Weather | Sports | Forums | Comics | Classifieds | Calendar | Movies
By RANDY ROCHELLE
© St. Petersburg Times, published August 16, 2001
If you're heading offshore this week, watch for weed lines. From approximately 25 miles out there has been a good current flow, and with the lack of wind large weed lines have formed. These mats of sargassum grass are holding a variety of baitfish, which in turn attracts larger fish such as dolphin, tuna and tripletail.
There are a couple of ways to fish these mats of grass. One is to slowly pull up alongside one, shut off your motor and toss out cut pieces of bait such as Spanish sardines or any kind of white bait. Watch to see if dolphin come out from under the mats. If you see dolphin, throw out another handful of bait to draw them closer. Using 10- to 15-pound spinning tackle with a 4-foot length of 30- to 40-pound leader attached and a 3/0-hook, cast a 1-inch piece of cut bait into the middle of the school. After hooking up the first fish leave one in the water to hold the rest of the school close to the boat.
Another way is to troll 5- to 7-inch artificial lures along the edges of the grass lines. Use lures with concave heads that leave a bubble trail to help draw the fish out. Troll one or two lures 100 to 150 feet behind the boat for a shot at a tuna. Trolling speed should be 6 to 8 knots. If it's a bright day use dark-colored lures and if the skies are dark use lighter lures.
- Randy Rochelle runs Islander Charters in St. Petersburg and can be reached at (727) 528-1213 or by e-mail at Islandercharters@ij.net.