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Tampa Bay - South Shore
Capt. Fred Everson
November 3, 2004
Tampa Bay - Saltwater Fishing Report
The best weather of the year in terms of a combination of wind and water clarity has made for very good fishing on the Southshore of Tampa Bay. The diversity of fishing seldom gets better than it is right now. With the exception of the closure of trout season on November 01, and fewer tarpon, there are an impressive number of species anglers can target right now.
Spanish mackerel probably top the list as the most abundant fish in the bay this week. I fished yesterday with Capt. Chet Jennings of Balm, and we saw multiple schools of mackerel just east of the shipping lanes off Cockroach Bay.
The fall run of big jack crevalle has been here for several weeks, and there are some huge fish this year. Capt. Danny Guarino caught one that measured nearly three feet while trolling for grouper on the edge of the channel. I have also seen jacks in and around the mouth of the Little Manatee River.
The redfish bite continues to be good. I’ve been finding fish on the low rise of the tide in very shallow water on the edge of the grass off the flats. The flats south of the Port Manatee Spoil Island have been productive, and many of the fish are close to the top of the slot.
We are still seeing some snook on the flats, and with record high temperatures for the first week of November, these fish will continue to hang out and chow down until the cold fronts push them into their winter habitat.
Live baiters are still throwing quarter inch nets on small baits, but that’s beginning to turn around. I am seeing some bigger baits on the flats – finally. I have never seen such small baits so late in the season. Maybe it has something to do with hurricanes.
A break in occurred at Shell Point Bait and Tackle in Ruskin on October 26. The thieves stole about a dozen rod and reel combinations -- half of the rigs were tackle I use on charters, and for my own personal fishing. The rest belonged to the shop and a couple were rods I repaired for customers. Near as I can tell, they didn’t take much else. The two outfits that I will miss most were a pair of left handed bait casters that I like to fish for snook with. Ironically, I am the only angler I know that reels a baitcaster with the left hand – even left handed anglers usually retrieve with the right. I can take some small consolation that the thieves will not be able to use the rigs and it is extremely unlikely that they could even sell them. Two of the spinning reels had broken bails, and two of the rods were in desperate need of new guides. That said, it is still depressing to think that there are people so mean as to steal from such a small enterprise as a bait shop, especially one that just lost six weeks worth of business to hurricanes. Even worse is the fact that the thieves were obviously bait shop customers – probably guys who bought bait from us, and maybe even guys who asked us where they were biting and for advice on what to use. They came in our shop, cased it, and took only what they thought was high quality tackle. You have to wonder how people sink so low and get to be so stupid. Whatever happened to the axiom of general thieves -- “Never steal anything small?”
Don't forget the annual jack attack tournament at Shell Point Bait and Tackle on December 05. See my website for details at tampabayfishingguide.com.
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