8 foot nurse shark while snapper fishing in Tampa Bay

Last week was tough. I really had to look around for the target species. But we got on them . They were all too small to keep but we had a great tome catching not fishing.

The day started out slow looking for snook. After a few small ones I suggested bottom fishing for grouper to get a great fight. Man o man!

An 8’ surprise while grouper fishing

Heavy tackle fishing for grouper in the middle of Tampa Bay.

Tampa Bay offers many types of fishing and one of my favorites is bottom dropping cut bait for gag and red groupers on the rock piles. The fight is unforgettable. They will make you cry for mama to come and help as your eyes bug out, your face turns red and your grip on the rod tightens as it bends into a half moon twards the water. You have to lean backwards and put your body weight into it to keep them out of the rocks and breaking the 80 lb test leader. All this and cranking madly on the 40 conventional reel as sweat pours down your face. Man it’s worth it! Some folks troll for them but I love that first hit that you don’t get when trolling.