Fish Logs

With water temps finally getting normal for the time of year, things are starting to line up. Vance Tice of Tightlines Tackle, generally known as the Tampa Bay trolling Guru says water temp is ideal for the Grouper trolling bite but the fish are not yet responding. The bite has been steady but not spectacular or nearly as good as it should be. He expects them to turn on and go crazy any day now! Capt. Billy reports that he enjoyed a decent Snook bite this past week and also a very good offshore bite. Lots of keeper Grouper pushing into 40 to 50 feet of water. Live pinfish, cut squid and frozen sardines all worked well. Steady Redfish and Trout action also being reported down around the Fort DeSoto flats. Artificial lures work best this time of year as they give you the ability to cover a lot of water in a short period of time and locate concentrations of fish. Work the deeper edges on low water just at the beginning of the incoming tide as this really seems to be the best bite. My favorite plastics are all working well with a new one poking its head in here this week. The Blurp Shad in rootbeer by Bass Assassin was this week’s bait of choice. Fished on a 1/8 ounce chartreuse jig head and worked very slowly, the fish really seemed to key in on it. Slow is the key with your artificial this time of year so be patient and take your time. You have to get the bait down to wear the fish are. It’s a good time to take the family fishing, it’s not to hot and things are starting to get right.