Tampa Bay Still on Fire

Saltwater Nation: Florida

Saltwater Nation anglers from the west coast of Florida are reporting excellent fishing around the Tampa Bay area. We’ve heard reports from anglers fishing off of the beaches from St. Petersburg up through New Port Richey and Anclote Key that they are taking nice catches of Spanish mackerel and king mackerel. Anglers slow trolling have great success with some bigger fish, while those anchoring and chumming are taking many more fish of a range of sizes. Most anglers who are anchoring have had the most success when anchoring over hard bottom areas just off the beaches.

We are also hearing reports from anglers working from the mouth of Tampa Bay up into the bay that there are plenty of Spanish mackerel around and that many of them are of substantial sizes..

The big news out of the Bay for the last month or so, though, has been the tremendous numbers of over-sized reds in the southern parts of the Bay. The fish seem to be congregating around large schools of mullet, so when looking for reds, look for the mullet. We’ve heard good reports about reds being taken from the mouth of the Manatee River north to Apollo Beach.

A few anglers have also been finding nice sized flounder in the lower bay areas, and we’ve even heard a few reports about some bluefish in the Bay.