Bluewater Outriggers Fishing Report 10-17-2026
A common idiom among fishermen is the phrase, “wore them out.” Even if there is only a handful of fishermen in your social circle, I guarantee you’ve heard this phrase used before. It may have sounded something like this. “I saw Ol’ Bob yesterday; Said he was fishing over in Bobcat Cove and wore out some crappie.” This is only an example, mind you, I made up the name, Bob, and the fictitious cove. But the implication is that Bob didn’t just catch one or two fish. When you properly use the phrase “wore them out” it implies Bob caught more fish than he knew what to do with.
Working at one of the world’s best fishing stores, you can imagine how often I hear the phrase, “wore them out,” and while I want to take what people are saying at face value, that’s just not the world we live in today, and unfortunately, I’ve learned that I must take their statements with a grain of salt. For instance, if fellow employee, Shaydon, were to tell me he wore out any species of fish, I would know right off the bat that he was full of it. That boy wouldn’t know which end of the rod is supposed to face up. My other colleague, Capt. Jake, is a little bit trickier. Now this boy, although wild-eyed and shifty, knows how to fish, but he thinks he has some sort of reputation as a legendary fisherman to uphold. If Capt. Jake tells me he “wore out” the gag grouper, I would bet there’s at least some element of truth to the statement. But much like his curse words, Capt. Jake is fairly loose with his use of the phrase, “wore them out.” It could be that he indeed did catch a lot of them, or it could be that maybe he just caught one nice one on the first drop, and the rest of his fishing day was horrible. Sometimes, especially with people that haven’t seen the inside of a church in a month of Sundays, it’s just hard to tell.
Last night, as my little boy was taking his bath, I took out my ol’ guitar and entertained him with some classic gospel hymns, Just A Closer Walk with Thee, Amazing Grace, and How Great Thou Art. I know every stanza by heart as they were engrained in me with my good Southern Baptist upbringing. So, when I tell you folks that I plumb wore out the speckled trout this last week, you can believe every word of it.
That’s right folks, with the approach of fall and some slightly cooler weather the fish are starting to really turn on. Traveling up the intracoastal waterway fishing live shrimp on a #2 circle hook under a 3/8 oz sinker I was able to get into some sheepshead, mangrove snapper, redfish and trout. But the fun didn’t stop there. When I’d exhausted my live bait supply, I headed over to the flats around the Eagle Harbor area and started tossing soft plastics in hopes of catching trout. When I floated into the three-foot depth range, I was ecstatic to hook up with a speck on the first cast, and the hits just kept coming. In every sense of the phrase, you could say I wore them out!
Speaking of “wearing them out” in its’ truest form, Captain Chris Lantz of Gettin’ Reel Sportfishing, has been putting his clients on the fish all week long and just wearing out the sheepshead. The three photos above are all from his trips last week, and as you can see, there are smiles all around. Captain Chris can put you on fish any time of the year; so, if you’re interested in getting in on the action, look him up and get yourself on the books.
You just can’t beat fall and winter fishing around Port St. Joe. There’s a bit of a cold front moving through over the next few days and after the wind settles down, the fishing will be even better. Now’s the perfect time to gear up for inshore fishing. If you need anything at all, come see us at Bluewater Outriggers. We have an extensive selection of the best inshore rods and reels, fall and winter clothing to keep you comfortable, a vast number of soft plastics from the tried-and-true Got-Cha Grubs to the latest and greatest from JYG and Z-Man. Whatever type of fish you’re targeting out there, we have the tools you need to be successful.
-Jeremiah Beasley