Outdoors

Daily fishing report

By DOUG HEMMER
Published September 28, 2005

It's probably too soon to predict what the near shore kingfish run will be like. If the red tide continues to hug the coast and the water temperature drops into the lower 70s, most of the migrating kings will stop heading south after reaching the first areas infected with red tide. This will mean no kingfish near shore south of that area. This may sound bad, but a few years back the same thing happened and king fishing was outstanding. A bloom of red tide stopped short of the Clearwater hard bottom. Kingfish and bait schools on their southern migration stopped at the Clearwater line. School continued to move into the area and soon the area was infested with bait and kingfish. Most days it was hard to get out a bait and get the rod into the holder before getting a strike. Some days we would limit out at sunrise and be trout fishing on the flats before 8 a.m. This continued until the water temperature dropped and the kings moved far offshore to avoid the red tide as they headed south. Conditions are right for this scenario to repeat.

Flats fishing north of the Dunedin Causeway and the upper parts of Tampa Bay remains outstanding. The baits of choice have been pinfish, sardines and whitebait. Look for the best action during a strong tidal movement. Fishing will improve as more fish move into these areas during the next few months.

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

[Last modified September 28, 2005, 02:30:38]