Fishing the Florida Keys: Redfish, Tarpon, and Offshore Action in May 2025

Good morning from the Florida Keys, this is Artificial Lure with your Friday fishing report for May 9, 2025.

We are starting the day with clear skies and warm temps pushing into the low 80s, with fairly mild winds out of the east making for stable boating conditions out on the water. Sunrise was around 6:39 am and you can expect sunset tonight at 7:54 pm. The tide is incoming through much of the morning, switching to outgoing in the early afternoon, which has been firing up the bite both during and just after the turn.

Inshore, the redfish action is heating up on the flats, especially up around Key Largo and into the backcountry. Anglers working skiffs early are finding schools of reds poling shallow, with live shrimp and pilchards doing the trick, though soft plastic jerkbaits have also been hot, especially in natural colors[1].

The tarpon bite is still going strong this week, with consistent action throughout the tides[5]. It’s a great time to chase those silver kings, especially near the bridge channels and around Islamorada in the early morning and late afternoon. Most boats are landing between 4 and 6 tarpon per trip, with the best success coming on live mullet, crabs, or big artificial swimbaits. The tarpon seem to have calmed down a bit after last week’s heavy tournament pressure and are back to their usual rolling and feeding patterns[5].

Offshore, the mahi bite is picking up but still a bit scattered. If you run out past the reef line, keep an eye out for weedlines and floating debris where dolphin are showing up in decent numbers. Trolling with bright-skirted ballyhoo or drifting live pilchards has put plenty in the box, though the numbers are still building as we head into the heart of the season[1].

Grouper season just opened and anglers dropping live pinfish or large cut baits along the deeper reefs and wrecks are bringing in solid black and red grouper[2][4]. Look for ledges in 60 to 120 feet for your best shot. Don’t forget, early in the season is when these grouper are most aggressive, so now’s the time to get out there.

Hot spots to try today include the flats around Tavernier Creek for redfish and snook, the Channel 2 and Channel 5 bridges for tarpon, and the Islamorada Hump for a shot at schoolie mahi and blackfin tuna.

Best baits right now are live mullet and crabs for tarpon, shrimp and pilchards for reds, and ballyhoo or squid offshore. For lures, toss soft plastics for inshore species and deep-diving plugs offshore.

All signs point to a solid day on the water, so load up your tackle box and enjoy the Keys. Tight lines, and I’ll catch you on the next tide.