Venice Inlet and the Gulf of Mexico

Capt. Dave Pinkham
October 9, 2006
Venice - Saltwater Fishing Report

October Ushers in Great Fishing Action

The first cold front of the fall season helped to drive down the temperatures a bit. As the cooler air pushed its way down across the state, it was quite evident that a change was in the air.

Fish sense these changes and will be starting to move into their fall migration patterns. This is a great time of year for gulf fishing as the action can bust wide open.

Following is a fishing forecast of some of the species that anglers can expect to catch during the month of October.

- King mackerel schools will start their southern migration this month. Kings are a blast to catch and there are all sorts of fishing techniques used to target them. To find migrating kingfish try trolling number 5 king spoons behind planning boards. Those anglers looking for the bigger kings often slow troll live bait. Areas around shipwrecks and the artificial reefs will often hold the larger fish. Blue runners are a hardy bait fish and the big king mackerel aggressively feed on them.

- Spanish mackerel should also make a good showing this month. Spanish mackerel offer some of the fastest non-stop fishing action I know of. Free-lined live pilchards will drive them crazy. When mackerel are seen feeding at the surface try casting spoons and cranking as fast as possible.

- Grouper fishing is always dependable in October. Grouper are a bottom species so the key to catching them is getting the bait down in front of them. Locating hard bottom and anchoring the boat the boat over these spots is a proven technique to successful grouper fishing.

- Snapper are also a sought after species on the Gulf. The same bottom area that hold grouper will often harbor snapper. One of the main target snapper species in this area is mangrove. Gearing down to lighter tackle is often necessary to fool mangrove snapper into hitting your bait.

- Blackfin tuna normally make a good showing in October. Best bet to catch them will be to start looking in at least 100-feet of water. Look for action near the surface. The two methods that have worked for me in the past are trolling spoons and lures, and casting live baits. If you see jumping tuna, cast out a live bait allowing it to swim near the surface and drift fish the area.

- Cobia are another local favorite, and hopefully in the next few weeks we should start seeing schools of them as they migrate south. Cobia can be rather cautious at times, but will usually fall for a well presented live bait such as a grunt or pinfish.

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