Tampa Bay THANKSGIVING Fishing Report
Tampa Bay fishing has been very good. We had a few slow days on that last little cold spell but it sure didn't last long. The weather is in the low 80's today, hard to beat for the middle of November. Along with low humidity it just doesn't get any nicer around here. I always say that about the fall though. You would think the spring weather would feel the same, but for some reason it just feels a little dryer in the fall. Perhaps that's just because by the time fall gets here I am tired of the hot sticky summer.
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Redfish, again, have been our primary target. It seems they are scattered everywhere. We've had some great action on large schools of Reds. Even spots I have been hitting lately that might be less productive at the moment it seems you will still pull out a few Reds. Most of the Reds have been just over slot to about 25 inches. Yes we are catching a few shorts too and we have also been getting a few large bulls over 30 inches mixed in here and there. It is very typical this time of year to catch a lot of slot fish.
Snook fishing has also been very good with the exception of a few cold days. We have been hammering the Snook. Some of the best days I bet we caught near 40. No giants, but a few in the 30 inch class and all fun on light tackle.
Mixed in while fishing for Snook and Reds we have also been catching some large Spotted Sea Trout, they are out of season for now but come back in January. We just got word that next year there will be no closed Trout season because stocks are up. We have also been getting a lot of Flounder as well mixed in the bunch, a few of which are nice 20 plus inch keepers.
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Offshore grouper have been on fire. Our largest have been just over 30 inches. Mackerel are all over the place as well, still on the beach and near shore reefs. Further out the Amber Jack have been really good, large ones up to 50 pounds as well as their smaller cousin the lesser Amber Jacks which are great for eating. It seems most of the Kings must have gone north, but if it stays warm enough we may pick up a few more. False Albacore are also thick on a lot of the wrecks less than 20 miles out. All in all the fishing has been very good and I look forward to what next week brings.
I also look forward to our up and coming winter season. I think it's going to be really good for Reds and Trout this winter. There are a lot of both around and we do very well on them in the winter. It's easy fishing with lots of action which makes my job fun.
Thanks for checking out my report. I hope you have enjoyed it. See you on the water.
Capt. Matt
941-447-9888
