Captain’s Corner: Mike Gore

The south shore of Tampa Bay has been on fire this pass month and look for it to continue. Fish are stacked up anywhere from the Little Manatee River west to the port. Bait has finally started moving to the shallow water flats and is pretty easy to net. Just make sure you have some chum with you. I like to use tropical fish food. It can be found at most feed stores.

The big draw that everybody usually looks forward to this time of year is starting to happen. That is right, tarpon are being caught at the bridges and small schools are showing up on the beach near Anna Maria. The bait of choice had been big scaled sardines. 

Spanish mackerel and blue fish are following the bait up into Tampa Bay. Most shoals surrounded by deep water are holding fish on the incoming and outgoing tides. Try using a #1 long shank hook tied to a fifty pound fluorocarbon leader, instead of wire. This will help you more hook ups.

Snook are staging up in every creek mouth and shoreline that has good tidal flow. They have been sitting ready to ambush any bait that swims by. Just cast your bait up current of the point and let it drift back.

The trout bite has really stayed consistent this past month on the south shore of Tampa Bay. Most people don’t realize but the south side of Tampa bay has really nice hard bottom anywhere from 6 to 8 feet of water. This hard bottom makes a nice fish haven for our trout.