BlueWater Outriggers Fishing Report 3-14-2026
The Bluewater Outriggers got slammed this morning right out of the gate. It was just me and Ol’ Dave Buckner holding down the fort. Now Dave isn’t really old, heck, he’s only a few years older than I, but it sounds good and it somehow makes me feel younger by writing it, so I’m just going to run with it. So, as I was saying, there we were, me and Ol’ Dave. Before we could even get our first cup of coffee (much needed at 6AM), a customer came in wanting 20 dozen live shrimp. I barely made it to the back of the store before a second customer came in wanting 10 dozen. On and on it went, Ol’ Dave making music on the cash register keys, and I scooping shrimp like some sort of crazed prospector. There were a few more customers that needed their reels spooled, so I jumped on that and Ol’ Dave took over shrimp scooping while simultaneously, running the register and directing me to other customers that needed assistance by means of our intercom system. While to the reader it may seem as if we were running around like two chickens with their head cut off, I like to think of it as executing a flawlessly orchestrated dance that keeps commerce continuous and customers contented.
There are several factors that caused such an onslaught of customers that early. The weather has been uncooperative for offshore anglers and the wind finally died down enough that they would be able to get out this weekend. Many were buying live shrimp in hopes of getting some nice sheepshead off nearshore reefs like the Vamar shipwreck site. A live shrimp on light fluorocarbon placed behind the boat with no weight on it is a good way to grab a nice black snapper as well. I look forward to seeing how everyone did today and I’ll be sure to include it in next week’s report.
Mid-March is peak time for Spring-Breakers as well. There are many folks down enjoying the beach this time of year and coming into the store to gear up with affordable combos with which they can try their luck on the rising number of fish being caught surfside.
And perhaps that is the biggest reason Bluewater Outriggers is seeing an influx in customers. “The bite is on,” as they say, and redfish have been doing a lot of biting this past week. My friend Gary Nobert (above left) caught a nice slot fishing out on the cape. Captain Chris Lantz of Gettin’ Reel Sportfishing put an adorable and happy client on another nice red (above middle). Also fishing out on the Cape was Wesley Brown. All the way from Franklin, Tennessee, Wes caught a nice red using green colored Fishbites and submitted his photo to me at myfish@bluewateroutriggers.com Congratulations to all you guys and gals on some very impressive catches. While reds seemed to be the main item this week, there are plenty of other species biting as well. I saw a few speckled trout come in as well as some pretty impressive pompano. I noticed several customers purchasing Spanish Mackerel rigs, but I haven’t confirmed any catches as of yet. The time for the Spanish is drawing near, however, and it can’t hurt to be prepared!
That will wrap things up for this week. Please come in and see us at Bluewater Outriggers. Ol’ Dave and I may be running around like crazy, but we will always find time to stop and help out a customer.
As always, I hope to see you out there!
-Jeremiah Beasley