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Pompano Are Hot Ticket

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By BILL MILLER

The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 4, 2009

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

Pompano are all over Sarasota Bay. We were skipping them along the edges of the Ringling Flats and Long Bar as well as other unnamed sand bars and channel edges on a trip there Tuesday.

Yellow-and-white Silly Willy or Doc's pompano jigs with a pink fly attached were the hot lures. A quarter-ounce silver bullet-head Nylure with a yellow nylon body was catching pompano and bluefish. The bag limit for pompano is six per person between 11 and 20 inches, measured to the fork of the tail.

Captain Rick Rodriguez reports good grouper action off Hernando Beach in 15 feet of water. Captain Justin Mastry has been limiting out on grouper in the Times Square area north of the Egmont ship channel.

Grouper trollers in Tampa Bay also have been scoring well trolling heavy jigs and big plugs along the channel edges.

The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has approved a two-fish-per-person bag limit on gag grouper in state waters. Also approved was raising the red grouper bag limit to two per person. Gag grouper will be closed in state waters to recreational anglers from Feb. 1 through March 31. These rules were effective Jan. 1.

Speckled trout season is open in all regions, and good fishing is reported in Clearwater Bay and St. Joseph Sound. Captain Jon Bull has been catching 14- to 18-inch trout in pot holes and deeper channels along the south shore of Tampa Bay on negative low tides.

Bull also reports good fishing - but tricky catching - for tailing redfish in the same area.

Captain Bill Miller hosts "Hooked on Fishing" on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7-8 p.m. on Bright House Sports Network, Channel 47.

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