Key West fishing report for May 2026 holds a lot of variables mostly weatherwise but also a new element has arrived this spring in the form of Weed. Sarcasm seems to be making most of our Key West fishing more challenging as the winds have still not decided which way they wanna blow consistently. Whether you are fishing in shore or offshore, the weed has certainly gotten in the way these last couple weeks.
Key West Fishing Report
Deep Sea OffShore
The start of May has certainly shown up very well this year to be one of the better months of the entire year for fishing so far in all of our arenas for the exception of one, deep sea fishing. While the Sailfish push is still making its way down to the reef live baiting using kites is still somewhat productive with those boats reporting 1-4 catches per trip. Even with the current much closer than it has been fishing out in the blue water was very challenging last week for many of us, not only because of the weed that was passing through scattered to hell and back but also the catch ratios. A mixed bag of smaller (tiny) dolphin with the occasional large one (over 20lbs) were caught if you were willing to shag the weed off your baits and work the very scattered weed fields. The full moon was on May 1, and of course, that enhances the wahoo opportunities and several were caught. Mix that in with a very large Atlantic sails and more blue marlin hook ups than usual being caught trolling in deeper water. The start of Fishing this week certainly seems to be getting better.
Key West Deep Sea Fishing
On Board The “InXS”
Reef Fishing Report
The reef Fishing that we have been doing on board my Yellowfin 36 center console has been holding up very well with some very nice yellowtail snappers a good number of mutton snappers and of course, the start of grouper season has paid off with some tasty treats as well. Now anyone who has fish with me knows I like to use a lot of artificial lures and cast a lot for my yellowtail snapper. The sarcasm Weed has certainly changed my tactics, making me go back to ancient techniques of chumming but that has worked nonetheless.
Grouper fishing season opened May 1. There are still a lot of grouper out there to be caught mostly red grouper tasty just the same. Mix that with a nice batch of snappers, and you have the cornucopia of reef fishing Key West. Looking at our schedule for May and June, we do have some openings for reef fishing. Give us a call direct as always. 305-292-7212
Inshore Fishing Report
This Tarpon season has been one of the best we have seen since Covid. The tarpon have poured into Key West by massive numbers. My guides are reporting 4 to 6 Fish hooked up in a half day on most trips. This is super exciting and well overdue. But let’s not forget about the flats. May is one of my favorite months to Fish the flats for not only Tarpon, but also permit and bonefish. As I’ve mentioned in many of my past, Fishing reports we are seeing more bonefish than I have in my entire career as a flats fishing guide. It’s been getting better and better every year since 2010 when we had our deep freeze here in Key West now the fish are getting big. Some of our bonefish have been reported up to 8 pounds.
We are expecting an El Niño this year. This will bring cooler water temps than normal in the summer because of more than usual rainfall. This will keep the flats nice and cool and also the flats fishing will be outrageous. If you haven’t already – I highly recommend an opportunity to flats fishing with us here at Dream Catcher Charters. I suspect the tarpon will stick around as usual all the way through the end of October and one form or another especially with the numbers of Fish we are seeing now.
Fishing Forecast
Much of our fishing here in Key West depends on how close the Gulfstream is to our reefs. This is something nobody can predict however I believe (just a guess) for at least the next week the shoreward edge of the Gulfstream will be right where it’s at. The winds this week will be light and variable till Saturday when we have another little bump in the weather with the stiffer breeze on Sunday. The following week looks like the winds are gonna be more consistently out of the east and a tick higher. We always hope for light southeast breezes for deep sea fishing in May. Tarpon Fishing also benefits from those Southeast breezes and high humidity. The Fishing will do what it does this time of year many of the snappers go on the spawn and the food fishing will be amazing.
So as tradition would suggest I think the rest of this month is gonna be some rock solid, great fishing reports I just hope I have a few minutes while I’m off the water to share it with you here.
Booking a Fishing charter with us here at Dream Catcher Charters it’s super easy. Always Call direct. We are always here to personally answer the phone and answer all of your questions to Dial in the perfect Fishing experience for you. Whatever you do, avoid the online fishing charter booking websites when booking a private charter. Make sure you can speak to the Capt. or the representative on the phone.
Call us direct — 305-292-7212
Email me steven@fishingkeywest.com
Text us — 786-847-3808
