By Capt. James Vadas
God painted another beautiful sunrise while we drifted along the white sandy beach of Anna Maria Island. We were looking for baitfish in the gin clear water. Couldn’t help but take a minute and pray, almost as if the beautiful colors of the sunrise reminded me of God. I casted the net just once and it was filled with pilchards, threadfins, sardines and pinfish, to the point that I could barely pull it into the boat. I believe a good day of catching fish begins with a prayer to almighty God and a baitwell full of healthy swimmers. On our half day nearshore fishing charters, we have been catching many different types of fish using live bait, such as speckled sea trout, mangrove snapper, Spanish mackerel, gag grouper, sharks, flounder, snook, and redfish. Pics and videos of the Island, her visitors, and our catches are on our Facebook and Instagram.
Fall is here and the fishing is really good around Anna Maria Island. The temperatures are starting to drop and the days are getting shorter. I’m looking forward to this fall fishing season. We will be doing some trolling for gag grouper and kingfish. Tampa Bay Skyway shipping channel has some serious rocky ledges where fish school up. Trolling two big lip diving lures between three and five miles an hour along the channels can be really effective for catching gag grouper. In upcoming cooler months live bait is not around. So, trolling artificial lures like Rapala and Mann Stretch can be a good alternative to live bait fishing. Trolling in the Gulf over the artificial reefs can be really good for catching kingfish during the fall months. Kings are some very aggressive fish and toothy, so wire leader and long shank hooks are a must to prevent them from biting the hooks off your line. We will also keep an eye out for false albacore busting on the surface as they run past Anna Maria this time of the year, as well.
Tight lines and God bless.
Respectfully,
Captain James
Contact Capt. Vadas at 941-812-1245
Website: https://livingwatercharters.business.site
