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Trout Season Opens With A Bang

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 11, 2008

GO FISHING is a daily look at the area fishing scene through the eyes of local charter boat captains and fishing guides. Today: Mike Anderson, right (with "Reel Animals" partner Billy Nobles).

The recent cold snap seems to have bunched up our trout along the south shore of Tampa Bay.

The deep creeks, residential canals and deep flats are holding nice schools of decent-sized trout. Most of the fish we caught this week were in the 14- to 19-inch range with a few pushing the 20-inch mark.

There were also several spots holding large numbers of fish in the 10- to 14-inch range. Although this is good to see, remember that fish of like size usually hang together, so there is no reason to beat on these little fish if a trout dinner is in your plans.

The baits of the week were 4-inch Berkley Gulp Goby in new penny and 3-inch Berkley Gulp Alive shrimp in natural. Using light spinning tackle with 10-pound braided line, our clients had all the action they wanted. The live bait of choice was select shrimp under a popping cork.

The residential canals also continued to be a good spot to pick up slot-sized and oversized Redfish. If you are one of those who fishes for the fight, very few species are more fun than big Reds on the docks. Redfish like to dig down after the strike, so if you add that to their tolerance for cold water, it will give you an idea of why they are one of my favorite species to target.

Again live shrimp and Berkley Gulp were the tickets to our success.

Catch captains Billy Nobles and Mike Anderson on Fridays at 9:30 a.m. on Sun Sports and on the "Reel Animals Fishing Show" on Saturdays from 6:30-7 a.m. on WFLA, Channel 8, and on Sundays from 8-10 a.m. on WHBO, 1470 AM. To book a charter, call 1-866-GAMEFISH or visit www.reel

animalsfishingshow.com.

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