Venice Inlet and the Gulf of Mexico
Capt. Dave Pinkham
June 5, 2002
Venice - Saltwater Fishing Report
The Month of June Offers Plenty of Fishing Action
I can hardly believe the month of June has already snuck up on us. And from the looks of where the mercury on my trusty thermometer has been creeping up to the past few days, arriving with it has come plenty of warm weather. Actually the last couple weeks of May had been cooler than normal for this time of year. Although it now seems like the gloves have come off, with plenty of summer heat upon us as air and Gulf water temperatures are steadily on the rise.
So what can fishers on the Gulf expect to catch during the month of May? Following is sort of a fishing forecast starting from just off the beach up to 60 miles west out on the of Mexico.
- Spanish Mackerel should be plentiful just off the area beaches and in and outside of the passes. Live bait enthusiasts should have no problem catching some of these toothy speedsters using live shiners as bait. Trolling or casting silver spoons through feeding or jumping fish will all but guarantee some hook ups.
- Tarpon fishing will about as good as it gets over the next few weeks. Once the afternoon thunderstorms start to crank up the fish seem to show less. Sight fishing is one of the predominant methods used for targeting tarpon up and down the coastline. Once a pod of tarpon is sighted, casting live baits such as crabs, pinfish, or grunts will often provoke one into hitting.
- Barracuda have once again returned to their summer haunts such as the artificial reefs and local shipwrecks. As the water temperatures continue to rise the cuda will hit just about anything and can actually become a nuisance for those anglers trying to catch snappers or other small reef fish. .
- Shark fishing can be additive, and the during the summer months is when it happens. Big hammerheads will be cruising up and down the coastline as they feed on tarpon. Smaller sharks such as blacktips and lemon sharks in the three to five foot range will be found over local reefs from one to twenty miles out on the Gulf. During the day these sharks feed best on small fish.
- Permit fishing should peak in June. Once again the wrecks and reefs are the best places to locate them. Crabs, and large shrimp both make excellent baits. These beautiful fish release well so handle them carefully when photographing.
- Grouper fishing seems to be improving. This time of year look for keeper red groupers out in at lest 60' of water and deeper. The gag groupers are apt to show up anywhere. Live and dead baits will both produce fish.
- Snapper fishing should payoff with some excellent tablefare. There are many different species on the Gulf such as mangrove, lane, yellow tail, mutton, and vermilion snappers. Cut bait and shrimp are hard to beat for good action.
- Blackfin tuna hopefully will still be around for a while. There smaller cousin the little tunny is usually plentiful on the Gulf all summer long. Keeping live baits freelined out behind the boat while your busy bottom fishing is a good way to luck into one.
- Sailfish, wahoo, and dolphin fishing should be warming up farther out on the Gulf. You may need to run for while so keep an eye out for weed lines once you hit bluewater.
Be aware, as the weather warms the probability of thunderstorms increases. If possibly stay away from dark clouds that often contain electricity and high winds. Have fun and stay safe.
If you're not out fishing you're wishing you were. Get out and go fishin cuz' it's good fer ya!
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