The past few weeks of fishing have been a roller coaster. I have had back-to-back days of tarpon fishing when we caught nothing one day and seemed to continuously be doing battle the next. The same thing has happened with the inshore bite when fishing for redfish and trout. One day we put a beat down on them followed by a day that proved to be difficult. Luckily, even the slow days have yielded enough fish to have a decent fish fry. The two fish that have been pretty dependable have been Spanish mackerel and shark. I anticipate the bite for the next couple months staying like it is now. Not great but not bad. Not what you are used to hearing from a fisherman but it is the truth.
I had the pleasure of running a few trips this past month with some soldiers aboard. It is always a pleasure working for those that provide us with so much security. There was one trip that I had representation from the Army, Navy, and Air Force on the boat on the same trip. That particular trip was intriguing because all three guys were down from Washington visiting at MacDill. They did not talk shop much, but when they did it was in code, which intrigued me. Unfortunately they were here for one of the trips that was just so- so. I just want to say thank you to any of you that are reading this that are serving or have served in our armed forces.
After a couple months without any e-mail questions, I finally received one this past week. D.D. Pelham asks, “I just moved here from the Midwest late last summer and was wondering why fishermen in this area abort the use of shrimp in the summer?” I can answer that Mr. D.D. in three words; results, economics, and pinfish. In more descriptive words, the bait that we usually turn to as the water warms is Spanish sardines. They are on average more productive than shrimp and fairly plentiful giving the angler better results. The other up-side to sardines is they are free when netted by the fishermen making the case for economics. Lastly is the assault that a pinfish will put on a hooked shrimp. It does not take long and all that is left is the hull of the shrimp. There are species that shrimp will be the go-to bait, but your best all around bait this time of year is a sardine.
Until next time, good luck and be safe on the water. Remember: Don’t let your kid be the one that got away, take them fishing. For charter information, call 601-2900, e-mail CaptainRic@ msn.com, or visit www.ReelSimpleFishing.com.
