Sarasota Florida Fishing Report
By Capt. Bob Smith
The offshore waters have been inundated with red snapper for the past month! Look for them around most of the deep artificial reefs and good bottom. Light tackle with a small jig and tipped with shrimp has worked very well. Keeper size red grouper are hitting good in a hundred feet of water or better. Live pinfish or grunts fished on the bottom will do the job.
Inshore fishing has been good with a mixed bag of fish coming in. Large spotted sea trout is the most abundant species on the grass-flats. Along with the trout we are catching pompano, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, snapper, flounder and much more. Around the docks and bridges it has been redfish, snook, large jacks, snapper, sheepshead, and occasional tarpon.
Live bait will work but is very hard to keep on your hook with all the pinfish and other small fish attacking it. I do very well wit the DOA 3" Near Clear Shrimp, #312. This artificial works so well that my only problem with it is that the fish like to swallow it. Then it can be hard to get the hook out of the fish. The DOA is so easy to use that just drifting the flats with my rods in the rod holders can produce fish. Some times you need that on a guide boat.
Enjoy & Protect
My Website: http//www.sarasota-fla-fishing.com