Tampa Bay Area Fishing this time of year.

[Tampa Mariner]

Newbie fisherman Here - Looking for advice on good places this time of year heading out of John's Pass. Tarpon, trout, bottom fishing, etc.

What's bitting and what are they eating?

Thanks

[Prop Blast]

Recommend you visit the Florida Sportsman Magazine forum for the best info. There is a "sub-forum" for each region -- west/central is what you want.

http://www.floridasportsman.com

Tightlines,

PB

[CaptainRob]

Tampa Mariner, check the areas around Ft. Desoto and up a little north from you in Boca Ciega Bay. Both should be holding nice numbers of snook, reds and trout. Not sure how large of a boat you have but just drift the flats with some whitebait till you find some fish holding in an area....anchor down and catch them up. Also, you could try some of the local passes, johns pass, bunces pass, etc....they are all holding big snook and tarpon this time of year....drift the pass with pass crabs for tarpon or greenbacks for snook. Hope this helps.....Captain Rob

[Tampa Mariner]

Thanks Pro Blast. I'll check it out

[Tampa Mariner]

Sorry for the typo - I meant Prop Blast

[Tampa Mariner]

CaptainRob -

Thanks for the advice. I've got a 22 deep v so it's not exactly a flats boat but i'll definitely try the passes.

Thanks again

[Capt. Tommy Z.]

What type of fishing do you want to do? Inshore or offshore? Also, what kind and size boat do you have? Deep "V"", bayboat, flats, etc..? A little more info and I can point you in the right direction.

[Tampa Mariner]

Capt. Z -

I have a 21.6' Robalo Deep V. I am actually looking at doing some inshore and offshore. I'll be fishing 2 1/2 days next week with a friend of mine who's coming in town from Kansas City. Thanks in advance.

[TheRealMacGyver]

It's not really my style to say negative things about other people, however, I want to share this with you just so you don't get caught in the mess I'm in. There is a local site in Tampa that is called bitetracker.com and it is run by a guy named Nick Stubbs. I thought the site would be helpful, so I joined for one month. That was last August and I've been trying to get him to stop billing me since. He won't return emails or anything. My credit card company has been trying to resolve this since January, and they don't seem to be getting anywhere either. Anyhow, just in case any of you were thinking of joining, you've been warned.

[Tampa Mariner]

TheRealMacGyver - thanks for the heads-up. Fortunately I have not come across that on yet.

[TheRealMacGyver]

Tampa Mariner do you have a GPS? If so, I might be able to PM you a number or two. There are some decent structures you could bottom fish on, then move back in to do the passes. You could troll on the way out/back or both too. I would think that since your friend is coming from KC, he'll (she'll) have a great time just getting out on the water no matter what you catch.

[Retriever.]

Watch Hooked on fishing on channel (47 CATCH) and Florida Fishing Report on channel (31 SUNB) Brighthouse network Cable. Florida Fishing Report is my favorite. Good Luck

[Tampa Mariner]

I do have gps - If you don't mind sending me a number or two, that would be greatly appreciated. How far offshore are they?

You are right - this guy is really looking forward to the trip.

Thanks again!!

[787337]

This time of year you should be able to catch tarpon, shark, spanish mackerel, and mangrove snapper in the bay. Look for the fish crashing the surface for the macks, The bridges and passes have tarpon when the tide is moving, structure will help you find the snapper, and sharks should be everywhere, just freeline some bait and wait. White bait & greenbacks will work for all four but shrimp will do better on the snapper. We also troll small spoons for the mackerel. Bottom fishing for grouper & snapper will be waaaay offshore this time of year. More than 100ft (30+ miles) Look for that action to get closer from Sept- April. I don't do too much fishing this time of year because it is so hot. When we do we'll typically head out around 5 pm and fish until after dark to beat the heat. A better option is to do some scalloping. Heading out on Saturday for that.

[Prop Blast]

If you're looking for a "layout" of structure and fishing spots here in West Central FL, you want to buy a chart of the area. There are two I recommend:

1. Waterproofcharts fishing chart #155F. This chart covers ALL of west central FL, from north of Tarpon Springs to Ft Myers. It includes Lat/Lon and TDs for many of the popular fishing spots off the coast, as well as the "pipeline".

2. Hot Spot Maps. For this, you want the "Gulf of Mexico" chart. Not only does it have the Lat/Lon for spots, but it has the heading and distance to key locations.

Not sure where you are specificall located, but suggest you visit one of our local tackle shops, like Tightlines Tackle at the corner of Armenia and Sligh Ave in Tampa or T.A. Mahoney's on SR 60/Adamo Drive and pick the charts up. Well worth the $.

Good luck,

PB