Fishing Reports by Capt. Jim Klopfer

red tide affecting fishing in Sarasota - Fishing was slow this week with morning thunderstorms cancelling most of my trips. Friday was nice, though hot, but red tide shut down most of Sarasota Bay. There is an area of cleaner water to the south, and bottom fishing produced some snapper. The more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota

red tide slows bite in Sarasota - Unfortunately, the red tide that has been plaguing Tampa Bay moved into our area this week. There was not a huge fish kill, but it certainly slowed the bite. It also makes fishing with live bait difficult as and red tide that gets in the well will ki more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota

Good fishing resumes in Sarasota after Else - Fishing was good this week, despite tropical storm Elsa moving through. I did not fish Tuesday or Wednesday, but was back out on Thursday to find minimal effects from the storm. The jig bite did slow a bit this week and the best action was had by cat more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota

Action and variety in Sarasota! - Anglers experienced both action and variety on fishing charters this week. The strategy of casting lures early then switching to chumming with bait worked well. Jigs caught plenty of fish in the first hour or two. The bait is small, but just large en more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota

jigs and bait combination produces in Sarasota - I have eased into my summer strategy of casting jigs early, then switching over to chumming with live bait. This is very effective as anglers take advantage of the low light feeding, when fish are generally active. When that slows, it is time to catc more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota

Decent action in Sarasota this week - Action was steady this week, with clients catching a good variety of species. The numbers of fish were down a tad, we did have some unstable weather and weak tides. Still, anglers casting jigs caught speckled trout to 20, bluefish, silver trout, Spa more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota

Bait showing up in Sarasota - Fishing was steady on the deep grass flats this week. Wind was an issue early in the week, but really did not hinder the bite. Speckled trout, bluefish, Spanish mackerel, sharks, ladyfish, jacks, flounder, grouper, snapper, sea bass, and catfish were more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota

Steady action in Sarasota for trout and bluefish - I was back out on the water this week after my surgery and a little vacation. The bite on the deep grass was steady, with clients catching a decent amount of speckled trout. Most of the fish were average, with the largest going close to 24. Some har more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota

Big silver trout in Sarasota - Once again, I spent all of my time fishing the deep grass flats. The action was steady, improving each day as we came off the full moon. Speckled trout were plentiful, with fish to 22 being caught. Silver trout were also landed, with several up to 1 more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota

Good action continues in Sarasota after storms - Weather was an issue early in the week. Severe thunderstorms shut us down Monday and Tuesday. I was not sure what to expect on Wednesday, sometimes an infusion of fresh water can slow down the bite, but that was not the case. Action on the deep grass more...
Capt. Jim Klopfer - Sarasota