Hard work in Tampa Bay pays off!
Capt. TJ Stewart
June 25, 2008
Tampa Bay - Saltwater Fishing Report
Hard work definitely pays off, and that is a good thing because the weather hasn't been the best over the past couple of weeks. It's summertime in Florida, which is also known to us natives as the rainy season. We've put a lot of hard work into running from the rain, but it was well worth the running because the fishing before and after storms has been very good. If you're out on the water in the summertime in Florida, you better pack your foul weather gear because you can bet that you'll see rain showers before the day is up. It can be a real nuisance sometimes, but look at it this way…at least it cools you down a little.
If you are looking for a few fish to take home and throw on the grill or in the frying pan, a couple of fresh trout are what's for supper. Trout fishing has continued to maintain its greatness. We've had tons of fun catching these fish and caught a mess of them. Last week we had a hand full of fish that were over 20 inches long, which is a great size for a trout. They have really made such a great comeback after the wrath of the red tide that killed a big number of these fish. Hopefully, over the next few years, trout fishing should just keep getting better. However, it is pretty darn good right now.
Snook were the big number fish last week. Snook fishing has been phenomenal for this time of the year, as these fish are starting to spawn. Most of the fish we have found are around the passes and areas with high moving tides. Big numbers of fish exist in these areas and they eat plentifully. Most of the snook we've caught are in the range of 20 inches to 27 inches, but occasionally some bigger fish have been mixed in the bag. It's not unusual to catch 30 or more snook in a short amount of time, and on light tackle, it doesn't get much better than that!
The redfish continue to be tough to find. They are still around, but you have to dedicate a fair amount of time to them in order to catch them. We caught a few fish on a couple of different days that were a great size, but for the most part, my client's have wanted to fish for snook and trout because it's been so good. On the other hand, tarpon fishing has been somewhat steady and the fish we've caught have been huge.
I and four other guys fished the Pete Turner Memorial Fishing Classic Tournament last weekend, beginning Friday at 7:00 p.m. and ending Saturday at 4:00 p.m. Despite continuously dodging rain storms, we were able to catch some great fish. We weighed in a 32 inch and 34 inch redfish, 21 inch and 26 inch trout, and a 34 inch and 36 inch snook. We remained determined through the stormy weather and it paid off. We won the tournament overall and the biggest slam titles and had a great time doing so. Please visit www.castawaychartersinc.com and book your trip today!
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