The Tampa Bay Times
By now every saltwater spearfisherman or fisherman knows that gag grouper season has opened, last Friday. The problem for the divers is that Hurricane Idalia not only tore up the land, but the high seas stirred up the bottom of the Gulf. This past weekend our divers found that the underwater visibility was less than five feet of horizontal visibility on the bottom of the Gulf, in depths of 60’ of water. Once the turbid water has cleared up the spearfishing for gags should be very good. The key is to hunt for the gags before they finally realize that divers represent danger. This usually takes about a week for these smart fish to figure out that they are now on the take list! Some of our divers have taken to the bay waters to hunt for gag groupers inside and just outside the bay. The water has cleared up faster in the bay than offshore. It is a little tricky and riskier to spear fish in such limited visibility. Sharks are still prevalent in these shallow waters and they are hungry. Fighting a wounded fish will stimulate the predator response of sharks. The threat becomes reality for the diver when a shark comes in quick, in dirty water, and the shark can’t identify the bloody fish from the diver’s arm or leg. Fishermen definitely have the safety advantage by staying on the boat and using a fishing pole and stinky bait to draw the grouper through the dirty water and the waiting hooks.
- Jay Mastry - March 26, 2024
- Captains Corner, Gorta - March 23, 2024
- Dave Zalewski - March 12, 2024
