With the new moon coming up this coming Sunday, tarpon anglers will be hitting the late afternoon outgoing tide for some “poonage”.

OFFSHORE/ NEARSHORE FISHING

With currents picking up toward Sunday’s new moon, bottom fishing might be a little more challenging with these moving tides. The late afternoon outgoing tide will be ripping, so if trying to stay anchored on a spot is your goal, you might try hitting the hour around tide changes. You’ll also have to be adding more weight to keep your bait down as the currents increase to max flow.

Gag grouper catches have been pretty good if you’re heading out beyond 150-feet. Inside that, there are plenty of fish but the fish are smaller. Some anglers have reported catching gags in the upper 20-pound class and even a few 30s. Top producing baits have been live pinfish, but threadfins, cigar minnows, and Spanish sardine plugs cut into bite-sized chunks will work. On occasion, adding a chunk of cut squid for some smell will get the bite going.

The same goes for red snapper. Keeping baits on the bottom will be a chore for them too. But anglers this past week have harvested a bunch of fish. Look for good results for red snapper again for this weekend as well. Plenty of mangrove, lane, and vermilion snapper are being caught from about 80-feet and beyond. A good showing of smaller mangos are showing up all around Tampa Bay and should completely invade the area by next month for the spawn.

It’s that time of year for anglers to find sailfish out beyond 100-feet, but every year there are also a few fish that are caught in state waters just off the beaches.

Trolling for kingfish has been pretty slow, as it has also been for Spanish mackerel. Veteran anglers like Dave Zalewski, of Lucky Too Charters out of the Madeira Beach Marina was looking for some big improvements in mackerel fishing as waters were clearing up after the storms we had the beginning of the month, but they’ve been a little slow to show up. As bait schools return to the beaches you can expect to see the mackerel with them. Look for circling and diving birds at sunrise to find the best action.

INSHORE FISHING

Snook fishing has been crazy good lately, but it will only get better by this weekend with the new moon on Sunday. These fish are ganging up in the passes and along the beaches. You can also find them around barrier islands in the Gulf. Quicker tides and nearly a 3-foot drop in water level late in the afternoons this weekend will make for some banner snookin’. Fishing the beaches for snook with a fly rod can be rewarding for those with patience.

Getting on less crowded beaches early will help catch a few snook before beach walkers go trouncing through the surf, spooking fish. #1 or #1/0 white fly pattern such as the Clouser minnow will work here for snook from 20-to 35-inches. An occasional larger fish is also doable as you get closer to the passes. Honeymoon and Caladesi Islands are good areas for big spawning snook. Anclote Key can also hold some monsters. Working south from Longboat to Manasota Key can really be scenic. Clean clear water makes it easy to spot these fish in the surf where water meets the shore.

With good moving water, trout fishing has been picking up considerably on points and on deep grass flats. The Clam Bar at Pinellas Point has been active with trout on grass patches and in sandy holes. Look for the edges of holes to hold some big fish on the falling tide early in the morning. Early morning, topwater lures like the Heddon Zara Spook Jr. and the CS16MR MirrOmullet from MirrOlure. Big fish will inhale these lures. Just be gentle removing the hooks from their paper-thin mouths.

Redfish have been seen schooling just off the beaches in the Gulf recently. But for those who have thrown just about every bait in the boat at them with zero takes, you’re not alone. These fish are usually in the spawning mode when they get like this. Big orangish-red areas of water make these schools stand out in clean water like we’ve had recently.

A few pompano have been reported being caught by anglers working area bridges heading out to Fort Desoto. Doc’s Goofy Jigs in yellow with a pink teaser has been productive. Pass-A-Grille anglers working the channel have found a few fish there as have anglers fishing just outside John’s Pass off the Jetty’s.

Tarpon anglers heading to jump or land fish this weekend will jam the boat ramps. Early risers in the pre-dawn hours will have a leg up on parking and possibly some big poons too. Fish have been chewing for fly anglers as well as those fishing artificial lures and live/ dead baits. Look for the big outgoing tides late in the afternoon and around dark that will dump about 3-feet of water out of Tampa Bay to really produce the top conditions for catching tarpon. Live crabs will be the key bait for fishing these fish at this time.

FRESHWATER FISHING

Thunderstorms that have randomly occurred this past week have posted the odds of catching some nice bass. While a few anglers are ignoring the heat and flipping big worms in around heavy cover for big fish, others are having some excellent success soaking live corked wild shiners around big patches of grass with some structure. This might be the laziest way to fish, but it’s sure going to put some big bass in the boat. ‘Til then…I’ll catch ya later, or you can catch me to book a charter at my contact info below!

Catch a Charter with Captain Ray

Captain Ray Markham, Backwater Promotions
(941) 723-2655 • Ray.markham@gmail.com
www.CaptainRayMarkham.com • (941) 228-3474