Tampa Bay's outstanding snook action has been placed on hold as water temperatures plummeted 10 degrees from last week's cold fronts. At On The Mark Charters we pride ourselves on versatility and the ability to put our clients on fish all season in all types of weather. Sunday was exactly one of those days where we needed to change tactics and score even with the big drop in temperature. We focused on deeper waters off the flats, canals and the Egmont ship channel. The grouper bite in and around the deep ledges has been good, we quickly found grouper eager to attack pinfish at 50'. Pinfish were easily caught using a sabiki rig along the pilings on the Skyway Bridge. Tactic was simple, 3 ounces weight on the main line, a barrel swivel, 3' of 40 pound d fluorocarbon connected to a 5/0 circle hook. Lower the bait till you hit bottom, take out the slack and hang on. The first few seconds of the fight is critical as the grouper will attempt to get back in the structure. With circle hooks remember you do not set the hook, just reel like crazy until you get the fish up 15' from the bottom then you can slow down as the grouper are clear of the bottom structure. If fishing for reef fish even inshore be sure to get familiar with new rules and regulations. Check out www.myfwc.com for the latest. Sheep head were our next target, look for old docks and pilings and there is a good chance you will find this sneaky bait stealer. It's amazing how delicately sheep head hit. A small tap is all you feel, with small mouths down size hooks to size 1 or 2. Shrimp is always a good choice, I prefer using a piece of a fresh shrimp vs. the whole shrimp as you will find you hookup to bite ratio will improve. We found flatfish to 16' in the same areas. Flounder eagerly inhaled live shrimp or small plastics like the DOA shrimp. You have to keep your offering on the bottom, picture a shrimp hoping along the bottom and you get the picture. Everything has slowed down with the colder weather so it's important you present your baits slow. Trout action was ok, while we did find trout we never got into any fast action which often is the case. Once again live shrimp or soft plastic jigs worked slowly on the bottom did the job. Overall our guests from NY had a fun and enjoyable day on the water and loved being in 65 degree weather. The next 48 hours looks like another cold front will spill into the Tampa Bay region then rebound backed into the low 70's or the weekend and mid 70's for early next week. As we approach February look for these weather patterns to continue until Spring.
Capt. Steven
On The mark Charters
