Our weather will start to warm and our waters will fill with hungry migratory fish. Snook fishing will be good, but thanks to the aggressive emergency reaction by Florida Fish and Wildlife Commissioners you can not keep any. Redfish and Trout are in good health, both are available to enjoy catching and fresh fish dinners. Tarpon are not far off. The best news is it’s time for those Mackerel migrations to offer lots of action and enough fish to even share. Of course, the Sharks, Jacks, and Pompano will move in also. Our crazy weather may even straighten out and let us enjoy spring fishing. Snook are usually the target around our central and south Gulf coast now. We did have significant fish killed by our record freeze in January, but maybe we also had a lot of Snook! Our FF&W staff wants to saturate our waters with fish, especially the most popular, Snook. While this sounds great we will always have freezes and red tides to manage populations. Why are we bridled with only five months to keep fish, IF they fall into the slim five-inch slot? I worked with many others for years to get the one fish bag limit and protect breeding females.

Then the state’s scientist decided to take “responsible protection” to excess. We got to see thousands of beautiful Snook wasted and stinking because our “state expert scientist” thinks they can control fish populations. The fact is they can have positive results all the way around if they don’t get carried away. We have Snook and our Charlotte Harbor area will enjoy some great catching this spring and summer; I’m betting on it. Fish will turn on as waters warm to about seventy-five degrees. We lost a lot of Snook north of here but remember this is a subtropical species that survives only in moderate climates. We had a warm decade and tight protection so they thrived; it froze, as happens, and we are back to “more normal” populations for these areas. Please be careful to handle release fish with care.

Our Snook stocks will pleasantly surprise us, rapidly recovering, if our managers don’t try to play god micromanaging a fix for everything! Mother Nature does fine, if we humans do not mess things up too much! Redfish and Trout are available. Thankfully both are open now. Expect to enjoy a good mixed bag while scattering some whitebait minnows to call in the fish. Please remember that you want to attract fish, not feed ‘em up. You can mess it all up if you start feeding the birds! Fish are scared of flying birds. Work edges, points, creek mouths, and oyster bars slowly to catch more fish. All present hot fish catching opportunities. Lures are fine; just master one or two and have fun catching fish. Spoons are perfect to pull Reds off of thick grass flats. Top waters and soft plastics are good for both. Hard plastics grab both also.

Observe any baitfish or other food sources and “match the hatch” with lure color and size. Note wading birds to lock in on food rich areas; birds share similar diets here! Tarpon are not far off. Water temps control everything and Silver Kings like that seventy-five degree mark too. Some fish start to show up in late March or into April. By May they are usually into full swing and peak around Boca Grande in June. Many are constantly moving north and Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor hold significant numbers of Silver Kings all summer. If you want a giant gamefish near shore, this is it! Experienced local guides offer excellent opportunities for capturing exciting memories and a few knowledgeable anglers do well on their own. Best bet now is our semiannual Mackerel migration due to arrive around Boca Grande any time. Expect some fish off Tampa Bay before the end of this month. Waters are warming back up into the sixties already and the big Kings are due just before it reaches seventy degrees.

Spanish Mackerel will offer red hot action with screaming gulls and jumping fish everywhere. The Kings are just bigger and stronger. Live minnows are the choice baits but lures and spoons account for plenty of fish. Smaller baits, jigs, and lures work for Macks and larger ones for the Kings. Look for flocks of gulls and jumping fish. Just stop by a local baitshop and get set up to have the time of your fishing life sharing the fun with friends and family. We even have liberal bag limits on Spanish: fifteen fish per legal angler. Kingfish have two fish bag now. Carry enough ice to keep your fish fresh and enjoy. Do not freeze too much; share and enjoy it fresh! Cobia, Pompano, and other migratory fish are moving in with every push of south winds. Keep varied rods rigged and ready for fast deployment. Top Dogs are great stand-by lures you can cast a long ways and use to draw fish back to your boat. Jigs work for Mack or Pompano, etc.… Be prepared! Or miss opportunities. Groupers and Red Snapper are closed and I won’t bother you with any more talk about that mess. Offshore AJs and Mango Snapper are still open, and those Kings help put food on your table. It springtime and we are alive to enjoy it. Let’s go fishin’ soon. Capt. Van Hubbard Past President of Florida Guides Association and Winner of 1999 Mote Marine Award www.captvan.com info@captvan.com