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Fishing Report for Homosassa, Florida
Capt. Mike Locklear
February 18, 2001
Homosassa - Saltwater Fishing Report
The month of March should prove to be a lot more productive than February. The
changes to warmer water temperatures in the gulf will bring in bait fish and shrimp. Most
salt water fish seem to feed better when the water temperature rises above 70 degrees.
The one exception is the sheepshead. It likes to spawn during the colder months. Many
catches of sheepshead are brought in by the guides and recreational anglers from January
through March.
Homosassa Bay offers areas that hold aggregations of the striped
bruisers. The artificial reefs, rock piles near the foul area and rock piles off shore that
dot the nature coast hold nice size sheepshead. Remember the size limit is 12 inches and
the bag limit is 10 per person.
Catching them are quite easy if you use pieces of live shrimp. Chumming does help to
get the fish feeding. Using a Eagle Claw plain shank in size 2/0 will suffice. A small
sinker, either a #4 split shot or a 1/8 to 1/4 ounce egg sinker helps to keep the bait on the
bottom.
Sheepshead bite softly, using pecking at it and it takes a knack to get the feel of the bite.
Knowing when to set the hook is important as sometimes you will come up with a bare
hook. I try to strike when I feel the fish tug kind of like being on the bottom.
Trout season will be opening up on March 1st. There are a lot of reports of plenty of
trout out on the flats. The Cajun Thunder Cork by Precision Tackle Company is always a
good bet. I like the smallest version on calmer days that is called “LiL” Thunder. It is
for ultra light use and is only 2.5 inches long. The standard 3 inch Cigar Cajun Thunder
is probably the most popular for trout and for windy conditions. However, my cousin
likes the 2.5 inch oval one for both trout and reds. I like this size best for redfish.
Rigging the Cajun Thunder is easy. Begin with about 30 inches of 25-30 pound line. Tie
the line onto the brass-headed end of the cork. Then tie on a hook or use a 1/8-1/4 ounce
red Cotee 1/8 to 1/4 ounce jig head. Slip on a plastic tail.(3 inch Berkley Power Mullets
in pearl white are killers on big trout and redfish.) Then tie on the other end of the
Thunder to your line. After all the knot tying you should have about 24 inches between
the cork and the jig.
You can either cast downwind with the jig and retrieve with sharp pulls giving enough
time for the jig to settle. The Thunder cork will stand up when the jig begins to pulls it
down give another pop and continue until you see your cork go under. When the cork
goes under, just quickly reel in the slack and the trout should be on. Remember not to set
the hook too hard with the rod because the trout do have fairly soft mouths.
Also, remember that the size limit is between 15 to 20 inches. Each person can keep one
trout over 20 inches. The bag limit is 5 trout per person. It is illegal to drop off your
catch and go back out to get another limit. Pressing the barb down on all your jigs and
lures is a challenging way to achieve your limit without tearing up the fish’s mouth too
bad in the process. Since you may release the fish anyway, avoid using a dip net or a
towel to remove the hook(s). Using the devices just will cause the fish to develop sores
on its skin. A wet hand or better yet long nose pliers will aid in a perfect release. I try
not to touch the fish at all if I know that I am releasing it.
Off shore, grouper action picked up with the warming trend. Seem like the baits fished
on the bottom are doing the best in about 50 feet of water. By March the grouper should
be moving in closer to depths of 20-40 feet. Trolling Magnum Rapalas. Mann’s stretch
30’s or tiger colored big lipped Mirrolures will produce results.
Fly fishing will be picking up. A few lucky anglers have already caught some small
grouper and trout with me using Clouser Minnows and full sink tip lines. 8 weight rods
are the norm.
March is the time for muds with loads of mackerel, ladyfish, trout and bluefish. I have
already spotted some muds in 10 feet of water northwest of Marker 10 of the Homosassa
Bay Channel , however, I got no big bites-just little ones, so that lead me to think it was
caused by smaller baitfish. It is a good sign though that Spring is about be sprung.
Remember if you are too busy to go fishing; you are just too darn busy!
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