Tampa Bay Fishing Charters

Posts Tagged ‘tampa bay fishing report’

We are just into our first week of the new year and fishing is really good. On our Tampa Bay fishing charters we change it up a bit from time to time in the winter.

For those that just want to stay busy Spotted Sea Trout and Redfish are keeping rods bent. If you are a little more patient and willing to wait out the big ones Cobia have been a good bet on the right tides.

Cobia are strong fighters and can really give an angler a good work out on light tackle. The bonus to catching these drag ripping beast is  they are great table fare. Cobia have a size and bag limit as most species of fish do. Cobia have to be at least 33″ to the Fork of the Tail and there is a limit of 2 per person per day with a maximum of 6 being in possession.

On a recent trip this father and son had the double hook up on Cobia.

Is it steady rod bending you would like? Or a fish of a life time? Contact Capt. Steve Betz and book your winter time charter.

Happy New Year From Captain Steve Betz and Tampa Flats and Bay Fishing Charters!

I hope the New Year is a happy,healthy,prosperous and Fishing filled year for all of you.

This past year has been a really good one for me. I had many fish filled days and was able to put smiles on the faces of both new and repeat clients.

The weather has been nothing less than awesome this winter. We have had a few cold fronts roll through the area,but they have not stopped the fish from biting. Recent charters have had 100 fish plus come to the boat. Redfish and trout have been the main stay with some keepers going home for dinner.

We have been using live shrimp for bait and at times artificial lures have been doing the trick. Both methods have been keeping the rods bent and catch trout up to 24′ and redfish up to 22″.

This time of year is a great time to catch fish in numbers and keep anglers busy reeling them in!

Thank you for stopping by to read my reports. If you have any questions about charter availability ,whats biting or the best time to book your next fishing charter,feel free to contact Capt. Steve

Tampa Fishing Charters have been very good this past month. We have been catching good numbers of Trout and Redfish. Everyone has been in on the action. Women,Children and Men alike.

The action has been steady on light tackle making some of the smaller fish really put up a nice fight. Trout have been caught in the keeper range. We have also been catching some Redfish with in the slot range of 18 to 27 inches.

This time of year the fishing can be fairly easy and kids catch on real quick.

This is a good time of year to take advantage of some rod bending steady action. No matter what your skill level Capt. Steve Betz will put you on the fish and instruct you on how to catch them.

If you would like to book a charter with Capt. Steve feel free to contact him to book your date or ask any questions you may have.

Tampa Bay Fishing Charters has plenty to offer. December weather is Spring like so we are experiencing some nice catches. I dont know how long it will last until our next set of cold fronts come along but for now we are taking advantage of it.

Cobia are in the bay and on recent charters we have been getting some keepers to the boat. Right now Cobia fishing is an option. We are still catching plenty of Spotted Sea Trout and Redfish also.

On nearshore charters we have been having a good bite also with some nice flounder coming on board. Along with flounder we have been getting Gray Snapper and Black Sea Bass. There are also a few Spanish Mackerel around to supply some drag ripping runs!

Our weather has been very mild so its time to take advantage of it.  There are plenty of opportunities to catch fish and even put a few in the box for dinner.

As always thanks for stopping by and reading my reports.

If you would like to book a charter or ask any questions feel free to contact Capt. Steve.

November Tampa Bay Fishing Charters have been really good with steady action from Trout and Redfish keeping the rods bent. Cooler water temps have moved the fish into the saltwater creeks and canals.

Live baits and artificial bait have done the trick keeping anglers happy catching fish after fish. We have been having some good catches of Spotted Sea Trout with a some of our clients taking home a few keepers for dinner.

Along with trout we have been also catching some nice Redfish. They have been mixed in with the trout and some of the smaller Redfish.

We have also been catching a variety of other fish on our Tampa Bay fishing charters. Silver trout and Sheepshead have been in the mix.

If you would like to book a Tampa Bay Fishing Charter please feel free to contact Capt. Steve Betz with any questions about rates,availabilityand what will be included in your fishing adventure!

September is close at hand. Here at Tampa Flats and Bay Fishing Charters we are getting ready for some good action. If this next month is anything like last year you can expect to catch a nice variety of fish including Snook,Redfish,Spotted Sea Trout and possibly a Cobia or two along with many other species.

On a Tampa Fishing Charter your Fishing Guide Capt. Steve Betz likes to keep the rods bent. Spotted Sea Trout are usually a sure bet this time of year. Not only do they provide steady action,they make for great table fare. You may enjoy them fried in your favorite batter or maybe sprinkle the fillets with some spice ad a little butter and broil.

A nice bag of Spotted Sea Trout

This is a great time of year to take the kids fishing. It tends to be a little cooler outside in September making time on the water more enjoyable. Kids love the steady trout action and can also have shots at snook and redfish.

We also catch Redfish and get our shots at Cobia this time of year.

Fishing in Tampa Bay is always an adventure! I am often asked what is biting and if the fishing is good at a particular time of year. In Tampa there is always some fishing action to be had. We catch fish all year long!

If you would like to book a charter please feel free to contact Capt. Steve. He is always willing to answer your questions,and if he is booked on the date you would like he can recommend a top guide in Tampa Bay to take you.

Thank you for stopping by.

June has been a crazy month for fishing charters. Typically with the great tides we have for Tarpon fishing I would expect more people would call to book those type of charters. For me that has not been the case.

It is a good thing I choose to be a diverse fishing guide and not get tunnel vision and only target a particular species. For one thing I would probably get very few charters and my clients may get bored out of their minds.

So far the month of June has been a month of variety fishing. I have done Grouper and Grunt Charters,Tarpon Charters, and Spanish Mackerel and Shark Charters. It has been a fun month so far and the constant change has kept it interesting to say the least.

I had a call from some regulars of mine who really enjoy catching Grunts and Grouper. I take these clients to some nearshore areas that hold plenty of fish and they seem to always fill the box. This time out they got a pleasant surprise. I traveled out a little further than usual as the sea’s were so calm. I noticed some birds working in the distance and thought this may be a good opportunity for some light tackle Bonita action. I was right and it was not long before Will was battling a hefty Bonita.

Bonita

Bonita put up a very good fight on light tackle spinning gear. After Will and his dad had enough of battling Bonita I made a move to some nearby structure. What was about to happen topped of the days fishing charter. We found a school of hungry Cobia. After a few cast of a small jig it was a hook up! Drag ripping runs were made and both Will and there fishing friend Steve put two nice Cobia in the boat. These fish weighed in at about 25 lbs. each. I think they had plenty of fish for the table now.

Cobia

Will and his Dad were pretty excited about that trip and asked me to take them again. We did with different results. They put plenty of Grunts, Porgys and Sea bass in the cooler along with one nice Grouper. I was to busy baiting hook’s and forgot to get pictures.

On another charter it was Spanish mackerel and Sharks. I had a group of 5,three adults and two young boys. These are some of my favorite charters. I love seeing the smiles on kids faces when they catch fish. They caught plenty of fish with a 4′ black tip Shark in the mix. I did not have time on this charter to take pictures,I was just to busy tending to the clients needs.

I had another Tarpon charter. It was a slow bite and we never did get a Tarpon this day. My client did how ever catch a few sharks and at the end of the charter got a surprise and hooked into a 25lb Kingfish! This fish peeled off about 75 yards of line and made several nice runs and put up a nice fight. No it was not a Tarpon but in saltwater you just never know hat you are going to get at times.

The fishing has been awesome so far this month. A variety of fish can be caught. Book a summer time fishing charter and you may get surprised at what you catch!

June is here and what better time to get your Tarpon on! The Tarpon bite has been very good on both the Full and New moon tides. Fishing the beach or bridges in the early morning or drifting the Pass in the afternoon can result in multiple hook ups. Tarpon 100lbs and up are here and ready for battle.

Client Battling a Tarpon

Nice Tarpon Boat side

Battling Tarpon may not be your cup of tea? If not Tampa Bay has plenty of other species to target this time of year.

Spanish Mackerel, Sharks, Trout, Redfish, Jack Cravelle, Redfish and Snook all make for some great fishing adventures.

Book your charter now to get the best date’s!

My plan to switch gears and start Fishing for Tarpon in Tampa Bay this month has been partially foiled. I have been out a few times in search of the Silver Kings but my time has been limited due to the fact that it seems most of my charters this month have been wanting to target inshore species such as Snook,Redfish,Trout and Spanish Mackerel.

The few times I have chased Tarpon this month we had some opportunity’s at possible hook ups,but the Tarpon just did not cooperate. Here in Tampa we are just getting into our good tides for Tarpon fishing so I am optimistic I will be flying them high soon!

My customers mean a lot to me so when I get the call I do my very best to give them what they want. As I stated previously most calls have been for inshore Snook, Trout and Redfishing. Spanish Mackerel are pretty thick right now so if you have never caught one you will be pleasantly surprised at the drag ripping runs and the battle they put on light tackle.

There is plenty of action going on in Tampa Bay so now is the time to book your Charter.

Here is a picture of one of my customer’s with a nice Snook around 15lbs caught on a recent charter.

Snook Action!

Here is another happy customer with his catch.

Tampa Bay Snook

As a Bi- Catch we have been catching the occasional Shark. They put up a nice fight and ad to the excitement of the charter.

Sharks make for a nice battle!

Thank you for stopping by to read my reports. I hope the next time you want to book a Tampa Bay Fishing Charter  you will consider calling me.

I charter full time and I am available 7  days a week including holidays. If I am booked on the day you would like your charter I may be able to arrange for another Full Time fishing guide to accommodate you.

March was a fantastic month for fishing in Tampa Bay! I was very busy with Fishing Charters and April looks to be another busy month for me. People are taking advantage of our spectacular Florida weather and awesome Tampa Bay Fishing.

This past month of March I had a variety of clients and they caught a variety of fish. Even on some of the days ours tides were not the best we managed to pull it off and catch some quality fish.

Snook (big ones),Redfish, Trout, Spanish Mackerel, Silver Trout,Flounder,and many other species were in the mix. Tarpon and Kingfish are here but I have been so busy catching all the other species I have yet to target them this year.I am however getting ready to switch gears and start fishing for the Silver Kings aka Tarpon!

I suspect April fishing is only going to get better. The bay is covered with bait fish and along with that comes a lot of good fishing. Red Grouper season opened on the 1st so the opportunity will be her to target them on nearshore charters. Tarpon fishing should really heat up and following the Tarpon into Tampa Bay will be Sharks. Spanish Mackerel should be hot and steady making some great action for Kids and Adults! Snook,Redfish and Trout will all still be here and ready for the catching!

This is the perfect time to book a fishing trip with Tampa Flats and Bay Charter’s! The weather should remain mild through the month. This is the perfect time to take a Kid fishing.

Here are a few pictures from last months charters.

Alex's first snook!

Spanish Mackerel

Brent with his first snook!

Girls can catch fish too!

Alicia took her kids fishing while on vacation.

I hope you enjoyed my report and pictures. If you happen to be in town on vacation or are a local wanting to learn more about fishing in Tampa Bay it would be my pleasure to take you on your next fishing adventure!

Capt. Steve Betz