Guide bites
Capt. Cody Albright (727) 992-3918: Capt. Cody spend most of his time over the past week or so fishing inside the Anclote and Cotee rivers, snagging just “about everything that swims.” He’s had days taking snook, reds, trout, small tarpon and mangrove snapper. Live sardines have been doing all the work, thanks to a good current flow on the outgoing tides where a lot of the action has been. Docks also have been producing. Lots of slot-sized snook have been landed, as well as some big reds. Trout up to 22 inches have been in the mix and most of the snapper have been keepers. The tarpons have been running to about 30 pounds. On one trip three tarpon were hooked. He’s worked into the Cotee as far as U.S. 19, and to the Sponge Docks in the Anclote. Some big schools of reds are starting to show up along the Gulf shallows, and he came across a school of about 100 fish a bit north of Gulf Harbors. They are out on the open flats on low water, pushing up near mangroves when the water is up. He likes to push up toward the mangroves until he sees a fish or two spook away, backing off and coming back in 15 minutes, when it’s not unusual for a large bunch or reds to be regrouped on the spot. Capt. Cody did a gag grouper trip to test the waters ahead of the season opener Sept. 1, finding great action in 6 to 9 feet of water north of the Pasco County line. Using plugs and live bait, fish to 30 inches were landed and released. One stop on the shallow rocks produced no gags but it was loaded up with big mangrove snapper. He’s also been doing some scalloping trips in Hernando waters, as the season was shut down in Pasco due to a decline in water quality discovered during routine testing. His party got a limit in just 17 minutes working grass flats in 5 to 6 feet of water north of Bayport.
Capt. Josh Fritz (352) 345-9304: Capt. Josh continues to do very well on redfish. He’s been working the outside, limestone points, rocky island shores and bars on incoming tides. He’s moving a lot to find them. Still, by putting in the time, he’s rewarded with reds. He notes that some of the reds have been mingling with schools of mullet. The trout bite is solid on the deep grass flats, with 12 to 13 feet of water productive. Drifting and throwing a quarter-ounce jig with a soft-plastic tail, working in near the bottom takes them. Li’l Jon tails in white have been producing best. Shallow-water gag grouper fishing is going to provide hot and heavy action when the season opens Sept. 1, as the fish are there and hungry. Capt. Josh said demand is crazy for the short season opening, though he does have a handful of afternoon trips still open. Scalloping in Hernando waters has been great, with the grass flats above Bayport making for quick limits.
Capt. Matt Cowden (727-534-6603): Capt. Matt says the redfish bite has been pretty consistent over the past week, with fish up around the mangroves on higher tides. Cut pinfish has been the best bait for them. Spanish mackerel showed up in good numbers on the deeper grass flats off the Pasco coastline. Schools of small bait are what they are chasing, so keep an eye out for bait schools sprinkling on the surface where the mackerel may be near. Capt. Matt made a fun trip with his son offshore and got into some great action. They landed mahi, red grouper and lane snapper fishing between 80 and 100 feet of water.
Tackle shop roundup
The Rusty Bucket (727) 645-6598: Capt. Bill says redfish have been providing some of the best action on his trips. Fish are in big schools all over the flats off Pasco, with cut pinfish being his bait of choice. The pins seem to discourage all the sharks and rays, as well. A few snook are picking up the baits, making a nice bonus catch on some trips. To target snook, the beach on the west side of Anclote Key is still holding good numbers, where trout and even schools of black drum have been hanging out. The drum like shrimp or an artificial shrimp on a jig head. Trout like live sardines, which when used as chum can get snook fired up and feeding. Don’t be surprised if a school of tarpon swims by, and likewise for jacks. Offshore, the bite is on fire, with a box of red grouper and mangrove snapper easy work out to 100 feet of water.
Tarpon Trading Company (727) 937-1488): Guy reports hot weather has been discouraging a lot of his regular customers, but the die-hards are managing to catch a few fish. Getting out early or late to avoid the heat may be the best strategy. For shore-bound anglers, a good bet might be live shrimp drifted in the current around the bridges on the causeway at Fred Howard Park. For boaters, working the beach around the north and south ends of Anclote Key for snook might be the ticket, and when the tide is up, moving around to the back side of the north end at Dutchman Key and fishing potholes and mangroves for reds could be a winning strategy. Also, moving east of the island over grass beds in 4 to 8 feet of water using jigs with soft-plastic tails or live shrimp under a popping float for trout could pay off.