Tampa Bay is ready to explode! Captain Steven’s heart is racing knowing what the next 90 day brings. The winds would make chasing and spotting drum a real task so we reschedule and Captain Steven headed to the
Tampa Tribune's Outdoors Expo and Boat Show. A great place to spend the day with the kids. The seminar lineup is terrific with lots of information that’s both informative and fun!

With higher spring tides the redfish are showing up in all the usual spots. Live shrimp and cut pinfish on a jig head are my first choice. Unlike dock redfish these reds up skinny can get very skittish. Long casts are essential, another reason for braided lines. The bulk of schools I have found are large over the slot reds 28” to 36”.

Mackerel arrived in good numbers around the Skyway Bridge. Silver spoons retrieved very fast is a surefire tactic. Trolling is another popular technique as is anchoring and deploying a chum bag. Last year was Captain’s Steven’s best year for huge Spanish Mackerel. Macks 4-6 pounds were everywhere. Fish in the Bay or along the beaches both are havens for Big Macks.

Bonita invade Tampa Bay and near shore areas along with the Mackerel and Kingfish. Bonita aka Little Tunny average 8-12 pounds and are all muscle. Hook one of these speedsters and your drag will scream and scream. The same silver spoons I use for Mackerel are awesome on Bonita.

Tampa Bay Tarpon fishing is just around the corner. The Skyway Bridge is home year after year of Silver Kings 100-200 pounds. Sight fishing along the beaches up skinny is my favorite way to target tarpon. Pass crabs, Threadfin Herring and Scaled Sardines are top baits. The DOA Baitbuster is a must have artificial for Tarpon.

Spotted sea trout action is hot to very hot with non stop action this last week. Catching fish on every cast is possible especially with smaller trout 14-16” that school in big numbers. Grass flats 2-6’ with sandy potholes are home for these ravenous feeders. Jerk baits bounced along the bottom or hard stick baits cast a mile and work better than live bait most times. The DOA Deadly Combo is another must have lure.

Captain Steven Markovich