Fort Lauderdale Fishing In January
January 06, 2023 Dania Beach 5 photos

Trip Summary

Hello everyone, Capt. Vinnie here, this week in Fort Lauderdale we have had some windy days with rough seas and we have had some days with light wind and calm seas, a little bit of everything I guess you could say. Seems to be the afternoon bite has been a little better then the mornings. Starting on the reef which is less than 1 mile off the coast of Fort Lauderdale there has been a few kingfish as well as smaller sized bonito, trolling depths from 80 feet on out to 150 seems to be the best choice, there also has been some larger barracudas on alot of the shallow wrecks right now. We have been having a little sailfish action lately, fishing live bait while using a kite has been the best method if you want to exclusively target sailfish, the deeper edge of the reef has been better for sails finding the north current or gulfstream water is key, setting up as deep as 220 feet has been a good depth and being that deep gives you lots of options for a variety of game fish that might take your bait from tuna, wahoo, mahi mahi and possibly a shark. With the windy days fishing with a kite is the preferred method, the kite is used to keep the live baits on the surface splashing around, it is quite the fishing technique attention to detail is very important as well as having a good eye for any sign of a nervous live bait. It does take some patience, sometimes you can get a bite right away or sometimes it does take time like any type of fishing. There has been a fair amount of green water the last few days, but it seems on the days that the water is blue there has been some really respectable mahi mahi around, either live baiting or trolling is a great choice to catch these guys they are not picky one bit. I would say right now the best bite has been in the afternoon for blackfin tuna, the later in the evenings the better "low light conditions" is the word for it, trolling small lures like feathers or squid skirts has been the best choice, there has been a few larger sized tunas as well up to around 15lbs or so which is a great sign for this time of year. This week I don't have an accurate bottom fishing report due to the heavy current we have had, hopefully the current lays off a bit and I will have a more accurate bottom fishing report next week. Be sure to check out some of great photos of some recent catches we have had during our deep sea fishing charters this week and remember to give us a follow on social media platforms like facebook and instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. This week fishing in Fort Lauderdale has been somewhat tough, some days better then others, im hoping for something to break here shortly, I would imagine that there will be some more sailfish moving through in the next few days with the fronts that we have coming this way and I would bet on the blackfin tuna bite improving as we get later into the winter, I should have a new report soon so be on the lookout and we do have some availability coming up this week and the next so if your coming to Fort Lauderdale or Hollywood be sure to check us out for a great day on the water. More Later.... Capt. Vinnie
Vinnie Sacks
Dania-beach, Florida, United States
YB Normal thumbnail
Sailing out of Port Everglades In Fort Lauderdale for over a decade YB Normal is ready to take clients out for a great day of fishing. Captain Vinnie offers a range of trips, with four to 8-hour packages and the choice of coming as a group or jumping aboa...

Other reports from this charter

New Year Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
New Year Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
January 7, 2026
Hello everyone Capt. Vinnie here, been a super busy week with a lot of charters, i personally want to thank everyone that came out fishing with us new and repeat customers. For the report this week fishing has been a true grind, some days have been literally not a bite till the last minute of the trip and other days a bite right off the bat and then no bites the rest of the trip. Thats how it goes this time of year the cold weather has a big play on the way the fish are going to bite, but patience pays to those that wait. Fishing this week the hot topic would be sailfish, we have been catching a few sailfish live baiting with a kite, depths around 150 feet seem to be the magic number where the sailfish are coming threw. Live bait may not get the most bites but usually the bites you do get will be quality fish. Other then live bait trolling has been very slow and it seems its wahoo or bust. Just coming off the full moon we did manage to get one wahoo and we worked hard to get that bite. The best trolling bite right now is going to be that late afternoon bite for those blackfin tunas, around 3pm is when they have been biting the best up until dark. Smaller spoons have been having the best luck and the blackfin tuna have been all different sizes from 2-15lbs mixed in with the tuna has been a lot of bonito as well. Bottom fishing this week has been the most consistent bite we have been having and has literally been the go to when all else fails, a mix of a few different snappers have been biting, yelloweye, vermillions, and lane snappers have been very prevalent on most bottom spots around 200 feet. We have also been catching some of the biggest gray trigger fish I think i have ever seen. All these species are great eating and can be a huge difference maker in having a great trip to a slow one. This week please be sure to take a look and check out some of the great photos of some recent catches that were caught while out on our deep sea fishing charters in Fort Lauderdale and remember to give us a like and follow on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. Coming up for the next few weeks i would imagine we would possibly see a spike in the sailfish action as well as the afternoon tuna fishing really heating up. Bottom fishing will continue to remain consistent as long as we have the conditions to do so. For the rest of the month of January we have plenty of availability so if your coming down to south Florida and looking to do some deep sea fishing we have plenty of different trips to choose from to suit your needs, and we would love to show you a great time out on the water... more later... Capt. Vinnie
Continue reading
Pre Christmas Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
Pre Christmas Fishing In Fort Lauderdale
December 23, 2025
Hello everyone Capt. Vinnie here from the command center here, for this week we get ready for one of the busiest weeks in charter fishing here in Fort Lauderdale. The fishing aspect of things can be a little tough during this time of the year, there are a lot of things that play a part in that and majority of it is the weather. Cold fronts and constant winds changing directly can hurt the bite at times. For the report this week sailfish is the hot topic, we have been getting a chance at a sailfish almost every trip weather we are trolling or live baiting. This time of year we tend to put away a lot of our trolling gear and break out our live bait tackle. The sailfish bites we are getting have been all over from depths as shallow as 80 feet to as deep as 400 feet and a lot of that depends on wherever the bait is, flying fish, ballyhoo etc. Other then sailfish right now we are still seeing a consistent bite of mahi mahi which is very odd for this time of year but we will take it. All of the mahi have been scattered all over just like the sailfish they go where the food goes. Average size on the mahi have been around 10lbs, the perfect size for a great dinner. Other then the previous species mentioned last but not least blackfin tuna have been showing up on the afternoon trips. Something special seems to always happen when the sun is low in the afternoon. The primary method to catch these tuna is going to be trolling, smaller lures like spoons and squid skirts are going to get the most bites right now, as we approach closer to spring time we will start to see some larger blackfin tuna and those are going to be caught more on live bait. This week please be sure to take a look at some of the great photos of some recent catches that were caught while out on our deep sea fishing charters and remember to give us a like and follow on social media platforms like facebook and instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. This week and next week are very very busy weeks for sport fishing charters but lucky for you there are some spots available so if your coming down for the holidays and looking to do some deep sea fishing we would love to show you a great time on the water, remember fishing makes a great gift specially for families to get out and enjoy something together. From all of us at the YB Normal we want to thank all of our previous customers and new customers for coming out fishing with us over the year, we wouldn't be were we are today without you guys, on that note we would like to wish you a happy holidays and a Merry Christmas... more later.. Capt. Vinnie
Continue reading
Back In Action In Fort Lauderdale
Back In Action In Fort Lauderdale
December 14, 2025
Hello everyone Capt. Vinnie here. I want to take the time to apologize for the lack of reports last week. In my previous report i was saying we were going to be doing a lot of work to the boat at the spa aka "boat yard" and we wouldn't be fishing for the next few weeks, but we are back now and the boat is looking better then ever for all of our customers to enjoy. It did take longer then expected but hey not every puzzle piece is going to fit just right the first time. Anyways enough about that, lets get to what you really come here for the fishing! For the report this week i would have to honestly say that things have slowed down a bit and thats standard issue for this time of year with cold fronts and weather changing constantly. Anyone that says the fishing is good all year round is lying through there teeth. Anyways fishing has slowed down a bit from what its been and honestly it just cant be good all year everyday its not possible, but if you are patient great things come to those that wait. The reef has been where most of the action has been and believe it or not mahi mahi have been the most common catch. Mahi specially in our area are a summer time and fall fish with winter time being rare to catch them but for some reason they have been biting in shallow on the troll, and with live bait. Trolling as shallow as the edge of the reef and as deep as 300 feet has yielded the best results, for the most part they have been scattered so a little luck is needed but they have been good size as well anywhere from 10-20lbs. Other then mahi there has been some sailfish around on the live baits being fished from a kite. Afternoons specially late afternoons have been as good as a guarantee for blackfin tuna, trolling is going to be the best method and smaller baits are going to get the best results. Average size on the tunas has been on the smaller size but thats standard for this time of year, even though the tuna maybe small they are still great eating and make wonderful poke bowls and sushi tuna. Last but not least the bottom fishing report is starting to heat up and this is the time of year is when i do the most of it, we have been seeing some larger yellow eye snappers right now on deep bottom spots around 400 feet. On the shallower spots around 200 feet we have been seeing some very nice porgys as well as vermillion snappers. This time of year when conditions are right bottom fishing is a great way to put meat on the table. Please take a chance and check out some of the great pictures of some recent catches that were caught while out on our deep sea fishing charters including a yellow eye snapper almost 10lbs, and remember to give us a like and follow on social media platforms like facebook and instagram @Ybnormalsportfishing for daily fishing content. Coming up for the next few weeks as of right now we have some availability for fishing trips and fishing makes a great gift specially for the holiday season. So if your coming down to Fort Lauderdale and looking to get out on the water we would love to show you a great time out there.. more later... Capt. Vinnie
Continue reading