Summer Time Redfish Upper Tampa Bay

Fishing in Tampa bay during the summer months provides exceptional flats fishing for Redfish. As the big schools of breeder females begin to push on the flats for mating they are also in search of their next meal and as anglers that is where we come in. These over slot redfish will be feeding on any baitfish and crustaceans that cross their path. For most inshore anglers spotting a school of Redfish on the flats creates an instant rush that gets the heart pounding. Rushing towards the school is not what you want to do in that situation, instead take a deep breath and monitor the pattern that the school is taking. This will significantly increase the odds of hooking up.

Stealth should be one of your top priorities while stalking a school of Redfish. A push pole offers the stealthiest approach at the fish, if you have a trolling motor the suggestion is to use it on the lowest thrust possible. Another option is to anchor your boat and wade to the fish. If you wish to target the over slot fish make sure to position yourself towards the front of the school and out of their predicted path; keep a sufficient amount of distance from the school. Remember that smaller Redfish (males) will be trailing the larger females; this will be your slot fish if you decide to harvest one for dinner.

Presentation will be key in getting a bite, try to make your cast out in front of the school or behind it. Casting on top of the fish at times has provided a reaction strike but it mainly tends to spook them. 

Pictured below are a few products proven to catch Redfish. 

We hope that these techniques work for you as well as they have worked for Inshore Society. Please feel free to contact our Captains with any questions.

Tight Lines!

When It Rains It Bites

Its mid-May, and as summer approaches you can expect the afternoon storms to roll in. Now, it doesn't necessarily mean that we must stop fishing; it can actually improve the activity in the water. Fish are already wet, so the rain doesn't bother them. However, there are some factors that will affect how these fish feed and react to the falling barometer caused by the incoming storms and rain. A falling barometer can really get the fish going, causing a total feeding frenzy. The drop in air pressure right before a storm approaches and at the beginning of a front is a great time to catch fish.

If you are on the water, you always want to check the forecast and make sure you are able to find safe cover or worst case scenario, wrap it up and head in. The bite might be really good, but nothing is worth risking a lightning bolt to the dome. If it’s light rain and no thunder or lightning, then you should be fine and can fish through it. At the end of the day, it’s your judgment and determination that will decide on what weather is safe or not. Be sure to look at your local weather radars and listen to your weather radio periodically when on a boat.

On a recent wading fishing trip, Kenny and I experienced some late afternoon thunderstorms. As we saw some weather building up in the distance, we also noticed the flat activity increased with surface strikes and heavy mullet movement. Before we could fish for long the fast moving dark clouds were upon us and we could actually feel the temperature drop and could see the rain curtain approaching. We quickly maneuvered ourselves into safe cover and decided to wait out the storm.  

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When the rain passed, we quickly realized that the water was now stirred up and cloudy with sea grass floating on the surface. We made the change from our top water lures and adjusted for the sea grass and decided to use ¼ ounce DOA jig head with a dark colored DOA CAL Shad Tail to help with the murky water. From our experience we have proven that darker baits work better in darker water and lighter colored baits work more effectively in clearer water. As we reached two oyster bars we could see fish pushing in the shallow water and finger mullet jumping around. We quickly used a stealthy approach and put ourselves into a good position to make a cast at the fish. Wasn't too long before Kenny was hooked up on what seemed like something from the show River Monsters! The fish made several long runs taking Kenny for a ride of his life, after what felt like a 15 min battle (actually 5 minutes) he managed to bring the beast to the shore as I used my grips to land the fish of his life! 

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40" Snook weighing well over 30lbs! Moral of the story is not to let a little rain ruin your fishing trip when it can actually improve your chances of catching more fish.