Venice Inlet and the Gulf of Mexico
Capt. Dave Pinkham
October 25, 2003
Venice - Saltwater Fishing Report
What's biting on the gulf in November?
I can hardly believe November is right around the corner. This is a great time of year to be here in the Sunshine State. There's still plenty of warm weather to enjoy, so make sure to take some time and get out on the Gulf and go fishing. The fall season is most definitely one of my favorite times of the year because it offers many different fishing opportunities for area anglers.
The cooler weather combined with shorter daylight hours will begin to push the gulf's water temperature down. As these annual changes take place, the stage is set for the fishing action out on the gulf to explode!
Following is a forecast of what anglers fishing out on the Gulf of Mexico can expect to catch over the next month or so. If there were ever a time to experience some of the best fishing the gulf has to offer, I would have to say November is one of my top picks.
King mackerel as well as their smaller cousins the Spanish mackerels should be plentiful from just off the beaches on out to 100 foot of water. When looking for them, be sure to keep your eyes peeled for dead giveaways such as fish feeding at the surface, and or jumping fish. Both live bait fishing and trolling artificial baits will produce these toothy speedsters.
Another way to locate either species of mackerels is to look for birds diving down at the waters surface for bait. I've said it before and I’ll say it again, where you find the bait, you’ll find feeding mackerels. When live bait fishing, consider trying one of the many types of proven live baits that work good such as shiners, sardines, blue runners, large shrimp, and even grunts. When fishing specifically for Spanish mackerel, one of my favorite ways to catch them is by anchoring the boat and free-lining live shiners or shrimp to them on light spinning tackle.
Blackfin tuna are always exciting to see and most definitely an exceptional catch to any angler. The first couple weeks of November should be a great time to target these members of the tuna family. If you see them jumping then you are in the right place to fish. As with fishing with for mackerels, both trolling hardware such as large silver spoons, and live bait fishing will produce fish. Most of the blackfin tuna I’ve caught have been out in water depths from 100’ to 120’ foot of water.
Cobia are already making a good showing on some of their normal haunts. The artificial reefs located up and down the coast are a good place to bump into these awesome brawlers. Live baits such as pilchards, grunts, pinfish, crabs, blue runners, and sardines will usually provoke inquisitive fish into hitting.
Mangrove snapper continue to be a reliable catch on most any offshore structure. Usually the best way to catch them is by anchoring directly above the spot and dropping down rigs baited with natural baits such as cut sardines, squid, or shrimp. Chumming with pieces of cut bait to get snapper feeding works well when the wind and current allows for it.
Gag Grouper fishing usually starts getting better as the water temperature cools down. As this cooling effect happens this month, look for gags to start moving closer to the coastline into some of their winter haunts. Gag grouper often will tend to hang close to some sort of structure such as shipwrecks, and rocky ledges.
Red Grouper fishing will continue to be good out past 60' foot deep. Although the minimum size for gags was pushed up to 22 inches, red grouper size limit remains at 20 inches. On the days with light winds, try drift fishing new areas. Bouncing jigs tipped with squid or a piece of cut sardine as you drift along over hard bottom will usually provoke hits.
Greater amberjack should start to make a better showing over the next month. As the weather continues to cool off these big jacks usually converge on the deeper wrecks. Revered for their size and strength, amberjack will test most any tackle, as well as the endurance of the angler. Live bait fishing over these spots is generally one of the best way to get them hitting.
From the looks of it, the fishing action is fixing to bust loose in over the next few weeks. Remember, if you’re too busy to go fishin, you’re just too busy. Get out and go fishin cuz’ it’s good fer ya!
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