Saltwater: The tripletail tail bite is good around the bay area

FISH OF THE WEEK

Tripletail: The tripletail tail bite is good right now. A number of spots around the bay area and elsewhere are reporting good catches.

Strike Zone, 5, 6, 7, 8, Elsewhere

1: At Big Pier 60 in Clearwater, fishing has been a bit slower this past week. Mangrove snapper have been the most consistent catches. A few snook, redfish and speckled trout along with the usual jacks and ladyfish have also been caught, reports Big Pier 60 Bait & Tackle (727-462-6466).

2: At Madeira Beach, the hogfish bite is “soft,” but there’s a few biting around the 40-foot mark. Good size lane and mangrove snapper along with a few keeper size red grouper are biting starting at the 60-foot mark, reports Capt. Dylan Hubbard of Hubbard’s Marina (727-393-1947).

3: At John's Pass, there’s a lot of snook in the pass and the bite is best at night and at first light. It’s tough to get them to “chew” during the day. There’s still a few sheepshead around the bridge and the docks. The mangrove snapper are thick and they’re biting around most structure and also out at the jetty. Spanish mackerel are also biting from the jetty along with a few pompano. Whiting are being caught in the surf, reports Hubbard.

4: At Fort De Soto Park, big mangrove snapper are biting around the docks and the marina area. There also sheepshead and some snook. A few cobia are in the area of the bridge. Pompano started biting around the bridges and a lot of Doc’s Goofy Jigs have been baught at the shop. There’s a good trout, redfish and some snook biting on the area flats. Jackass Key has been especially good. There’s also lots of baitfish on the flats. Flounder are biting under the mangroves by the campground. The pier has been producing Spanish mackerel, snapper, sheepshead, whiting and sharks. Snook have moved into the pass and the inside mangrove lines, reports Capt. Claude Hinson at Tierra Verde Bait and Tackle (727-864-2108).

5: Around the Sunshine Skyway and lower Tampa Bay, “the big topic this week are the tripletail. I’ve been fishing the bay for 25 plus years and have never seen as many as there are around right now. Just about any structure is holding them, even floating grass,” reports Capt. John Gunter of Palmetto (863-838-5096). Some really nice schools of redfish have shown up along lower Tampa Bay this past week. Schools of reds as small as 10 to 20 fish and as large as 100 or more fish have been seen. Mangrove snapper fishing remains very good and the bite was especially good on this past weekend’s full moon phase. A good number of fish have measured over 20 inches, reports Gunter. Good size mangrove snapper are biting along the channel and around the Skyway Bridge. The reefs in the bay and most structure are also producing a good snapper bite, reports Capt. Shawn Crawford of Florida Sport Fishing Outfitters (941-705-3160.

6: At Anna Maria, some tripletail are biting around markers and buoys. Mangrove snapper are still biting around structure, the bridges, along with nearshore reefs and hard bottom ledges. Snook have moved inside and are running the mangrove shorelines and deeper grass flat edges. A few redfish are biting around the docks and mangroves on the high tides, reports Crawford.

7: At St. Petersburg, more pompano have been caught this week. The bite is spread out in many spots. Bunces Pass, Blind Pass, Pass-a-Grille, the Skyway approach bridges and Lassing Park are all producing pompano. There’s still quite a bit of tarpon at night around the Skyway Bridge. The Bayboro area is producing a decent redfish bite around the docks. Snook and a few trout have been caught on the deeper grass edges. Some keep size black drum are biting in Bunces Pass. Mangrove snapper and gag grouper are still steady on the edge of the channel and the reefs in the bay, reports Larry Mastry at Mastry’s Tackle (727-896-8889).

8: In the north end of Tampa Bay, tripletail are biting on the markers and buoys in the bay. The snook and redfish bite is good on the flats around Cypress Beach and Weedon Island. Redfish are also biting around the causeway, Rocky Creek and the upper bay. Mangrove snapper are still biting around the bridges and most structure in the area. Some pompano are at biting around the bridge. Schools of black drum are still holding at both the Gandy and Frankland bridges. A few Spanish mackerel are biting early in the morning, reports Gandy Bait & Tackle (813-839-5551).

Elsewhere

• At Homosassa, fishing for redfish continues to be the best inshore bet. Live or cut pinfish, free lined on the incoming tide is the best bait. Soft plastics or live shrimp under a popping cork are producing some trout in the rock grass areas around St. Martins Keys and the mouth of the Chassahowitzka River. Some of the deeper markers and buoys are holding tripletail. The nearshore rocks are still producing a good bite for mangrove snapper and white grunts on live shrimp, reports Capt. William Toney of Homosassa Inshore Fishing Charters (352-621-9284).

• At Crystal River, the redfish bite is good on the outside islands. Just follow the mullet schools and they’ll lead you to the redfish. Post spawn snook and mangrove snapper can also be found around the islands. Some of the snapper are pushing 6 inches. Some tripletail are starting to show on the floating grass and debris, reports Capt. Marrio Castello of Tall Tales Charters (352-454-7719).

• At Fort Pierce, offshore there’s been kingfish, some mahi and a few sailfish at the 50 to 80-foot mark. A variety of snapper including lane, mangrove, vermillion and some large mutton are biting on the bottom at 80 foot. At the inlet, the weeds have cleared and there’s a good amount of whiting in the surf. A few pompano have also been caught. Snook are biting live baits in the inlet during the day, but the night bite is slow. Mangrove snapper, along with a few keeper muttons and lanes are biting in the inlet and around the bridges. A few trout have been caught in the river around the docks and deeper water mangroves 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: The tripletail tail bite is good around the bay area