Fishing Tampa's Flats and Bay

My guest for this day were Tom from Naples,Fl and John and Jommie from North Carolina.

If you have been reading my reports you know that just recently the Black Drum have showed up in our area. I have been very excited about this as it has seemed like an eternity that I have caught anything besides Trout,Lady fish and Sheepshead.

It was a game of patience when we got to our destination as the tide had not started moving in and the drum had not showed. I did not want to waste the guys time so I asked a friend who was in the area to give me a call when they showed as I was going to drift some flats for trout for a while. Well no sooner than we had caught one trout on a short drift my phone rang with good news. We made a bee line back to the area and it was not long before the fun began.

We had a couple of hook ups but the huge drum came unbuttoned. Thats OK it gave the guys a little feel for what they were going to have to deal with on 15 pound test line and light spinning tackle.

First with a solid hook up was Tom. I maneuvered the boat and we broke away from the pack so Tom could do battle with his beast. I think Tom has spent a little time fishing as he seemed to handle the fish well. After a 15 to 20 minute tug of war Tom landed a nice one.

Tom and a nice drum looking happy

Another shot to get the idea of size

After some high fives and congratulations it was time to catch up with the pack. As we eased in the guys presented there baits and it seemed almost like an instant double hook up! In the back of my mind I was thinking this could go bad real fast. With two fish over 30 pounds on and a pack of boats surrounding them anything can happen! Fortunatly John and Jommie handled the situation well as there fish started ripping off drag and running around and under another boat. After some jokeying for position and some slick manuvers we were able to clear the pack and get into open water to fight the fish.

I do not think Jommie had ever caught anything this large and he was having a blast.With just a little coaching he handled it like a pro.

Double hook up!

The battle between man and monster seemed to go on forever. I was getting tired just watching,but both fish came boat side and were landed for a few quick pictures and then released.

Jommie excited to land such a monster!

John with his catch of the day!

I asked the guys if they wanted to give it another go and they were all in agreement to take another shot. Again it was a quick hook up and Jommie was on! I simply told him to do the same thing as last time and that what he did,all though he put some heat on this fish and landed it in what seemed like record time. He already had his picture with one so we revived the fish and released it.

The guys had enough fun with the drum so we set out for a drum of another kind. Red drum. Even though we found them we did not get a hook up. The guys did not catch huge numbers but they caught quality fish.

Keep checking back as I keep updating my reports.

Capt. Steve

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