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Pat
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Tuesday, November 19, 2002 - 2:01 pm: | |
Subject: Fishing Report
How's the fishing right now off the coast of Louisiana in the Gul? |
Capt. John Sackett
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, August 29, 2001 - 9:00 pm: | |
Subject: The latest action from www.AnglingAdventure.com
Once again, my apologies…
It seems like a real shame that about half of my reports this year have started out the same way, with me apologizing for the delay in getting them written, but I guess the good news is that it means I’ve been real busy. No, it has all been the good kind of, on the water, rippin’ the lips off fish kind of busy, but 2001 sure has been busy in one manner or another. Between all cobia hunting we did last winter, the snookin’ we got in through early spring, the kingfish action we saw all the way into July, and of course the incredible tarpon action we had from the end of February through the middle of July, it’s been a really busy year. On the down side though, the majority of the delays I’ve had getting these reports out have been due to technical difficulties! In one season I have managed to nuke, a desktop computer system, a laptop computer, and even an outboard motor! None of those failures were ever explained as far as what caused them, but boy oh boy, it’s been a pain in the a-- dealing with them. Okay, enough excuses, time to get on with the report!
Offshore action is hard to beat!
With water temperatures inside of Tampa Bay and the even shallower bays adjacent to it, reaching clear into the mid-nineties at the height of the day, beating the heat has been a big priority. Three tactics designed to do so, are of course to fish the lower light periods of the day, fish the strongest incoming tide you possibly can, or of course, just head offshore a bit to more temperate waters. It is this last recommendation that I’ll focus on here.
Now by fishing offshore I don’t necessarily mean that you have to head 80 plus miles out into the Gulf (although that’s exactly what I did last weekend), in fact you can get into plenty of action within 3-5 miles of the beaches themselves. Just off our area beaches find yourself alongside a wreck, a reef, or just some good live bottom, and you never know what might happen. What you better plan on though to capitalize on these opportunities, is to bring along plenty of tackle. You’re going to need some light spinning gear to have fun with the snapper and mackerel, you’ll need some medium weight gear for the permit, and of course if it’s a wreck you’re fishing on, you better bring the heaviest stuff you can get your hands on for the goliath grouper that undoubtedly live within it. It’ll take everything from 9/0 heavy hooks, down to the little 1/0 snapper sized ones, and it’ll take your favorite fishing line from 8 pound all the way up to 80 pound test, but it’s been well worth the effort lately.
Now if you are a little more adventuresome, and have a boat capable of wandering safely a little farther from home, this is the perfect time to go deep! Sure, going deep is a relative thing and it takes a 30 mile run just to find a hundred feet of water in our part of the Gulf, but once you get to a hundred feet or more, the Gulf is an awesome place to be! Sure those anglers fishing nearer to shore will catch plenty of action right now, but if you are looking for some extra-large fish to take home for supper, head for the blue waters and enjoy. Okay, all those “little” snapper inshore eat well too, but as I said if you want extra-large fish for supper, deeper is better. Look at another advantage to this strategy, you can clean 10 nice mangrove snapper from our inshore waters back at the dock to yield 10 pounds of filets, or you can clean one 17 pounder from further offshore to aquire the same amount of meat. It sure is faster to clean one than it is ten! That was exactly the strategy that we utilized aboard my 34 foot Baja last weekend when I had the pleasure of fishing with Glen Gee, his wife Lynn, and two of their buddies Troy and Scott. Talk about bringing home some meat, we ended up catching and cleaning half a dozen or so mahi (and caught and released at least another dozen while they were swiping the bait we were freelining back to the yellowtails) up to about three pounds, a pile of beautiful yellowtail snapper in the 2-4 pound bracket, 5 mutton snapper from 10-17 pounds and a rare treat for our area, a 46 pound cubera snapper as well. Add to all of that delicious snapper, the extreme fatigue that comes with the dozen or so amberjack we landed from 25-34 pounds and you have the makings for one heck of a trip!
While that was the tally for just one trip, keep in mind that almost anything is possible out there in the blue waters. Just last month, Dr. Ryan Magnus managed his best kingfish ever while we were trying to sneak up on a school if blackfin tuna, Capt. Chris Seger chalked up another beautiful sailfish, and the Morse family got the pleasure of eating a pair of beautiful 20 plus pound mahi-mahi that we hauled aboard my Baja back around August 1st! Then again, when you consider the fact that Doc’s kingfish went 32-34 pounds and that he caught it with a 12 pound Crowder spinning rod, a 1/0 Owner SSW hook and only 30 pound mono leader, you know that almost anything is possible! Fall is coming and the grouper will again be taking center stage in closer to shore, but in the mean time if you can devote a full-day effort to it, my advise is to “go deep”.
There is still flats fun too…
Back up in the shallow water there is a whole lot of fun to be had too, but you can’t expect to find it in the same places you would when the water was only in the 80 degree range. Like I said above, use the top of the tide to get the coolest possible temps, or do your flats work during lower light periods. The snook are of course one of our most temperature sensitive species, so you can expect that their mood will be one of the worst when it comes to co-operating with anglers desires. Sure you’ll find a whole bunch of them hanging around your favorite flats, but it’ll take more than a little effort finding them at the exact time that they are willing to feed. Better bet may be to hunt yourself some redfish. August and September are the months when the reds will school up in some of the biggest herds of the year, and the sight of copper colored water all around your skiff can be unbelievable. On a good day, you can get into 20 plus fish in the 30 inch range and beyond, but if you get truly lucky and find a herd of unmolested fish you may end up with catch totals of double that! Okay, finding those fish can be a hit or miss type of proposition, but if you’d like more of a sure thing, and you want to stay a whole lot cooler too, my recommendation would be to book yourself a shark trip.
Obviously the shark population has gotten a whole lot of exposure in the press lately, so no one really doubts that there are plenty of sharks out there, but we think that we’re doing all the beach goers a favor by interrupting their feeding patterns just a bit with our catch and release style mood control tactics. The recipe for success is fairly straightforward, just take some smelly bait (bonito, mullet it doesn’t matter much which you prefer), anchor up where your favorite flats drains into deeper waters just as the sun is setting, use your favorite 20-30 pound spinning outfit, and wait for jaws to come calling. This is heavy duty battle time if you hook a big boy, but even the little blacktips, blacknoses, lemons and hammerheads in the 4-6 foot range that frequent our flats will be more than entertaining on the right gear. You can reasonably expect that you may get spooled if something in the 8 foot plus range shows up, or for that matter when a tarpon grabs your smelly stuff and takes off so fast that you never even get the anchor untied, but that’s the kind of adrenalin rush that we all love to fish for anyway, isn’t it? My preference is an 8 foot Crowder rod like the ones I use through tarpon season, matched to one of Penn’s new “liveliner” model spinning reels with 300 hundred yards of 30 pound power pro line tied to a six foot section of 80 pound mono, and finally to a couple feet of 90 pound test wire and a 6/0 hook. Then it time to just sit back and relax. Fortunately, if the tide is running pretty good, they probably won’t keep you waiting too long!
Lastly, when it comes to inshore fun in the heat of summer, you may want to hunt just as much as fish. I’ve said it before, and I’m sure I’ll say it again, but there is something about sightcasting that can be just out of this world! Two target that are worth hunting right now are the permit and the cobia. First permit, second cobes. The permit potential is right here, right now. It’s not the kind of action that we had a couple of years ago with thousands of fish happily swimming over nearly every rockpile in the area, but it can be incredibly rewarding to hunt singles and pairs as they work along to edges of the shallowest flats. Then again, who’s not to say that you might be hunting for pairs when the motherload shows up? A big school of perms to anglers in the west central part of Florida isn’t measured by the score, or even the dozen. A big school to us number well into the hundreds, and oftentime into the thousands. There’s nothing quite like the sight of these monster schools, or the laughter that will often accompany the double and triple hook-ups, but one things for sure, you won’t be there when they do show up if you’re not out there hunting for them! The cobia aren’t going to show up in huge schools right now like you might find them during the winter months, but the singles, pairs and triples that you will find more and more frequently as mid September nears and passes, can be awesome! Best yet, when you find them on slick calm, muggy mornings like Capt. Billy Nobles does, chances are they’ll be cruising just below the surface. Talk about being in sightcasting heaven… This is about as good as it gets.
A look ahead…
Well, I already touched on the invasion of cobia that we’ll be chasing up in the bays, I talked about the permit potential that’ll last through Halloween, and I talked about the grouper that once again will come marching in from the depths of the Gulf, to the waters just outside, and even inside our area bays, what more could you want? Okay, how about some of the best snook action of the year from mid September through mid November, or for that matter our fall kingfish run. If you’ve never experienced a fish that takes drag so fast that your reel can actually go silent, you’ve got to come and do some light tackle kingfishing with us. We’ve got a lot to look forward to, so get in touch with us real soon and we’ll set aside a day for you.
Like my friend Capt. Mark always said,
“Catch ‘em up”
Capt. John Sackett
http://www.AnglingAdventure.com
captsackett@anglingadventure.com
(941) 920-4891 Mobile
|
Capt. John Sackett
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, June 06, 2001 - 11:29 pm: | |
Subject: The latest action from www.AnglingAdventure.com
It just keeps getting better and better!!!
It doesn’t seem to matter what type of fishing you like to do, right now would be a good time to get out and do it! Up and down the West Central coast of Florida, whether you want to fish inshore, or offshore, try and get out to do it soon. In fact rather than try and put a whole lot of effort into my writing here, we’ve got soooooo much to report on, I’ll try and do here it in as brief a style as possible.
Where do I start?
The obvious place would be with the tarpon that are preoccupying a lot of our thoughts right now, but there are so many other fish out there to entertain us that I need to cover a lot of ground in this report. Basically, the kingfish are a little past their peak offshore, but the snapper and grouper action has been fine and the A.J.’s and dolphin are strong options as well. If you head offshore right now, chance are still good that you’ll bump into a few cobia and if the jewfish will let you get them all the way to the boat, you should consider yourself doubly lucky. From the nearshore waters all the way up onto the flats tarpon are of course, the main attraction, but certainly not the only game in town! You can choose to hunt some permit right now, or if your are looking for some of the hottest action around, get yourself in on some of our catch and release snook action.
My partners are way busy from South to North…
Like I said above, rather than try and get real descriptive with what it’s like to fish around here right now, I’m just going to try and give you some bullet points as my partners have reported it to me.
Down in the Boca Grande area Captains Mike Wise and Billy Nobles are as Billy puts it, “burning them down”! While both of them are busy as all get out doing the tarpon dance with clients both in, and around the pass, Mike has given me more material to write about than I can possibly cover here! To summarize without giving a lot of detail I’d say, tarpon, tarpon, tarpon, shark, tarpon, would just about cover it, but then again there are a lot of other fish there too. Mike’s action has included some cool cobia action up inside of Charlotte Harbor itself and some notable tripletail bites too. The notable thing about the tripletail that have been hanging around one specific cobia hole wasn’t the fact that Mike landed a pair of 7 pound brutes, but the fact that he landed one fish that was bigger than those two combined. Oh yeah, we’re talking about a 16 pound tripletail! Want more than the tripletail, how ‘bout snook so big that he had empty his pockets and jump overboard “Jose Wejebe style” and follow a fish through the legs of a dock in the heat of the battle?! Okay, if that’s not enough I’ll go back to the tarpon thing. After all, tarpon are king at this point in the spring, especially in Boca Grande. While fishing the pass is very different than fishing tarpon up on clear and shallow flats, the experience of being in Boca Grande Pass right now is something that everyone needs to experience, and is one of the best chances you’ll ever have for landing multiple fish in a single charter. When the bite is on down there, it can be incredible.
Capt. Chris Seger out of Sarasota has been busy running both inshore and offshore trips for a while now. The last couple of weeks on his 16 foot Talon flats boat he’s had everything from 150 pound tarpon to tons of snook come over the rail. One of the coolest aspects of Chris’ action is the fact that he’s the first guide on the team to have reported boating a triple digit tarpon on fly tackle, and that his snook totals are steadily into the dozens right up along his favorite sandy beaches. Hmmm, what to do? Cast one way to the snook, or look over your shoulder and cast to the pods of tarpon cruising past… What a decision to have to make! Offshore anglers aboard Chris’ big 32 foot Merrill Stevens sportfish have been equally as busy. Some days it’ll be the A.J.’s slamming every bait you toss, while other days around this full moon period, it’ll be the 4-7 pound snapper coming up and swiping your baits just below the surface. If you get your bait deep enough, don’t be surprised if the grouper decide to snarf your bait, or if you end up hooking into a “keeper” sized cobia. As much as you never know what’s gonna take your bait though, those big snapper have got to be the stars of the show. Then again, who can argue with fresh snapper at supper time too?
Just a little further North in the waters off Bradenton Capt. Steve Barron’s highlights have included days like the one he had with one of his favorite repeat clients, Chris Arendt, and Chris’ guest Doc Serkia. It was just one of those days, a 31 inch snook, a 33 inch snook, and then a 34 inch snook. Oh yeah, then there were the two 120 pound tarpon they boated too! One of the most amazing aspects of all these fish was the fact that the two tarpon they boated fought for as long as the one Steve boated with customers the week before. You see these fish went well over an hour (one went an hour and twenty minutes) battling Steve’s clients on 20-30 pound spinning tackle, while the week before he boated a nearly identical fish with his customers on a 12 pound test snook outfit with a 1/0 hook!!! Go figure.
Capt. Jason Ramsey has been doing the tarpon dance all over the place as well in addition to some great snookin’, but his biggest diversion from this “usual” action has come in the form of jewfish. It seems that somehow, some way, Jason’s clients have managed to boat three of these monster size members of the grouper family over just the last couple of weeks. Now when I say, “monster size” I mean it. Take into consideration that one of them went about 50-60 pounds, one went into the 150 bracket, and one was somewhere above 250! Add to all of that the fact that the biggest fish was landed on a 30 pound test G.Loomis spinning rod and you have the makings of an awesome fishing accomplishment. Aside from all of that though, one of the things that we do on the water that gives us the greatest sense of accomplishment has to be getting an angler his or her first tarpon, and that’s exactly what Jason just did today with one of his favorite repeat clients, Ted Watson from the Bayer Corporation. Congratulations Ted on boating an awesome fish in the 150 plus pound bracket. I can’t wait to see the photos!
Capt. Brian Kisluk, like many of us wears the title of “tarpon addict” and this week he too was getting a fix for his addiction. In Brian’s case he had a three fish boated kind of day just this week while fishing with Mike Turbin and his buddy Pete Fulmer. Now this wasn’t one of those every bait you toss get’s eaten kind of day, this was a classic case of paying your dues! I can vouch for the fact that we are far less profitable around here once the tarpon migrate out to the flats (especially with fuel costs going nuts!), because there are a lot of days that require a whole lot of “hunting” before the “fishing” really gets good. Well, when Mike and Pete fished with Brian, it was a good thing that they were as patient as they were. After boarding Brian’s Mercury powered C-Hawk just as the son was touching the horizon that morning, they searched and they searched. By 11:30 they still hadn’t even touched a rod. Then after covering water all the way from Egmont Key to New Pass down in Sarasota not once, but twice, they finally got on some “happy” fish. Needless to say, all that traveling finally paid-off with 3 fish boated over the last three hours of their trip! Congrats guys on a great trip.
Last, but certainly not least, Capt. Sam Kimball out of Annie’s Bait and Tackle in Cortez took a little time off from the snapper, kingfish kind of offshore action that he specializes in, and he did a little tarpon fishing too. Well, when I say he took a “little” time off, I guess that would be an understatement. You see he had a party of 5 anglers on one day last week when they hooked up with a monster tarpon by anybody’s definition. How monstrous you ask? How about the fact that the “lucky” angler that hooked up stood toe to fin with the beast for the first four hours of the battle without any assistance, or the fact that all four of his buddies took their turns trying to tire the big fish for the next 2 ½ hours after that! We’re talking about a fish that kept unbelievable pressure on a 30 pound Crowder spinning rod for 6 ½ hours! Time is however your enemy when fighting tarpon, so despite a truly heroic effort, and a really, really big hammerhead, they never had the challenge, or the pleasure of boating the big silver king for their Kodak moment. Any way you look at it though, Capt. Sam and those guys certainly waged what so far, has to be the battle of the year!
Get in touch with us soon!
Well, I hope that gives you some idea of the world-class action we’ve got going on right now. If you’d like to book a trip that you’ll not soon forget come and visit my website http://www.AnglingAdventure.com and we’ll get you hooked-up! Either way, we’ll be out there to let you know what’s going on.
Like my friend Capt. Mark always said,
Catch ‘em up!
Capt. John Sackett
Toll Free Reservation Line (877) 269-FISH (3474)
Anytime Number (941) 920-4891
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Capt. Jason Ramsey
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, May 30, 2001 - 10:35 pm: | |
Subject: It's time to do the "Tarpon Dance"
Life’s a b—ch! (that’s beach of course)
As is quickly becoming the norm around here, I’m going to apologize once again for the delay in getting this report updated. I guess somehow I need to stop trying to put so much effort into each report, and instead try to make them a little more brief, but a lot more frequent. Anyway, the past few weeks have been full of action so I’m gonna try to run through some of it here as quickly as I can.
If you haven’t done it yet, let’s do the tarpon dance…
Just like I wrote in my last report, there is still a lot of great snookin’ to be done around here, but as an admitted “tarpon addict” it’s been real tough to get excited about the linesiders lately! If it is snook you are looking for, the good news is that you won’t have to look too hard. You can find them almost everywhere right now from the rivers all the way out to the Gulf. Pass and beach fishing for snook is a “summer” type of thing traditionally, but I can tell you firsthand that the fish are already there.
How do I know the snook are all the way out the passes already? Because that’s where I travel almost every morning now in search of silver. Silver kings that is. If you looked at your calendar and read a report back around the middle of May, you’d have been reading about fishing for tarpon in the deeper waters within Tampa Bay itself. What can I tell you, traditionally there are a ton of big fish making their way out to the big sandflats just off the beaches within the first week of May, but this season has been a little different. Tarpon season started with a bang back at the end of February and we had a great March, but the winds that blew and the fronts that passed continually toward the end April and into the beginning of May, really put the brakes on our tarpon migration. Thanks goodness for the fish up inside the bay! By mid May the winds were finally co-operating again and the fish were slowly headed closer and closer to the mouth of the bay. The fish that we were hooking up inside the bay were getting a little more infrequent, but the cool news was that the fish still there were huge! In back to back to back days, my partner Capt. John Sackett and I managed fish well over 150 pounds, and had at least two that weren’t much shy of 200.
The tale of just a few trips…
The big fish parade got going on one of the days that I fished with Ward Simpson and his two sons. We fished up in the bay around some of our favorite structure that morning, but given the reluctance the fish were showing relative to eating our baits, I decided that we’d make a move. I pointed my Hydra-Sports toward a deeper ledge that runs alongside one of our big flats where we had a good trout bite a couple day earlier and boy, what a great call! We were on the anchor less five minutes and one of the first baits we tossed got absolutely slammed! We were off to the races. After the battle my partner called and asked if I had seen many fish rolling in the area, but all I could do was reply, “heck, we weren’t there long enough to notice”. Anyway, this fish was HUGE and it proceeded to drag my Hydra-Sports from just off Rattlesnake Key clear across the shipping channel in Tampa Bay and nearly across to Egmont Key. This was undoubtedly one of the biggest fish we’ve landed in the last four years, but even at that size I never expected it could drag us that far. This was a testament to the need for serious tackle when you pursue serious fish. To date I’ve had really good luck with my Penn Powergraph reels, matched up with my 8 foot G.Loomis Surf series rods.
Next day it was time to try something just a little different, but no less taxing on the equipment. Give calm winds that morning, I decided that a run out to one of my favorite wrecks was in order, so off we went. We anchored up, started tossing some chum out on the water and BAM! The fish were there, and they were extremely co-operative. We started with 4 or 5 really nice sharks in the 4-6 foot bracket, then the Spanish mackerel found their way to us, and finally the cobia showed up. We did the catch and release thing with a whole bunch of fish before I decided to see if there was something even larger to play with below the boat. I hooked one of the aforementioned mackerel on one of those same 30 pound G.Loomis tarpon rods and dropped it right down beneath the boat. One minute the “bait” is wiggling nicely, the next it just gets heavy and heads straight to the bottom. Sure enough the jewfish have taken up there summer residence. Well after having at least a couple of our big “baits meet the same demise, and after having battled dozens of these huge fish on much heavier gear, we figured it was time to get back to targeting fish we could realistically land. So back to the cobes etc.. Two nice 35-38 inchers came aboard, another was hooked, and all of a sudden as the cobia swam bright beside the boat… KERSPLASH! A huge boil of water erupted right at the surface as a 2250-300 pound jewfish came up and snarfed the 15 pound fish in one big gulp! Now since we using tarpon size spinning gear I of course, held absolutely no hope of actually fighting this fish for very long, but despite all our past failures on tackle much heavier, Ward’s son battled this fish back to the surface after each and every dive it made. After 30 minutes passed, I still thought it was an exercise in futility, but kept watching with interest. After 45 minutes passed, I was starting to think that there was a remote possibility that we’d actually beat this monster. Well sure enough, I stood in total disbelief as we neared the one hour mark and I slipped my lipgaff into the giant’s mouth. This was an accomplishment unlike anything I have seen, and it definitely deserves “catch of the week” status. Drop an e-mail to me at capt@fishtheflats.com titled “Jewfish” and I’ll return it with a photo of this incredible (especially on light tackle) fish.
While there are very few things that could top the action I had with Ward and his sons, the action on Friday of that week was notable as well. This time not as much for the size of the fish (although the tarpon my partner John did that morning with his client was in the 150 pound bracket), it was for where we were catching them! Sure monster size fish are awesome anywhere you find them, but the Friday before last was the first day that we elected to leave the deeper water within Tampa Bay itself, forgo the opportunity along the flats inside the bay, and head all the way to the big sand flats just outside the passes and into the Gulf. Like I’ve written here before, we don’t necessarily catch more tarpon out on those sand flats than we do in the deeper waters of the bay, but the added thrill you get when you can watch huge pods of trophy fish swimming in crystal clear, shallow water, is just out of this world! On that day I had the great pleasure of fishing with Jay Grubbs from Staff Leasing here in Bradenton, and after spending the morning hours having very little luck up inside the bay, we decided to burn a little gas and go do some exploratory work along Anna Maria Island and Longboat Key. Needless to say, I’m glad we did. Not only did we manage to hook three silver kings that afternoon, but we had one that took us for better than a two hour tour. This fish did exactly what a lot of the bigger fish do in the Gulf, he swam amongst his pod for a while as if he didn’t know he was hooked, then he just headed off straight to the West! Almost tragically though, as his path took us about 2 ½ or 3 miles into deeper water, it also took us into danger’s way. Danger of course for a tarpon usually comes in the form of either hammerhead, or bull sharks. Fortunately for our tarpon this particular hammerhead really didn’t like the sound and commotion that my 175 horse Johnson was making above his head!
Looking ahead…
The trips I talked about above, as well as those days since with Greg Glantz and his architect Alan, the Miselis party, and even the Ziemers were pretty indicative of what you can expect right now. With the tarpon already out on the beaches, you can find them in more locations right now than you’d imagine. Whether you are wanting an absolutely world-class tarpon experience, some great snook action, or you want to take your own shot at those GIANT jewfish, it doesn’t get a whole lot better than this.
Well, I hope that gives you some idea of the world-class action we’ve got going on right now. If you’d like to book a trip that you’ll not soon forget come and visit my website http://fishtheflats.com and we’ll get you hooked-up! Either way, I’ll be out there to let you know what’s going on.
I’ll see you out there,
Capt. Jason Ramsey
(941) 722-1645
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Capt. John Sackett
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, May 20, 2001 - 6:30 pm: | |
Subject: The latest action from www.AnglingAdventure.com
Busy… Best describes the fishing along the Gulfcoast!
Well, with weeks and weeks having passed since my last report, I’m hardly going to scratch the surface here on all the action my partners and I are enjoying right now, but I’ll try and do my best anyway!
Where do I start?
First, I’ll recap a little of the action that I’ve personally enjoyed with clients over the last couple of weeks, and then I’ll go on to talk about the action some of my partners have reported to me as well. Recent highlights aboard both my 21 foot Hydra-Sports and my 34 foot Baja have all involved “silver”. You know, either “silver kings”, or “kings of silver”. Both have required some work on occasion, but both are paying pretty big dividends for those that are pursuing them.
Case in point, last Monday I had the opportunity to fish for the first time with Paul Bishop who traveled with his wife and little one down from Tennessee. Now Paul is an experienced angler and he seemed to take in stride the fact that we watched 5 other boat hook tarpon right around us up inside Tampa Bay, but I wanted to hook him up in the worst way. Well, try as we might the bay itself produced very little, and even after burning a half a tank of gas hunting the big sand flats off the beach…. Zip! We’re talking nothing but a half dozen or so Spanish mackerel that swiped baits intended for larger targets. It was a great day, we saw a ton of wildlife and I was in great company, but somehow we just never got him his tarpon shot. Hopefully my day with him on Wednesday would be different. It was! Back into Tampa Bay we went, we anchored up, and we waited, well sort of. You see the tarpon had no intentions of keeping us waiting long and the threadfin on the end of Paul’s 8 foot Crowder rod got snarfed! The fish behaved well and swam clear of the structure all around us, but it only gave us one decent look at it as it greyhounded clear of the water at a high rate of speed. Based on the big white belly we saw hanging beneath it, I congratulated Paul on hooking into his first triple digit fish on light tackle. Talk about an understatement… At just under an hour into this epic battle, Paul’s big fish finally decided to give us a better look at it. First it gave us a violent head shake right on the surface, and then all of a sudden in an effort to rid itself of that annoying little Owner hook, it gave us two huge jumps with the first being a perfect cartwheel. Paul new it was a good fish, but I think that in addition to the torture test he was giving that Crowder rod, it was the look on my face when I finally got a good look at his fish that gave him a clearer indication of just how special this fish was. This wasn’t much like the bass fishing he does back home, but he handled the rod like a pro, and when I finally leadered the fish nearly two hours later, Paul got to enjoy a good look at a fish that wasn’t too far shy of two hundred pounds! That fish was probably 16-18 inches across his back alone, and undoubtedly the biggest one I’ve landed in the last four years. Add to his incredible fight a couple hours of decent snook action, and you had the makings of an awesome day on the water. Congratulations Paul!
Now the question for Friday’s trip with Steve Fortried be as productive? I could only hope. Fortunately for Steve the record went something like, first bait cast, Spanish mackerel caught, second bait cast, slam, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, kersplash, kersplash again. Oh yeah, hooked up and off to the races on the second bait! To make a two hour story relatively short, the drag on my big Okuma reel sang as sweet as could be for 120 minutes and Steve had the ride of his life while he tired what turned out to be a hundred fifty pound class fish. It was the second fish of the week that actually turned out to be a three county fish! Both Steve and Paul hooked up on big fish in Manatee County and got dragged clear across Hillsborough County, and all the way into Pinellas County. Sure, Hillsborough is pretty narrow in that part of Tampa Bay, but a three county fish is pretty cool anyway! At that point in the morning, it was decided Steve needed a bit of a break so we headed off toward the big sand flats just to see what we could see. Well, wouldn’t you know it, we didn’t find a single school of the jacks I was expecting, we found more tarpon. Fortunately for Steve, the next couple of fish hooked were impressive, but neither stayed on long enough to exaggerate the soreness he would feel for the next couple of days.
Okay, enough about the silver kings, let’s touch on the kings of silver… Saturday, I finally had the opportunity to stretch the 250 Mercs on my Baja, and it was well worth it. Well, sort of. You see I was booked with back to back six hour trips Saturday, the first of which was with a great bunch of folks from P.B.O.A. and some of the agents they work with. To say that we had a tough trip would be an extreme understatement! I could buy a fish out there! We ran North from our start in Sarasota to a wreck that has been red hot with sharks, spanish mackerel, cobia, and best of all jewfish. You see they were competing with other boats for most fish (the spanish would be perfect), and biggest fish (the jewfish would fit the bill here), but I’m reasonably sure that “least” fish was the only thing we were in the running for. Well, unless they counted the bait we sabiki rigged as the “smallest” that is. Anyway, I know I can’t control the fish, but I apologized nonetheless for our poor showing. So there I am preparing for my second trip of the day and thinking that I needed to do something radically different for my afternoon run, then I thought, no, stick with what you know works. Well, 30 minutes of slow trolling with a spread consisting of a shiner on one rod, a big threadfin on the flatline clip, and a jumbo blue runner trailing the downrigger, finally produced my clients first decent fish of the day. At the time, we just didn’t realize how decent. All four of the guys I had aboard took their turns on what turned out to be one heck of a challenge on a light kingfish sized tackle. Better than an hour later we were taking pictures of a beautiful blacktip shark that probably fell into the 80 plus pound bracket as I popped the leader and set him free. Time to get back to basics, I dropped the anchor on some inviting looking bait holding tight to the bottom and I dropped the chumbag back into the water. 20 minutes passed with relative little activity, but then thing finally started to happen they way they were supposed to. First a couple of missed hits, then a couple of the long shanked hook rigs got cut off clean. Sure enough, those weren’t spanish macks feeding, those were undoubtedly the kingfish that we had been hoping for. Out came the wire leader and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz we were hooking up solid. For the next couple of hours every bait we threw got slammed. No, we didn’t catch them all. We still managed a few cut offs and more than a few missed on the single hook rigs we were casting, but the fun we had was beyond description. When you get a good kingfish bite going on snook sized tackle, you are in for a lot of fun. Rig your anchor to a float to assist in quick get aways when a big fish threatens to spool you, but even with the Okuma Epix reels we were using, we managed kings all the way to twenty pounds on Saturday without once throwing the anchorline once. Sure, it got a little stressful and we got a little nervous a couple of times, but then again that’s a good kind of stress to have, I promise!
My partners are busy too…
Last week the results from my partners were probably even better than my own. Just about everything that could be caught, got caught. Sure there were tough days too here and there, but for the most part, now is definitely the time to plan on getting out there!
Capt. Steve Barron out of Palmetto had an awesome week once again that included things like 39 inch snook, and more than a few permit, but one his more memorable days was certainly last Monday when he fished for the first time with Pat Archer and his wife who traveled here all the way from New Mexico. Now while they might not have had a ton of experience dealing with fish like the perms and snook Steve put them on, I’m relatively sure that the three or more tarpon they hooked into were well beyond anything they had expected! It was great day, but the sight of tarpon doing cartwheels ten feet in the air, and the feeling of pressure they apply on the other end of your line, are things that I’m fairly sure Pat will never forget. Anyday that you do battle with tarpon and permit in the same day, is probably my idea of the ultimate gulfcoast fishing day.
Capt. Brian Kisluk of Bradenton was also out on the hunt for tarpon this week, but it was really easy to be on of the unlucky ones (see my first day with Paul Bishop above), and not get hooked up with one of the big boys. In Brian’s case though, his thorough knowledge of our area waters was instrumental in insuring his clients success. You see while Paul and I never really did get the action going strong the day the tarpon were ignoring us, Capt. Brian put his floks onto a “grand slam” that consisted of redfish, trout and snook. I know that’s a “flats” slam and not a “grand” slam right? After all, it takes a fourth species to make a slam truly “grand”. Well, in Brian’s case you can take you pick on a fourth species since thy also caught jack crevalle, flounder, spanish mackerel and even ladyfish that day.
Capt. Jason Ramsey of Palmetto was busy with his normal routine of tarpon hunt mornings, followed by snook style afternoons, with a couple notable exceptions. Exception number one, a tarpon less morning on the big structure in Tampa Bay lead him to explore an area on one of his favorite flats where he had seen a few tarpon rolling the day before. As he put it, “Wow, what a great call that was”! When I asked him if he had seen the fish rolling again, he said, “they didn’t have time to”. It was another of those first cast, slam, kind of things. You gotta love it when that happens! Two really unique things about this tarpon though were both it’s determination, and it’s size. Not only did this fish do the three county thing like the one above, but three hours and 10 minutes after the battle began, Jason carefully slipped his lipgaff into the fish’s mouth and started to lift. So far so good, then the tremendous weight of the huge tarpon straightened the hook! It was an incredible battle with a tremendous adversary on 30 pound spinning tackle. Exception to the norm number two, the very same clients (Ward Simpson and his sons) that endured the aforementioned tarpon, were out with Jason hoping to hook into another silver king, but the fish were less co-operative, so plan two was put into effect. Plan two, in this case involved taking advantage of the calm conditions and running a few miles out into the Gulf to one of Jason’s favorite wrecks. Some shiners were tossed out over the wreck and the results were almost instantaneous. The scorecard was impressive with a pile of spanish mackerel landed, then 4 or 5 really nice sharks and 3 keeper sized cobia were caught and released. So far so good, but as they battled yet another fish boatside, a huge swirl erupted on the water’s surface when a huge jewfish came up and inhaled the unsuspecting “bait”. Now jewfish encounters are fairly frequent on this particular wreck and Jason has battled many unsuccessfully on conventional tackle all the way up to hundred pound test, but this fish just ate a fish being played on a 30 pound tarpon size spinning rig. No chance landing this one, or so everyone thought. Well, Ward’s son stayed patient and somehow the fish stayed out of the wreck and believe it or not some 45-50 minutes later he had the beast boatside! Needless to say, this wasn’t the longest battle of our week, but it still deserves “catch of the week” honors. Drop me an e-mail titled “catch of the week” and I’ll return a photo of fish that you won’t soon forget.
A little further south of here, things are equally hot. The Boca Grande are is of course world famous for it’s tarpon, the sharks that eat those tarpon, and almost as much so for the incredible amount of pristine backcountry adjacent to it. Capt. Mike Wise lives right in the heart of that area and is showing clients almost every aspect of it on a regular basis. Whether you choose to fish “the pass” for GIANTS and experience that area as most do, or you set aside some time to have Mike show you some incredibly huge snook, or numerous redfish and trout, it’s just a flat awesome time to be down there. Fishing from a boat like Mike’s 20 foot Lake & Bay is an incredible experience from one end of the bay to the other. The trickiest part of hooking up down there is probably getting a date with a first rate guide, so you’ll want to call or e-mail Mike soon!
Get in touch with us soon!
Well, I hope that gives you some idea of the world-class action we’ve got going on right now. If you’d like to book a trip that you’ll not soon forget come and visit my website http://www.AnglingAdventure.com and we’ll get you hooked-up! Either way, we’ll be out there to let you know what’s going on.
Like my friend Capt. Mark always said,
Catch ‘em up!
Capt. John Sackett
(941) 920-4891
(877) 269-FISH (3474) Toll Free |
Capt. John Sackett
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, April 23, 2001 - 11:29 pm: | |
Subject: The latest from www.AnglingAdventure.com
Here we go again with my apologies…
This time the delay in my getting this report out was as much a technical thing as it was a too busy kind of thing. Anyway you look at it though, I apologize to my faithful visitors who have had to wait waaaaaay too long for this up to date report! Over the last several weeks, I managed to kill one outboard engine (very mysteriously I might add), one desktop computer system (can you say my right arm?) and even my laptop (so much for back-up systems eh?!). Anyhow after all that adventure, I’m glad to say that I’m now operating a brand new Sony system (thanks to that 18 months with no interest type of thing), and that the fishing is great!
Where do I start?
I guess when it’s been weeks since my last report the best angle I can take with this report is to just give you a paragraph of overview type stuff, and then do some bullet points for you on the action being reported “guide by guide”. In terms of overviews, the most difficulty you’ll probably have in planning a day on the water right now, is probably going to be what type of fish to target! If you want to experience some of the best snookin’ of the year, right now’s the time to get out and do it. Want some terrific kingfish action, do it soon! How about really big permit? Right now is the time to get after them too. Oh yeah, if you want a shot at a whole bunch of truly GIANT tarpon you better have your plans made right now too! Now this is still called “fishing”, and not “catching” so some days will undoubtedly be a lot more productive than others, but the odds are good right now that you’ll have action that you won’t soon forget. Needless to say, with all that kind of stuff to report on, I’m going to get right to the action as it’s being reported up and down the gulf coast right now.
Take your pick…
Capt. Jason Ramsey out of Palmetto is doing some pretty incredible snookin’ right now in terms of both quantity and quality. The most surprising aspect of his recent success on the linesiders has to be the fact that he’s been able to devote just part time effort to them. You see his clients seem to enjoy hooking triple digit tarpon too (this week he put Scott Hesaltine on his first silver king, then Randall Sakai and Ann Robbins were next), so who can blame them for missing out on the snookin’?! Seriously though, he had one afternoon last week when he landed four fish in row that went at and above 30 inches. It was a matter of camping out for a little while on a pod of fish that he could see from the tower of his Hydra-Sports and just waiting for the bite to turn on. Sure enough, patience paid off, the tide switched around and SLAM! They had their first big snook on, then their second, then their third… Well, you get the idea. Palmetto’s Capt. Steve Barron has been busy hunting snook too, and may have offered evidence of the big fishes willingness to eat when one of is clients hooked one of the first 40 plus inchers of the season. Unfortunately, just as Steve was reaching for the fish at boatside, you guessed it, the hook pulled free. That’s okay, I know Steve, and he know where the 40 incchers live as well as any guide I know. I’ll let you know when he lands another. Whether you are looking for quality, or quantity, the snook bite is pretty strong right now!
Kingfish action has been a little on and off, but when it’s on, it’s really on! The kingfish action being reported has come from my 34 foot Baja, Capt. Sam Kimball’s 26 foot Parker and Capt. Chris Seger’s big 32 foot Sportfish too. The action can be a little hit and miss in terms of when it happens, and it seems like more often than not, a really hot morning bite is followed by a relatively slow afternoon one and vice versa. But it seems as if patience almost always pays off right now. Now each of us has his own preferred techniques and locations, but the common denominator has to be the enjoyment we get from our anglers when they see just how fast a reel can spin backwards with a decent kingfish on the end of their line! If you want to see the best example around of pure speed on the water, a kingfish will definitely show you a thing or two. Match you tackle to fish your finding and just have a ball! A good example of doing so had to be last Sunday when I had the opportunity to fish with Jerry from up in the Syracuse, NY area for the first time. Jerry and I had just hooked over one of the biggest kings I’ve fought over the last couple of weeks when we hooked-up while trolling around a giant baitpod just a mile or so off the beaches that day, but upon receiving a call on the radio from Capt. Sam I decided to change techniques and anchor-up right out in his neighborhood. Well, as I pulled near Sam’s boat to position myself, I could see that the action he was reporting was certainly accurate. Just picture 3 of Crowder Rods’ finest spinning rods doubled over simultaneously under the stress of 3 kings at a time! We anchored up a hundred yards or so away, but the laughter could be clearly heard from on boat to another, as Sam’s customers continued hooking fish at a torrid pace. We paid our dues, got our own chumslick going and after about 45 minutes our rods finally started feeling the same sort of strain. You may catch bigger fish trolling in close to the beaches, but chumming up fish in the 8-18 pound bracket and casting to them with light spinning gear is something that you’ve just got to try! Just do us a favor and try to hang onto your rod when they slam it (right Jerry?)!
Aside from all that kingfish kind of stuff, Capt. Sam and Capt. Chris have also been two of the busiest guides I know of when it comes to tackling trophy permit too! While our inshore and nearshore trips are still producing relatively few glimpses of the permit that are yet to come, the boys working offshore are well on their way to having one heck of a permit year. Needless to say, it’s a rare day right now when either of those guys pulls away from the dock without a livewell loaded with enough crustaceans to entertain their clients. In fact Capt. Chris’ only complaint is that on those days when the fish are “tailing” in 90 feet of water, it just so darned hard to get a bait to the “big” fish without the “little” ones from beating them to their offerings. While it may not come as too much of surprise to anyone that has enjoyed a good permit bite with us in the past that 12 baits can easily result in 12 fish, the fact that the “little” fish in Chris’ case are 20-30 pounds and that the “big” ones are between 40 and 50 pounds is truly impressive! If you want in on some of this action, I’d recommend a little weight lifting in preparation!
Okay, accuse me of saving the best for last if you must, but as an admitted “tarpon addict” there is nothing quite like the start of tarpon season. In our case we were fortunate to start our season back at the end of February, but now Capt. Mike Wise down in the Boca Grande area is getting in on the action too. While his snook and redfish normally get going sooner than ours, tarpon season starts just a little later there than it does here in the Tampa Bay area. When it comes to shear numbers of fish though (and more huge sharks than you can imagine!), Mike’s back yard can be an incredible place to fish! If you are looking to experience the best action Boca Grande has to offer, Capt. Mike’s 20 foot Lake and Bay flats boat is a heck of way to see it, and Mike is just the guy to show it to you.
Right here in Tampa Bay, Capt. Jason and myself have both been doing a decent job on our early season silver king pattern for weeks now, but Capt. T.J. Stewart, one of our newest partners has been absolutely on fire. Take last Friday for example, Jason landed the first fish of the morning aboard his boat, but then T.J.’s clients managed to hook just about every fish in the county. At least it seemed that way. In the end, both guides had their clients doing “Kodak moments” with huge fish, but the scorecard on T.J.’s Honda powered skiff was out of this world with at least 10 fish hooked, and three boated for pictures! Add to all that some terrific snook action in the afternoon and you’ve got a really cool kind of day. Now take into consideration the fact that the sightcasting season for these awesome fish is just beginning, and we’ve got more to look forward to over the next couple of months than I can even imagine! If you’ve never done the “tarpon dance” get in touch with us real soon.
Well, I hope that gives you some idea of the world-class action we’ve got going on right now. If you’d like to book a trip that you’ll not soon forget come and visit my website http://www.AnglingAdventure.com and I’ll get you hooked-up!
Like my friend Capt. Mark always said,
Catch ‘em up!
Capt. John Sackett
(941) 920-4891
|
Capt. John Sackett
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, April 01, 2001 - 9:53 pm: | |
Subject: The latest from www.AnglingAdventure.com
Follow the bouncing ball…
Literally, the water temps around here have been like a bouncing ball. One day the temps in the bay and Gulf are being reported at 72 degrees or better, the very next it’s all the way back down into the mid to upper sixties! Now being the admitted tarpon addict that I am, this situation can be a little discouraging, but thankfully there are a whole lot of other options to play with here in the Tampa Bay area as well.
First the Tarpon…
How can you not cover triple digit fish first whenever they’re available? I mean, six foot long fish that do cartwheels ten feet in the air can be a life altering experience for those that have never experienced it. The last couple of weeks the action could be either hit or miss on the GIANT fish depending on whether your fishing day happened to fall on one of those warm water days, or the cooler ones. Without a doubt though there is nothing more satisfying than getting anglers onto their first “silver king” experience, and this week one of the most satisfied guides I know of had to be Capt. T.J. Stewart from right here in Bradenton. You see T.J. and I worked a trip with 5 anglers aboard 2 boats last weekend and despite the cool temps on the bay that morning, he hooked Bob North’s brother to his first truly BIG fish. With the angler applying the pressure required and T.J. running the big Honda outboard on the back of his boat like the expert he is, the outcome was certain and they hoisted the fish of a lifetime aboard for the prerequisite “Kodak” moment.
The bottom line as I have written here before, is that if your fishing day coincides with calm winds, good tidal flow and warming temps, our early season tarpon fishing is darned near a guaranteed thing! The water’s will get prettier as we follow their migration out onto nearby sand flats in May and June, but the catch totals in the “early” season are really hard to beat.
The other inshore options…
If the wind is blowing just a little too hard to make working out in the bigger part of the bay, don’t despair ‘cause the snook fishing right now is just about as good as it gets. Catch totals for guides like myself, Capt. Billy Nobles out of Land’s End marina in Apollo Beach, Capt. Jason Ramsey from Palmetto and the aforementioned Capt. T.J. Stewart have once again grown back into the dozens, and more often than not, full-day trips are yielding 30 to 40 fish. Live bait has been hard to beat and thankfully fairly easy to find, but if you do want to play with artificials, I’d recommend either ¼ ounce jigs with your favorite rubber bodies, or I’d do some pluggin’. If tossing plugs is up your alley, the most effective ones I’ve used lately are either the Catch 2000’s by Mirro-lure, or if the water is at least a couple feet deep, the Tobi-Maru style by Yo-Zuri. Better yet, get a couple of rods going with the livebait, and let one angler do the plug thing just to insure you are covering all the water possible.
Okay, so you’re not a snook fanatic yet, well I’d recommend going to the trout bank for a little supper if need be, or I’d just keep my eyes peeled for signs of jack activity. The schools of jack crevalle have been actively terrorizing bait schools throughout the area and will provide plenty of excitement if you get an opportunity to cash in on them. Let’s face it, if you want to stretch your 8-10 pound mono to it’s limit, or maybe take a look at the shiny part of your spool a little quicker than you though possible, nothing will do it for you quite like a double digit jack will. If you are chumming with live shiners don’t be surprised if the jacks invade your favorite snook hole, like they did for T.J.’s clients yesterday, but if you want to target them specifically, just keep looking for bird activity in the open parts of the bays. If you find them blitzing through bait schools, anything goes! We caught them the other day on topwater plugs, we got them on jigs, and we got them on gold spoons! Cast it toward the melee, and rip it back about as quick as you can. It won’t matter how fast you retrieve it, they’ll catch it more often than not. Then again, half the fun is watching them chasing it right across the water’s surface! No, jacks don’t have a whole lot of value as far as food goes, but if your idea of fun is a fish that will absolutely slam a bait right out of the water and dump a hundred fifty yards of light line quicker than you can read this sentence, jacks are just about the perfect fish!
Okay, maybe jacks are a little faster, but one other fish I can’t afford not to talk about here has to be the cobia. Why I need to mention the cobia has little to do with my own activity as I spent a fair amount of time doing some hunting aboard my Hydra-Sports with only a couple of small fish to show for it, but Capt. Billy had some awesome activity to report on up in Tampa Bay itself and Capt. T.J. had a truly exceptional cobia experience as well. Those of you that follow my reports know that April is a magic time for hunting cobia on our area flats and the sightcasting can be out of this world, but the action these guys had the last week in March was really awesome. Billy’s reported action was on high quantity fish, which always match up really well with light tackle, but T.J.’s action was of a different sort altogether. To try and make a long story relatively short, let me tell you that T.J. was in the right place at the right time out on one of the big flats along Southeastern Tampa Bay the other day whe he spotted a pod of about 30 cobes cruising way up in really shallow water. He maneuvered his boat into position to intercept the pod, and when they were in range he cast to the group. Typical of cobes in shallow water the pay-off was almost immediate, but as usual, one of the school’s smaller sized fish was the quickest one to the bait. Then again I’m pretty sure T.J. was really glad that he had his tarpon tackle with him that day, since the “smaller” fish was still 57 inches long and approximately 50 pounds! Needless to say, despite the tarpon caught over the last couple of weeks, a fifty pound cobia gets this week’s “catch of the week” honors on the flats. If you want to see a picture of an extra-large “flats” fish, just drop an e-mail to captsackett@anglingAdventure.com titled “catch of the week” and I’ll e-mail you back a picture of T.J.’s big brown fish.
Offshore options too…
Whether it’s Capt. Sam Kimball of the charterboat Legend out of Cortez, Capt. Chris Seger out of Sarasota, or Capt. Allan Engel out of Palmetto on one of his days off, the action in the offshore water around here has been awesome. Between the spring run of kingfish, the still decent grouper bite or the permit that are taking up residence around some our wrecks and reefs, one of your toughest decisions right now is what to fish for. Let’s just say that my recommendation right now is that when you head offshore, I’d have a well full of live shiners, some frozen sardines, some jumbo shrimp and at least a few palm sized crabs. Sure just getting all that stuff together involves a lot of work, but the results lately have been well worth the effort with all of the aforementioned guides.
Highlights of the last couple of weeks have been inclusive of 20 plus pound permit and more than a few kingfish for both Capt. Sam’s and Capt. Chris’ clients, but there have been some truly remarkable catches as well. How incredible you ask? Well, Capt. Sam has been hookin’ folks to enough amberjack to insure plenty of Ben-Gay sales, but there was also the 350 pound jewfish Capt. Chris hauled aboard his big sportfish last week. Now that’s a serious catch!
In terms of saving the best for last so to speak, one notable day that I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention here, had to be the day that Capt. Alan Engle, Capt. Keith Rogers and Chris Westbury had last week. Proof positive that spring is an incredible time to be on the water was evidenced by their scorecard for the day. How’s this sound? A limit of gag grouper, 6 kingfish and 3 cobia. If that sounds fun, but not unbelievable, let me fill in a couple of other facts about their outing. How about the fact that they were back at the dock by 11:00am? Still not convinced that their action was truly incredible? Oh yeah, the 3 cobia were 30 pounds, 50 pounds, and 95 pounds respectively! Needless to say, congratulations are in order all around for Capt. Alan and the boys. What a day! To give Alan offshore “catch of the week” honors for that monster is a lay-up despite Chris’ heroics on the monster jewfish, but a cobia that close to a hundred pounds in our part of the Gulf is truly rare and deserves even more. Heck, this might turn out to be a catch of the year or something. Since our spring kingfish run is here right now, and the next month or two will offer the best shot we’ll probably ever get at 50 plus pound cobia, I might have to break away from the tarpon for a day or two and stretch the legs on my 34 foot Baja a little more frequently.
Well, with any luck at all this has given you some idea of the type of action the waters off West Central Florida have to offer. If you are looking to book a charter or want more information on what’s going on, be sure and visit me at http://www.AnglingAdventure.com real soon!
Like my friend Capt. Mark always said,
Catch ‘em up!
Capt. John Sackett
(941) 920-4891
|
Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, April 01, 2001 - 3:55 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
4/1/01
With the winds, rains, and more winds all week long, there’s not much anyone can say about fishing this week. The only catch report that I heard was this morning about the Sarasota Kingfish Tournament. At the end of day one, Capt. Randy Keyes was in the lead with a 44 pound king caught at the Skyway. This certainly leads me to believe that some kings have moved into the area and if the winds ever die, it’s time to go kingfishing! The big question is bait. The only bait I’ve heard about all week has been at the Skyway, not off the beaches. With today’s northwest wind, any bait that might have been coming our way will move back out. Hopefully the winds will die tonight and next week will be calm enough for the bait to move ashore and the kings to follow.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
|
Capt. Jason Ramsey
Unregistered guest
Rating: 
Votes: 1 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, March 31, 2001 - 6:49 pm: | |
Subject: The Latest Action from www.fishtheflats.com
Sorry again about the wait!
Whether it’s been computer difficulties, or just plain long days on the water, either way it’s been faaaaaaar longer in between reports than I’ve ever gone before! This has nothing to do with the quality of the fishing I have to report on, but any way you look at it, I apologize to my faithful readers for making them wait so long.
Follow the bouncing ball…
The bouncing ball so to speak has been our water temperature. As I left you with my last report, we were off to a really early start relative to our tarpon season. Well that trend that started those last couple of days of February have continued right through March, but water temperatures have dictated just how hot the bite has been. If you are in the bay area and are fortunate enough to have calm winds and water temps of 70 degrees or better, doing the tarpon dance is just about a guaranteed thing right now! With the passing of several fronts in March the bite has varied dramatically as our water temps seem to drop very quickly into the mid sixties and the action on the big fish slows dramatically. Then, ever so slowly, the waters will once again warm and all of a sudden, it’ll seem like every bait that hits the water will get slammed! This is still early season, deep water fishing and not the sightcasting kind of stuff we’ll have in another month or so, but one of the best examples of how hot the bite can be right now had to be the action we had one morning during the second week of the month. I left the dock early as I usually do to get out and load up on bait before returning to town to pick-up my clients. My partner Capt. John departed Regatta Point marina in Palmetto with his clients at about 7:00 and I gave him a couple scoops of bait as we passed on my return to pick-up my customers at 8:00. He ran out to our favorite structure, anchored up, hooked a couple baits on his 8 foot G.Loomis spinning outfits and gave instruction to his clients on where the fish would likely be relative to the structure. Well, the instructions were accurate and on the second cast, the bait off the left side of his Hydra-Sports got inhaled by a big fish! So off to the races they went. I called to check in with him before my client’s arrival and he informed me of just how quickly their bite came and that they had just finished maneuvering back over to his anchor after the 45 minute battle and the photos of a lifetime.
Given the tarpon’s willingness to feed, we also decided that while I ran my clients out toward their location, John would head back and try to catch some more BIG tarpon sized baits for both of us. Unfortunately (well not really), catching some more big bait wasn’t in the cards for John and his anglers since the first bait they tossed after landing their first 100 plus pounder of the day, get slammed as well! Needless to say, John’s next call to me was the “sorry, but we can’t get to the bait right now ‘cause we’re hooked-up again” type of call. I said, “no problem” and asked “how long you going to be on that fish”? His response was that this fish was a bigger one and that he’d have at least another 30 minutes before this one would be boatside. “Good” I said, I’m going to borrow your anchor ‘til you’re done. Well, you probably guessed it by now, but the outcome was just about immediate as we hooked yet another big tarpon right from the same anchor in less than 10 minutes time! 3 fish in maybe 20 minutes of both boats sitting on the same exact spot. When the bite is on, the bite is on!
It’s not just tarpon either…
Sure, I’m an admitted tarpon addict, but fortunately, if your visit here puts you on the water during one of those cooler spells, or on a day too windy for fishing in the bigger part of the bay, that’s okay. Between the trout, cobia, jacks and most importantly the snook, chances are you aren’t going to have time to get bored around here. Our most popular fishing days right now usually involve doing the tarpon thing in the morning and then heading into the flats for an afternoon of snookin’, and it’s been working really well. In fact the day described above with the hot tarpon bite was a great example of this as well since the same anglers had the opportunity to land jacks, redfish, trout and snook all in addition to their triple digit tarpon. Anglers that want to focus their day on the flats action and forgo the aforementioned big game opportunities, or have been forced to do so, have been rewarded with some awesome action. Early in the month it was a couple of my friends from up at www.bighornoutdoors.com that were forced by wind to come up into the mangroves and videotape some snook action, and just yesterday it was Matt McIntee and company from up at Crown Golf that was limited to “just” snook fishing. In the end we got 3 tarpon on video with Tom and Todd from www.bighornoutdoors.com but we got a whole bunch of snook action on their camcorder as well. Yesterday on the other hand Matt and company must have done at least 35 or more snook. Like I said, just about everything that swims is really active in the spring of the year.
It’s not just on the flats either…
One notable day that I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention here, had to be the day that Capt. Allan Engle, Capt. Keith Rogers and Chris Westbury had last week. Proof positive that spring is an incredible time to be on the water had to be evidenced by their scorecard for the day. How’s this sound? A limit of gag grouper, 6 kingfish and 3 cobia. If that sounds fun, but not unbelievable, let me fill in a couple of other facts about their outing. How about the fact that they were back at the dock by 11:00am? Still not convinced that their action was truly incredible? Oh yeah, the 3 cobia were 30 pounds, 50 pounds, and 95 pounds respectively! Needless to say, congratulations are in order all around for Capt. Allen and the boys. What a day! Since our spring kingfish run is here right now, and the next month or two will offer the best shot we’ll probably ever get at 50 plus pound cobia, I might have to break away from the tarpon for a day or two. Now if I can just get a day off, I think we’ll have to get Capt. John’s 34 foot Baja out and stretch it’s legs a bit to see if we can get in on some of that offshore stuff!
Well, I hope this has given you some idea of what’s going on out there. This time of year, you just never know what’s gonna happen out there. Spring time is a magic time around here, so try and set aside some time to get out there real soon. If you want to set up a trip just drop me an e-mail at capt@fishtheflats.com or give me a call at (941) 722-1645.
Either way, we’ll be out there to let you know what’s going on,
Capt. Jason Ramsey
http://fishtheflats.com
|
Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, March 25, 2001 - 8:42 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
3/25/01
The winds finally died on Friday so everyone could go fishing over the weekend. Everybody did go fishing too! It looked more like the 4th of July out there. Everyone that owned a boat was on the water I think. The Gulf was muddy for over ten miles off shore but everybody was fishing anyway. If you picked a spot and anchored up, within 10 minutes someone would come up and either try to steal your number or just anchor up on top of you. Anglers trolling hardware caught a lot of tiny king mackerel and I had some reports of grouper being caught in the 60 foot depths. We went out to 90 feet and found a lot of 14 inch red grouper and no legal grouper on either frozen sardines or live cigar minnows. The surface water temperature is only 65 degrees yet, so I guess everything on the bottom is waiting for a little warmer water to start biting. I’ll be fishing for kings now for the next few weeks, so the baby grouper are safe from me for a while at least.
On to the bait house reports:
Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325- Snook are biting like crazy in the Cockroach Bay area. Trolling for grouper in the ship’s channel is the ticket for grouper this week. Spanish mackerel have come back up into the Bay after the last cold snap. Lots of sheepies are in the Bay and biting like crazy.
Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026- Trout and reds have been biting around the Causeway this week. Lots of small snook have been caught at the big bridge. Snook have been caught at the flood gates on live grunts and lots have been seen in the canals but weren’t biting over the weekend.
Bonnie’s Bait and Tackle in Clearwater - 727-446-2772- Grouper have been coming in from 60 feet this weekend on the all day boats. A few small kings have been caught off Clearwater. We’re still waiting for the kings to show up, hopefully any day now.
Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Reds have been biting well around the Weedon Island area and are biting best on live shrimp. Snook have been biting well on pinfish around the Gandy Bridge rock piles. Sheepshead are still biting well at all the rock piles and pilings.
Dogfish Tackle on Redington Beach - 727-392-6644- The back waters are pretty muddy this week. The pier anglers this week landed cobia, Spanish mackerel and kingfish, even with the muddy water.
Don’s Dock on Madeira Beach - 727-391-3223- Spanish mackerel seem to be the majority of fish caught this week. Some grouper and snapper came in this week. from 80 feet and a few were caught in 60 feet.
Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Our offshore boats have been bringing in small kingfish, some grouper, and plenty of grunts. Lots of sheepshead are biting up and down the seawall, some even with yellow stripes.? Trout are biting along the wall as well this week. Pompano have been the fish of choice off the jetty this week. A red was caught under our gas dock today.
The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- Grouper, Spanish mackerel, silver trout, and sheepshead are biting during the day and the sharks are starting to bite well at night. On the south side, sheepshead and Spanish mackerel are biting well during the day and of course the sharks are available at night.
Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
|
Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, March 18, 2001 - 8:17 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
3/18/01
The weather for the past week has been nothing but wind, wind, and more wind. The few boats that did go out managed to catch a few grouper and mangrove snapper. Some small kings were caught around the ship’s channel offshore and the Clearwater hard bottom.
On to the bait house reports:
Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325- Grouper showed up in the channel again this week even though the winds were high. Snook and big trout were brought by the shop in good numbers this week. Lot of Spanish mackerel have shown back up in the Bay since it warmed back up. Sheepshead are so abundant, they are even being caught out in the middle of the grass flats.
Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026- Some trout and whiting have come in this week from around the big bridge. Pompano have been caught on the flats and around the bridges. Most of the anglers have been using live shrimp.
Bonnie’s Bait and Tackle in Clearwater - 727-446-2772- The winds have kept most anglers at home this week, but there were lots of trout and reds caught around Anclote this week. Snook are being caught on the inside on live bait and a few white bait have shown up on the flats. The offshore boats that have been able to get out are bringing in some grouper. Some kings have been caught this week in the 20 foot hard bottom, even on frozen sardines.
Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Sheepshead have been caught everywhere on the bridge this week. Snook have been showing up on the flats along with trout and redfish.
Dogfish Tackle on Redington Beach - 727-392-6644- Some kings are being caught in 60 to 70 feet of water. Silver trout and whiting are coming in from the beaches. Grouper are starting to bite again this week in 40 to 60 feet of water.
Don’s Dock on Madeira Beach - 727-391-3223- Some small kings and a few grouper have been brought in this week. Snook are being caught around the bridge and the Pass jetties. Trout and reds are on the flats inside the pass. Everything seems to be biting on shrimp this week.
Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- The few boats that went out this week caught some grouper and kings in the vicinity of the ship’s channel. The inshore fishing has been slow as well because of the wind all week.
The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- A lot of grouper and Spanish mackerel have been caught this week. The sheepshead are still biting well and are all around the pilings on both piers.
Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
|
Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, March 11, 2001 - 3:53 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
3/11/01
The weather over the last week has produced mostly high winds and we had a full moon at the end of this week as well. Grouper fishing has been spotty at best since the full moon and if you were able to get out at all, you probably found few fish that were willing to bite. The prognosis for the upcoming week is a lot better with temperatures rising again and the winds staying down at a reasonable level (hopefully). Spanish mackerel should be rallying again in the Bay and close to shore up and down the beach, the kings should be moving a little closer, and all the other migratory fish that we get; cobia, tripletail, tarpon, sharks, etc. will be close on their heels.
On to the bait house reports:
Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325- The winds really kicked the flats fishing on this side of the Bay last week, but the fishing is picking back up now. Plenty of reds trout and snook are around the flats and around the mangrove islands. Fish the passes on an outgoing tide from Simmons Park to Tierra Ceia for the best results.
Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026- Reds, trout, and whiting have been biting well in our area. Some pompano showed up this week around the bridge. There are still plenty of sheepshead around the pilings and rocks.
Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Speckled trout in the jumbo sizes have been coming in all week. Most of them have been coming from the swashes on Weedon Island. Reds and snook have been biting extremely well around the bridge pilings. Most Sheepshead are still very cooperative and biting around every piling and rock pile in the area.
Dogfish Tackle on Redington Beach - 727-392-6644- The weather killed most of the fishing in the area last week. Sheepshead are still biting however. Warming temperatures this week should get the fish turned back on soon.
Don’s Dock on Madeira Beach - 727-391-3223- Snook are showing up around the docks. Sheepshead and drum are still biting well. Spanish mackerel have started biting in about 20 feet of water off the beach since the cold snap ended.
Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Our offshore boats have been bringing in some grouper and mangrove snapper this week. Sheepshead and pompano have been coming in from the seawall and the jetty on the Gulf side. Spanish mackerel have been biting on the Gulf side jetty as well.
The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- Grouper, silver trout, whiting, pompano and lots of Spanish mackerel have been biting this weekend and the warming weather will make things get better and better as the week progresses.
Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
|
Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, March 04, 2001 - 7:38 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay Area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
3/4/01
As the freshwater guys say, “the fish are in transition”. The weather has been absolutely beautiful (until this weekend of course), but the grouper have been totally uncooperative. After 3 days on the water last week, we found diddly; a few small fish and two keepers in three trips. The surface temperature is 73 degrees offshore and the fish are showing on the bottom machine, but they aren’t biting. After the glowing reports I heard last week about the grouper being caught in the ship’s channel, I took a will full of threadfins and fished from Port Manatee to Egmont with minimal results. I guess they just need time to adjust to temperature changes, who knows?
On to the bait house reports:
Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325- Snook were biting for the anglers that could get live greenbacks this week. Lots of mangrove snapper were caught near the south Skyway pier. Spanish mackerel are all over the Bay and will bite well on a large live shrimp or a small greenback. The port Manatee spoil island is holding a lot of big sheepshead and of course a lot are being caught off the bridge here on the river.
Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026- Trout and sheepshead were the hot fish this week. Some snook are around the floodgates and a greenback or other live bait will produce some good action.
Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Snook have really turned on this week. Fish over 30 inches are common. Grunts, pinfish, and select shrimp are producing for everyone fishing under the light. Drum have picked up in mostly smaller sizes and a lot of pompano have been caught around the bridge.
Dogfish Tackle on Redington Beach - 727-392-6644- Some nice kings have been caught off the pier this week and Spanish mackerel have been around the beach all week. Some nice trout have come in from the backwaters this week as well as sheepshead from around the docks.
Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Pompano and Spanish mackerel have been caught all week off the jetty on the Gulf side. Sheepshead and whiting have been caught off our gas docks. Our offshore boats have been getting mangrove snapper, porgies, lane snapper and other great tasting bottom fish. A few kings have been caught offshore this week in the ship’s channel.
The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- Cobia, grouper, redfish, and a lot of Spanish mackerel have been caught off the piers this week. Pompano have been biting well on the south pier and at night both piers have been producing some sharks.
Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
|
Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, February 25, 2001 - 4:23 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay Area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
2/25/01
The grouper are definitely in the shallower water, but they are not necessarily everywhere. (It could be that they are everywhere and just not biting.) I haven’t had my camera out with me lately, so I can’t say for sure, but I can say that you need to move around until you find fish that are biting. Each stop should be fished for at least 30 minutes in order to get the grunts, triggerfish, and other bottom fish actively feeding to attract the attention of the grouper. That’s the way it seems to work for me at least. I’ve gotten several reports from fishermen and divers that have been out to deeper water and it’s the same there. Some places hold fish that will bite and some places don’t. This may sound elementary to many of you, but there seem to be a lot of people that feel every rock should hold fish. Thirty or forty years ago that might have been the case, but continued overfishing has changed that. We have to work for every fish that we catch nowadays. Don’t believe everything you read in the magazines and newspapers either. I think many of those writers are either trying to sell a story or sell a fishing trip. Take your pick.
On to the bait house reports:
Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325- Snook are a little slow to bite, but there are plenty of them out there. If you can get some greenbacks, that’s the ticket for them. Lots of Spanish mackerel are coming in from the Skyway area. Grouper have really started biting well in the ship’s channel. Most of the trout that we are catching in this area are legal size and up right now. Around Port Manatee, there are a lot of redfish biting on the flats. In the Simmons Park area reds are biting well in the canals.
Bonnie’s Bait and Tackle in Clearwater - 727-446-2772- Snook are biting in the Allen’s Creek and McKay Creek areas. Trout are coming in from the outside. Sheepshead are still in the area in good numbers. Lots of reds have been found around Edgewater Drive and the backside of Honeymoon Island in the really skinny water.
Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Snook are biting around Weedon Island and the oyster bars around the 4th St. Bridge. Trout are biting well on shrimp. Reds are showing up on the flats all over the area this week.
Dogfish Tackle on Redington Beach - 727-392-6644- A couple of kings have shown up off the pier this weekend and lots of 3-5 pound mackerel. A tarpon was caught off the pier this morning. Lots of sheepshead, trout, and drums have been caught in the backwaters behind the store.
Don’s Dock on Madeira Beach - 727-391-3223- Some kings have shown up this week off the beach. Some nice grouper have been coming in from 40 to 80 feet of water. Trout and reds are biting inside the pass and up and down the ICW. Sheepshead and drum are biting well.
Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Pompano, Spanish mackerel and whiting have been coming in from the jetty on the Gulf side. Sheepshead, flounder, and small grouper have been biting off our gas dock. Some bull reds have been caught off the sea wall and off our pier this weekend.
The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- Lots and lots of Spanish mackerel, whiting and silver trout have been around the pier this week. The best baits have been ’Gotcha’ plugs and live shrimp. Lots of the Spanish are 24 inches. Pompano and lots of sheepshead have been caught. Mangrove snapper are biting well at night. A tarpon was caught this weekend. The fishing is great!
Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
|
Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, February 18, 2001 - 4:04 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay Area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
2/18/01
What a beautiful week of sunny days we have had. Florida is in the grip of a terrible drought with wildfires all over, but on the bright side, the sun has warmed the Gulf up 10 degrees off Tampa Bay from 57 to 67 degrees, in just one week. I had a report of skyrocketing kingfish south of the channel and large schools of Spanish sardines as well. This was great news! The Spanish mackerel are starting to show up, and that’s the precursor to our kingfish season. Grouper fishing Friday was a bust for me. You know the usual excuses by now; the water was too clear, the moon was wrong, the bait was bad, I didn’t have live bait. You can take it from there and add to the list for me. There were some nice grouper taken by a friend that was fishing a little inshore of me with live bait. He said he had a rough time as well, but all his grouper were around 30 inches! Oh well, Monday’s the start of a new fishing week and everything will be different. I do think that the grouper have moved inshore. That’s where they are supposed to be at this time of year with this water temperature. So fish in the 35 to 40 foot range with live bait and see if I’m right.
On to the bait house reports:
Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325- Snook are really biting well in both the backwaters and on the beaches. The Yo-Zuri minnows are hot now for topwater baits. Reds are really jammin’ on gold spoons on the flats. Trout are biting on the grass flats on just about anything the anglers put in the water. The Port Manatee channel is producing big grouper now. As long as the weather stays warm the greenbacks should be here soon.
Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026- Trout on the flats and around the bridge are biting on live shrimp. Snook are being caught in the Double Branch area on shrimp primarily. Sheepshead are still biting well on crabs and shrimp pieces.
Bonnie’s Bait and Tackle in Clearwater - 727-446-2772- Hurricane Pass and Clearwater Pass have produced a lot of ‘gator’ trout this week in 3 to 4 feet of water. Snook seem to be getting ready to move out into the flats this week. Whiting and silver trout have been caught off the beach as well as inshore in the ICW.
Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Sheepshead are really biting well around the rock piles and bridge pilings. Silver trout have moved into the Florida Power channel and are biting well on shrimp. Some pompano have been caught this week south of us in the Bay.
Dogfish Tackle on Redington Beach - 727-392-6644- Whiting are biting well on fresh dead shrimp. Snook are really showing up and biting well on free-lined live shrimp in the backwaters.
Don’s Dock on Madeira Beach - 727-391-3223- Grouper have been coming in from offshore this week reportedly in the 80 to 90 foot depths. Sheepshead and black drum are real active inshore. Whiting, silver trout, and speckled trout are biting well on shrimp just off the beach on the Redington hard bottom. The middle grounds were really hot week and produced a lot of big grouper for a few of us here at the shop.
Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Our offshore boats brought in a few grouper and mangrove snapper this week. Sheepshead and whiting are biting along the seawall and at the jetty on the Gulf side.
The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- Greenbacks are starting to show up around the bridge. Spanish mackerel are being caught on both piers this weekend. Lots of sliver trout and whiting have been caught this week. Grouper are showing up around the bridges and things are really looking up!
Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
|
Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, February 11, 2001 - 1:34 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay Area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
2/11/01
WOW! That’s the best way to describe the weather we’ve had for the past week. After two months of cold temperatures and high winds, it seems more like Tahiti than Florida. What a wonderful vacation from the cold it has been. The fish seem to think so as well. Everything turned on over the past week from the grouper offshore to the trout and redfish inshore. 24 to 30 inch grouper seemed abundant on the ledges in 50 feet of water south of the ship’s channel. The only requisite was that you fish during the major and minor solunar feeding periods. In the hours between there were plenty of large grunts, porgies, and other pan-sized bottom fish to keep you busy. If the weather stays as moderate as it is now, we’re in for a great spring!
On to the bait house reports:
Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325- Trout and reds are really smokin’. The water temperature has come up to their comfort level and the anglers are into them in big numbers. Around Port Manatee there were some giant schools of reds seen this weekend. Snook are biting like mad in the river on the red headed white Bomber Lure.
Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026- Trout and sheepshead arte biting well around the bridge. The sizes on the trout have been ½ keepers and ½ throwbacks. Sheepshead are really large, now that spawning season is here for them. Pieces of shrimp, fiddler crabs, or sand fleas will all work well on the hook for sheepies.
Bonnie’s Bait and Tackle in Clearwater - 727-446-2772- Since the weather warmed up, we can’t keep any bait in the store it seems. Trout and reds are biting on all the grass flats in the area. Silver trout and whiting are available for just about everybody that throws a line in the water with a shrimp on it. Offshore the grouper bite has been very good for those anglers that found them during the biting periods.
Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Speckled trout are biting on all the flats in the area and we’ve got some pictures of really healthy ones to prove it. Sheepshead are taking any kind of shellfish on a hook around every rock and piling at the sea walls and the bridge. Some nice cobia have been brought by the shop that were caught in the area of the bridge and the power plant.
Dogfish Tackle on Redington Beach - 727-392-6644- the backwaters have been producing some nice catches of Pompano around the residential docks. Ladyfish are really abundant and just about everyone has been catching them. Lots of big sheepshead have been caught this week and the reds are biting again. Speckled trout are biting well at night in the canals and silver trout have been biting on the Gulf side.
Don’s Dock on Madeira Beach - 727-391-3223- The offshore boats have been catching grouper in 50 to 90 feet this week. Lots of Trout have been caught in close north of the Pass. Reds, sheepshead, and speckled trout are biting in the pass and on the flats just inside the pass.
Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Our offshore boats have been bringing in nice catches of gag grouper and snapper from 50 to 100 feet. Whiting and speckled trout have been coming in from the sea wall. Whiting and sheepshead have been coming off our gas dock. The jetty has been producing a few pompano.
The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- The fish are really starting to bite. Grouper and silver trout have been biting well this weekend. Lot of sting rays have shown up and the sharks have been right behind them. The water temperature has really risen this week and hopefully the Spanish mackerel should not be too far away now.
Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
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Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, February 04, 2001 - 3:49 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay Area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
2/4/01
Another week of winter has gone by and I think the ground hogfish saw his shadow. We had a beautiful morning Friday (except for the fog) and the fish were biting. Suddenly the wind came up at 15 out of the north and the day was over. We did manage to catch some short red and gag grouper, one nice 25 inch gag, porgies, and big grunts so it was not a lost day. The grouper are on the bottom and ready to feed, if you can get a day that the weather lets you go out. We were fishing in 45 feet of water and I’m fairly certain that we could have found grouper even shallower than that. The surface temperature was only 57 degrees out there, but in Boca Ciega Bay as we were going out the surface temperature was 64 degrees. Today (Sunday), the bottom temp. at the Skyway is 59 degrees, so things are definitely looking up. The forecast for the next few days shows a warming trend and fair weather so the fishing will pick up both offshore and inshore.
On to the bait house reports:
Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325- Trout and reds are biting well for the anglers willing to work for them. Sheepshead are really biting well around the bridge pilings and rocks. Snook are a little slow to bite with the water temperature so low. They are up the rivers in good numbers looking for warm water. Silver trout are biting all over the bay and being brought in by the bucketful.
Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026- A lot of nice trout are being caught near the bridges on DOA lures. Redfish are biting in the canals near the Red Lobster. Snook are hanging around the flood gates on the causeway and biting on live shrimp and pigfish. Plenty of sheepshead are biting around every piling in the pay.
Bonnie’s Bait and Tackle in Clearwater - 727-446-2772- The fishermen have been staying home this week and the fishing is a little slow still. Trout and reds are biting on the edges of the flats. Silver trout and whiting are biting well just off the beach.
Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Silver trout and speckled trout have been biting well at the power plant. Some pompano have been brought in this week from the same vicinity. Sheepshead are still biting at the bridge and a few grouper and mangrove snapper have been caught in the channel.
Dogfish Tackle on Redington Beach - 727-392-6644- Trout and reds are biting in the canals around the docks. Sheepshead are still the fish of the month and can be caught around every piling in the bay.
Don’s Dock on Madeira Beach - 727-391-3223- A few of the offshore boats that have been able to get out have caught some nice grouper in the 25 to 29 inch sizes. Most of them are fishing in 90 to 100 feet of water. Some flounder have been brought in this week from the Pass along with silver trout, whiting, and a few redfish.
Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Our offshore boats have brought in a few grouper this week along with a lot of porgies and grunts. Whiting, trout, and pompano have been caught off the jetty this week. Sheepshead are biting well off the sea wall.
The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- A lot of trout and whiting have been caught this week.
Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
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Capt. Charlie Walker
Unregistered guest
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, January 28, 2001 - 7:33 pm: | |
Subject: Tampa Bay Area Fishing Report
Tampa Bay Area
Fishing Report
Captain Charles Walker
1/28/01
The weekend turned out to be beautiful; temperatures in the 70’s, sunny, and almost no wind. What fantastic fishing weather! Grouper in the 25 to 30 inch size range were caught by several boats in 50 to 60 feet of water. The water temperature was a little chilly at 57 degrees, but the weather forecast for the coming week promises a warming trend and the Gulf temperature should be above 60 before the weekend arrives. That will make for really great fishing next week. The bottom fish have not been feeding for quite a while and when they thaw out you’d better have a line on the bottom to get in on the feeding frenzy that’s going to happen.
On to the bait house reports:
Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325- Trout have been biting well for the anglers that know the secret holes and have the patience to keep fishing. The waders and canoe fishermen are doing really well on reds and trout in the ultra shallow water that warms up the quickest in the afternoon. The power plant is still producing a few fish. The sheepshead are really in a biting mood and are all running 3- 5 pounds this winter.
Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026- Sheepshead and trout are biting in our area on live shrimp and the green backed Mirro-Lure. The water is warming this weekend and should produce good fishing next week.
Bonnie’s Bait and Tackle in Clearwater - 727-446-2772- Lots of trout bit this week on the flats off Dunedin. Most of them were 3-4 pounds but a few bigger ones showed up just to make it interesting. Pink colored jig tails were the lure of the week. Fly fishermen using mylar glass minnows really knocked them dead as well. The grouper seemed to start biting offshore for the anglers fishing in about 70 feet. Lots of live Missouri minnows have been going out the door for the crappie fishermen.
Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Grouper started biting this weekend offshore in 50 to 70 feet of water. Trout have been biting well this week and will really pick up as the water warms. Sheepshead are chewing everything that you throw in the water this week.
Dogfish Tackle on Redington Beach - 727-392-6644- Trout are starting to bite this week on the pier and off the flats. Some nice flounder have come in off the pier this week. A few grouper have been biting this week in the deeper water offshore.
Don’s Dock on Madeira Beach - 727-391-3223- Lots of sheepshead have shown up this week in the 3-5 pound size range. Grouper fishing offshore has been slow still but a few fish have been brought in from 80-90 feet. They aren’t very large, only 22-24 inches. Some larger ones have been caught in forty to 60 feet, but they weren’t biting well enough in that depth to be sure you could catch one.
Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Whiting have been biting well on the beach side and off the jetty. A few grouper have come in this week, but the fishing has been very slow offshore.
The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- A lot of whiting and silver trout have been caught this week The specks have been biting as well, both day and night.
Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet.
If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com .
Good fishing and tight lines,
Capt. Charlie
http://www.flfish.com/fl
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