Captain’s Corner: Dave Zalewski

The Tampa Bay Times

Dave Zalewski 460-9893

The recent strong easterly winds can be deceiving to boaters who leave the sheltered waters of the bays and enter into the Gulf of Mexico. Waters close to shore will be calm or even glass like, but seas will rapidly rise as one heads westward with a following sea. The following sea can easily lull one into a false sense of security as the ride in this type of sea often is not that harsh. It is when one stops offshore and turns around the full impact of the roughness becomes evident. We carry a pair of binoculars both in our vehicle and on the boat. They are used to get a feel for sea conditions offshore. Driving to any beach access and focusing on the horizon will give one a good idea as to what conditions actually are in all wind directions.

Seeing the humps on the horizon before entering the gulf allows one to formulate the game plan for the day, and for the last several trips the plan has been to seek Spanish mackerel close to the beach. Fragile baitfish seek protection from the buffeting of offshore seas and also bring their predators to the same areas. The best areas to target the mackerel are near any of the passes entering the gulf because the outgoing tides flush a variety of baits from the bays. Trolling 0 or #1 gold or silver spoons behind either a #1 planer or 4 ounce trolling sinker or small lipped hard body plugs will often provide non stop action. There are many stone crab trap buoys in the area and once fish are located, they provide a handy reference to staying on the school of fish.