The inshore fishing around Tampa Bay continues to be on fire. Our four and six-hour trips have produced catch and release snook, trout and redfish in good numbers. Tarpon have shown up in the passes and along the beach as well. Fishing live bait under a float has proven to be the best technique.

The past couple of weeks we were able to fish a few trips offshore and several inshore. A late cold front passed through bringing high winds which required some schedule adjustments. Even with the wind, the fish were biting. Inshore The inshore bite has been typical for this time of year. Snook, trout and redfish continue to be plentiful while fishing in two to four feet of water. Live shiners have been our bait of choice and we have been fishing them under a float. On the higher tides we target snook close to the mangroves and during low water we look for them in depressions or "potholes" away from the shoreline. The trout and redfish have been following schools of mullet throughout the bay area. Offshore While we wait for Red Snapper season to open in June, red grouper have been our targeted species. These grouper have been biting live pinfish and pilchards in eighty to one hundred and fifty feet of water. While moving from one location to another, a few cobia and permit have been caught from some of the various reefs we have in the Gulf.

So far this winter has been exceptionally good this year for our hogfishing. Not only are we catching limits of these delicious hogs but we also are getting tons of gag grouper, grunts, porgies and snappers as well. With spring around the corner lets talk about whats to come. The flats fishing for our snook, trout, and redfish had been getting better as the water temps rise. We havent quite seen the full on spring bite yet but its coming in hot! We predict a wide open inshore bite coming in the next few weeks. Also the offshore has been very good for red grouper the last few weeks. If your looking for some fish that really pull back and are great table fair that is always a great option. We should have plenty of tuna and kingfish showing up any day out there as well. So give us a call to get out there and do some fishing this year.

It’s mid summer here at Bradenton Fishing Charters and the fishing has been very good. Capt. Jon has been putting his customers on redfish, snook and a few grouper on our four and six hour trips. Despite a Red Tide bloom in Tampa Bay, he is still finding pockets of good water and healthy fish. The off-shore bite has been excellent. Permit, cobia, red grouper and even a few mahi mahi have been filling the cooler on our six and eight hour trips. Having Federal Reef Permits enables us to take customers beyond nine miles. The Gulf of Mexico is beautiful, less crowded, and this is where the magic happens!

This is by far the strangest spring we have ever experienced here at Bradenton Fishing Charters. We truly hope everyone is doing OK and this COVID-19 pandemic will pass in the near future. As far as the fishing is concerned, the trips we are running are full of action. The flats have been loaded with hungry snook, trout and redfish. The near reefs are producing cobia, kingfish and permit, and big grouper are being caught further out. The weather has been ideal, and we hope it continues through this summer. Many of our trips have been cancelled with not as many people coming in from out of town, but we are still open for business. Give us a call, and let us take you out for a few hours to get some fresh air and bend a rod.

The bite has been good around our mid range reefs.