Guide bites
Capt. Chuck Rogers (813) 918-8356: Capt. Chuck reports that pompano exploded onto the bay scene over the past week. He’s been using yellow Doc’s Goofy Jigs with red feathers to take quick limits fishing clam and oyster bars during periods of good tidal flow below the Gandy Bridge. On one trip, he took a boat limit in just 30 minutes. Based on the boats he’s seen fishing for them at the Gandy and Howard Frankland bridges, it appears the bite may be good there, as well. Trout fishing has been just OK, with fish in 6 to 8 feet of water over grass bottom. Lots of shorts have been in the mix, so it takes some time to get the bigger fish. A little cooler water and a good supply of bait in the bay appears to have drawn in more Spanish mackerel, with schools below the Gandy feeding on the bait pods in open water from St. Petersburg north to near the Gandy. Live sardines will take them.
Capt. George Hastick (727) 525-1005: Capt. George says he’s been getting into some decent snook action fishing from around the Gandy Bridge to Pinellas Point on the Pinellas side of the bay. He’s been working the flooded mangroves on moving tide with live sardines. Most of the fish have been smaller males, but there are a few oversized fish hanging with them. He’s also found a few under docks along that stretch of the bay. Chumming with live sardines may be needed to get them feeding. Small pods of reds have been in the same spots, with fish 17 to 25 inches landed on trips over the past week. Live sardines have been taking them, though he notes that a couple of reds were caught on a Sea Shad soft-plastic tail on a jig head. Trout fishing on grass beds in 5 to 6 feet of water has been productive, though it takes time and moving around to find the keepers. If a spot is only turning up undersized fish, relocate and do another drift. Live sardines and Sea Shad plastics work. A few flounder have been hooked while trout fishing. Jigs worked in the grass bottom are what they like. Mackerel are around, and he’s finding them on the edges of drop-offs while trout fishing. He’s also seeing them feed on bait schools at the surface mid-bay from around the St. Pete Pier north to just below the Gandy Bridge. Spoons or live sardines are what to use when targeting them. Fish to 24 inches have not been unusual. Lots of sharks are cruising the flats, with most being blacktops or boneheads. He’s still spotting rolling tarpon on most trips, and one of his anglers hooked one of about 40 inches fishing a dock for snook.
Tackle shop roundup
Gandy Bait & Tackle (813) 839-5551: Zack reports that anglers have been doing well on redfish, fishing both sides of the bay from around the Gandy Bridge area north to the Howard Frankland and above. Fish are starting to bunch up in larger pods and have been feed in shallow water near mangroves and oyster bars. Mangrove snapper fishing is good, though many have been reporting that undersized fish are more common now than just a week or two ago. Docks, rocks and bridge pilings have been holding them. Fishing the deep edges of shipping channels may be the best bet for the larger ones. Some have been doing well targeting markers in the bay for tripletail. Live shrimp free lined to them is the ticket. Anglers also began reporting more mackerel in the bay over the past week. The open bay waters below the Gandy Bridge and south have been seeing schools feed on baitfish on the surface. Trout fishing has been decent in 6 to 8 feet of water on grass bottom, though it may take a lot of weeding out undersized fish to get a limit of keepers. Snook are being reported more often now. Fishing shallow water around bars and mangroves early and late in the day during moving tides works best. The bite is slow during the hottest part of the day, and some have been doing well fishing lighted docks at night. Live sardines, shrimp or pinfish work.
Riviera Bait & Tackle (727) 954-6365: Jacob says redfish action has been solid. Anglers have been connecting with pods of fish from the Weedon Island area north, with live shrimp or cut pinfish or threadfins good baits to use. Plenty of slot-sized fish are around. Trout fishing picked up a bit over the past week. The fish are holding in 6 feet of water over grass bottom. The chief complaint among many is that there are so many undersized fish, it takes a lot of effort and a lot of moving around to find the keepers. Live shrimp or jigs with soft plastics take them. Snook have been an early and late-day proposition, with fish shallow around mangroves and bars. Mid-day, when the sun is high and hot, shortens productivity. A highlight over the past week has been the number of tripletails being found. On a recent trip he took, Jacob found them on nearly every marker he checked around the Egmont channel. Fish often were undersized, but he bagged them up to 19 inches. They must be 18 inches under regulations, with a two-fish-per- angler limit per day. Offshore, hogfish action has been pretty good on rocky bottom as shallow as 60 feet of water off the mouth of the bay. The mangrove snappers have been there, as well, though fishing in 75 to 80 feet has been where to find the greatest number of keeper size snapper.