Tarpon, Tarpon, Tarpon!

Man what a great time of year! The Tarpon fishing is on and the inshore bite is getting better all the time. For the next several weeks I will hardly be doing anything but Tarpon fishing with my clients. Bait has been easy to come by and the average size is just fine. Sometimes you will get some medium sized baits and sometimes you will get giant thumper pogies, but for the most part the bait we are finding is usable.

So, how do you find Tarpon? The easiest way is to ride around and look. If you see a pod of pogies, just stop and watch them. If you give it a few minutes you should see some sign of Tarpon, and if you don’t, keep on moving. Once you locate a school of fish you have to choose how to set up on them. You can either figure out which way they are moving and set up ahead of them, allowing them to come right by your boat and pass through your baits, or you can drift along with them and cast baits at them.

This brings me to a point involving courtesy. If there is already a boat set up on some fish, give them some distance. By distance I mean, give them some D I S T A N C E!

A few days ago I pulled up in an area where there were several other guides fishing and one of them was in the primo spot. He had fish airing it out right in his spread. I would have really liked to get in close to get in on the action myself, but instead I set up several hundred yards away in anticipation of where the fish would eventually go. I had lines out for about five minutes when some guys came pulling in right on top of me… about 75 yards away. If you have ever caught a Tarpon, you know that a good fish can close that distance in no time flat. I just brought in my lines and my anchor and moved further away. About 30 minutes and a dozen sharks later… BOOM!



To sum it up there are two points; anticipate where the fish will go, and respect the “fight zone”. If you would have to move your boat if another boat hooks up, you’re too close.

Tripletail Fishing

Fishing around channel markers and buoys this time of year can certainly produce some of the biggest Tripletail. When the tide is slack or near slack, move from marker to marker drifting live baits as close as you can to the pole or buoy. Adjust your depth until you are satisfied that you have fished the entire water column. If you are able to catch finger mullet or small pogies, try using them instead of shrimp. If you don’t have the option try picking out the biggest shrimp in your livewell.

Earlier this week my customers got a nice slack tide bonus with this awesome Tripletail!



Trout, Redfish, and Flounder

Right now a lot of the inshore species are mostly small. We have been sorting through loads of small Trout and Redfish in order to grind out a few decent fish. It’s easy to look at this as a nuisance, but I am glad to see all of these fish. For one, it makes for a fun trip when the cork is getting dunked a lot. Also, it means that we have a great stock of fish that we will really get to enjoy as they get bigger.

It seems like all year I have been fishing heavy structure to get on the fish but this week it seems like the fish have finally gotten around to hanging out right in my wheelhouse… shallow flats. Most of the fish I have caught in the last week or so have been in 1.5 to 3 feet of water with some exceptions. It’s time to break out your popping corks and clack clack clack!

If you want to do some early morning reconnaissance, try breaking out some topwater plugs at daylight. Move along some “fishy looking” banks and fan cast. This is a great way to locate schools of fish and discover new fishing spots.

My favorite topwater plug is the Zara Spook Jr. but lately I have been getting along well with the Rapala Skitter Pop.



I’ll use a similar cadence to walking the dog with a few pauses mixed in. Remember not to set the hook when you see the blow up, but wait until you feel some tension on the line.

Whether you are fishing for Tarpon, Tripletail, or inshore slams this weekend, I hope that this report helps you out and you have a great time on the water. I’ll see you out there!