Up to date reports for 2010

Pensacola - Navarre - Gulf breeze - Perdido Key

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Pensacola Inshore Fishing Reports

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Aug 26th  - 2010

Constant rain and thunderstorms certainly make for some exciting fishing, that is, as long as the lightning stays away.

I had my first few trips after the oily aftermath of the summer of 2010 this past weekend, although I almost thought the weekend was going to be a bust, too. I had booked a couple of trips last week, but Mother Nature and her wicked sense of timing was not going to let that happen as a tropical storm was hanging around longer then expected.  I finally saw the light at the end of the wet and wild tunnel, and couldn’t wait to get me and the Mega-Bite back on the water.

My first trip was an inshore morning trip. I wanted to see how the trout bite was and I was not disappointed. We hit the water early that morning around 5:15am, and trout fished for a couple of hours before it got too hot. We didn’t catch as many as I would have liked, but the quality was great. We boated around 15 trout with 6 being keepers that were all nice fish. Most of the fish were around 2 lbs, with one topping the scale around 3.4 lbs. I was using both live and artificial baits. The artificial bait that worked for us was MirrOlure’s MirrOdine 17MR suspending twitch bait; we would switch that up with live pinfish under a popping cork. Both baits produced quality fish.

My second trip was a late afternoon trip and it started out a little wet. We had two big storms sitting right on top of us, so we had to take a small break from fishing until it was well past us. I’m all for fishing in a little rain, but lightning, fishing poles, and an aluminum tower don’t make a good combination. So, as we watched the storm head offshore we slowly made our way back to the pass. The bite was pretty good, and we hooked a few nice reds, but we lost a few to hook pulls. We managed to get one nice keeper in the ice chest, but the prize of the day was a big bull at 41 inches. After the red bite slowed down in the pass, we made our way over to the shoals for some fun light-tackle ladyfish. These guys (or are they all gals?) look just like baby tarpon and they have the same spunk a big tarpon has. With every cast we hooked a fish; they averaged 2 –3 lbs apiece with a few even topping the scales at 4 –5 lbs. Ladyfish are tremendous jumpers, and they are sure to bring a smile to any angler’s face with their powerful aerial acrobatics.

Another fish that has shown up just in time for the Labor Day grill is the tasty flounder. On Tuesday this week, I had a short trip and we found some flounders stacked up on a 40ft ledge. It was a nice surprise to see the flounders come up on what is usually my go-to redfish hole.

So let’s sum up the end of the summer bite.  It’s still hot, and I don’t just mean the temps!  But with fall just around the corner, and hopefully some more moderate weather with it, we should still be able to enjoy some great fishing for all kinds of fish.

If you’re planning a get away vacation to Pensacola Beach, Navarre, or Perdido Key, give me a shout and we’ll get you hooked up on a fish of a lifetime.

Tight Lines.
Capt. John

Aug 3rd - 2010

We have had excessive high temperatures along the Northwest gulf coast the past 4 days and we are forecasted to have temps around 95 – 100 for another 6 days with heat indexes around 105 –118. This means that if you’re going to do some fishing you’re going to have to start the day early and quit before 10 am, and then maybe start back around 5 pm or do some fun (and slightly cooler) night fishing. With the higher than normal temperatures, the fish bite slows down in the mid-afternoon, but is productive in the early morning hours and much later in the afternoon and at night. Despite the heat, the speck bite has been on and off the past two weeks. Try using popping corks with jigs and artificial lures like Bass Assassin’s 4” Blurp shrimp or some suspending baits like Mirr0lure’s 17MR Mirr0dean in red, silver and black. Most of the specks are between 14 to18 inches. Along with some fun speck fishing, the ladyfish and bluefish bite has been off the charts. If you’re looking for redfish, try the outgoing tide in the pass near the rock jetties with a live finger mullet or a medium pinfish.

Summer is in full swing and that means sharks in the bay, surf, and on the flats. If you’ve never hooked up with a big bull shark or hard-fighting black tip shark, you need to give me a ring.
If you can’t make it down this summer, don’t forget about the annual bull redfish run which happens every fall. The redfish run starts in late October and lasts until March, and is one of my favorite times to fish.

It’s not too hot and the fish are big and a lot of fun to catch.

Let’s get you hooked up on the Mega-Bite.  Tight lines.
Capt. John

July 20th - 2010

Report for Pensacola Bay, Pensacola Pass and Inland Waters

The forecast for the Pensacola waterways the past few days has been hot, hot, with a little bit of hot mixed in! With the heat index over a 100 nearly every day, it’s a wonder the fishing has been as good as it’s been. The trout bite on the flats in the ICW has been very productive, but as soon as it heats up around 9am the bite slows down and then it’s time to move on to other species. You will catch a few stragglers for the next few hours, but why mess with them when you can have fun with bluefish and ladyfish? They may not be the tops on the take home menu, but as far as fun on light tackle, these fish are definitely at the top. With their hard pulls and spectacular acrobatics, they leave most anglers wanting more and more with every hookup.

The rock jetties have been producing some nice slot redfish over the past few days mostly on an outgoing tide. Along with the good redfish bite, some flounder have shown up and they add a nice mix to the ice chest.

Spanish Mackerel are prevalent in the bay near Bob Sikes Bridge and 3-mile bridge. Slow- trolling a two-hook speck rig has been very productive along with tossing out a Clark spoon. This is great light-tackle fishing for family and the serious angler.

If these species of fish are just too tame for your taste, then maybe shark-fishing is more worthy of your attention. We fish for these hard-fighting toothy critters in the bay and in a few spots near the pass. Most of the sharks are 3-4 feet long, but a few are bigger, and they will get your heart racing for sure! 

July 6th - 2010

For the past few days the oil has not been very prevalent along our waters, and that’s due to this east wind, which has pushed the oil to the west near Mississippi and Louisiana.

We’ve had a lot of rain from tropical storms along the panhandle and in the gulf.

 The weather over the last 5 days has made it very tough to get out and do any fishing. When there has been a break in the weather, however, the fishing has been pretty good in the sound for trout and redfish. Along with the good inshore bite, some Spanish mackerel and bluefish have been seen in the bay near 3-mile bridge.

Fishing near the pass has been good near the jetties for slot and upper slot reds. Some flounder have also been showing up near the jetties. Live bull minnows have been the bait of choice.

Up in Escambia Bay and Blackwater Bay, the trout and redfish bite has been exceptional.

  So when you're ready to take your vacation, come visit Pensacola.

June 19th - 2010

The report in Santa Rosa Sound is good for both trout and redfish. Most of the fish are hitting artificial on popping corks. In Pensacola Bay, the bite for bluefish and Spanish mackerel is outstanding. The bite in Big Lagoon has also been very good for trout and redfish. Inshore Fishing in Pensacola Bay and along the ICW is open, so when you're ready to take your vacation, come visit Pensacola.

Tight Lines.
Capt. John

Report 6-05-2010

Report for Pensacola Bay, Pensacola Pass and Inland Waters

We’ve had some much-needed rain the past few days, although it did put a damper on many weekend activities. Another good thing about the rain is that it helps push the speckled trout out of the rivers and bayous, and it has set the trout bite on fire! Most of the specks are in the 14-17” range, but some are healthy fish over 20 inches. The trout bite should stay strong for the rest of the summer in the early morning hours and very late in the afternoon. If the trout bite isn’t hot enough to get you off the couch, then the redfish bite in the pass is sure to tempt you, and it has been off the charts. Most of the reds have been in the slot, which is great, because that means you get to put some dinner in the ice chest. Some of the reds are well over the slot between 28-35”.

Spanish mackerel, bluefish and skipjacks are showing up in the bay, pass, sound and along the beaches. This is great light-tackle fishing for family and the serious angler.

If these species of fish are just too tame for your taste, then maybe shark-fishing is more worthy of your attention. We fish for these hard-fighting toothy critters in the bay and in a few spots near the pass. Most of the sharks are 3-4 feet long, but a few are bigger, and will get your heart racing for sure! 

If you are interested in booking a trip on the Mega-Bite, just give me a ring or click the E-mail Button.
Tight lines.
Capt. John

Report 5-23-2010

So with everyone talking about oil, I had to stop watching the news and go fishing. As of May 23rd, the oil has not reached our shores; so far we’ve been very lucky. Please do not let the media scare you away from the Emerald Coast. If you are thinking of booking a fishing trip, all I can say is book the trip and if the oil does make it to our waters, and you have to cancel, your deposit will be refunded without any problem.

So let’s talk about the great fishing that’s been going on in Santa Rosa Sound. I went out to do some fun fishing and do some scouting, and the trout bite has been excellent the past week, and it’s only going to get better. I’ve been hooking up most of the trout on hard body baits like MirrOlure’s 17MR. This suspending twitch bait has to be one of the best trout baits around. Another great trout bait is Berkley’s freshwater 4” Shaky Shad rigged with an 1/8oz jig head. My color of choice is chartreuse and green back pearl; these two colors are deadly on the flats for big trout. This freshwater bait has proven to work great in saltwater and definitely triggers some great trout strikes, providing some fun light-tackle fishing.

The redfish bite has also started to pick up on the flats and on a few of my favorite docks that I fished last year. If you’re targeting reds on the flats, work your baits and the boat slowly and have patience. Look for sandy potholes mixed with grass, and you’ll find what you’re looking for.
Most of the fish are in small schools of 5 fish or less, however, I have stumbled upon a few large schools of fish with 40 plus fish. I’ve not been out in the gulf fishing the past few weeks due to the rough surf. In the middle of the bay I’ve found some big schools of Spanish mackerel with some bluefish and ladyfish mixed in. Slow-trolling jigs or spoons through and around these schools will absolutely make the drag scream. 

Lastly, I want to say if you’re wanting to come to Pensacola and do some great inshore fishing, give me a ring. Now is the time to come down and enjoy our awesome fishery.

Tight Lines.
Capt. John

Report 5-17-2010

As of May 17^th, there is no smell of oil along our beaches and no tar balls floating to shore.
Forecast models have the oil moving farther away from Pensacola, which is a good thing for our fishery and our pristine beaches. I urge people to visit the gulf coast and go fishing. 
If you want to see our emerald green waters and sugar white beaches come on down, and I’ll take you out on the fishing trip of a lifetime.

Here’s a quick report for the past few days.

The trout bite on the flats has been very good; most of the trout are 15 – 18” with a few topping the 20-inch mark. The redfish bite has also been very good in many of the same areas. If you like light tackle trout and red fishing, May and early June are primo months for going after these fun-fighting fish. We will be fishing in the pristine waters of Pensacola Bay and Santa Rosa Sound, and the water has been nice and smooth, or dare I say, slick, and the weather here is just perfect, with days starting out in the mid 60’s and warming up to t-shirt wearing 80’s.

Moving out into the middle of the bay, the Spanish mackerel bite has picked up and is only going to get better. Just off the beaches, there have been large schools of Jacks and schools of bull redfish cruising the sand bars.  On calm days, we can go after these, and we may even spot a cobia while we’re out there. We’ll definitely see plenty of dolphins, so bring your camera, because you’ll want to show off your memories when you get back home.

To reiterate, the beaches and the water are clear. The weather has been great, and we haven’t had much rain, so if you want to experience some of the best fishing along the gulf coast, give me a call, and we’ll get you out on the beautiful waters of Pensacola.

See you soon.

Capt. John

Report 5-7-2010

Update on the oil crisis:

As of 5-7-10, the inland waters are still open in Pensacola. If you're going to be in the Pensacola area within the next week, I am available for trips. There is no sign of oil on the beaches as of today and the waters and beaches look great.  I was out fun fishing with my wife yesterday, and the bite is on with trout and redfish in the sound.

Keep checking back to get updates.

Capt. John

April 21st - 2010

Topsy-Turvy Tuesday in the Gulf

At the end of the story there are three videos - Enjoy!

Took the wife out today for a little fun fishing; that’s what I call my “day-off” fishing trips. Come to think of it, that’s what I usually end up calling my working day fishing trips, too, but that’s beside the point.  We headed out around 9am with plans of going after that elusive Mr. Ling, better known as the cobia.  The weather called for cloudy skies with a very slim chance of rain, but as we crossed the bridge into Gulf Breeze, we knew it was going to be a perfect day on the water.  The bay was calm, with just a little bit of a roll, and the sun was trying its best to peek out from behind the clouds. We headed out of Shoreline boat ramp close to 10 am, and the sun was still hiding its big yellow face.  It was a little chilly running across the bay, but with virtually flat seas, we made quick time of getting out to the pass.

As soon as we made the turn into the pass, and saw the serene seas of the Gulf of Mexico, we knew the conditions were ripe for a good day of fishing.  After stopping to say hello to fellow captain, who told us to head toward Navarre for the cobia, we made our way up the beach toward the Pensacola fishing pier. I got up top in the tower for a better view of the glassy smooth water. My wife grabbed a perch right up front, and we kept our eyes peeled for that telltale brown shadow.  Cobia fishing is a lot of waiting, but after about two hours of looking and waiting, we decided that if Mr. Ling didn’t show himself in the next 30 minutes, we were going to give up the hunt, and go bottom-bumping out in the silky smooth gulf. (Cobia fishing also takes a lot of patience, which we obviously did not have).  Actually, our plan was to go see what we could rustle up at one of my secret spots, and then head back the way we came to finish our cobia conquest.

Turns out, the fish gods had other plans for us.  We arrived at our destination, and I rigged our hooks with cut menhaden, and gave the go-ahead to drop.  Pretty soon, I was bowed up with what felt like a decent fish.  After fighting the mystery fish for a couple minutes, I felt the line go slack.  I was beginning to wonder if we were going to see any fish today.  Gina had one tug her line just as I bowed up a second time.  She was the designated videographer this trip, so she asked if she should put hers into the rod holder while she filmed me catching mine.  Before I could answer, hers let go.  She reeled in quickly, and grabbed the video camera, just in time for mine to break free.  We wondered what the deal was. I changed out the leader on one line, and gave it another go.  Next drop down, and I was reeling up what I hoped would be a fish on the other end!  Gina kept the camera trained on the end of the line, and at last, we had our first fish in the boat—a red snapper.  I used my venting tool to deflate his air bladder, and wished the fish a fond farewell before tossing him back to the sea. 

Here’s where the story takes an odd turn.  Remember our original plans of cobia fishing? We had no luck, so we turned to bottom fishing as our Plan B.  Well, our plans were going to change once again, because anyone can go out to the gulf and catch red snapper off the bottom with cut bait, right?  What about on top on Spro jigs and Top water Chug Bugs on light tackle? Wait till you see what Plan C had in store for us.

I was rerigging, and motoring the boat back onto the reef, when my wife says, “What’s that?”  She kept pointing out bait pods all morning, and she can’t get enough of those diving loons, so I figured she was directing my attention to another bait ball.  “Those look like red snapper at 9 o’clock,” she said.  Surely she meant to say redfish?  Nope. 

I could hardly believe my eyes; red snapper was busting the surface like it was feeding time at the aquarium!  No one was chumming the water; we were all alone out there.  I grabbed my medium heavy 8 ft Berkley Cobalt rod, while she grabbed the Sony Handycam; we definitely wanted proof of this fish tale!  I threw out into the bubbling pink commotion, and held on tight.  Got one! I just hooked a red snapper while jigging barely a foot below the surface!  I repeat, I just hooked a red snapper while jigging! Was I on a Twilight Zone episode?  I reeled it in, and snapped a picture just to be safe before throwing it back. The swarm stayed up on top just a few minutes longer, so I threw out again, and brought another one up, or should I say, over to the boat.  There was no need to vent these fellas, but I thought about putting an egg weight around its fin so he could at least find his way back to the bottom.

The jubilee ended as abruptly as it started, and we settled down, got something cold to drink, and tried to catch our breath.  We no sooner got the rigs ready again for bottom fishing, than the splashing started up anew.  There they were again, hundreds, maybe thousands of red snapper bursting out of the water.  Perhaps there was an overcrowding problem due to the new snapper limits, I thought as I threw yet again another Spro bucktail into the fray.  My wife had been impatiently capturing this all on video, but finally had enough of watching from the sidelines, so I handed over my rig, and threw out a green Spro for her on the cobia rod that was useless until that point.  We had a double hookup, each switching positions back and forth on the deck, giddy with excitement.  She landed hers, and I helped it off the hook, and then I finished reeling mine in.

This continued for about two hours; every time we would rig the bottom rods up for what we hoped would grant us our grouper supper, the water would boil up, and we’d be back to throwing our jigs.  I just started reeling in another topsider red snapper, when he decided to take off like a bat out of hell!  The line started screaming, and my wife zoomed in on it with the camera, just to watch how fast the line was peeling off.  “This guy wants to go back home!” I said.  But I kept up the tug of war anyway.  I finally thought I won the battle, but as I pulled up the line out of the water, I saw that a shark was the winner this time. 

 We figured that’s why the red snapper were up on top, but we were surprised they stayed up this long. On the next throw, I decided to toss out a 5-inch Rapala chartreuse Chug Bug. I lobbed it way out into the middle of the Red Snapper melee, and began twitching it like I was tempting a trout. My wife zoomed the camera onto the red tide that was headed at us, and we watched in amazement as they dove under the boat.  I threw it out again, and this time snagged one out of the bunch. As I reeled it in, the school tried earnestly to keep up. What a sight! Red Snapper surrounded the boat. If snapper season was open, we could have had our limit in just about 4 casts of the Chug Bug!  It was almost 4 pm, and we had planned to be home around 3pm, so we reluctantly decided to head back in.  We were worn out, and couldn’t wait to get home to see our video, if only just to again verify that this wasn’t a crazy hallucination.

Now if you plan on getting out on the water in the near future to go after Red Snapper, first remember that Red Snapper isn’t in season until June 1^st. Second, you might want to bring some bottom rigs, because that’s the usual routine for catching bottom fish!  I have to also suggest maybe bringing a few trusty jigs and top water rigs, because you never know, you too might step into the Twilight Zone!

Here are 3 videos.

Windows media player needed

 Check back in a few days for more. 

I'm working on getting 3 more videos.

Tight Lines. Capt. John

April 10th - 2010

The Spring Breakers have gone home, and I need a nap. What a great 6 weeks of fishing! Countless sheepshead, and by far, the best bull redfish bite for March and April since I’ve been guiding.
I’ve got a few days off to get my tackle organized for the next run of trips. May is right around the corner and that’s when I’ll be hitting the flats going after some gator trout and sight-fishing reds.

Here’s a few pics from Saturday’s trip.
I guided Mike and his son Austin from Minnesota. They came down to visit the Gulf coast to see what all the Red Drum hype was all about. They found out firsthand, and caught 6 big ‘uns. 

They also had a great time hooking up sheepshead and watching all the guides work the ledges today. The bite was great, and it was good to see everyone out on the water.
Keep checking back for more inshore light tackle action.
Tight Lines.
Capt. John

April 9th - 2010

Just wanted to post a short report for the past couple of days.
We had high winds on Wednesday and a cold front come in on Thursday with some rain, so I took the two days off to rest and regroup for the weekend.
Earlier in the week, Monday and Tuesday were perfect days on the water. The sheepshead bite was very good and we even managed to hook up a few reds. I always enjoy fishing during spring break with my clients because many of them are families. For many of them it is the first time they have ever saltwater fished and it’s always fun to see their faces when they hook up a big red or when they see the teeth of a sheepshead for the very first time.

Friday April 9th was a great trip; I had Phil, his three sons, Philip, Jesse, and C.J., along with a friend of the family, Robert. We made it an afternoon starting time, because the morning winds were high, but it was forecasted to calm down in the afternoon. We left the dock around lunchtime at 12:30 and headed to the pass in search of fun light tackle sheepshead. It was lunchtime all right.

The sheepshead were hungry and we were there to ease their hunger pangs like a pizza delivery boy. On nearly every drift we boated a couple convicts looking to score a free meal. We stayed here a while, and the guys kept 7 nice sheepshead to take back for their dinnertime. I got a call from one of my captain buddies, who told me that he was on one of the largest schools of reds that he’s seen in a while, and that if my clients wanted to give the sheepshead a break, to come on over and check it out. We pass along info to each other from time to time, not only as a professional courtesy, but also because we want every customer to have the best trip possible.

I put a few of the sheepshead rods away and re-rigged a couple of them for the reds, and quickly made my way to where he told me to go, and I couldn’t believe my eyes, there had to be at least 500 or more reds schooled off one of the sand bars. We immediately cast into the boiling water. We had quadruple hookups more times than I could count. It was pure pandemonium, drags were screaming, anglers were giddy, and they were running under one another to keep their lines from getting tangled. It was like a comical controlled chaos, resulting in 10 bull reds and a few break offs.

Tally for the day was around 16 – 18 sheepshead and 10 bull reds. What a great trip.
Tight Lines.
Capt. John

April 7th - 2010

The sheepshead bite was great this weekend, with double and triple hooks up all around. Most of the sheepshead are around 4 – 5 lbs, but a few are topping the scales around 7 lbs with a few maybe even weighing in at 9 lbs.

 You have got to love springtime fishing. Not only is the sheepshead bite going off right now, but so is the big reds. This is one of the best redfish bites in the spring I’ve ever seen. On just about every one of my trips I’m getting into a few reds, and these aren’t pip-squeaks; these are big. Mixed in the sheepshead and reds are groupers, (some keeper and some not), and there are also a few juvenile snappers snapping at our shrimp. I have surprised myself a few times this week by finding the big reds on a few of my secret spots where I normally catch them in the fall. This past week the reds have schooled up in wads of 500 fish or more, and if you toss out a jig anywhere close to the school, it’s fish on!

Jim is all smiles when he landed this big red.

It was the first fish he had ever caught.
Congrats Jim!

April has brought us warm skies and calm seas, and as the water keeps warming up, more bait will show up, and the Spanish, Skipjacks, and Bluefish will follow. All oversized redfish were released back to be caught another day.
Stay tuned for more reports.
Tight Lines.
Capt. John

April 3rd - 2010

According to the calendar, it’s April 2^nd, but the fishing is as red hot as it is in October and November for the big redfish. No, this isn’t a late April Fool’s joke! We have been catching large numbers of the big bull redfish, and on light tackle, it is even better.

Jeff is all smiles after he boated this 

monster redfish, it was the biggest fish of his life.

We have also been doing very well with big sheepshead in the 6 to 9 lb range. Mixed in with the sheepshead are some groupers, with some keepers and some undersized. Thankfully, now that it is April, we are able to keep our keeper groupers, instead of throwing them back. One of my favorite things to eat is a grilled grouper sandwich! Now if I could only catch some Cole slaw and some hush puppies to go along with it!

The bite has really turned on in the pass and on a few of my honey holes. On most of my trips, we’re averaging 12 – 20 sheepshead and a few good redfish.

Christine and Tony had fun catching sheepshead all day.

If you like hooking big fish on light tackle, and don’t mind going to the grocery store for your side dishes, then give me a shout. April has started out with a bang and it should stay this way for the next couple of weeks. The long-range weather forecast is calling for sunny skies and no rain. Let’s get out there while the bite is red-hot!

Mike and Joan are all smiles after they boated these

 two nice Pensacola Pass Sheepshead.

 
Tight Lines.

Capt. John

March 24th - 2010

The forecast called for sunny skies and a high around 72. The weatherman must need a refresher course, because what we got was overcast skies, fog, and barely 64 degrees. But it was nothing that the Mega-Bite couldn’t handle, and we made a great day of it, in spite of the weather. I guess we really shouldn’t complain, because it was still a great day to be on the water.

  I had the pleasure to have Bob and his wife, Shari, from Louisiana, and Shari’s dad Terry, who hailed from my old hometown back in Indiana, go out with me on Wednesday. We anchored up on my first go-to stop, but it didn’t produce at all. On our next stop, it wasn’t 5 minutes after setting the anchor, before we were reeling them in. My clients boated over 20+ sheepshead, all on light tackle. The bigger fish were put away into the ice chest, and we let the little ones go to grow up for next season’s run.  We had a good hour during our trip when we were getting bites on every cast. We didn’t need sunny skies to keep us warm! The fishing was on fire!
Looks like Thursday is going to be rainy, but hopefully the weather will clear out for another great weekend trip. 

Tight lines!

 Capt. John

March 18th & 19th - 2010

Some great light tackle Pensacola Florida  inshore fishing.  

All I can say is we whacked them today. Redfish, Red Snapper, Sheepshead, Black Drum, Grouper; if it swam, we caught it!
The red snappers were small, but fun on light tackle. We took a few pictures for the memory books, and let them go. The grouper was an undersized scamp so we took another quick pic, and let him go, too.

One of the two redfish we caught was oversized, so we released him to be caught another day. But the rest hit the ice chest for dinner this weekend. Give me that filet o’fish!

I had two great trips with fun customers and the fishing couldn’t have been better. It’s about time spring got here! Stay tuned for the next adventure.
Tight Lines.
Capt. John

Whacked 'em again today...more sheepshead and grouper. Man, I wish grouper was in season! We had two nice keepers today-- one was 25" and the other was 23". On April 1st, they won't be so lucky; they'll be cooking on my grill!

Today's morning trip started out cold and a little windy, but we were catching fish, so we weren't complaining. The last two hours the sun popped out which made the last part of the trip very nice. We caught some small undersized red snapper, which we released back to grow up and the two nice gags, which we also let go, while crying the whole time. Didn't catch a sheepshead on the morning trip or a redfish, but there's always next time. We stayed in Pensacola Pass all morning and checked out some hot spots in the bay, too.

On my afternoon trip, Al and Dave boated some monster sheepshead! We had a great trip; the weather was perfect and the sheepshead bite was pretty darn good, too. We had a few fish take us into the rocks, but Dave did manage to hook one of the biggest sheepshead caught on my rig, a whopper of a fish that had to go 8 or 9 pounds. It made the other sheepshead in the ice chest look like juvies!

The water is really starting to look much better and the water temp is just about right. Fishing is good now, but it's about to get a whole lot better.
Till the next adventure.
Tight Lines.
Capt. John

March 9th - 2010

Early March Report

Three days of fun fishing in Pensacola Bay. The sheepshead bite has not kicked off yet, but I’m sure it won’t be long now. We’re catching a few small males, but the bigger fish have yet to show their faces.  The white trout bite has been exceptional the past month and it’s still going strong. The great thing about these fish is they are a blast on light tackle and they’re pretty tasty with some hushpuppies and slaw.  Not only are they fun, but this year they are running bigger than last year. I’ve been boating many fish well over 2 lbs. On Monday we boated a huge white trout that had to be close to 4 lbs and was at least 23 inches.

Along with the plentiful trout, we’ve managed to hook up some hard-fighting redfish both along the bridge and off the rock jetties. A few other species have made a showing in the pass. We even managed to hook up a few undersized red snapper and grouper. It’s good to see a healthy fishery, and when we’re catching snapper and grouper in the pass, I know the stocks are healthy. These fish will be ready for the taking in a year or two.

Next week I’ll be on the water going after some sheepshead and redfish. Hopefully the bite will have picked up on my sheepshead holes.

Tackle Tally

Reels: Quantum Catalyst 20’s & Quantum Boca 30’s

Rods: Fenwick HMG spinning rods 7 ft Medium and 7 ft Medium Heavy

Line:  Berkley Ultra Braid  - - 20 lb & 30 lb 

Leader: Berkley Fluorocarbon - - 15 lb – 20 lb –30 lb

Hooks: Gamakatsu 1/0 live bait hooks

Jigs: Bass Assassins ¼ oz

Bait: Berkley Gulp 3” – 4” Shrimp, Curly Tail Grubs 3”

Till next time, see you on the water.
Tight Lines.
Capt. John 

March 5 - 6th - 2010

Two days of great light tackle fishing:

Day #1

I had the pleasure to take David Johnson and his son on a great day of fishing. David’s son is about to be shipped overseas to Iraq and David wanted to spend some extra quality time with his young soldier.
It was a bit cold starting out, but it warmed up nice around noon.

High tide was around 1:40pm, so we hit the water around 9am and the bite was decent all morning. We targeted trout and redfish, but the reds decided to stay hidden. Oh well, there’s always tomorrow. We boated around 35 trout, and lost a few more to structure on the bottom, but that’s bridge fishing for you.

Dave and his son are going out again tomorrow and we’re going after sheepshead, and then for the reds along the beach. I’ll post again tomorrow.
Till next time.
Capt. John

Day #2
I had David and his son, Spencer on the boat again today for their second trip. We went out yesterday and did pretty well. My plan today was to fish the pass for sheepies and reds.

We headed out, the weather was perfect, and a lot of boats had already staked their claim on a few good spots. I managed to find a hole and fish for a while, but the bite was not what we were looking for.
Both men had a few bites, but the rocks were becoming a nuisance, so I pulled anchor and hit the beach looking for schools of reds cruising along the sand bars. I jumped up in the tower and I spotted 4 good fish, but we still couldn’t give away our bait.

Time for Plan C. I decided to go back to the bridge and go after the white trout and hoped we might get lucky and snag a redfish or two. As luck would have it, the bite was on! David’s first fish was a nice 28” red caught on a ¼ oz jig with a 4” Berkley Gulp New Penny Shrimp. Spencer hooked up a few nice trout and had a few good bites that we think were reds, but let go too early.

Father and son began hooking trout one after the other, and had a blast just trying to keep count. It was a great way to end the day, with 30 or so trout and one nice redfish.
David and Spence were a pleasure to fish with and I look forward to our next fishing adventure.
Tight Lines.
Capt. John

February 26th - 2010

I had a trip today, and although I was a little hesitant at first, because of the cold, what a great day on the water! It had been a while since I had a client on the boat due to the cold weather, rain, and wind we’ve had over the past 9 weeks. I knew the bite would be good on today’s trip, because I have been out scouting my spots to see where the fish were and to also see how good the bite was. I wanted to check to see if the muddy water had pushed the fish out into the gulf to cleaner water. 

I had found that some fish had been pushed out, but a lot were still around including white trout and a good amount of redfish. So I was not too surprised when my client, Sue, pulled in a nice 27” Redfish! 

Well, maybe I was a little surprised; it sure was a beauty! I drifted a few spots along the bridge and was marking good fish, but on one drift I marked the mother lode, so I set anchor, and we just slayed them for 3 hours straight. Somewhere in the three hours, Roy’s drag starting singing an old familiar tune, and I knew it was another red.

 This was turning out to be good start to my spring trips even though we were about 10 degrees below normal temperatures for the day.
 We stayed pretty warm by working the fish, and by noon, it had actually gotten warm enough to remove our heavy jackets. With more white trout than you could count and two good slot reds to seal the deal, Roy and Sue were two happy Hoosiers. I enjoyed meeting them and when I found out they were from my old Indiana stomping grounds, it made the day a little more special. I always enjoy showing people from up north how good our fishing is in the Panhandle. 

Bait Check Today 

I was tossing 3/4oz jigs; with Berkley Gulp’s 4” Shrimp.
 A few times I put on a 5” Berkley Gulp Jerk Shad. Colors were mixed today, some New Penny, and some Nuclear Chicken both in the 4” shrimp and Jerk Shads.Stay tuned for the next report on or around March 6th
Tight Lines.
Capt. John
 
CMC High Speed Jack Plate
This winter I decided to add a Jack Plate to my boat. I contacted my mechanic Kenny Mann at Emerald Coast Marine and he suggested CMC’s 5 ½ “ High Speed Jack Plate. He installed it for me, and I could hardly wait to get out on the water to try it out.
I tried it out a few times in shallow water and it is going to make me able to get into much shallower water and catch more fish, which is a good thing for both my clients and me, but maybe not so good for the fish! If anyone needs anything done on his or her boat give Kenny a ring at Emerald Coast Marine. His customer service is very professional and his workmanship is top notch.

http://www.emeraldcoastmarine.com/

Tight Lines.
Capt. John

February 10th - 2010

Only six weeks away until spring will be knocking at our door, and I can’t wait. It’s been a long, hard, cold winter. With freezing temperatures lasting two weeks at the start of 2010, it made it tough to get off the couch or even want to go fishing. To pass the time, I worked on my tackle getting it ready for this new season.

This past week we had great weather; sunny skies and temperatures in the lower to mid- 60’s, and I did not waste it. I went out scouting and found a lot of fish. My first stop was at 3-mile bridge hitting the rocks and deep holes for some tasty white trout. If you can’t get off work till after 5pm, no problem! The bite is still very good at night, and not only will you hook a few trout, you may even hook up a couple of drag-screaming reds like this one I hooked last week.

I say it all the time; redfish have to be one of my favorite fish to hook up on. Their powerful headshakes really get your adrenaline pumping, and the fight on light tackle is awesome.

I was scouting a few of the bayous to see how the bite was, and it is getting better already. I managed to hook up a few specks; most were small in the 13 – 14 inch range.

The sheepshead bite is pretty good at a few of local bridges and on the rock jetties. I have been out at the pass hitting the rock jetties and deep ledges and I’ve caught some good fish, but the bite will really start to get crazy around March 10^th, and won’t stop till around April 15^th. If you like hard-pulling, drag-screaming, light tackle action, you need to give me a ring for your spring break fishing trip.

Here's a great family picture taken during last seasons sheepshead run!

It’s light tackle action at it’s finest!

Keep checking back for my next report. During February, I’ll post 2 – 3 reports, but when March gets here, I’ll be posting a lot more, that is if I can find the time between trips!  Don’t worry, I’ll make the time. Now you take this time to give me a ring and let’s get you out of the office and onto the water.

Tight Lines.

Capt. John

Jan 23rd

You’ve got to love Florida in January! 70 degrees and sunny all day today, Friday January 22^nd  2010.

It was a great day to be on the water. I took the wife out today to do some scouting and put some fish in the icebox for lunch tomorrow. Fresh sheepshead and trout, with corn bread, rice, and Cole slaw.  There’s nothing like a fish fry in January!

Our first stop was at the rock jetties in Pensacola Pass. High tide was around 3pm so I knew if we got there around 10am we would have some good moving water. I wanted to target sheepies for a few hours and then go over to the 3-mile bridge to see how the trout bite was. The pass was a little bouncy going across, but laid down near the shore where we anchored up.

Click on picture to enlarge

 I had stopped at the bait shop for some fresh dead shrimp, and I Carolina rigged us both up and began our quest for the sheepshead. We were both using Catalyst 20’s spooled with 20lb Berkley Braid, 20 lb Berkley Fluorocarbon with a #1 Gamakatsu live bait hook and a small piece of shrimp to completely cover up the hook. I was using lightweight on this trip; the current was not too strong, so I was able to get away with only using a 1oz egg weight.

With warm temperatures and calm seas and the sound of the birds playing on the sand and waves slowly crashing the shore, it was a picture perfect day in the pass.  We were getting a few decent nibbles, but we fed them more than we caught them. I caught a few decent sheepshead, and one little fella who was big for his britches, but my wife reeled in mostly empty shrimp shells. She was having a little trouble distinguishing bites from the pull of the rocks on the bottom, but she enjoyed rooting me on as I reeled in a couple for us to share. Around 1:30 pm we called it quits at the jetties. I didn’t want to leave, because it was just an awesome view, but I wanted to search a few more areas to see what else we could come up with. After we stowed all the gear, we made our way across the slick calm waters of Pensacola Bay to the 3-mile bridge only to be met with 20+ other boaters who must have had the same idea. There was plenty of room to throw anchor, so after quickly claiming our spot and marking plenty of fish, we got ready to end the day with some more fish for the fryer.

Once anchored, it didn’t take us long before we started to put a hurting on some white trout. My wife, Gina, gamely tossed her bait out.  I caught the first two, but after a little coaching she was kicking my butt. We had a great time watching each other hook fish after fish. We must have caught 20+ trout in a very short time. We kept only what we were going to eat for lunch Saturday and threw the rest back to be caught another day.

I had a great day on the water with my wife. We had been suffering from a touch of the cabin fever the past few weeks, and it was nice to get out and remind ourselves why we moved here eleven years ago.

Watching her smile and laugh while fishing is what this day was about for me. I enjoy taking my family out and I wish I could do it more often. Guiding is my job and I love it, but sometimes on my days off when the family asks, “Hey, can we take the boat out?” the last thing I want to do is to go fishing. But after this trip, I’ll never say no again. What’s better than having a great day on the water? Sharing it with the people you love and who love you back.

I am very fortunate that I have found something that I love doing and that I can share my love for fishing and for the beautiful waters of Pensacola with others. After watching all the devastation and all the heartache on the news lately, it was good to get out and finally enjoy 2010.

If you would like to create some great family memories, bring your family down to Pensacola and spend a day with me on the water. I will take you out on a great adventure, and you too will have a great 2010 memory.
Tight Lines.
Capt. John

Happy New Year!
What will 2010 bring to northwest Florida?  Great fishing I hope.

The first day of the new year brought cold temperatures and high winds so I was not able to get out on the water, and with forecasted temperatures as low as 19 degrees and the high only reaching 44 degrees the next 7 days, it doesn’t look like I’ll be on the water any time soon.  Instead I will stay inside, stay warm, and reminisce about the great fishing that we had during 2009.

This past summer was great for inshore reds and I’m hoping that 2010 will bring the same.

May of 2009 was the best I’ve seen it for big specks, and I would be more than thrilled if 2010 was even half as good.

Pensacola has a very diverse fishery with its flats and deep holes throughout the different inlets and bays; there are many different species to be found, and plenty of places to find them.

Even though it’s too cold to venture out right now, it’s only about 8 weeks until March, and then we’ll be hooking up big sheepshead, slot reds and hopefully even a few big black drum.

So while the cold weather has you dreaming about warmer days on the water, if you’re thinking about heading down to Pensacola in 2010, give me a ring and set up a fishing trip. I’ll make sure you have the most enjoyable trip you’ve ever had.

Here are some pics looking back at 2009

Click to enlarge

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Capt. John