Thunderstorms this morning, then partly cloudy during the afternoon hours. A few storms may be severe. High near 90F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%..
A few passing clouds. Low 76F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph.
Updated: May 17, 2024 @ 8:39 am
Junito Russel shows off a nice redfish he caught on a Rusty Bucket charter out of New Port Richey. Capt. Bill Rutherford reports live shrimp was the top redfish bait over the past week.

Junito Russel shows off a nice redfish he caught on a Rusty Bucket charter out of New Port Richey. Capt. Bill Rutherford reports live shrimp was the top redfish bait over the past week.
Cool nights of late are just what we need to prolong the ideal water temperatures for inshore and offshore fishing. Sven at Bait and Tackle of Hernando Beach says we’ll be seeing 80-degree water soon enough, so cool evenings are welcome and may prolong the kingfish bite offshore longer. Mark at Dixie Lee Bait & Tackle reported that the cool weekend air slowed the rise in water temperatures but didn’t negatively impact the bite. A cool spring helps prevent the dreaded sudden-summer syndrome, which is known to bring spring fishing to an unfortunate early end. Anglers should take advantage of the current conditions as long as they can. Anyone who survived the record heat wave last summer would agree.
Capt. Mike Senker (352-584-6297): Capt. Mike has been stymied by the wind a lot, though he got out Sunday to fish between 25 and 38 feet of water. He noted that the water cleared a little from previous days but the bite was primarily limited to grunts, small mangrove snapper and undersized hogfish and red grouper. His anglers did boat some nice gag grouper to 32 inches, though the season on them is closed and they all went back in the water. He noted that the number and size of gags does bode well for when the season reopens in the fall. He thinks the ticket for offshore anglers going into the weekend is to start in around 45 feet of water on rocky bottom, where he suspects the bigger mangrove snapper and hogfish will be found. For those going out of Hernando Beach, Capt. Mike noted that there are schools of scaled sardines in the canals that can be easily netted.
Capt. Josh Fritz (352-345-9304): Capt. Josh reports the cool air that arrived over the weekend slowed the inshore bite, but we should be getting back on track by Friday, as the cooling was not great enough to negatively impact water temperatures significantly. Live sardines have been producing trout, reds and some snook around rocky points and bars, with some trout mixed in. He’s also been finding trout in 2 to 3 feet of water over grass bottom. He’s spotted a few cobia, and one of his anglers hooked one about 25 pounds but lost it in the fight. He’s also had one small cobia that was boated. Look for them on the open flats. Offshore, a good bet is going to be mangrove snapper and hogfish. Work rocky bottom in 25 to 35 feet of water with live shrimp.
Capt. Matt Cowden (727-534-6603): Capt. Matt said the weekend cold front dropped water temperatures a little but it hasn’t affected the bite. He’s still doing well fishing inside creeks for reds along the Pasco coastline and working deeper grass flats for Spanish mackerel.
Dixie Lee Bait (352-596-5151): Mark reports inshore fishing has been great. The cooler weather that arrived over the weekend fired up the big trout using live shrimp, which anglers were finding on shallow rocks and grass flats. Some got into the big trout in 10 to 14 feet of water over grass bottom, drifting and jigging with soft-plastic baits on jig heads. Redfish action has been pretty good on rocks, oyster bars and around creek mouths up and down the Hernando coastline. Live pinfish has been a good bait choice, and has produced a few snook on some of the same spots. Spanish mackerel are schooling just outside the Hernando Beach #1 marker, out to about 15 feet of water. That depth also is holding some cobia, so a good strategy is to anchor up and drop a chum block over the side to draw both species to the boat.
Bait & Tackle of Hernando Beach (352-610-4315): Sven was away on a Florida Keys trip fishing up to 700 feet of water, where he bagged a variety of snapper, blackfin tuna, an almaco jack that went about 30 pounds and a few other species. He thinks while the weekend is supposed to be breezy, we should see some good fishing inshore and offshore. The Spanish mackerel schools are here to stay through the summer and he suspects anglers looking for kingfish in 30 feet of water may encounter some, with the cool evenings we’ve been seeing helping keep the water temperature in their ideal range of the low to mid 70s. Inshore fishing for trout, reds and snook from the backwater grass to the outside points will be a good bet. He likes live creek chubs as a bait choice for all three, and the best bait for larger mangrove snapper. The chubs have the added advantage prevent pinfish from picking apart live shrimp, he said. Look for more cobia to be showing up on the flats in the days ahead.
Tarpon Trading Company (727-937-1488): Larry said anglers have been dealing with wind, the impacts of which included shrimp boats avoiding the Gulf, which meant the shop went a couple of days without live shrimp. A couple of anglers reported taking some small trout and a couple of small reds off the Fred Howard Park causeway. Others reported some small, male snook showing up on the back side of Anclote Key at the south end. As we close in on summer, the big, spawning females will show at the island. He didn’t get any reports over the last week, but Larry suspects Spanish mackerel will not be hard to find on the deep flats and on hard bottom just offshore. He recommends chumming or covering more water by trolling. Prior to the weekend’s cool air, there were some kingfish off Anclote Key in 25 feet of water. Offshore anglers who frequent the shop have been getting some amberjack. Catches have been made at the Pasco #2 artificial reef and along ledges 10 miles out.
Cooper’s Bait & Tackle (727-868-8736): Bill says anglers have been taking a mix of trout and a few redfish around Hudson. Trout have been on the grass beds from around Hudson Beach north. Some anglers have done well fishing the grass flats around the stilt homes off the Cotee River. Spanish mackerel have been spread out from the sand bar north of Anclote Key to about 9 feet of water off Hudson and Aripeka. Hudson-area canals have been producing lots of undersized mangrove snapper and sheepshead. Those who put in the time a cull can bag a few keepers on live shrimp.
The Rusty Bucket (727-645-6598): Capt. Bill reports the cool front of the weekend fired up the trout and Spanish mackerel bite. Good trout action was found around Anclote Key, hanging in deeper pockets and taking live shrimp and soft-plastic swim baits. The mackerel moved in a little closer on the deeper flats. The reds were not affected much by the cool air, but were preferring live shrimp over live sardines. Offshore, weather kept a lot of boats in over the past week, but those who did brave it caught a lot of keeper-sized gag grouper (released, as they are out of season). Kingfish action has been hit or miss, with those reporting the best catches starting in 60 feet of water. Fishing 30 feet of water on rocky bottom will be a good bet for grunts and hogfish, with the possibility of a few sheepshead. The same depths can produce cobia and Spanish mackerel.
J&J Bait and Tackle II (727-940-7928): James says anglers have been doing fairly well on trout, though they have been reporting more small fish. St. Joseph Sound has been a good place to find them, with fish over grass beds and around the channel spoils. Redfish have been hit or miss, with catches made around the mouth of the Anclote River, and north along the shoreline to Sand Bay. Spanish mackerel have been reported inside and outside Anclote Key, but the schools are moving a lot and hard to pin down.
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