Fishing Forum - Tampa Bay Area Fishing Report

Tampa Bay Area Fishing Report Captain Charles Walker 5/12/02 The winds have been marginally high all week in the mornings and depending on where you wanted to fish, seas were from choppy to really rough. The grouper fishing does not seem to have improved in the last few weeks, and now that the water is up in the 80’s and the summer temperatures already here, I don’t expect to see very many on our nearshore trips until fall. The Spanish mackerel and some kings are still around. Plenty of barracuda have moved into the reefs offshore along with bonita, triggerfish, mangrove snapper, grunts and other fish to give you a summertime variety. Our trip up the Bay on Saturday produced Spanish mackerel, grunts, and black sea bass even though the bite was slow. Sometime variety can be just as good as quantity. On to the bait house reports: Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325 – A nice 60 pound cobia was brought by the shop yesterday, caught at the Skyway Bridge. Some nice grouper have been caught in the ships channel this week. Trout are still biting well on the flats this week in our area. Some reds are being brought in from the south end of the Bay mostly. Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026 – Snook and sheepshead have been biting at the bridge this week. Some nice reds have been caught in the Double Branch area. Bonnie’s Bait and Tackle in Clearwater - 727-446-2772- A lot of really big snook are being caught along the beaches. Spanish mackerel are still biting well in the pass and along the beach. Inshore, trout are biting along the flats in 4-5 feet of water for anglers using shrimp under bobbers. Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Mangrove snapper, grouper, flounder, and some sheepshead have all been caught off our gas dock this week. Some snook are beings caught at the beach as well as lot of Spanish mackerel. Our offshore boats have been getting lots of mangrove snapper, grunts and some grouper. The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- Some kings, lots of Spanish mackerel and a few bluefish have been regulars this week. Some nice cobia have been caught and there are lots of tarpon around. Folks, feel free to call any of the places in my report for more information, and be sure to tell them that you read about the fishing in their area in Capt. Charlie’s fishing report on the Internet. If you want more information about fishing in the Tampa Bay area or wish to book a charter, simply e-mail me at captchas@flfish.com or if you wish to arrange a charter faster, call me at 727-546-7257. Be sure and visit my web site for lots more Tampa Bay Area fishing info at: http://www.floridasaltwater.com . Good fishing and tight lines, Capt. Charlie http://www.flfish.com/fl Capt. Charlie Walker http://www.flfish.com