Winter Trout
Capt. Steven Markovich
February 23, 2009
Tampa Bay - Saltwater Fishing Report
Busy busy weekend for Captain Steven and Chris. We fished Ft. Desoto and Tierra Verde areas all weekend. Armed with shrimp and soft plastic jigs we departed Oneals Marina looking to take advantage of the large trout roaming the deeper flats. It was nice not throwing the cast net and staying dry as it was chilly early in the day.
We were not 100' out of Oneals when we saw a large push coming at us, I quickly shut off the motor and watched in awe as a big school of monster black drum surrounded the boat. By time we had a rod out another boat coming out of the marina pushed the drum into deeper water. I jumped in the tower hoping to relocate the school to no avail. These drum were huge with many well over 30 if not 40 or 50 pounds!
I'm finding trout are not in the usual hangouts; pre red tide sure fire hangouts are void of trout. Our new locations are rather unique as many are in very high traffic areas.
I get strange looks from other boats wondering what a charter trip is doing in that location. Plastic and shrimp worked equally, we used 1/8 and ¼ oz jig heads. We bite the tail off the shrimp then worked the hook through the tail which may for great casting. Soft plastics were Gulp and DOA. It's imperative the bait be on the bottom or is bouncing the bottom. If you are using a float ensure your leader length is sufficient to have the bait in the strike zone.
It's imperative at On The Mark Charters our Pathfinder look meticulous, we wash the boat 3-6 times a week. I read with great interest an article in the February edition of Onshore Off shore magazine "Brining that new look back" by Captain Jason Prieto. I ran out to West Marine and purchased the boat wash / wax I also wanted the non skid deck wax but they were sold out. I was impressed as it exceeded my expectations. Not only did the Woody Soap clean and freshen I was amazed that one ounce as directed in a 5 gallon bucket did the entire boat. Most soap I have used goes flat and I have to frequently add soap to keeps the suds and cleaning action working. Check them out at www.woody-wax.com
Capt. Steven
Tampa Bay Fishing Forecast:
Look for great trout action through March. Local bridges are holding nice bait so look for the next warm spell to wake up winter snook.
Target Species:
trout
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