On Show Me the Fish Charters we are catching lots of Gag and Red Grouper, large Amberjack, Spanish Mackerel, lots of sharks; Blacktip Sharks, Lemon Sharks and Reef Sharks.   We are also catching big Barracudas, Porgies, Mangrove Snappers and some catch and release Goliath Grouper.

My friend Kevin McCreay caught these beautiful snook near Boca Grande last Thursday night while fishing with me. We only had 7 live mullet between 13”—14” so that limited our fishing to an hour, but we still hooked into plenty of 38”—40” snook.  Why am I not in any photos you may ask, well ever since my last camera went in the drink about two weeks ago, I am reluctant to let anyone else use my new one… Let’s build some memories together now! Call 727-570-9711

It is hot down here in Florida now but we still have fishing opportunities. Our best bet is to get out early and have fun before it really gets hot. Evening can be productive also if it’s not stormy. Some Tarpon are still in both Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor. Snook may be opening up the first of September, but we don’t know for sure yet—Fish and Wildlife is still thinking about it. Redfish are improving now. Speckled Trout are abundant and hungry still. Mango Snapper are teasing us and should come on strong anytime. Spanish Mackerel are not thick but can make the difference if you are prepared. If it’s too hot get in the water, travel north for scallops or south for crawfish down in the Keys.

In January of this year I did a boat delivery from Tarpon Springs to Port Canaveral. If you remember, and if you were here I know you do, it was cold. It was real cold. It was the coldest it had been in decades and it hung on like a scared cat in a tree. Some days, the highs were only in the forties in some areas and the nights…well, let’s just say I didn’t go out at night with my thin blood from years of living in Florida. I don’t like the chill I get from getting something out of the fridge.

Along the way I sadly observed dead fish literally by the hundreds, maybe thousands, in some places. Even shallow Lake Okeechobee was dotted with dead fish as if an underwater explosion of massive proportion had taken place. Throughout the waterway the scene remained the same for the whole trip.

According to recent fishing reports from the Keys, the mangrove snapper fishing is at its peak right now. The waters around Islamoradora Island in the Florida Keys are perfect for fishing right now and reportedly unaffected by the BP oil spill.

Captain Dave "The Mad Snooker " has been busy hoisting in good numbers of snook with his clients. Captain Dave reports that they have been catching 30+ in just under 4 hours! Now, he won't promise that you will catch giant snook all the time, but you will catch loads of snook, even big snook, and maybe get lucky enough to wrestle one of the giants!

The fishing has been good even though it's been hot. The water temperature has heated up but there are certainly some strange things happening anyway. How about the sheepshead biting at the jetties and in the river? Can you believe the sheepshead is fired up? Now "fired up" during the summer time months isn't like the fall, winter and spring firing up but we've been catching anywhere from 10 to 20 sheepshead in the past couple of weeks. I certainly call that "fired up" for this time of the year.

The Black Drum is another species that fires up during the cooler water temperatures in the fall, winter and spring but we're still catching them right in the middle of summer. Tarpon have been all up and down the rocks at the jetties when the tide slacks off. It doesn't seem to matter if it's high slack or low slack, but they're out there before and after each change of tides.

The oil in the Gulf has finally been stopped, for the most part. I sure hope they keep it stopped so many of the fishermen and women can enjoy their sport as well as make a living over there. I see that NOAA has re-opened some of the previously-closed areas to fishing. That's a relief to a lot of people over there.

Offshore fishing is and WILL be great this summer in West Central Florida area.  Monster red grouper are one of the hot species this month.  The best action you'll find is 120 ft and deeper for the fire truck Red Grouper.  Along with these bruisers of Grouper, we are catching Gag & Scamp Grouper, American Red Snapper, Mangrove Snapper, Yellowtail Snapper, Lane Snapper, Tilefish, and Mahi-Mahi on the offshore reefs and wrecks; also we've been catching many Amberjacks, Smoker Kingfish Cobia, Barracudas, and a variety of large sharks lately out there on those same areas. Red Snapper will be out of season on July 23, 2010 in state and Federal waters so there is not much time left to catch these tasty treats. 

For our Red Grouper trips we start out on Swiss cheese bottoms that range from 120 to 160 ft using dead sardines and squid.  This combination of bait gets the red grouper fired up and then we throw in some dessert of live baits, such as Pinfish, Sand Perch, and Grunts; that's when we catch some serious monsters.  Many of our parties need some help or even a spotter to help get these bad boys off the bottom because they are so heavy.  Sometimes even our most fit anglers tap out and receive some help! 

The Cold Winter Pushes the East Coast Cobia Run Late—This year the spring Cobia run got pushed to the summer and plenty of Cobia still abound from Ft. Pierce to Daytona. The water stayed cold well into spring and the Cobia stayed away, enjoying the warm waters of the south a bit longer that most years. The water is right in the slot now and the Cobia are still biting. Even as late as May this year, the Cobia fishing was slow, but they seem to be making up for it now.

With the oil in the gulf, the Cobia run is a perfect reason to head east (old guys like me, I’m not talking about the seventies band…stay with me here). With the almost daily southerly winds the water will continue to warm, however, and the Cobia will continue to move north. They prefer water temps at least 68 degrees and you will seldom see them in water above 85 degrees. NOAA is reporting water temps at the outer buoy to be an almost perfect 78 degrees daily. Additionally captains are reporting clear water and the ability to sight fish the Cobia.

My parties are catching Black, Gag and Red Grouper, Mangrove and American Red Snappers, Cobia, kingfish, Porgies, Amberjacks, Barracuda, Mahi Mahi [dolphin fish not Flipper] and a variety of large sharks. Best action starts at about 125 ft using live baits.

The larger Red Grouper are moving in to this depth and should continually improve as the summer progresses. On my half day trips closer in around 50 ft we are catching Smoker Kingfish, keeper Gag Grouper and lots of Sharks. Near shore Tarpon are thick around all the passes, Egmont key and the Skyway Bridge. Pass crabs have been working great and you can dip up lots of those guys on the outgoing tide in the intercoastal waterway and the passes.