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Warm Gulf Means Hot Bite

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 4, 2007

GO FISHING is a daily look at the area fishing scene through the eyes of local charter boat captains and fishing guides. Today: Randy Rochelle.

A warmer than normal fall has got Gulf water temperatures hovering around 72 to 73 degrees. This, mixed in with some decent weather as of late, has made for some productive offshore trips. The gag bite continues to be very strong. South of Clearwater 40 to 60 feet has been the most productive depth. Up north, anglers are pulling some quality gags from as little as 25 feet of water. No matter where you fish, vary the size of tackle and baits will make for a nice mixed bag at the end of the day.

With water temps holding where they are and taking into account the amount of bait that's still around, we can expect the kings to hang around for another couple of weeks. The South County Reef is still holding a lot of bait as well as some school-size kingfish. Anglers trolling spoons or slow-trolling live bait have been rewarded with decent numbers of kings to 12 pounds.

Out a bit deeper around the 100-foot mark a few tuna have been showing up. Watching for pods of bait that have been pushed to the surface and well-formed weed lines have been the keys to finding the tuna. I don't think they will be around for long so if you get a chance you may want to head out this week and try to bag a few.
Captain Randy Rochelle runs the Gotta Go out of St. Pete

and can be reached at

(727) 365-3218 or go to

93islandercharters.net.

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