With the first cold front of the season the trout bite is on. The 60 degree mornings are dropping the water temperature to the range that will turn on the bite for most all fish, inshore and offshore. The best trout bite is in the 3 to 4 foot depths over yellow bottom. On a flat west of Mangrove Point, St. Martins Keys or Chassahowitzka Point with the sun to your back, the hard reef bottom will appear yellow compared to the green turtle grass. On most every hard bottom patch you will see rock grass. Casting and working a popping cork rig with a glow soft plastic bait will get the bite. Stay on the yellow patches and you will catch fish!
The redfish bite is very good coming up on the full moon. Incoming tide is best and jumping mullet will tell you where to start fishing. Live shrimp and cut pinfish is the best bait. The nearshore rocks are holding plenty of spanish mackerel, grunts and a few flounder. Look for the inshore grouper bite to get better with the cooler water and all the baited stone crab traps. This Saturday will be the first chance at getting fresh claws at Shelly’s Sea Food. Incoming high tide will be midday this weekend.
Capt. William Toney is a full time 4th generation fishing guide from Homosassa. Experience some of Florida’s best inshore fishing and beautiful unspoiled backcountry. His boat is a custom built 23 foot Tremblay and uses G-Loomis rods with Shimano reels. Trout, redfish and shore lunch are Capt. Williams specialty’s but many other species are caught or targeted.
- Nature Coast - March 23, 2024
- William Toney - February 29, 2024
- Nature Coast - February 14, 2024
