Two tosses of my cast net was all that was needed this morning. Several hundred baits (still smallish) and a dozen pinfish filled my live well. Gathering bait in 15 minutes is a real pleasure anytime but especially during the heat of August.
I started the day searching for redfish around Tarpon Key on the early high outgoing tide. It was odd as mullet which are always present in huge numbers were missing. No mullet or redfish sent me to look at my live well. All my bait was dead from no oxygen in the hot water. A quick 5 minute run had me back gathering bait. Tip stay away from shallow areas with little water movement with water temps at 90.
Sticking to deeper grass flats the action was fast and furious. Bait after bait was attacked by small trout and ladyfish. It was common to have several fish following the hooked fish to the boat. The Ladyfish were large and made lots of twisting jumps. Switching to DOA's Deadly Combo worked just as well and did not require rebating.
We were set up in 6' on lush grass flats adjacent to 2-3' on one side and 8-10 on the other side. We had a large school of Jack Creavelle start busting bait all around the boat. Within seconds drags were screaming from powerful Jacks 3-5 pounds. To keep things interesting I would toss handfuls of live chum baits every 15 minutes or so. While in the stern I saw a large shadow near the bow. Moments later a rod up front doubled and the Quantum Cabo reel started to scream. 100 yards of line peeled off in seconds then a 4-5' Spinner shark exploded 3' into the air and breaking the line. It was an awesome sight watching this fish run over shallow water.
Captain Steven Markovich
