Report for 05/29/2009 Salt Water MEXICO BEACH/PORT ST JOE OFFSHORE
The bottom fishing is good as we approach June 1 when red snapper season reopens. Several large grouper were brought in from out on the ledges due south of Cape San Blas this week. Mind your position when fishing this area and be careful not to fish in the Swanson and Madison closed areas. Jigs are working great along with live bait and cut baits for grouper right now. More king mackerel caught this week in the 15-30 lb range using a duster rigged with a frozen cigar minnow and slowly trolled. Small dolphins caught this week in the 15-mile range along with some Wahoo at 30-mile range, trolling panhandlers and islander lures with ballyhoo.
ST JOSEPH BAY
Not much change in St. Joseph bay except the trout bite has improved with many larger fish this week. Live LY’s and shrimp are the best baits right now followed by Berkley Gulp and DOA shrimp imitations. Redfish schools are working the flats between Eagle harbor and the tip, but be prepared to catch some ladyfish and bluefish as they are thick throughout the bay. Gold spoons are the top artificial and live shrimp is definitely your best live bait option. Pompano are still with us and the hot spots are still the stump hole at Cape San Blas and along the Beach of St Joseph Park and a few at east beach and Mexico Beach. Tripletail activity is on the rise in St Joe bay. These are great sport fish and delicious table fare. You owe it to yourself to inspect every buoy and nearly any other fixed floating object in the bay. Tripletail love to hold up under crab balls buoy cans and such.
PANAMA CITY OFFSHORE AND BAYS
RED SNAPPER OPENS MONDAY JUNE 1ST! Get geared up for the start of the season. Wahoo are being caught from 20-40 miles out. Hi speed trollers, like the Yo-Zuri Bonita, are a sure bet. King mackerel are being caught in great numbers. They are being caught steadily around the Whistle and Weather bouys trolling and free-lining cigar minnows. Several reports of Mahi Mahi being caught from 6-8 miles out are coming in. Spanish mackerel are biting sporadically out on the beaches. Grouper are still biting well from 7-10 miles out. Use large live baits to get past the Snapper! Lots of Amberjacks are still being caught around the 100 foot mark over bridge spans and large wrecks.
ST. ANDREWS BAY SYSTEM
Flounder are being caught on the beach close to the state park using live bull minnows. Ladyfish, Bluefish, and Spanish mackerel are biting good at the jetties on spoons and Gotcha Plugs. Mangrove Snappers and Sheepshead are still being caught off the rocks with live shrimp. Redfish have been found on the flats in East Bay; while Bull Reds are still being caught with live shrimp and pin fish around the jetties. Trout are being caught on the flats with topwater lures early and live shrimp under a cork later.
NAVARRE SURF
We are now into the third week of May and the wind is still blowing and it doesn’t look like it is going to end anytime soon. Windy weather aside, area fisherman have been experiencing some of the best fishing in recent memory. We should see good numbers of Jack Crevalle in the 20# range as well as small schools of bull Redfish. The Jacks are hitting best on top water poppers and Rapala Skitterwalks. The Black Tip Shark bite is also heating up. Live Hardtails or cut mullet have been the go to bait. The Pompano bite has remained steady with most fish being landed on fresh dead shrimp and live sand fleas when you can find them. If the wind would ever stop blowing there is plenty of King Mackerel just at the drop off in 20’ of water. Look for the schools of threadfins and cigar minnows and troll with deep diving hard baits. Try trolling live baits around these baitfish schools as well.
SOUND AND BAYS
Area anglers can expect to see great Trout fishing around the grass flats from Tiger Point to the grass flats just east of the bridge. Redfish and Flounder are also in the same waters with most of the fish caught on live shrimp under a popping cork. Also try using a 1/4oz jig tipped with a GULP! shrimp or jerk shad under the same popping cork. There have also been plenty of Trout and Redfish landed in East Bay from the Garcon Point bridge up to the power lines crossing the entrance to the East River.
NEAR SHORE – GULF
King Mackerel are still the hot bite near shore and continue to bite strong in and around the passes and inshore reefs in 60 to 80 feet of water. Trolling or fly lining live cigar minnows when anchored up has been the top producer. Dolphin continue to show up in increasing numbers especially around anglers fishing for bottom species. Just remember to have a rod ready and rigged with a pitch bait when they do show up. The near shore reefs and wrecks are also producing good numbers of Amberjack, Grouper, Black Snapper, Lane Snapper and Triggerfish. The Grouper are being caught on large pinfish, threadfins or hardtails with their tail clipped to make it easier for the grouper to catch them.
OFFSHORE – GULF
Red Snapper has been the top predator on most reefs and wrecks this week and we should continue to see more of the same this upcoming week. They are hitting jigs, live bait and deep running hard baits trolled over shallow reefs and wrecks. Amberjack are almost on every wreck from 60’ on out with the largest fish being caught in deeper water of 100’ or more. With all the bad weather lately the Grouper have almost been left alone. Look for them on the near shore reefs and wrecks. Fish in the 10# to 15# range will hit pinfish, threadfins and hardtails. You will have to remove the tails from the Hardtails; otherwise they are next to impossible to get to the bottom on a light weight. The amount of debris in the water has also increased this last week. So has the amount of Dolphin and Triple Tail on it. King mackerel are being caught daily around the mouth of the passes and buoy lines on cigar minnows slow trolled or free lined. If you can get out the blue water bite is still smoking hot. Yellow Fin, Black Fin and Wahoo are being caught around most of the deep water oil rigs. Poppers, jigs and slow trolled ballyhoo continue to be the go to baits. The bigger fish are coming off the bridled Bonito or large Blue Runners bump trolled around the rigs.
Half Hitch Tackle
850-234-2621
2206 Thomas Dr
Panama City, FL 32408
www.halfhitch.com
Fishing Report prepared by Half Hitch Tackle Staff.
The Captains Corner Fishing Report is provided by local charter captains and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of Half Hitch Tackle.
This report is dedicated to the memory of Al Hubbard.
Al Hubbard was a field editor for Florida Sportsman magazine, an outdoor writer for the News Herald and a board member of the Florida Outdoor Writer's Association.
Mr. Hubbard was also the owner of Al's Outdoors Outfitting Services.
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