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Daily fishing report

Snook fishing at night during the full moon is best on a strong outgoing tide.

Areas close to the beach hold decent numbers of snook. Some artificial lights hold small schools, but others won't hold a thing. It's best to hunt for lights with snook in sight. Drifting past a light with an anchor ready is a good way to check a spot. If the light doesn't have any fish in view, keep going. If snook are in view, slide the anchor into the water quietly.

Some spots have trout, ladyfish and mangrove snapper working the outside edges. The most productive bait has been a tail-hooked shrimp. Cast the bait upcurrent and let it drift to the snook with a little slack in the line. This lets the shrimp swim naturally. When the line tightens, set the hook. When they're hiding under a dock, skip the shrimp across the surface with a side-arm cast.

Trout are moving onto shallow flats. Most of the big ones are near grasslines in areas with scattered potholes. Smaller trout stay near bait schools, which can be located by finding diving birds. A jig and small cork has been the hot rig. Drift past the bait in a strong tidal flow and cast to the edge of the pods. Pop the cork, let the bait sink and pop it again.

-- Doug Hemmer charters out of St. Petersburg. Call (727) 347-1389.

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