Guide bites
Capt. George Hastick (727-525-1005): Capt. George has been getting into some big Spanish mackerel. The numbers are not as large as they were a couple of weeks ago, but when the school is found, the size has been great, with fish up to 26.5 inches landed on his recent trips and the smallest being at least 18 inches. Live sardines or spoons are working on schools between the St. Pete Pier and just short of the Gandy Bridge. Trout fishing in that same part of the bay along the Pinellas side has been good in 5 to 6 feet of water over grass and patchy sand bottom. Live sardines are taking fish 16 to 19 inches, as are soft-plastic Sea Shad tails on jig heads. Also along the Pinellas side docks and mangroves, his anglers have been hooking good numbers of snook between 18 and 25 inches on live sardines. There are some bigger ones, with fish to 34 inches landed. Reds are along the flooded mangroves on the flats just out a few feet away from the growth. Slot-sized fish have been common, though there are some shorts. Live sardines, pinfish and fresh cut bait is taking them. He hasn’t fished there, but word is the redfish are moving on the open, shallow flats at Fort De Soto. Lots of sharks are on the flats all over the bay, with plenty of blacktops and boneheads between Pinellas Point and the Weedon Island area. Tarpon remain in the bay in good numbers, with fish from the Skyway up to at least the Gandy Bridge, where anglers fishing live baits after dark have been hooking them.
Capt. Chuck Rogers (813-918-8356): Capt. Chuck says the small, fry bait has shown up, as is expected in the warmer water. These small sardines are on the shallow grass beds in the early morning and using a quarter-inch-mesh cast net is needed to take them. The fry is perfectly sized for mangrove snapper and that bite has turned on. Using them around bridge pilings under the Gandy Bridge has been getting plenty of keepers. A bonus catch under the bridge has been trout, with fish to slot-size landed on his recent trips. Trout also are on the grass flats, hanging around the edges of them where the water depth drops down. Snook numbers have been good around mangroves when the water is up. He’s had inexperienced anglers on board so he has not been targeting them, but he’s seeing them and reliable sources have been doing well on them. Most of these fish are smaller males. For the bigger fish, look to the beach passes and shorelines, where the summer spawn is in full swing.
Tackle shop roundup
Gandy Bait & Tackle (813-839-5551): Zack reports that anglers have been doing well fishing the Gandy Bridge pilings for mangrove snapper. Live shrimp is doing the job and there have been fair numbers of keeper-sized fish, which are those measuring at least 10 inches, with a five-fish- per-angler daily rule in state waters. Reports are that the small sardines have made an appearance in the bay and they are a good bait choice for the snapper, though live shrimp also gets them. Trout fishing has been pretty good on grass flats in 5 feet of water and deeper above and below the Gandy Bridge. Jigs with soft-plastic tails or live shrimp under popping corks works. Reds have been working along mangroves in the Weedon and Picnic islands area, though the very warm water means anglers are slowing down the retrieve of artificial baits to a crawl to make things easier for the more-lethargic fish. Others have been doing best soaking fresh cut bait, like pinfish, sardines or mullet, letting the scent of the bait bring the reds in and give them an easy meal. Snook anglers have been finding most of their fish inside the bay around docks, with nights producing well. Most have been smaller fish, with the big ones out on the Gulf beaches and in the passes along the coast for the spawn. Some Spanish mackerel are working up into the bay as far as about the Gandy Bridge, but the numbers are down from where they were last month. A few anglers have scored tripletail working around markers in the bay. Live shrimp free lined takes them. Schools of jacks are popping up all over the bay and while there are plenty of tarpon on the inside, Zack expects there will be a surge in their numbers with the next full moon.
Riviera Bait & Tackle (727-954-6365): Jacob says the redfish have been on flats in more than 4 feet of water near mangroves in the morning up to early afternoon. The early bite has been better around oyster bars. Live shrimp and scaled sardines have been tops among live baits, with cut pinfish or ladyfish doing the job among dead bait. Snook are hanging on the beaches now that the spawn in ongoing. The big ones like big, live baits like grunts, while the smaller fish will take 2- to 3-inch artificials. Trout are all over the bay. Some of the biggest landed have been on the grass flats off the approach to the Skyway Bridge. Live sardines drifted over the flats are taking some large fish. Mangrove snapper fishing is turned on, with great catches coming from Venetian Isle bridges and around docks there. The St. Pete Pier, Demens Landing Park and the bridges at Tierra Verde have all been producing well. Jacob recommends heavy mono leaders around the structure to prevent breakoffs. Offshore, mangrove snapper fishing has been on fire, as well, with the action great in 60 to 100 feet. Those fishing 135 feet and deeper have been hammering red snapper, where big yellow-tail snapper also are biting well.