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Cold Weather Takes Its Toll

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 6, 2008

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

The new year started with a severe cold front that brought high winds and lowered the water temperature 12 degrees overnight. On Wednesday morning, I took a walk along the banks of the Little Manatee River and saw some jack crevalle floundering about on the surface.

Farther upriver, Captain Danny Guarino said he saw dead jacks on the surface around the U.S. 41 bridge. Captain Billy Jordan told me there were some dead snook in the mix.

The timing of the front was poor, as some cobia finally showed up on the flats. Captain Tom Rinehart of Apollo Beach said he caught a short fish a few days ahead of the front and saw several others. You can bet those fish probably will head for the hot water of the TECO power plant.
Cold weather also seems to push bonnethead sharks onto the flats. I'm not sure why they congregate on sand flats in the winter months, but on a good day it is not uncommon to see hundreds of fish clustered together. I suspect they get in the clear, shallow water to take in the warmth of the sun.

Trout are back on the menu as of New Year's Day, and early-season reports have been encouraging. There is a good-sized pod of big fish just north of Big Pass in 4 feet of water. They are hitting live shrimp under noise-making floats.

Snook should be out of danger as soon as the water temperature rises. With the forecast for midday highs in the 70s, that should bring it to a safer level for all our tropical species; surface temp in the Gulf was still 55 degrees on Saturday morning.

Redfish are not as temperature sensitive, and they should not be affected by a short period of cold weather.

To contact captain Fred
Everson, call (813) 830-8890,

or visit his Web site,

tampabayfishingguide.com.

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