Captain’s Corner for March 16 Dave Zalewski 397-8815

What’s Hot:

St. Patrick’s Day (March 17) and Columbus Day (October 10) are the two holidays that signify the usual start of the Spring and Fall kingfish runs. The 2011 Fall kingfish run was disappointing for Tamps Bay anglers. This Spring season is a little ahead of schedule because of the mild winter and almost perfect water temperatures in our area and is promising to be one of the best in recent years. Kingfish, Spanish mackerel and bonita can be found in schools of various sizes from within 100 yards of shore near any of the passes entering into the gulf out to the 10 Fathom depths. .

On most recent trips we have mackerel fished using #1 planers and #1 spoons in the area just outside the swim buoys between John’s Pass and Pass-a- Grille.

Tip:

There are many juvenile kingfish mixed in with the Spanish mackerel. Spanish Mackerel have to be 12 inches fork length. King mackerel have to be 24 inches fork length. Fork length is measured from the tip of the nose to the fork in the tail. King mackerel have a lateral line that starts high and drops sharply below the second dorsal fin. Spanish mackerel have a lateral line that curves gently to the base of the tail.

The forty and 60 foot depths have both proved productive for our kingfish attempts, with both trolling #1 and #2 planers with larger spoons or slow trolling with live sardines or hardtails.

On a recent trip the kingfish almost became a nuisance while bottom fishing. A stinger rigged flat line with a dead sardine cast out and retrieved with an inshore “walk the dog” action resulted in multiple hookups.