It's Time to Go Fishing!
5/24/2010
Hello friends. Summer is here, or at least feels like it. It seems like that cold, blustery winter was a long time ago. It won't soon be forgotten.
I've been very busy lately. Not only fishing, but also with a special trip to Mississippi to register with BP in a program known as the 'Vessels of Opportunity'. If called upon, my boat and I would be hired by BP to assist in the oil clean up efforts in the Gulf region around Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama or Florida. This disaster is devastating to those who make their living in the northern Gulf and I felt a calling to help. It doesn't look like the oil coming to the Tampa Bay region yet, so let's keep our fingers crossed. Now onto the fishing report...
Fishing has been terrific! The water temperature has risen and the fish have responded. Tarpon, Kingfish, Spanish Mackerel, Redfish, Trout! They are all eating like crazy. Notice I don't have Snook in that list. They are starting to show in the usual spots, but nothing like normal for this time of year. The winter took it's toll on them. I fished on a couple dozen last week, but haven't targeted them much. Here are some details...
With the rapid warming of the water, the Kingfishing exploded out there. I was fortunate to run a couple of trips with Capt. Dean Parks, an expert Kingfisherman in my area. We boated 25 Kings one day and 15 the next, as well as a 45 lb Cobia! Mostly on large sardines freelined behind the boat in a chum slick we kept going with cut baits. Capt. Dean had ran a few trips prior to that with 100 plus Kingfish days! That is incredible! 45 feet of depth seemed to be the best. That is about 9 -10 miles out. Although plenty of Kings and Spanish are being caught just 3 miles out around Dunedin Reef and Clearwater Reef. Lots of Sharks and Cobia made an appearance as well. The Kings are eventually making their way past us, migrating to the North. There are still a few around.
Tarpon are all around us, finally. They are under the bridges, along the sandbars and pouring into Boca Grande pass. Saturday the 22nd, I took a good friend and client Rick Johnson along with his wife and friends to the pass. We hooked four fish. Two skyrocketed in the air and came unhooked, the others broke off. It was a fun day for all with thousands of Tarpon around us. I am focusing on the Clearwater beaches this week as well as a couple of the local bridges, then back to Boca for a few more trips. My bait of choice is a large Threadfin Herring. In the pass we use break away jigs. It's an unusual rig but works great!
Redfishing is still best around the stronger moons. I had a couple days where they just weren't cooperative though. It seems they were waiting right 'til the new moon to get in large groups and feed well. I still favor the mangrove shore lines. I have been floating baits along the edge in certain areas, waiting for the cork to get pulled back into the cover. Then it's a battle between man and fish!!! Sometimes you win, others you don't. That's fishing! Cut baits are working well also. Pinfish, Sardines, even Ballyhoo make a great offering when things are slow. I like to lay them right into the mangrove caves and wait for a hit.
Trout are on the beach! Any rock pile or man made jetties are holding them. Freelined sardines is my favorite way to get 'em. Almost every cast on the right days with an east wind. They are also on the grass flats around the inside of all the passes. Those are smaller in size, where as the beach fish are in the upper range with a few over 20 inches!
So, I reassure you, there is no oil threat here! Forecasting doesn't show it coming anytime soon to the Tampa Bay area. Summer is here, the kids will be out of school very soon. Call now to make a plan for you to get out here and a have great day on the water. Let's go fishing!
Capt. Brian
Capt. Brian Caudill
727-365-7560
braincandle2@yahoo.com
http://www.captbrian.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment