Fishing Report Tampa Bay

Fishing Report Tampa Bay #florida (Jan. 17)2014

1  At Big Pier 60 in Clearwater, winter fare of whiting, silver trout, sheepshead, Spanish mackerel and flounder before the cold fronts, reports Kelly Dacey. Water temperature 57.7 at 2 p.m. Thursday, up 3 degrees from last week.


2  At Madeira Beach, three cold fronts in quick succession have kept boats docked. Key West grunts are the most consistent catch, not exactly enough to warrant a trip. Spanish mackerel have "seriously thinned out,'' reports Hubbard's Marina (727-393-1947).

3 At John's Pass, sheepshead are taking over the docks and pilings around the pass. Mark Freed, a mate at Hubbard's Marina, and Charles Eulitt caught 20 sheepshead in two hours on shrimp pieces and clam strips. Some big black drum also under docks. Silver trout just off beaches in 12-18 feet bouncing white tandem Luv Lures off bottom.

4 At Fort DeSoto Park, lot of blown-out days this week, but some trout and flounder on the flats along with scattered redfish, mostly on shrimp or artificial s.

5  Around the Sunshine Skyway and lower Tampa Bay, Capt. Shawn Crawford of Lakeland (941-747-3856) went out Thursday under cold-front conditions and winds up to 25-30 mph, managing eight sheepshead 12-16 inches and five trout 16-18 inches on live shrimp around residential canals and docks that have ledges or grass nearby. Crawford said the water was chalky on an incoming tide, limiting places to fish. Tough fishing with succession of cold fronts. Next warm-up or mild trend will see improvement.

6  At Anna Maria, tossing live shrimp under docks in protected areas of Sarasota Bay for sheepshead, trout and smaller redfish has been about the only option. Capt. Shawn Crawford said this week's cold front should stack redfish and sheepshead in residential canals, along with snook. Sheepshead off the city pier when the water's clear.

7  At St. Petersburg, nice flounder and trout on the front side of Weedon Island on good days, along with slot redfish on topwater plugs when it's not too windy, reports Capt. Jason Lineberger of Tampa (813-363-9474). Lineberger said you can catch a cooler full of silver trout at the Weedon Island power plant if you're meat fishing. Trout and sheepshead pretty consistent around downtown Tampa, Gandy Bridge area and old Port of Tampa. Bay temperature 58-59 degrees early.

8  In the north end of Tampa Bay, fly fishermen casting to nice redfish 22-26 inches on low tides on skinny flats north of Courtney Campbell when it's reasonably calm, reports Capt. Jason Lineberger.

Elsewhere


 At Fort Pierce, quite a sailfish run under way out of the inlet and down to Palm Beach, reports Capt. Adam White at the Fishing Center of St. Lucie (772-465-7637). There were 264 sailfish released by 16 boats over four days trolling ballyhoo in 80-130 feet southeast of inlet in the Pelican Yacht Club tournament last week, with boats picking up a few scattered dolphin 5-15 pounds. There were 200 sailfish releases by 38 boats in the Silver Sailfish Derby out of Palm Beach last week. Of course, it takes boats 50-foot-plus to handle seas 4-6 feet. Mangrove snapper biting good leading up to full moon in 70-110 feet on Northeast Grounds, with a bunch 3-9 pounds Monday night on frozen cigar minnows or sardines. Spanish mackerel thick at Peck's Lake, with four-person limits in one hour on Don's Potbelly Jigs (green lead-head with mylar tail). Inshore, a 49-inch black drum Saturday night under South Bridge on live shrimp. Slot black drum and sheepshead under bridges. Scattered bluefish. Pompano run in surf hasn't happened yet, just 1-2 fish at best. Trout pretty slow on flats in river. Scattered redfish under docks on shrimp or cut ladyfish on jig-heads.

On the Space Coast, Capt. Keith Mixon of Lakeland (www.mixinworkwithplay.com) reports steady action for a variety of species. Nice-sized black drum up to 22 inches feeding on live shrimp or cut bait off bottom in mornings along channel drop-offs of residential canals in the Banana River and Haulover Canal north of Titusville. Trout averaging 16 inches and up to 21 inches throughout region on live shrimp or scented jerkbaits rigged under popping corks along flats in 3-5 feet where there are steep drop-offs. At Port Canaveral, mangrove snapper up to 14 inches can't resist live shrimp cast tight to structure and jetties. Mixon finding some cobia along the Canaveral buoy line and the beach sight-casting live shrimp, pinfish or brightly colored jigs at midday under bright sun and calm conditions.

 At Sebastian Inlet, winter fishing good for anglers who like to eat their catch. Keeper redfish reliable off north jetty, along with nice fat sheepshead up to 5-6 pounds and slot black drum (14-24 inches) 5-10 pounds, reports Steve Parsons at Wabasso Bait and Tackle (772-581-3474). Fishermen laying low Wednesday and Thursday, but fishing's solid in the inlet. Flounder 6-7 pounds coming in pretty regularly, but no doormats yet. Pompano finally starting to get better by the day, and this cold front should perk things up more. Bucketfuls of whiting on beaches. Sheepshead also good at Wabasso Causeway under catwalks on fiddler crabs or sand fleas.