Guide bites
Capt. Chuck Rogers (813-918-8356): Capt. Chuck says high winds made fishing difficult over recent days but this week looks like anglers may not have to battle the elements so much. For redfish, it looks like it’s going to be hard to beat the top of the bay around the creek mouths. Rocky and Double Branch creeks are prime. Move in with high water and work mangroves and bars with live sardines, dead bait or artificials. Trout are on the open grass flats in 5 to 6 feet of water from around the Gandy Bridge all the way out to the flats around the Skyway Bridge. Shrimp or jigs with soft plastic tails work. Don’t count on fish much larger than about 15 inches, as the large winter trout have yet to show. Sheepshead are starting to show up in good numbers on about any kind of structure. Bridge and dock pilings, rock piles and jetties are prime spots right now. Live or frozen shrimp takes them, but fiddler crabs are a favorite. Bay water temperatures are down to around 76 degrees and it’s possible some kingfish will show up around the mouth or just offshore soon. For those fishing in the gulf, a good tactic may be to slow-troll live baits or pull spoons or plugs alongside crab-trap lines. If the kings aren’t there, the bait in the traps likely will have attracted schools of Spanish mackerel.
Capt. George Hastick (727-525-1005): Capt. George battled winds over the past week but managed to find some nice reds and trout by tucking downwind of mangroves. The reds are pushing up tight to the growth as the water rises and placing live sardines close to it will draw the fish out of the roots. Working the grass flats along the Pinellas side of the bay up to the Howard Frankland is a good bet for trout. Fish have been running up to 15 or 16 inches and taking live sardines or jigs in 4 to 6 feet of water. Look from them around the drop-offs as the water falls. Spanish mackerel have been schooling around the mouth of the bay toward Boca Ciega Bay, but some fish have been caught as far up the bay as the Gandy Bridge. Check any kind of structure for sheepshead. They are appearing in greater numbers and in the clear water Capt. George has been spotting lots of them over the past week. Most have been on the smaller side, but as the water cools expect more big ones to be around. Word is there are lots of schooling mackerel and bonito in the gulf just off the St. Pete beaches.
Tackle shop roundup
Riviera Bait & Tackle (727-954-6365): Billy says many of his customers are reporting finding sheepshead all over the bay. Live or frozen shrimp fished on the bottom around pilings or rocks will take them, along with a few mangrove snapper. Anglers fishing the front and back of Weedon Island have been picking up a few redfish, though the action can be hit-or-miss. With some help hoisting it up, an angler fishing from a seawall in Coffeepot Bayou landed and released a 40-inch redfish. The monster was unusual, as most of the reds being found now have not been nearly that large. Look for snook in the back bayous and canals and for trout, the open waters of the bay over grass bottom in 5 to 7 feet of water are where they’ll be. Expect to release a lot of short fish, but the keepers are there for anglers who put in the time.
Gandy Bait & Tackle (813-839-5551): Bill reports anglers continue to score big Spanish mackerel by trolling along the Gandy and Skyway bridges. Pulling a spoon close to the pilings has been getting many limits of them. The only redfish reports that have come in recently have been for scattered fish along Weedon Island, but some days they are a no-show. Snook are working their way deeper into backwaters, creeks and canals so hunting them there is going to be best. Trout fishing has been pretty good on the open grass flats below the Gandy Bridge but don’t overlook deeper canals, as some fish have been exploring the depths on lower tides. Shrimp or jigs with soft plastic tails are working.
