Category Archives: New fishing report

Fishing Reports

2.2.23 OTHER

Posted on February 3, 2023 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain;	Terry Reelitz
Where were you fishing?	OTHER
Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report;	No
The date you went fishing;	02-02-2023
Your Name;	Terry Reelitz
Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also.	Mary and I headed out to look for some sun and Macks…. winds were light, and the Sea Fog wasn’t bad. Started outside of Anclote River in the shallow grass flats then worked deeper with live shrimp, paddle tails and top water plugs  – not much action. Moved to front of Power Plant – started in 3’ water (67 degrees) to edge of weed beds. Several short Macks and Trout. Next, we headed out to waters past Green Marker 7 and short of  Pasco Red 4 and drifted. Started to hit the bigger Macks in the 20”-24” size range. Drifted the rest of the morning, winds subsided, and the tide got a little tepid. I didn’t bring a Chum Block, in hindsight might not have been a bad idea. Bite was moderate but not crazy at any time – but the Macks are still out there, water temps reached 70 degrees. Popping corks with the infamous Joe Stand ‘Mack Slayer’ rig was the ticket for catching. The key was to keep it moving and creating some noise with intermittent stops to let the Macks catch up. Kept enough fatties for Fish Spread, for sure ‘a great time was had by all’

01.31.23 OFFSHORE

Posted on February 3, 2023 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain;	Jim  Thirkill
Where were you fishing?	OFFSHORE
Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report;	Yes
The date you went fishing;	01-31-2023
Your Name;	Jim Thirkill
Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also.	Went out for a Pasco 4 with a crew of Mike B, mark C, and Team U.  Water temp 67, used primarily shrimp for bait.  Very high current made the bite tough, but after a while it slowed and we caught enough fish to fill the cooler.
If this report includes a tournament entry please state the species and length of the fish caught in this box. If the fish was caught during a closed season check the box below.	Jim Thirkill – 21″ sheepshead
This fish was either caught during a closed season for this species or was under or oversized for the slot but was released after being photographed.	No

 

1.31.23 OFFSHORE

Posted on February 2, 2023 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain;	Freddie Penrow
Where were you fishing?	OFFSHORE
Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report;	Yes
The date you went fishing;	01-31-2023
Your Name;	Joe  Stand
Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also.	We finally got some fair weather so we decided to run offshore and see if the red grouper were bitting. We left gulf harbors at 6:30 and there was fog in the canal but visibility was decent but that was soon to change the fog rolled in heavy and made a long wet ride , over three hours , once we got about 40 miles out the fog lifted and warm sun was out finally. We started fishing and the red grouper were bitting but all undersize my quests we caught between 30 or 40 throwbacks all lived thanks to the descending unit. We ended up with 4 keepers about 10 lanes a few vermilion. We surrendered at 3:30 and headed for the barn , a smooth flat clear ride home .
If this report includes a tournament entry please state the species and length of the fish caught in this box. If the fish was caught during a closed season check the box below.	Joe Stand 28 inch red grouper.            Bonnie Allen 25 inch red grouper.         Freddie Penrow 23 inch red grouper
This fish was either caught during a closed season for this species or was under or oversized for the slot but was released after being photographed.	No

01.31.23 OFFSHORE

Posted on February 2, 2023 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain;	Mike Spanhel
Where were you fishing?	OFFSHORE
Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report;	Yes
The date you went fishing;	01-31-2023
Your Name;	Terry Reelitz
Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also.	Captain Mike Spanhel invited Mark Morningstar, David Diehl and me to go hunting for Sheepies that are starting to stack up offshore. Headed out to Pasco 4 through the fog and mist and anchored up with 12 dozen fresh live shrimp. Bite was slow and tedious in the beginning, it took a couple adjustments and moves, plus a little chum to finally get a bite. Bites were light and you definitely needed some patience. It was interesting in that 15 minutes of activity would be followed by 30 minutes of total quiet. All in for the day, we boated 12 Sheepies, and 2 very nice fat Mangrove Snappers. Most of fish came off of HogBalls and slip sinker rigs with a very short leader – all fish caught on live shrimp. Need to scale down on hook size – mostly used #1 or 1/0 circle hooks. It took 2 ounces to stay on the bottom because current was moving pretty good. Current changed and it got real quiet so we headed in on flat seas and sunshine ‘A great time was had by all’ thanks Mike for the invite!
If this report includes a tournament entry please state the species and length of the fish caught in this box. If the fish was caught during a closed season check the box below.	Mike Spanhel 20″ Sheepshead Terry Reelitz 17-1/4″ Sheepshead Mark Morningstar 17″ Sheepshead David Diehl 14″ Sheepshead Mark Morningstar 15″ Mangrove Sapper
This fish was either caught during a closed season for this species or was under or oversized for the slot but was released after being photographed.	No

1.20.23 OFFSHORE

Posted on February 1, 2023 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain;	carlos
Where were you fishing?	OFFSHORE
Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report;	No
The date you went fishing;	01-30-2023
Your Name;	Terry Reelitz
Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also.	Had the opportunity to sneak in on a trip with my neighbor Carlos and his buddies from up North. Headed out to 120′ – had to sort through a lot of short Rg’s to get to the monsta Red Groupers. We caught for fire trucks that were in the +28″ range. Had to wade through wa ves of ARS, many that were plus 20-24 inches, plus a couple wild break offs with huge Gags What a day ‘A good time was had by all’

1.11.23 INSHORE

Posted on January 13, 2023 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain;	Frank Bellizio
Where were you fishing?	INSHORE
Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report;	No
The date you went fishing;	01-11-2023
Your Name;	Frank Bellizio
Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also.	Wednesday looked like a great day to head up the Anclote River in pursuit of Snook so Bill Herr and I made the run up the river.  We started out late at 10 am hoping the water would have warmed up.  The weather was beautiful with little or no wind.  There just wasn’t much water movement and the fishing was slow. We never found the snook or trout but we did get into some ladyfish which was fun.  On the way back down the river we stopped at several bridges and looked for some sheepshead but nothing was bitting so we headed out to the flats.  After two short stops we ended up drifting at Marker 7 where we found Mackerel and Silver Trout.  Lots of action but it was time to call it a day so we kept a couple trout for dinner and headed in.  Fishing is always more fun when done with friends. Thanks Bill.
This fish was either caught during a closed season for this species or was under or oversized for the slot but was released after being photographed.	Yes

 

01.01.23 OFFSHORE

Posted on January 2, 2023 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain; Carlos Bastos Where were you fishing? OFFSHORE Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report; No The date you went fishing; 01-01-2023 Your Name; Frank Bellizio Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also. Not being a Football fan it was an easy choice for me when Capt Carlos said he was putting together a fishing trip for Red Grouper on New Years Day.  We headed out at 8:30 am with visiability of about 3/4 of a mile but after we past Anclote Key visibility was bad until we got about 20 miles offshore.  Our first stop was in 75 feet of water where we found plenty of 18 to 19 inch Red Grouper,Lane Snappver and Vliners. I did catch one keeper at this spot.  We moved to 100 ft, then 120 ft with about 6 or 7 different numbers.  Every where we went it was lots of action but mostly short red grouper and lane snapper.  I have no idea how many red grouper I pulled up but at least 25 that were short and some good lane snapper.  Our last stop was near our first stop in 75 ft of water. but it was getting late and the bite was slow so we headed in.   We ended up with 4 keeper red grouper.  It was just unbelievable how many gred grouper there were. This was Capt Carlos first trip targeting Red Grouper and he found them but I am sure by my next trip in a few weeks he will have found the larger ones.  Many thanks to Capt Carlos and his mate Nick for a fun day of catching. This fish was either caught during a closed season for this species or was under or oversized for the slot but was released after being photographed. Yes

6.22.22 INSHORE

Posted on June 23, 2022 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain; FRANK BELIZIO Where were you fishing? INSHORE Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report; No The date you went fishing; 06-22-2022 Your Name; BOB COHEN Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also. Frank called me and asked if I was interested in fishing Wednesday early so, we met at BELLE HABOR at 7am. We headed out to the ANCLOTE ANCHORAGE. We went north about as far as GREEN 7 and east to about 3 ft. We made repeated drifts out about as far as GREEN 7 and then we would repeat the drift. We used primarily GULP in various colors. I used only white but Frank experimented with many colors. We caught about 40 trout, mostly under sized, 4 sharks from 12 in to 4 ft and assorted other fish. From the GREEN 7 drifts we went south to the spoil islands on the other side of the ANCLOTE CHANNEL and made drifts over the 1st three repeating the same process. We picked up lots of trout here and 2 sharks. The largest shark bit off before we could get a picture of him. Only the 12 incher was boated to release. The other 3 either bit off or were cut off at the boat. We headed in about 1 PM. It was a great day of fishing with a friend. This fish was either caught during a closed season for this species or was under or oversized for the slot but was released after being photographed. Yes

6.18.22 OFFSHORE

Posted on June 21, 2022 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain; Jim  Thirkill Where were you fishing? OFFSHORE Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report; Yes The date you went fishing; 06-18-2022 Your Name; Jim Thirkill Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also. Went out in search of ARS about 45 miles west of Gulf Harbors.  Choppy going out, not bad coming back.  Water temp 85.  We used pinfish and frozen threadfin for bait, fishing about 100-105′ depth. The bite was not great, although we caught quite a few ARS only four were keepers, up to 31″.  We also caught keeper red grouper, mangroves, and lanes. If this report includes a tournament entry please state the species and length of the fish caught in this box. If the fish was caught during a closed season check the box below. Jim Thirkill – 31″ ARS This fish was either caught during a closed season for this species or was under or oversized for the slot but was released after being photographed. No

6.17.22 OFFSHORE

Posted on June 19, 2022 by Bob Cohen

Name of Captain; Freddie Penrow Where were you fishing? OFFSHORE Is this a tournament entry Fishing Report; Yes The date you went fishing; 06-17-2022 Your Name; Joe Stand Your Fishing Report: If this is a tournament report fill out the box below also. We went out opening day for ARS. The weather was supposed to be nice to take a ride but it was not  very nice, rough slow ride out to 50 mile spot but when we got there the bite was on and we limited out on ARS and five red grouper two that were 30 inches, several lane and vermilion and one nice mangrove. Then they quit chewing, we fished multiple spots with the same results we couldn’t catch the final three grouper so we called it a day around three and headed in we fished 100 ft of water and almost all fish were caught on threadfin, we had no luck with the pin fish. If this report includes a tournament entry please state the species and length of the fish caught in this box. If the fish was caught during a closed season check the box below. Bob Sauban 30 inch red grouper.          Bob Sauban 29 inch ARS.                     Bonnie Allen 24 inch ARS This fish was either caught during a closed season for this species or was under or oversized for the slot but was released after being photographed. No