Happy fishing! Check out this weekend's Big Bend fishing report
Sharks.
They’re everywhere.
Remember the movie Jaws? I was 13 when I first saw it at the indoor theater.
Living in Chicago and seeing the movie, most likely doesn’t have the same effect as actually living on or in a coastal region. East, South and West of our country is encompassed by saltwater, home to the shark.
Here in the Gulf of Mexico, various species of shark share our waters. Black tip, Mako, Bull, Thresher, Hammerhead, Sandbar, Tiger and even a Great White now and then will make an appearance.
Florida has lead the nation in unprovoked shark attacks for years. Most every fisherman or women has encountered a shark at some point. From the shallows to extreme depths offshore, their number 1 reason to live is food.
Remember when Richard Dreyfuss describes sharks as a perfect engine, an eating machine. “All this machine does is swim, eat and make little sharks.”
Sharks have been getting bad publicity of late and for good reason. The latest tragic shark attack occurred in neighboring waters to the East. 5’ of water, 9’ shark, girls and boys, moms and dads, kicking, swimming, scalloping. All these water activities draw the attention of sharks.
The “Tax Man”. Labeled with this moniker, sharks routinely feed where we fish. Time after time reports of “the big one” being eaten by a shark while reeling in. I’m referring to reef or bottom fishermen. Seems shark leave the smaller snapper and grouper alone. But bring in that 30 incher and many times your rod goes limp and all you reel in is a head.
This year alone, in just three trips offshore we’ve lost fish then hooked Black tip, Lemon and Sandbar sharks over 150 pounds. Even had an estimated 10’ Tiger shark circle the boat while fighting fish.
Inshore is no different. Sharks love redfish, trout and of course pin fish or bait in general. It’s no surprise to hook up and catch a small spinner or bonnet head. Even a smaller 4’ or 5’ Bull can do some serious damage to your fish, equipment or worst, your body. Be alert and try never to be in the water alone.
It’s their home. Their environment. We’re just visitors. They’re fast, stealthy, thick skinned and full of teeth. Best advice if you witness or see a shark is to stay out of the water.
Believe it or not there is a bigger threat on area waterways. No matter if it’s fresh or saltwater. It’s scientific name is Homo sapien, and they’re everywhere.
They come in all shapes, sizes and colors. Tall, short, large or small. They swim, they can run on land, even drive boats. Yes, it’s us.
This past weekend was a busy one for sure. Opening weekend for scallops, extended holiday weekend. (Who scheduled that). Area waterways and roads were busy busy to say the least. When it gets this congested, accidents are more prone to happen.
While running in from offshore July 4th, we saw a boat quickly approaching from the East. We slowed, he turned into the river channel and that’s where he made his mistake. There was no channel.
Sandbars, oyster bars and rocks line both sides of most river channels leading to the Gulf. St Marks is no different. It’s of the utmost importance to stay between the lines. Just like you were taught in 1st grade when painting. Although the lines aren’t clearly marked like a notebook, the great big Green and Red channel markers are there to guide you safely to and from.
On this particular day the boat in question DID make it back. The look on his face right before he jumped a sandbar told me he probably made a quick trip to the bathroom as soon as he reached the boat ramp to clean up.
Please be careful when navigating coastal or any waterway for that matter. The life you save may be your own!
APALACHEE BAY
Otto Hough (facebook@myhometownfishing) says, ”Summertime air temps in the upper 90s with triple digit heat indices these past two weeks or so have the Gulf water temps tickling the 90 degree mark. Hot! High tides over this three day stretch will be happening late morning accompanied by major solunar feed periods over the last few hours of the rise. This time of year, get after the fish as early as possible, while stayed hydrated. Tidal flows are beginning to increase moving towards the full moon late next week. Don't let the dehydration bear ruin an otherwise fun fishing trip. Stay hydrated with water, Powerade or Gatorade, but stay fully hydrated.
"Given the bathtub water temps, the trout and reds have been actively feeding early in the skinny waters on topwater offerings at safelight up until eight o'clock or so before the midmorning sun heats it up. Both species have found the bone patterned One Knockers, Skitterwalks, Super Spooks and Top Dogs to their liking. If kayaking, expect to have lots of fun in close using the topwater approach early.
"Then, when that sun gets up around midmorning, the bite has been shifting into spotty bottom waters in the six to eight foot range. Softbaits offerings worked down in the water column have been garnering attention. If drift fishing, try floating a lively pinfish a couple of feet under an Equalizer or Cajun Thunder on a 2/0 circle hook. Don't be surprised if a cruising cobia happens to take the offering. A few fine 40 inchers made some anglers happy this past week on pinfish.
"For the scallopers, while the scallops haven't been overly prolific in numbers at the start of the season, harvesters are successfully limiting out with a little more dive time. It does appear that more and more scallops are slowly migrating inside to traditional areas prior to the bivalves September spawning period . Remember, that dive flag needs to be up when there are scallopers in the water out of your vessel.
"Outside, anglers targeting gags and snapper have been finding success with live bait offerings over hard, live bottom in 60 to 90 feet of water. Cut bait is working well for snappers. As always, wear an auto-inflatable PFD when motoring on Big Pond. Boat safely, just FISH!"
ST GEORGE ISLAND
Captain Russ Knapp (850-653-5072) reports, “OK gang -- the weekly weather guess/forecast doesn't look too bad as of Wednesday afternoon with SW winds at 10 to 15 knots on Saturday and seas running 2 feet while Sunday's forecast has winds 10 to 15 knots from the West and seas ramping up a bit to 2 to 3 feet. It's going to be hot and the heat can cause squalls to form up out of nowhere so be sure to pay attention and have a plan before the squall is on top of you. The tides this weekend at the Cut offer a midmorning high of 1.8 feet and a late afternoon low of - 0.1 which is a big height change for SGI and will cause a strong out going flow.
"In the bay, Capt. Dan Fortunas (850-980-0101) reports fishing has picked up a bit this week with a good Redfish bite in the Cut , Speckled Trout hungry on the flats early and late and some nice Flounder lurking around the bridge pilings. Capt. Dan is fishing finger Mullet on a circle hook for the Redfish, Gulps or DOA's under a popping cork in 4 feet of water for the Trout and shrimp or cut bait on the bottom for the Flounder. If you have kids on board, try fishing finger Mullet or fresh Shrimp on a #1 circle hook in about 8 feet of water behind the islands for some large Sail Cats which will give them a great fight they won't forget. There's a lot of baitfish in the bay right now so bring your cast net along if you like to fish with live bait.
"Offshore, both Capt. Clint Taylor (850-370-6631) who fishes in Federal Waters and Capt. Jeremy Willoughby (850-323-0769) who fishes State Waters have been catching limits of nice Red Snapper on every most every trip. Live bait has been working the best so be sure to bring some Sabiki rigs and tip them with a tiny bit of squid. Capt. Clint suggests trolling between spots and putting out a flat line whenever stopped as the Mahi and Tuna bite is getting better every day.
"Tip of the week: Things are getting close to out of hand in and around the Cut , between the large number of boats fishing and the boats running though at flank speed something bad is going to happen. I suggest avoid the area if you can and if not be extra careful at all times and plan on get waked with large waves from other boaters that are frankly clueless about driving a boat and or simply don't care. I normally don't put things like this in my report but this morning Capt. Jeremy, Capt. Krista and myself witnessed an unsafe at best situation so please be safe at all times. REMEMBER, It is illegal to anchor in an active channel."
MEXICO BEACH
Capt. Kevin Lanier of KC Sportfishing Mexico Beach (850-933-8804) reports, "We are in the last week of June and Red Snapper fishing is in full swing. The bite has been very good most days with a few slow ones mixed in. The best fishing has been outside of 30 miles offshore in the natural hard bottom areas. Most quality Depth Sounder will show you hard bottom if you know what to look for. Especially those who are running the 1kw transducers.
"If you watch your screen as you run out, you will notice a color change from a yellow to a deep red. The deeper the red color the denser the bottom. Once you arrive on your spot and drop your gear, you should feel a thud that will indicate a rocky bottom. Investing in good gear makes a big difference. It does not have to be the most expensive but, it should be quality gear.
"Snapper are biting everything you drop. Groupers are mainly hitting live bait. King Mackerel have showed up in force. Most of our Kings have come on our flat lines 50 to 100 feet away from the boat. Mahi Mahi are here as well. The panhandle is not known for big Mahi but, there are plenty of fish sandwich sized ones out there. When you see Mahi around the boat throw out some chum to hold them and toss bait or spoons to catch them This week looks like good conditions offshore so grab the opportunity to get out there. Be safe and Good Fishing."
LAKE SEMINOLE
Capt. Paul Tyre reports, “Lake Seminole is 1-foot below full pool and the water temperature is in the upper 80s. The Flint and Chattahoochee River arms of the lake have a slight stain while Spring Creek remains clear. The Bass have been biting Topwater lures in the mornings and afternoons. Heddon Zara Spooks and Buzzbaits have generated some explosive strikes on the grass lines on the main lake.
"The Crappie continue to move into their summer areas and can be caught in 15 to 20 feet of water on jigs and minnows and is a great way to introduce kids to fishing. The Topwater action has been exciting and we expect it to continue through August, especially early and late. To combat the South Georgia Summer heat, we offer morning and evening trips!
" As the grass gets thicker in July the hollow belly frog becomes my go to topwater bait in July I prefer the Spro Bronzeye Popping Frog, it has a double heavyweight Gamakatsu hook that is extremely sharp and heavy enough to get the big Bass out of the grass! I like to fish the Frog over the grass and through holes in the grass. Rod, line and reel choices are very important with this technique! A high-speed reel is a must, at least 8:3.1, and a heavy Braided line I prefer is 65lb Cortland Master Braid on a 7’3” XH Temple Fork Outfitters Tactical Bass Rod. This rod has a fast tip and has the backbone to get the biggest Bass out of the grass!
"The Flipping bite starts heating up in July as the grass is getting thicker. Rod choice is critical when flipping big Bass out of the Grass my go to rod is a TFO Tactical 8’ extra heavy moderate action rod that has the backbone to get the biggest Bass out if the thick Hydrilla. Line is critical and braided line is a must, I prefer 65lb Cortland Silent Flip braid it is a 16 strand that is very quiet going through the vegetation which will get you more bites! For a Lake Seminole Fishing Adventure give me a call to check availability at 850-264-7534 , follow us on Instagram @ Capt.paultyrefishing or email me @ paultyrefishing@yahoo.com."
FRESHWATER
With the intense heat this past week, the bite on Lake Iamonia has been an early one up into late midmorning before the bass have been shutting down with only a few active by midday. Working the Magnum Speedvibes or the Z-man TRDz or Zoom Horny Toads over the fringes of the pads in depths of 5 to 7 feet has been eliciting lots of quality blowups from bass in the 14 to 18 inch range. Remember, only one bass over 16 inches per angler in the boat.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Happy fishing! Check out this weekend's Big Bend fishing report
