I’m Hot, You’re Hot And The Bite Is Hot
You’re going to hear a lot of fishing reports talking about snook on the beaches and redfish on the flats this time of year, and this still holds true. The snook in our area are scouring every bit of sandy shoreline the area has to offer, and they are eating big baits. Ladyfish and grunts work the best, but you can get them to eat a mullet and, occasionally, they’re fired up enough for a greenback. If you see a bunch on the shoreline that aren’t being aggressive, try using that same ladyfish or grunt and cut them up into a nice big cut bait. Speaking of cut bait, unless you’re a fly fisherman, that’s going to be the go-to method for the redfish in our area until the water gets below 90. We do have a good amount of schooling fish on our flats, which makes targeting them much easier at the lower tides. If you see the schools moving around, don’t chase them! Fight the urge to go after them, pay attention to the pattern they’re working and get your cut bait out in front of them.
Shifting gears a bit, the offshore bite in our area has been nothing short of fantastic. Captain Dustin Bush with FishnCrazy Charters reports an outstanding gag grouper bite from 30 to 80 feet of water, which is a great sign considering the short season for them is right around the corner. The big boys are hanging on big structure from 100 to 200 feet of water along with the red grouper and red snapper. Live pinfish is the bait of choice for all of them, but add in some squid to make stingier red grouper bite. Lastly, mangrove snapper and hogfish are fired up anywhere from 40 to 100 feet fishing swiss cheese bottom using shrimp, squid and pinfish for the bigger mangs. Mahi have also been caught in high numbers in that same range, so make sure you’re rigged for those, as well.
You can beat the heat and fish at night using everything I just talked about but, if that isn’t your thing, we can still box plenty of them during the day. So, get up early, stay up late or run out deep, and this time of year could load your freezer up for the entire winter!
Captain Bill is a Florida native who grew up fishing the Gulf Coast. Being a proud Army Vet himself, he founded a charity called VetCatch that takes disabled veterans on cost free fishing trips in the Tampa Bay area. He guides out of New Port Richey fishing a 24-foot Shoalwater tower boat as well as the custom 25-foot VetCatch pontoon if needed for elderly/disabled fisherman. www.rustybucket.fish.