http://www.tampabay.com/sports/outdoors/Captain-s-Corner-Erratic-weather-making-offshore-fishing-unpredictable_166651601
Continued heavy winds have kept offshore fisheries from settling in to predictable patterns. When things have calmed, nearshore baitfish have bunched up and kingfish and Spanish mackerel settled in around them. Unfortunately, each cold front has churned mud and sand into the water column and sent the fish elsewhere. They usually move deeper, where the water is less susceptible to turbidity from surface winds and the temperature more stable. Once the coastal waters clear up, the fish come back. The longer the weather stays calm, the closer the kingfish have been to shore. Trips to 60-70 feet of water are sometimes required immediately after a front, but within a few days the fish may be found in 22 feet a few miles off the beach. One of the best indicators to their location is the gannet. These big birds can dive remarkably deep, and they feed primarily on large baitfish such as threadfin herring and Spanish sardines, the same things kingfish feed on. Often there will be no baitfish visible on the surface, but the gannets dropping and disappearing below the waves will reveal deep bait pods.
Ed Walker charters out of Tarpon Springs. He can be contacted at info@lighttacklecharters.com.
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