better you’d think you were in the Florida Keys or the Bahamas.

Captain Austin of Chews Wisely Fishing Charters specializes in tarpon fishing in New Smyrna Beach and surrounding areas and is especially adept at getting complete beginners their first experience with catching a tarpon. He runs a 24 ft state of the art Yellowfin Bay boat with a crows nest which allows him to be up high and scan the horizon, a must for this type of fishing and conditions. With such a capable boat Captain Austin is able to make long distance runs to find the fish. Sometimes traveling as far as 50 miles one way.

Tarpon are many anglers favorite fish to target and people travel from all over to catch them. Living and fishing in New Smyrna Beach/Ponce Inlet we are very fortunate to have a great fishery in our backyard where our anglers will get multiple shots of catching some good sized fish. Not many fish can compare to tarpon when it comes to strength, stamina and jumping ability. Depending on the tackle used and if you are feeling brave, fights can often last over an hour leaving both fish and angler exhausted! 

In our opinion, the next month or two is one of the best times of the year to fish as the bait really starts migrating south and everything from big redfish, slot-sized snook, tarpon and sharks go into feeding frenzies. Don’t wait to call us last second because we will most likely be booked. The weekends are our busiest days but we do have some open days. 

We’d love to take you out and get you hooked up with one of these incredible fish and hope to see you out on the water! Don’t forget to check back in a couple  weeks from now for our next report.  In the meantime, let us know if you have any questions by calling or texting Captain Austin at (386) 689-9056.