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Stable Weather Brings On Bite

The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 23, 2008

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

The fluctuating temperatures finally have moved fish into their winter digs, and they are getting more comfortable with their surroundings.

As temperatures stabilize, fish become more accustomed to their habitat, making them less wary and more willing to eat.

Snook must have a special memory chip that stores information about every piling, rock or mangrove shoot where they can break off fishing line. Snook are structure-oriented mostly for their protection, but the small baitfish and crustaceans that inhabit the structures are another reason snook choose to live in a mangled snare of mangroves, rocks and fallen logs.

Snook have shown a definite preference for shrimp, and the new DOA night glow/gold holographic color has been productive. Jigs like the CAL Shad can imitate crustaceans when you slowly work them on the bottom, twitching the rod slightly to hop the jig a few inches at a time.

We've had a lot of windy days lately, and while that hasn't made it bitterly cold, the open water has been stirred up and fish have been seeking areas where they can breathe without getting their gills full of sediment.

Most of the productive spots I have found have been in the protection of surrounding mangrove islands with relatively deep water. This "deep water" may be only 3 to 5 feet deep, but if the surrounding depth is only 2 feet, this is where we'll locate some nice trout, flounder or redfish.

Water temperatures in the afternoons have been in the mid- to upper-60s in some areas at the high point. While that's not warm, it's bearable for most fish here, and even warm enough to stir the appetite of a linesider.

Ray Markham co-hosts "Florida Sportsman Magazine Radio Live," Saturdays from 8-9 a.m. on WWBA, 1040 AM, and can be reached for charter at (941) 723-2655.

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