The tarpon action is at its peak right now for Tampa Bay area anglers
Fish of the Week
Tarpon: The tarpon action is at its peak right now for Tampa Bay area anglers. Tarpon are biting from upper Tampa Bay, south to the Skyway and out on the beaches.
Strike Zone, 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 Elsewhere
1: At Big Pier 60 in Clearwater, a 150-pound class tarpon was hooked from the pier over the weekend. Spanish mackerel have been steady catches most days again this week. Decent numbers of mangrove snapper, speckled trout and a few sheepshead are also biting. A cobia was also caught on Monday, reports Big Pier 60 Bait & Tackle (727-462-6466).
2: At Madeira Beach, nearshore there’s a handful of hogfish here and there. There’s a decent bite for red grouper, along with mangrove and lane snapper. Gulf gag grouper season and Federal for hire red snapper season opened on June 1 and we had boat limit of both fish the first day. Both are spotty in shallow water and action really picks up starting at about 120 foot. “Pelagic action is also good and we had three sailfish caught this week,” reports Capt. Dylan Hubbard of Hubbard’s Marina (727-393-1947).
3: At John's Pass, snook are stacked up in the pass and around the docks. They’re also moving out onto the nearby beaches. Mangrove snapper are also thick in the pass around structure and few sheepshead are still around the docks. Trout are biting at night around the lights. Pompano, whiting and a few snook are being caught from the jetty, reports Hubbard.
4: At Fort De Soto Park, the water is gin clear around the marina and you can see some big female snook, schooling with smaller males preparing for the spawn. Good size mangrove snapper and a few sheepshead are biting along the sea wall and at the new jetty. Tarpon are still thick under the bridge, along with crabs on the outgoing tides. The surrounding flats, especially around Tarpon and Conception keys are good for redfish and a few trout. The bridge by the boat ramp is producing pompano. Snook are running the beach and holding in the rocks at the Gulf Pier. Snapper, sheepshead, whiting and sharks are being caught from the pier. Bunces Pass is producing snook, pompano, whiting, some tarpon and sharks, reports Capt. Claude Hinson at Tierra Verde Bait and Tackle (727-864-2108).
5: Around the Sunshine Skyway and lower Tampa Bay, tarpon and all the bait you could want are around the main span of the Skyway and also out from the south pier. Tarpon are also on the beaches and up in the bay. Mangrove snapper are also thick around the bridge, the bay reefs and other structure in the area. Snook fishing is very good and many of the fish are moving to the beaches around the passes. Trout have been holding inside the passes over deep grass in 4 to 8 feet of water. Deeper grass ledges and potholes on the lower tides are producing the best numbers, reports Capt. Shawn Crawford of Florida Sport Fishing Outfitters (941-705-3160).
6: At Anna Maria, tarpon fishing remains good along the beach and getting better each day from Bean Point south to Longboat Pass. Snook fishing in Perico Bay and around the Seven Pines area. The redfish bite is pretty good Bimini Bay and the canals around Key Royale. Decent numbers of mangrove snapper are biting around Longboat Pass, structure in the area and the bridges, reports Crawford.
7: At St. Petersburg, there’s lots of tarpon from the Gandy Bridge south to the Skyway and Egmont Key. Good numbers of tarpon are also in Tierra Verde and on the beaches. Cobia and Spanish mackerel are on the markers and range towers in the bay that are holding bait. Mangrove snapper and a few gag grouper are biting along the channel and on the reefs in the bay. Snapper are also biting around the Skyway. Snook are loaded up at Weedon Island right now. Redfish action is good in the residential canals, off Pinellas Point, and on the oyster bars around Tierra Verde and Fort De Soto Park, reports Larry Mastry at Mastry’s Tackle (727-896-8889).
8: In the north end of Tampa Bay, tarpon are all over the bridges at night and in the deeper channels during the day. Cobia are biting on the markers and deeper edges of the flats. The mangrove snapper bite is good around the bridges as far north as the Frankland. Snapper are also biting along the channels and the reefs in the bay. Both the Picnic Island and Legion flats have a good bite for trout up to 20 inches on artificials. Snook and redfish are roaming the mangrove shorelines on the high tides. Weedon Island has been especially good, reports Gandy Bait & Tackle (813-839-5551).
Elsewhere
• At Boca Grande, the tarpon bite is slow right now on the beaches because of the new moon phase and the bite is tough during the day. Most of the tarpon are bunched up in the passes. There’s good numbers of fish in the pass and there’s a great crab flush on the outgoing tides, reports Capt. Greg Penix of Lakeland (863-860-2502).
• At Fort Pierce, mahi up to 15 pounds have been caught on the troll offshore at depth of 100 to 200 feet. Good numbers of sailfish are biting to the south around Stuart. A 50-pound class kingfish was also caught out of the inlet this week. The bottom bite is slower with cooler water that moved in. There’s just a few mangrove and mutton snapper being caught. At the inlet, a few mangrove snapper are biting from the jetty. Snook are decent inside the inlet on live bait during day, but anglers should note, the Atlantic snook season closed June 1. Whiting and scattered pompano are biting in the surf. Some pompano are also biting from thenjetty on Doc’s Jigs. Some mangrove and small mutton snapper are biting around the bridges and also at the Melody Lane Pier. 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: The tarpon action is at its peak right now for Tampa Bay area anglers
