Hot speckled trout fishing continues in Sarasota
Capt. Jim Klopfer
July 9, 2016
Sarasota - Saltwater Fishing Report
Fishing was very good this week with speckled trout again leading the list of species hooked on fishing charters. No huge fish were landed but the numbers were substantial with quite a few fish in the 15" to 20" range. Spanish mackerel, bluefish, silver trout, flounder, ladyfish, gag grouper, mangrove snapper, jack crevelle, sharks, and one big tarpon also kept the lines tight. I fished with live pilchards all week as bait is thick on the flats near the passes and easy to catch. It has been quite warm so getting an early start has been important. The water temperature is high as well, into the upper 80's, so the flats in deeper water, from 6' to 8' have been the most productive. The Bird Key flats, Radio Tower flats, and middlegrounds were the top spots.
I started my week off on Monday with Rich Galloway, his wife Janet, and sister Sue and her husband Kent, all from Chicago, IL. Even though it was July 4Th, we got out there early and boat traffic was light. I caught bait and we basically sat in one spot for 3 hours, getting bit on almost every cast. Speckled trout were numerous, with a couple going 20". Spanish mackerel, silver trout, jacks, snapper, ladyfish, a shark, and more kept us all bust. It got quite warm and we had a great trip, so we headed in a bit early.
Frank Regnery and his son Mike from CT along with son in law Mike Cribbs and his grandson Keegan, both from Tampa, went out on a charter on Tuesday. Once again bait was easy and the bite was steady all morning. Speckled trout, Spanish mackerel, mangrove snapper, gag grouper, flounder, jacks, and ladyfish were landed.
Tom Mazziotti family from Atlanta, Ga and his teenage children Mary Elizabeth, Caroline, and Tom fished with me on Wednesday. The bite was good early, with a lot of speckled trout to 19" being caught along with jacks, snapper, ladyfish, and more. We tried for a shark later in the morning, but no luck. It got brutally hot so we headed in.
The Gatton clan went out on their annual charter on Thursday. Rob, his dad Bob, and kids Aiden and Belle had a memorable time, as it was Belle's first "real" fishing trip. The fishing was very good, with a ton of trout being caught on live pilchards; quite a few being nice ones in the 16" to 20" range. Bluefish, jacks, snapper, and ladyfish joined in as well at the Middlegrounds and Bird Key flats. The charter ended with some excitement as Bob hooked a 70 lb tarpon on light spinning gear, getting a blistering run and one great jump out of it before the line parted!
Ralph Primavers from New Jersey and his daughter Rachel and son Chris had a good trip to finish up my week. Rachel had not been fishing in many years but did well after a few minutes of instruction. They caught trout to 19", jacks, snapper, sea bass, and Spanish mackerel free lining pilchards into the chum at the Radio Tower.
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