Capt. Sam Kimball of Legend Charters out of Bradenton on Cortez Road said his offshore charters are producing lots of grouper and snapper for his charters, plus mackerel, triggerfish, banded rudderfish and amberjack farther offshore.

Capt. Mark Johnston of Legend Charters out of Badenton said his backwater charters are producing redfish, many in the slot limits, trout in Sarasota Bay, mangrove snapper and mackerel along the beaches.

Capt Randall Fowler of Uncle Mud Fish Charters out of Bradenton, has been working the tarpon as he does every year at this time, putting his clients on some whoppers in nd around the passes and at Egmont Key in Tampa Bay!

Capt. Larry McGuire of Show Me The Fish Charters out of Cortez Florida said he’s finding hot, hot, hot palegic action offshore of Anna Maria Island. “Believe it or not we are catching lots of smoker kingfish up to 45 pounds, big cobia, mahi mahi dolphin (not flipper), red and gag grouper, American red snapper, mangrove snapper, yellowtail snapper, amberjacks, triggerfish, big sharks, barracudas and catch-and-release goliath grouper. The kingfish action has been hot around 65-feet with cobia hanging with them. What’s unusual is that the surface water temperature is at 90 degrees - and thats hot for Kingfish - and there is lots of bait out there for them. Best grouper and snapper action is out past the 100-foot depths.”

Capt. Tom Chaya on the Dolphin Dreams out of Holmes Beach said he’s finding tarpon fishing is holding up in the passes and beaches, trout fishing also good on better tides in the deeper seagrass beds, and redfish and snook on sandbar edges in Miguel Bay.

Capt. Zach Zacharias on the Dee Jay II out of Bradenton said that mangrove snapper are coming on strong in local bays. “They can be found with numerous gag grouper and an occasional flounder fishing any deep structure around the area. Spotted sea trout are still coming in pretty good in north Sarasota Bay. They are of average size and can be caught with whitebait, small pinfish, shrimp and plastic baits over deep seagrass beds on good tides. There are also ladyfish, jacks, bluefish and a stray Spanish mackerel in the same areas. Snook and redfish action is about-average around the area. Large reds will be schooling up on really shallow flats and schools will gang up around docks similar to a winter pattern. In the nearshore Gulf around the mouth of Tampa Bay and the southeast bay, there are numerous shark, bonito and Spanish mackerel. Tarpon should begin spawning out on the next couple of full moons as well and the big pre-spawn schools will be diminishing in size and numbers but the big herrings will still be available to anglers for several more months.”

Aaron Davis hooked this monster cobia while fishing with some of his buddies on a charter trip with Capt. Tom Chaya.

Capt. Mark Howard of SumoTime Fishing Charters out of Anna Maria Island, said he’s finding fishing around Anna Maria Island to be “exciting. Tarpon are all over the bay and Gulf of Mexico,” and he says the key to catching them is a quiet approach, set up 100 yards or so in front of the fish and let them approach you. Backwater fishing for trout has been excellent, he said, with the best action coming from the deeper seagrass flats in the bays and the edges of the Intracoastal Waterway. Capt. Mark said he’s also catching redfish near the mangroves in the bays, big mackerel around Egmont Key and catch-and-release snook along the beaches and in the passes.

Capt. Sam Kimball of Legend Charters out of Bradenton on Cortez Road said he’s finding the grouper and snapper catch offshore to be excellent. He’s also catching barracuda and amberjack

Capt. Mark Johnston of Legend Charters out of Badenton said his inshore action includes redfish, catch-and-release snook, and lots of small trout now that the water has warmed.

Capt Randall Fowler of Uncle Mud Fish Charters out of Bradenton, has been working the tarpon as he does every year at this time, putting his clients on some whoppers along the beaches and at Egmont Key in Tampa Bay!

Capt Jack Parker of Skinny “M” Charters out of Cortez Florida, has been putting his clients on some nice redfish, mackerel, catch and release snook as well as some nice sea trout.

Capt. Rick Gross on Fishy Business out of Catchers Marina in Holmes Beach said he’s putting his charters onto redfish and mackerel, with the macks being “all over the place.”

Capt. Tom Chaya on the Dolphin Dreams in Holmes Beach out of Catchers said “look for tarpon on the beaches at first light.” He said that there are plenty of big sharks near the sandbars, especially near schools of ladyfish. “Trout action was excellent in deep seagrass in Sarasota Bay last week,” he added, and he caught some nice-sized redfish near oyster bars in Terra Ceia and Miguel bays.

Capt. Larry McGuire of Show Me The Fish Charters out of ortez said he’s finding fishing to be hot offshore of Anna Maria Island. “We are catching limits of big red grouper, some nice gag grouper, lots of American red, mangrove, yellowtail, lane and vermillion snapper, all the big amberjack you can handle, cobia, big sharks, barracuda and catch-and-release Goliath grouper.” He said the best action is 100 feet out using a variety of live, cut and artificial bait.

Capt. Zach Zacharias on the Dee-Jay II out of Parrot Cove Marina in Bradenton Florida said trout were by far the biggest catch last week numbers wise, followed closely by catch-and-release snook and redfish. “The spotted sea trout were plentiful, fat and healthy and came in from a variety of locations around the area,” Capt. Zach said, but north Sarasota Bay had to be the best. Whitebait, small grunts and pinfish all worked equally well with shrimp under a cork effective as well. The specks were hitting on both the incoming and outgoing tides with a broken grass bottom. In the same areas there were an occasional mackerel, bluefish, ladyfish, grass gags grouper and juvenile shark.” He’s finding most of the fish hanging tight to the mangrove and oyster rock shorelines around the area. 

Brody Yost, 10, caught this 24-inch trout while fishing with his grandfather, Capt. Jack Parker, aboard the charter boat “Skinny M.”

Capt. Scott Greer of Stray Dog Charters out of Cortez Florida has been placing his charters on top of red and gag grouper along with catch and Amberjack.

Capt. Sam Kimball of Legend Charters out of Bradenton on Cortez Road said he’s putting his charters onto lots of barracuda on the offshore artificial reefs, plus snapper, amberjack and grouper.

Capt. Mark Johnston of Legend Charters out of Bradenton Florida, said his inshore catch includes redfish, mackerel off the beaches and catch-and-release snook.

Capt. Rick Gross on Fishy Business out of Catchers Marina in Holmes Beach said he’s catching good-sized redfish on the good tides in the bays, plus trout and mackerel.

Capt. Larry McGuire of Show Me The Fish Charters out of Cortez said he has been catching red grouper and lots of released amberjack. First mate Larry Bethke caught and released a Goliath grouper estimated at least 200 pounds. Capt. Bill Miller went out with us last week and caught a “true fire-truck” grouper. “All of our action was off Anna Maria Island about 35 miles offshore, using grunts and frozen sardines.” Capt. Larry said his other catches included lots of grouper, mangrove and yellowtail snapper, plus a trip that produced 14 sharks to 9 feet in length, as well as tarpon, kingfish, mackerel and cobia.

Capt. Randall Fowler of Uncle Mud Fish Charters out of Holmes Beach, has been catching nice redfish and seatrout. Also runs out to Tampa Bay are producing Tarpon.

Zack Guerin, 12, of Anna Maria, hooked up tarpon Memorial Day weekend while fishing with his dad, Jim Guerin, near Egmont Key with Capt. Randall Fowler of Uncle Mudfish Fishing Charters.

Capt Randall Fowler of Uncle Mud Fish Charters out of Manatee, has been working the tarpon as he does every year at this time, putting his clients on some whoppers!

Capt. Sam Kimball of Legend Charters out of Bradenton on Cortez Road said his offshore fishing has been hampered by winds, but he’s still able to catch grouper, snapper, kingfish and Spanish mackerel.

Capt. Mark Johnston of Legend Charters out of Bradenton Florida, said mangrove snapper fishing inshore is as good as he can remember on the good tides. Trout fishing is great, from the mouth of the Manatee River to southern Sarasota Bay, plus good action by Key Royale with some of the trout up to 22 inches in length.

Capt Mark Howard of Sumotime Fishing Charters out of Anna Maria Island, said that fishing around Anna Maria is excellent. “Trout have been very cooperative with catches up to 24 inches, redfish are in the potholes close to shorelines with catches to 10 pounds, and catch-and-release snook are in a feeding frenzy.” He added that big tides this week should provide some Snook are on a tear and feeding heavily. He added that with big tides this week, “fishing will be at its apex.”

Capt. Larry McGuire of Show Me The Fish Charters out of Cortez, said fishing is great offshore of Anna Maria Island. “Grouper has gone wild with red grouper up to 28 pounds and some big gag grouper. Our parties are also catching big permit, mangrove snapper, catch-and-release American red snapper, all the big amberjack you can handle, blacktip shark and barracuda.We are using a variety of live, cut and artificial bait.” He added that the best grouper action is out past 100 feet in the Gulf. He’s also catching some tarpon around the beaches, as well as Spanish mackerel and a few kingfish.

Sarah Lynch from Montague, N.J., caught this nice grouper on Show Me The Fish Charters.

Capt. Scott Greer of Stray Dog Charters out of Cortez Florida has been placing his charters on top of red and gag grouper and some amberjack.

Capt. Sam Kimball of Legend Charters out of Cortez said he’s getting lots of grouper and snapper offshore.

Capt. Mark Johnson of Legend Charters out of Cortez, Florida, said his inshore charters are producing mackerel from the beaches, plus redfish in the bays.

Capt. Randall Fowler of Uncle Mud Fish Charters out of Cortez, has been catching nice redfish and seatrout. Also runs out to Tampa Bay are producing Tarpon.

Capt. Rick Gross on Fishy Business out of Catchers Marina in Holmes Beach said his charters are catching lots of redfish and trout to 20 inches.

Capt. Tom Chaya on the Dolphin Dreams in Holmes Beach out of Catchers said trout fishing has been very good over deep seagrass beds. He’s also catching reds on the oyster bars at high tides, and some nice-sized catch-and-release snook under the mangroves. He added that tarpon will be on the increase on the beaches and in the passes in the next few weeks.

Capt. Larry McGuire of Show Me The Fish Charters out of Cortez, Florida, said he’s finding fishing to be great offshore of Anna Maria Island and Longboat Key. “Our parties are catching big permit, red grouper, gag grouper, scamp, mangrove snapper, big amberjack, all kinds of big sharks and barracuda. Fishing is hot, and that is a good thing! The best action is out past the 100-foot depths with a variety of live bait and artificials.”

Capt. Mark Howard on Sumotime Fishing Charters said fishing around Anna Maria Island has been fair. “With the slow tides, it takes a lot of patience to get the fish to bite,” he said, adding that he’s getting lots of very big trout, plus sharks, including a 5-foot-long hammerhead and numerous lemon and blacktips.

Capt. Sam Kimball of Legend Charters in Cortez said grouper fishing has been steady in the Gulf in about 80 feet of water, and snapper fishing has been excellent off the offshore ledges.

Capt. Mark Johnson of Legend Charters in Cortez, said he’s putting his charters onto redfish and big trout.

Capt. Rick Gross on Fishy Business out of Catchers Marina in Holmes Beach said he’s catching some good-sized redfish.

Capt. Larry McGuire of Show Me the Fish Charters out of Cortez is always upbeat. He reports this week that “Fishing is great, the weather is nice and life is good.” Larry also says fishing is fast and furious offshore of Anna Maria Island. “This time of the year, I ask my parties ‘What do you want to catch?’ Everything is biting!” We’re catching limit catches of big red grouper and good catches of gag grouper and scamp, lots of amberjacks, permit up to 30 pounds, black tip sharks up to 6 feet, 5-foot baracudas, goliath grouper and mangrove snapper. There are also some kingfish and all the Spanish mackerel you want out in the Egmont Key Channel. The best grouper and snapper catches are out past 100-foot depths. Larry says big live baits are working best, such as the two-pound live blue runners he puts out for the big shots. “People think I’m crazy when I set out a bait that big, until a minute later a big fish eats it!”

Capt. Zach Zacharias on the Dee-Jay II out of Parrot Cove Marina said boats heading offshore to 80 to 120 feet of water “are having a field day with grouper, snapper, amberjack, kingfish, cobia and permit. The action near the beaches has not been that great, but Spanish mackerel, bluefish, grouper and a stray cobia or two has been the bulk of the action.” He said there are also lots of pompano running the beaches, and suggests using sand fleas, shrimp, or pompano jigs to catch the tasty fish.

“On the inshore scene,” he added, “it has been feast or famine. Some days have been extremely tough to get a sustained bite going. Days when a seabreeze kicks in at midday, coupled with a good tide, has produced some top-notch action with snook to 33 inches, trout to 23 inches and reds to 26 inches. Big jack crevalle and ladyfish have been bending some rods as well.”

Chuck Shuler of Michigan caught this 27-inch spotted sea trout in Sarasota Bay while fishing charter Capt. Zach Zacherias.

Capt. Mark Johnson of Legend Charters out of Bradenton said on his backwater charters he’s finding lots of bait to the south in Sarasota Bay, and is catching snook and reds.

Capt. Rick Gross on Fishy Business out of Catchers Marina in Holmes Beach said snook are a good bet, but they’re running small, and he’s getting limit catches of redfish every day.

Capt. Zach Zacharias on the Dee-Jay II out of Parrot Cove Marina “Persistence has paid off with a few nice catches of snook, redfish and trout. There were a couple of days where persistence did not pay off at all,” when he said a couple of forays in the Gulf produced “limited catches of Spanish mackerel and cobia. Numerous juvenile grouper were easily caught most days, however,” he said. Water near the beaches has been incredibly clear, Capt. Zach noticed, and on the inshore scene, the waters near the passes are equally clear. “There is a lot of fish in those gin-clear waters, but most of them are as spooky as could be. A few backwater areas are a little more stained and murky and are also holding a lot of snook, reds, trout and flounder that are a little more cooperative.” He said that top catch of the week went to Chuck Sweeney from Zimbabwe with a 31-inch snook, while his Grandad, Tom Sweeney from Parrish, tried to best his catch but only came up with a 27-1/2 incher. The Sweeney party also connected with a few redfish.

Bill Lowman at Island Discount Tackle at Catchers Marina in Holmes Beach said grouper fishing offshore seems to be best in deeper waters - figure 100 feet or so - but snapper are everywhere in the Gulf. Kingfish are also moving around and a good catch offshore. Backwater anglers are reporting good catches of redfish and trout, although both species are running a bit small.

Capt. Mark Howard of Sumotime Fishing Charters out of Anna Maria Island, said the cold front last week “threw a wrench in fishing. As we get warmer, snook, redfish and trout should move up into the shallow water.” He said that fishing should be good this week, with big tides, and he expects big catches of trout and flounder.

Capt. Sam Kimball of Legend Charters out of Cortez said the weather kept him in the backwaters, but he put his charters onto big trout, redfish and flounder.

Capt. Larry McGuire of Show Me The Fish Charters said he’s finding fishing to be great offshore of Anna Maria Island. “After a week of windy weather, it calmed down and the fishing was on once again,” he said. “We are catching red grouper, gag grouper, scamp, lots of snapper, big permit, sharks, barracuda, amberjack, porgys, triggerfish, kingfish and Spanish mackerel. A highlight of the week came on April 12, when my 15-year-old cousin Thomas caught his first kingfish, a 55-pounder, off Egmont Key. The kicker to this story is that the fish was caught during a kingfish tournament, and Thomas would have won had he been entered in the competition.

Capt. Rick Gross on Fishy Business out of Catchers Marina in Holmes Beach said he’s been putting his charters onto lots of snook, plus redfish and trout.

Capt. Zach Zacharias on the Dee-Jay II out of Parrot Cove Marina saidthe cold front and a drop in water temperatures made both bait netting and fish catching a real dicey affair compared to the pretty hot action before the front. “After the Gulf calmed down post-front, my charters had limited action with Spanish mackerel, bluefish and cobia. The big catch was numerous gag grouper on just about every piece of hard bottom.” While Capt. Zach’s inshore action suffered from the cold, he managed to struggle a few reds, trout and snook to the boat. Top catches went to Chuck Shuler of Michigan, who landed a 27-inch trout Friday, and Gary Shugart of Pennsylvania, who bested a 30-inch snook Saturday.