SALTWATER: Snook fishing is very good around the Tampa Bay area

Fish of the Week

Snook: Snook fishing is very good around the Tampa Bay area and locations elsewhere. Many of the fish are post spawn and feeding aggressively.

Strike Zone, 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, Elsewhere

1: At Big Pier 60 in Clearwater, Spanish mackerel are biting every day. A few tarpon have been caught again this week ,along with snapper, both mangrove and lane, speckled trout, black seabass, grunts and whiting. A 30-inch redfish was also caught by one of the regulars over the weekend, reports Big Pier 60 Bait & Tackle (727-462-6466).

2: At Madeira Beach, nearshore there’s plenty of mangrove and lane snapper, along with grunts and porgies. There’s still a good bite for hog snapper around the 60-foot mark. Big mangrove snapper are biting around a depth of 100 feet. Deeper offshore, the American red snapper bite is excellent. Big grouper including gags, reds and scamp are also biting, reports Andrew Schleissing at Gulf Coast Bait and Tackle (727-343-4181).

3: At John's Pass, both snook and mangrove snapper are all over the pass and around the jetty. A few redfish are biting on the bottom around the docks. There’s also a good redfish bite inside around Veteran’s Park. Despite the hot weather, there’s still some sheepshead being caught around the pass. Snook and tarpon are running the beaches. Spanish mackerel and whiting are being caught from the jetty and the nearby beaches. Mackerel are also biting at the Gulfport Pier, reports Schleissing.

4: At Fort De Soto Park, the marina and the seawall are producing mangrove snapper and sheepshead. A few snook are around, but they’re mostly in the passes and along the beaches. There’s still tarpon under the bridge, but the bite is slowing. The area flats are producing trout, but nothing real big. There’s a good redfish bite, especially around Jackass Key, on small pinfish and cut bait on the bottom. The boat ramp area inside the park is good for snapper and snook. The Gulf Pier is producing snapper, sheepshead, jacks and snook in the rocks and along the beach. Big female snook are running the beach and taking pinfish and a variety of artificial baits. Bunces Pass is producing a lot of snook, some tarpon, Spanish mackerel, sharks, jacks and some flounder on the edges. The Pass-a-Grille jetty is producing snook and mangrove snapper, reports Capt. Claude Hinson at Tierra Verde Bait and Tackle (727-864-2108).

5: Around the Sunshine Skyway and lower Tampa Bay, tarpon fishing remains good throughout lower Tampa Bay. There’s still good numbers of fish to the south that have yet to come this way, so tarpon fishing should remain good for a few more weeks. A majority of the snook have spawned and are making their way back into the bay. The passes should be a good location to catch the big spawners that are moving back inside. Both mangrove snapper and gag grouper fishing is good inside the bay. Some small schools of permit are hanging around both Egmont and Passage key, but the fish are very spooky with the gin, clear water, reports Capt. John Gunter of Palmetto (863-838-5096).

6: At Anna Maria, “I’m seeing tarpon around every bridge, including Manatee Avenue, the Cortez, Longboat Key and some of the smaller bridges in the bay,” reports Capt. Shawn Crawford of Florida Sport Fishing Outfitters. (941-705-3160). Tarpon are also cruising the beaches of Anna Maria and there’s still a few snook on the beach. Snook are also inside along the shorelines of Seven Pines, Perico Bayou and Palma Sola Bay. Good numbers of trout and redfish are also biting in those locations. Mangrove snapper are also biting at the bridges, on most structure and around Longboat Pass, reports Crawford.

7: At St. Petersburg, a good amount of tarpon are around Egmont Key and the Skyway on the afternoon tides. Crabs and greenbacks are producing good action. The beaches are still producing a few tarpon, but not as many. Quite a few tarpon are also up in the bay around Port Manatee and the bridges as far north as the Frankland. Some cobia are on the deeper flats off the St. Pete Pier. The mangrove snapper and gag grouper bite is good along the channel and on the bay reefs. Redfish action is good on the oyster bars from Pinellas Point to the Misner Bridge. Trout action is also good on the deeper grass flats off the point and snook are biting around the docks there. Weedon Island is also producing a good snook bite, reports Mastry

8: In the north end of Tampa Bay, the tarpon bite is pretty good and there’s good crab flushes around the bridge. The snook bite is good around the bridges and along the sandy beaches. Mangrove snapper are biting around the bridge and any area with structure. Spanish mackerel are biting up by the Gandy, but the bigger macks are biting to the south by the Skyway. A few cobia are biting on the west side flats south to the St. Pete Pier. There’s a school of redfish roaming around Weedon Island. The causeway area and Cypress Beach in the upper bay are also good for redfish. A few tripletail have been caught on the markers and buoys with shrimp under a float, reports Gandy Bait.

Elsewhere

• At Boca Grande, there’s plenty of tarpon around and also plenty of sharks. The concentration of big sharks in the pass has pushed most of the tarpon out onto the beaches, both north and south of the pass. The tarpon bite is still good though, we hooked three on Wednesday. There’s also plenty of crabs still flushing. Flats fishing inside is good for trout up to 24 inches along with a few snook. There’s also plenty of Spanish mackerel and some mangrove snapper. More mangrove snapper have moved in around structure in the pass and the trestle, reports Capt. Greg Penix of Lakeland (863-860-2502).

• At Fort Pierce, offshore there’s some sailfish to the south at the 80 to 200-foot mark. Both freelined baits and trolling ballyhoo are producing. There’s also mahi up top on the 80-foot bar, along with plenty of kingfish. On the bottom, it’s mostly mangrove snapper, but a few muttons are also in the mix, including a 16 pounder caught this week. The triggerfish bite is also good and an occasional cobia is also in the mix. At the inlet, whiting and a few pompano are biting in the surf. Snook, snapper and sheepshead are biting from the jetty. Inside around the bridges, snook along with snapper, including mangrove, lane and the occasional keeper mutton are biting, reports Clint Walker at the Fishing Center of St. Lucie (772-465-7637).

Compiled By Michael Wilson / Ledger Correspondent

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: SALTWATER: Snook fishing is very good around the Tampa Bay area