Fishing in the Fall

Mr Neil,
I have been reading your site for months now (and I still have not gotten to all the sections!) and I will be coming down to spend two full months starting in October.

What can I expect as far as the fishing opportunities?     What is the best way to learn how to catch fish around the Tampa Bay area.      I will have access to a boat, kayaks and a car of my own so I can move around a lot.

I want to use lures and the fly rod some.       Thank you for the vast amount of information you create on your own (and if I understand correctly, moved from the original Captain Mel site to this one).     It is truly a gift to someone like me.

I appreciate your efforts and your response which I am certain will be informative.

Hardy V.,   Chicago

Hardy,
Sorry I didn’t get to this when it first came in.      So that you can read what everyone has to say, I am going to share your letter on the capmel.com forums which you are free to join and enjoy if you so desire.

You are going to be here for two prime months.     I will join in the conversation to say why but you have many opportunities.       Per your question, going out with a quality guide is probably your best odds to have the best success on your own when you get out the rest of your stay.    Express it to them what it is you want to do because this trip should be more about what you learn than how much you catch.

Good luck and I hope our members give you a lot of replies

Neil Taylor

Neil,
Thank you so much.    I will look forward to seeing what everyone has to say, and of course, your comments

I saw the background on the transition of the site and I wanted to tell you that I am happy that it did not go away.     I’m already much better from everything I have read but I have a long way to go.

Thank you,

Hardy

Hardy,
I hope that more people speak up to give some ideas.   I am personally thrilled that summer is out and Fall is in.     The fishing has been great but cooling water temperatures will really make things fun.    

For a few more weeks, the very best action is with the sun very low in the sky.      That is, if you are after the shallow water species.   Opportunities are great for other species if you stay deeper.      When it actually gets to October,you can expect things to be better farther into the day.      Then it becomes “front watching.”     We get into regular cold fronts and then you are into a more winter type situation, you may be doing your fishing later in the morning and using the heat of the day to find better action.

Lures I know.   Flies, I will defer to the people who play that game more than I do.     Topwater lures are fun, cast a long way.   But use them wisely.   The biggest error people make is using a topwater lure too deep.       If you have a mix of other subsurface options, you will have it covered.     I like the “jig” the best.    1/8 ounce jighead and plastic tails added.      I use the 12 FAthom 3 inch mullet and the 5 inch SlamR a lot of the time.       Topwater lures, I use Mirrolures, with ones to look at, anything in the Dog Series.    Top Dog Jr, my favorite.     Suspending baits, also Mirrolures.    I like the Mirrominnow, but you will find a lot of people who like the MirroDine.        Spoons are well liked and cast a great distance.      The Aqua Dream spoons are good weedless spoons.         All three of those lure companies, also sponsors of the Captain Mel Classic, which by the way, the fourth annual event will be in the spring of 2014.

Pay attention to what works.    How you are moving the lures when you get strikes.
Pay attention to the tides and weather.   When were the fish feeding the best?
Pay attention to what others are doing.   If you get some people from here to take you fishing, watch how they do it out there.

Enjoy yourself and I will probably have more comments after the discussion goes on for a while

Neil Taylor

PropBlast:
Oct and Nov are my personal favorite months, so I hope you have a great deal of success during your time here. Inshore and nearshore fishing will be at it’s peak in my opinion — especially after the first “cold” front or two pass through. THey’ll drop the water temps a bit and get fish in the feeding mood.

For nearshore action in your boat, Spanish Mackerel and False Albacore are two of my favorite fish to target with my fly rod. An 8 or 9WT is best, with a monocore/intermediate or sinking tip line, using a simple 6′ leader finished off with 6″ of #3 single strand wire (coffee color). My two “go to” flies are the Clouser Minnow and variations of Lefty’s Deceiver. Locate a bait shool on your boat, get as close as you reasonable can (without spooking the bait) and cast. Count “one thousand one, one thousand two, one thousand three” and start your retreive. Retrieve moderatly quickly, then faster/slower to find the speed the Spanish/False Albacore want. If you’re not getting strikes, get rid of the wire and replace with 30’lbs mono for a tippet section. You risk cutoffs, but will get strikes.

Inshore, look at the “Drop Off” at low tide, where the edge of the flats drops off to 3-5′ of water. 1/4oz jigheads with a variety of softbaits (Gulp, DOA…) all work, but pick two or three and concentrate on learning how best to use them.

Good luck,

PB

Thanks!   I will make sure Hardy knows to check this topic.    I agree, I like September but October and November with good weather:  Possibly my favorite two month stretch of the year.

Great redfish months.   Great pompano action still until probably later in October.    Great speckled trout action that will be speck-tacular for seven months once the water starts to cool.     Flounder too.    Another year away from red tide, that species has been great again this year.

The Fall means a kingfish migration too.

Neil