John Rivers

Lessons in trout fishing in Black Water Bay; Jim, Ryan and Nicholas get an A!

Hit upper Blackwater Bay for some great inshore fishing for trout and to see if we could hook a few reds.

Jim booked me two years ago and was not able to go last year due to the oil spill, so he called me recently, and we set up a trip for some great light tackle action.

The last time he fished with me, we fished Santa Rosa Sound and he had fun catching trout and pompano. This time I wanted to show him a different type of fishery. It was an early start to our day, which was 5:00am so we could be on the spot when the sun came up and the fish were most active.

It was a very nice ride across the bay to our first spot, and when we arrived it sounded like a feeding frenzy was going on; trout busting everywhere and mullet jumping.

I went over a few lessons on how to work the hard plastics and soft plastics we were going to use. It didn't take long to hook a fish, as my anglers were naturals when it came to throwing and working their baits. Ryan was the first to hook, and the second, and the third, until finally Nicholas and Jim were wondering if I gave him a special bait. I laughed and just then Jim hooked up a nice trout that went around 17". Nicholas had a few good strikes, but missed some hookups, but that's fishing. He did manage to hook a nice 18" speck working a suspending twitch bait. Jim and the boys were a pleasure to fish with, especially considering the two boys had been up all night at a bachelor's party and had only gotten about 30 minutes of sleep. I could tell they were getting tired from hooking all the trout and the lack of sleep.

I told them we were going to hit one area where I've seen a few nice reds and then we would call it a day.

We worked the bank looking for any signs of fish, but maybe it was best that we didn't see any, because the boys were about wiped. Maybe next time.

It was a great day on the water; lots of fun big trout on light tackle, and good company.

Till the next adventure…

Winds- Calm

Water Depth

2 - 5 foot

:Lures used:

MirrOlure's & Sebile's

Suspending Twitch Baits & Top-Water Plugs

Reels: Penn Battle 3000 & Penn Conquer 4000

Rods: All Star ASR - 7 ft Med & Fenwick Techna AV - - 7 ft Med

Line: SpiderWire Ultra Braid 10 & 20 lb Braid

Leader Material: 15 –20 lb Berkley Fluorocarbon

Tight Lines.

Capt. John

Fish Species: Trout
Bait Used:
Tackle Used:
Method Used:
Water Depth: 2 -5 Ft
Water Temperature:
Wind Direction:
Wind Speed: Calm
Capt. John & his wife Gina showing off two nice trout
Capt. John & his wife Gina showing off two nice trout

Capt. John with a nice 22
Capt. John with a nice 22


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John Rivers

About The Author: Captain John Rivers

Company: Rivers to Bay Fishing Charters

Area Reporting: Tampa Bay, Clearwater, St Peterburg

Bio: Covering the Tampa Bay, Clearwater and St Petersburg area. Light tackle fishing for Snook, Redfish, Trout and more While cruising from spot to spot in our 24 ft custom Triton bay boat you will be riding in comfort, it has all the amenities. I\'m a veteran fishing guide of 18 years and you\'ll be in good hands. Thanks for stopping by. Tight Lines... John

727-313-1781
Click Here For Past Fishing Reports by Captain John Rivers