So, What Do You Want to Catch?
Now that I’ve started writing for Coastal Angler Magazine again, after a long hiatus fighting life-threatening cancer, and before I begin my latest article, I’d like to reintroduce myself to you, the Coastal Angler audience.
I’ve been fishing and diving the Gulf of Mexico and adjacent inland waters for 62 years; in Texas for the first 26 years and Florida for the last 36 years, and I’ve learned a little bit about saltwater fishing along the way.
I’ve been a licensed captain for 32 years, and guided offshore charters for a while. I’ve been a Nitrox-certified scuba diver and spear fisherman for 40 years, and I’ve shot my share of big fish locally and around the world.
I captained a winning offshore tournament team for 22 years, previously published the Tampa Bay issue of Coastal Angler Magazine for five years, and have owned Barracuda Bob’s, a kick ass bait & tackle shop for 12 years.
In my current role as a bait & tackle shop owner, I’ve been dispensing fishing advice and helping my customers become better anglers since 2010. I dare say that I’ve caught or shot just about everything that swims in the waters within 100 miles of Barracuda Bob’s (except maybe people), and I truly enjoy helping our customers improve their fishing skills.
So, when people come into Barracuda Bob’s asking what kinds of bait we have, I laugh and tell them we have every kind of bait available that catches fish around here. And then I ask them, “What do you want to catch?” Most of the time they tell me they’re happy to catch just about anything. I tell them, “In that case, just about any kind of bait will do.”
The waters around Barracuda Bob’s abound with just about every kind of game fish that swims in our local waters; snook, tarpon, red fish, Spanish mackerel, pompano, grouper, snapper, flounder, speckled trout, silver trout, sheepshead, and sharks; just to name a few.
But make no mistake, the first thing every successful angler needs is a plan!
Whether your plan is to catch a particular species of fish, lots of fish, only big fish, or a wide variety of fish, it’s important to know what you want to catch, what will make you happy, and how much effort you’re willing to put in to make it happen.
Figure out what you really want to catch, and then decide how you’re going to reach those fish and what you need to catch them.
Do you have a boat or kayak? Are you fishing from shore or from a bridge on the Dunedin Causeway? Do you want to fish from one of the beaches off Honeymoon or Caladesi Islands? If you don’t have a boat or kayak, are you willing to wade out to the places where the fish you want to catch hang out?
What bait you use, how you rig it and what kind of fishing gear you’ll need all depend on your answers to these questions.
Just the other day, one of our customers told me that they didn’t catch anything all day. The little fish kept stealing their bait and nothing else was biting. I told him that, when that starts happening, “IT’S TIME TO MOVE!”
If little fish keep stealing your bait, it means there aren’t any big fish nearby; otherwise, the big fish would eat the little fish stealing your bait. If you’re not catching anything, move to another spot and keep moving until you find fish!
At Barracuda Bob’s, we take fishing seriously! We want our customers to leave us with the right baits and tackle, and the right advice on where and how to fish, so they actually catch something that makes them happy.
We know that if we ask the right questions, we can guide our customers to a successful day of fishing. And when our customers are successful, we know they’ll want to come back again and again to catch more fish.
Don’t leave your fishing pleasure to chance. If you’re going to invest your time and the money it takes for tackle, bait and rigging, stop into Barracuda Bob’s on your way to the water. We will make sure you have everything you need to enjoy a productive day of fishing, and look forward to hearing your fishing stories afterwards.
See y’all out there,
Capt. Joe
Photo caption:
The waters around Barracuda Bob’s abound with fish of every size, shape and species, and each of them have their preferred type of terrain to where they gravitate. Your choice of baits, rigs and tackle, and where you’re willing to fish, will determine your level of catching success.