04-08-2002, 01:35 AM
Tampa Bay Area <br>Fishing Report<br>Captain Charles Walker<br>4/7/02<br>I’ve spent all week catching Spanish mackerel as fast as we could get a spoon in the water. It seems when you can catch over 50 fish in just a couple of hours, nobody wants to do anything else. That goes for me too. It’s been almost like the good old days of the 60’s and early 70’s as far as the Spanish are concerned. The are gorging themselves on the anchovies at the mouth of the Bay and if you want to catch a few while the catching is good, all you need is a #1 planer and a #3 Clark Spoon or Spoon Squid, troll around the flocks of birds at about 6 knots and you are guaranteed lots of Spanish mackerel. Some of the ones we have been catching on hardware are pushing 4 pounds. I think if you were to get the right size live bait and anchor up in the South Pass, get a good chum line going, and put out some lively baits, you might get some even bigger. Lots of other boats have been fishing for kings this week and doing fairly well, bringing in fish that were in the upper twenties as well as lots of small schoolies. This coming week will probably be good fishing for kings in the channel and we should certainly have some along the beaches at Blind Pass and John’s Pass by now. Keep your fingers crossed that we have enough baitfish in the area to hold them here for a while, otherwise they will swim past us awfully fast.<br>On to the bait house reports:<br>Ruskin Bait and Tackle - 813-641-2325 – Everything is biting now. The water is nice and warm and there are big schools of reds, Spanish mackerel and lots of big trout on the flats. There are tons of snook out there now, about 20 to 1 undersized to keepers, but great fun to catch anyway. Lots of drum are in the area of the river around the pilings. Lots of small tarpon have been seen north of us and cobia have started migrating into the Bay. Some grouper and snapper are coming from the channel, but most people are fishing for the Spanish mackerel and not grouper right now. <br>Buddy’s Bait and Tackle on the Courteney Campbell Causeway in Tampa - 813-287-1026 – Lots of snook, reds, and trout have been caught around the big bridge and the flood gate this week. The best baits are live shrimp for the reds and trout and Yo-Zuri lures for the snook. Sheepshead are still being caught in the area on sand fleas and dead shrimp.<br>Bonnie’s Bait and Tackle in Clearwater - 727-446-2772- Snook are showing up in the ICW now. Lots of Spanish mackerel and kings are off the beach with some of the kings in the upper 20 pound sizes. The trout and reds are biting like crazy in the Anclote area and lots of snook are showing up around the islands as well.<br>Trappman’s Bait and Tackle on Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg - 727-579-1414- Lots of big cobia have been caught at the foot of the bridge this week. Big drum and sheepshead are abundant. Snook and reds are all around Weedon Island this week.<br> Pass-a-Grille Bait and Tackle on St. Pete Beach - 727-360-6606- Spanish mackerel are all over the place this week. A few kings have been brought in from the channel. Off our gas dock they have been catching flounder and sheepshead. Our offshore boats are bringing in lots of Spanish, kings and a few grouper.<br>The Skyway Fishing Pier - 727-865-0668 and the south Skyway - 941-729-0117- Everyone has been catching Spanish mackerel this week using spoons and Gotcha Plugs. Some kings have been caught on live bait. Pompano, trout, and grouper have been coming in as well. It’s really been a banner week on both ends of the Pier.<br><br>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.<br><br>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 .<br><br>Good fishing and tight lines,<br>Capt. Charlie<br>http://www.flfish.com/fl<br><br><br><br>Capt. Charlie Walker<br>http://www.flfish.com