Reef and Wreck Fishing
Artificial Reef and Wreck Fishing is the most exciting type of deep sea fishing in Miami. For many, many years South Florida Anglers and South Florida Fishing Clubs were involved in artificial reef programs such as the Pflueger Artificial Reef Program and the Miami Dade County Artificial Reef Program.
There are literally hundreds of deep sea wrecks, from oil rigs and concrete boulders to airplanes, trains, and old shipping boats, as well as, old mine sweepers and submarines from World War 2 that have been stripped of all their environmental hazards by such programs. These sunken structures have created hundreds of great Florida reef fishing habitats along the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean where Miami and Ft. Lauderdale offshore fisherman, as well as recreational, novice and professional anglers go to bottom fish.
What makes these artficial reef and wreck fishing spots so appealing to blue water fisherman?
Over time these reefs and wrecks create a food chain of bottom fish from the natural growth of reef as the ocean accepts them as its own. Some of the fish that inhabit the more shallow (40ft-300ft deep) artificial reefs are Mutton Snappers, Yellowtail Snappers, Cubera Snappers, Black and Gag Groupers, Goliath Groupers, Amberjacks, Almacojack and Cobia.
All of these attract schools of big game fish such as Hammerhead sharks of all types, Caribbean Reef Sharks, Tiger Sharks, Bull Sharks and Mako Sharks, not to forget Pelagic’s such as Sailfish, White Marlin and Blue Marlin, Kingfish, Wahoo, Mahi-mahi, Blackfin Tuna and Yellowfin Tuna. And then, these fish attract schools of bait fish such as Spanish Sardines, Ballyhoo, Scad Mackerel, common little Tunnies, Blue Runners and Goggle Eyes.
You can clearly see why sport fisherman love Florida reef fishing with all their array of magnificient fish. Unfortunately, a lot of these reefs have been kept a secret which only the ‘old-timers’ know. The good news…Captain Jack knows exactly where they are!
Fishing the East Coast of South Florida for over 30 years, Captain Jack developed a technique for reef and wreck fishing the he learned by working with these old timers – techniques that were passed on from generation to generation from within.