Fishing Reports

OFFSHORE

Don’t look now, but this front that is moving down from the Panhandle at week’s end is pushing kingfish southward. Scattered reports of kings being caught began last weekend. Wrecks and reefs offshore that are holding bait were the sites of much of the action, but trollers looking for Spanish mackerel were racking up a few kings. Other anglers using flatlines with spoons, and slow-trolled live baits on downriggers produced a few kings. The Panhandle has a weather warning for Thursday, meaning that the weather is on the way, and the anticipated front headed here will bring cooler weather Thursday night and Friday, pushing more kings this way.

Grouper action is continuing from the 50-to 85-foot depths with good reports. Fish have been small, but smokers are on the way. Anglers working the Egmont Shipping channel edges with trolled baits are finding gag grouper to 12-pounds from Egmont Key into Tampa Bay. Anglers hitting the M.O.B. buttons on their bottom machines are returning to the hook-up spot, anchoring up, and dropping live pinfish to the bottom, lighting up gags.

Mangrove snapper are biting around rock piles and rubble from the old Skyway Bridge just off both of the Skyway Fishing Piers. Live shrimp are getting chewed but pinfish will take more than the mangos if that’s all you’re trying to use. Small scaled sardines netted off the pier will work better.

INSHORE

Changes are on the way for the weekend. Our first fall cold front is on the way. Expect a mild cooler breeze for the next several days, invigorating fish on the flats. Trout fishing has improved with the temperature dropping the past several weeks. Tampa Bay waters have hit the low 80’s in the morning and mid-80’s by late afternoon. Morning water temps should hit the upper 70’s by the weekend. The morning low tide at mid-morning should produce some excellent action for redfish. Look for reds in deeper potholes on the flats and on channel edges where runouts drain off the flat.

Anglers have had an unexpected run of late season tarpon. From Clearwater to Charlotte Harbor, poons from 10-to 110-pounds have been caught. Excellent action on fly with tarpon, redfish, and snook while fishing Charlotte Harbor.

Fishing out of CB Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, reported a frenzied hot bite from little tunny and Spanish mackerel on fly while fishing the beaches. Running out to 30-feet of water, Grassett and his clients got in on a feeding ruckus. Skyrocketing kingfish, tarpon, sharks, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, and bonito were all blasting schools of bait in a melee that continued for more than 15-minutes. Inside Sarasota Bay, Grassett said trout to 22-inches were crashing DOA Shrimp rigged on the Deadly Combo rig. Also, CAL Curly tailed Jigs have been producing bluefish and redfish near Buttonwood Harbor.

The flats off Dunedin have been producing nice speckled trout on plugs. Series III TTR MirrOlure slow-sinking baits fished in 5-to 7 feet of water have been productive on trout to 20-inches. Love’s Lures Tandem rigs have been taking school-sized trout to 18-inches.

On the flats just west of Chassahowitzka Point off Citrus County, reported catching some redfish over the slot and trout pushing 6-pounds and 26-inches in length-- and lots of them on the DOA Deadly Combo. Reds continue to school in the area on the high tides. Live shrimp have been effective on reds along with CAL Shads and MirrOlure She Pups. Capt. Jody Johnson guided Capt. Dan Clymer to a grand slam, (snook, trout, and redfish) while fishing near the mouth of the Homosassa River last weekend during a charity tournament being run out of the Shed at MacRae‘s of Homosassa. Snook are considered a tropical species and not native to or that plentiful in the Crystal River/ Homosassa area, thousands are found in the Homosassa Wildlife Park springs in the winter. To the south, off Hernando Beach, grass flats are producing some oversized redfish. For area information on the web, go to www.visitcitrus.com.