In the heat of summer in Tampa Bay, sometimes it is good to shift gears and get away from flats fishing, where the water can get extremely hot and make fish slow to bite. The deeper water, 10-45 feet deep, can be stocked with a variety of fish willing to feed. This water will be cooler, and the fish will be more apt to feed and be more aggressive.
Tampa Bay is loaded with natural and man-made structures, some intentional and some not. We have many artificial reefs that hold plenty of fish, but the gold mines are the rock piles and shipwrecks that you can find for yourself. Many areas where they have dredged channels have exposed rock bottoms, and where they have dumped the dredged material can also be a fish haven. There are also many natural hard-bottom areas in Tampa Bay that offer great fishing. There are many shipwrecks, from large to small, that will hold a variety of fish. Different areas and different structures will hold different types of fish that will change with the seasons. A rock pile in the summer might be loaded with mangrove snapper, but the same pile might get loaded with sheepshead in the winter; we are talking about the heat of summer right now. So, what type of fish can you expect to find during these hot months?
Let’s talk about the artificial reefs of Tampa Bay like St. Petersburg Bay reef, Egmont Key reef, and Port Manatee Reef, to name a few. These reefs are made up of concrete bridge rubble, slabs, culvert pipes, and more; some even have sunken boats on them.
Since these artificial reefs can hold a variety of fish, it is a good idea to bring a variety of bait, such as shrimp, scaled sardines, pinfish, and cut bait, especially when you are first searching for your new spots. Sometimes one end of the reef will hold one type of fish and the other end will hold different types of fish, hence the need for different baits. Now the same holds true for many of the rock piles and wrecks.
So, what type of fish can you expect to find in the middle of summer at these areas?
This is where the fun begins! You can find a wide variety of fish, including mangrove snapper, trout, grouper, tarpon, cobia, black sea bass, flounder, Key West grunt, pompano, permit, snook, mackerel, and more! So beat the heat and go explore.