Spotted seatrout and flounder took a big hit during the devastating red tide of 2005. But Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing anglers aren't complaining. Jack Hartman of Sarasota fished Joe Bay on a recent outing and was amazed by the number of seatrout he caught. In just a few hours, more than 150 seatrout to 18 inches were caught and released.
"It was non-stop action," Hartman said. Hartman, who suffers from a shoulder injury, was having difficulty working his 3-inch Gulp Shrimp on a 1/8-ounce jig head toward the end of the morning. So, he just quit trying to give it action. "I just cast it out and let it sit," he said. "And it usually didn't take long before a trout would grab it." Joe Bay is an area off southern Tampa Bay in Manatee County. It has long been known for trout, redfish and snook. The reds and snook haven't been as cooperative as the trout. Still, Hartman's outing produced a trio of snook and a couple of redfish. In addition, he landed three large flounder, which continued a trend of impressive flatfish this summer. The flounder, one of which weighed 3 pounds, were caught while casting jigs into sand holes for trout. Two were taken on Gulp Shrimp on jigs. The largest went for a 5-inch Gulp Shad rigged Texas-style on a weighted Mustad Hook. I use a Magellan Sport Trac GPS aboard the lead kayak. That not only helps me make sure that we get back to the launch, but also helps put clients on fish.
Two of the spots that Hartman fished were well offshore of Joe Island in Tampa Bay over deep grass. There's absolutely no way I could find those spots without the GPS. I took Dennis Susa of Bradenton out on my most recent trip. The plan was to cast topwater plugs early for redfish and snook. Susa hooked a large snook just off the tip of a mangrove island, but lost the fish. It was slow in the backcountry, so we paddled out into Tampa Bay and found trout at each of the spots. The tide was pouring out and baitfish were thick along the edges of the grass.
We anchored just off the grass and tossed Gulp Shrimp on jig heads. The action wasn't nearly as good as it had been a few days earlier. My theory is that there was so much bait that the fish were fat and happy. In addition, the bay was flat calm. Still, we managed to catch and release 35 spotted seatrout to about 17 inches. In addition, we landed a couple of ladyfish. We did encounter a few redfish on a sand bar in front of Joe Island. I like to wade the bar and sight-fish for reds. It didn't take us long to spot our first fish. The red followed Susa's jig for several feet before turning off. Redfish will begin to move into Joe Bay in good numbers in another month.
Snook fishing will pick up, too. There is red tide in southwestern Florida, but it's a patchy outbreak that doesn't appear to be as threatening as 2005's massive bloom. The beauty of kayak fishing is that it's fairly easy to fish away from red tide. I have plenty of spots between Tampa Bay and The Everglades from which to choose. Night snook action has been good on either a strong incoming or outgoing tide. We fish around lighted docks or bridges. Six-weight fly rods are perfect. We use shrimp or baitfish imitations. When the fish are feeding, catches of 20 or more snook are common. In addition to snook, we've taken jack crevalle to 5 pounds and tarpon to 20. The tarpon are pretty much hit-or-miss, but they do show up from time to time. On these outings, we usually are on the water at 4 a.m. We'll fish the lights until shortly after dawn, then hit the flats for a couple of hours for redfish and trout. We're usually home by 10 a.m.
Next month also signals the start of some really good freshwater action. I like to fish Lake Manatee and the Myakka River. They're both great places for fly fishers. Bass to 5 pounds, bluegill to a pound and hefty tilapia are common catches on popping bugs and minnow imitations.
