Tampa Bay Fish Are On The Move!
Capt. TJ Stewart
February 23, 2009
Tampa Bay - Saltwater Fishing Report
It's getting to be that time of the year…the time of year where the fish start moving even if the weather is a bit cold. Although we've had a few days that have been a bit chilly, the water temperature is good. It is still above 60 degrees and the fish are biting.
On colder days, days where the water temperature gets below 60 degrees, we've fished for sheepshead and had great outcomes. We've been catching these fish on shrimp. Here's a tip…big bait, big fish is not the case for sheepshead. The big fish seem to like small shrimp. Some of the great fish we caught last week were 4 lbs or more. Along with the sheepshead, we've also caught drum, snapper, whiting, and trout.
When the weather remains in the 70's for two to three days, the water temperature shoots right back up and the snook and trout go crazy. We've been using live bait to catch these snook and trout. Most of the trout we've caught have been great size, falling in the slot. We've also caught a number of fish over 20 inches. At other times, we haven't been able to keep the snook off our line. The snook we've caught have been all over the board, ranging anywhere between 18 inches and 30 inches. It really is great fun on the light tackle. Just a few more weeks and the snook will be back in season.
Although we've caught many snook and trout pretty easily, we've had to work a bit harder to catch redfish. The weather, the water temperature, and the tides have all played a part in making it difficult to catch these fish. Redfish are the first fish up on the flat when there is enough water and the last one to come back off of the flat this time of the year. All of the fishing for these great fish has been on the really low tides or on really high tides. Please visit www.castawaychartersinc.com and book your trip today!
More Fishing Reports:
