Fishing Reports

January 24, 2012
Published by Capt. Matt Santiago on January 24, 2012
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Life for the Land Locked Angler

Shallow water redfish might be my passion, but largemouth bass fishing during the spawn and pre-spawn months has been a tradition for me since i was a kid. I loaded up the Hewes Redfisher with a different type of tackle this day. Topwater frogs, weedless worms, and texas rigs filled the tackle storage and off to a local lake we went. Today we were focusing on bass starting to stage up in their pre-spawn homes.
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January 2, 2012
Published by Capt. Matt Santiago on January 2, 2012
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Lots of Fish

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The fish are biting and the weather is nice, everyone should be trying to get out to do a little fishing. I have been fishing Tampa Bay with some great success. Every year the Redfish in Tampa Bay go back to their wintertime spots and I am not talking about the little 8 to 12 inchers that go to the rivers every year.  The fish that I am talking about are the big ones. The Redfish are on the flats and some days they are up close to the shore, and some days they are over 500 yards from the shore.
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December 23, 2011
Published by Capt. Matt Santiago on December 23, 2011
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Winter Power Plant Fishing!

Between Bradenton and Tampa on the southeastern shore of the Bay, lies a magical winter wonderland.  TECO power plant located in Apollo Beach is one the best winter fisheries in the world.  When the bay and gulf waters cool down, TECO power plant heats up!  Anglers, captains, and spectators flock to TECO power plant by land, sea, and air. Many private planes and helicopters circle to get a birds eye view of this amazing natural winter aquarium.  
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November 17, 2011
Published by Capt. Matt Santiago on November 17, 2011
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Cold Weather Means Hot Fishing

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Well, like it or not winter is near. I personally love fishing in the winter time, negative low tides and gin clear water. Usually finding a few fish can mean a full days worth of action is close by. Redfish and Trout (although Trout is out of season for the remainder of year in our region) are the main targets however Snook, Flounder, Sheepshead, and juvenile Tarpon can be caught. Recent trips have resulted in over 30 Redfish being caught on a single half-day charter.
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November 4, 2011
Published by Capt. Matt Santiago on November 4, 2011
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October Wrap Up! Everything is Biting!

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The last month of fishing has been one of the best so far this year and I only see the action getting better in November. Offshore fishing has been as good as I have seen it in years, and the inshore action has been strong as well. There has been a great Trout pattern in the upper bay with lots of Trout in the 20 to 27 inch range. The south shore of Tampa Bay has been on fire as well. Captain Robbie Burns has been seeing the Redfish and Snook showing up thick in their normal fall spots. 
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October 27, 2011
Published by Capt. Matt Santiago on October 27, 2011
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Post Frontal Fishing

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Fishing right after a cold front can sometime be difficult. In my experience I find the fish up in shallow water. When these fish move in they can be hard to locate but as soon as you find them, they are usually stacked up pretty good. This cold front was no exception, we started out in 7-8ft. of water looking for snook only to find scattered Redfish and other species such as Snapper, Sheepshead,
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September 7, 2011
Published by Capt. Matt Santiago on September 7, 2011
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Upper Bay Redfish!

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Right now we have a lot of Redfish in Tampa Bay, the only problem is that they are still in transition moving into their fall/pre-winter time homes. For the most part I am focusing on areas with oyster beds or Mullet activity on the higher tides, and looking for tailing fish on the open flats on the lower tides. It is important for me to stay fishing even on my days off, to ensure I stay in tune with the Redfish habits and patterns.
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August 5, 2011
Published by Capt. Matt Santiago on August 5, 2011
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Offshore Fun with Friends!

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Last weekend I had some free time, so what did I do, Go Fishing! Courtney was begging me for some tasty fish to eat, so I called some friends and we all headed west for some offshore grocery shopping. We sabikied up some live bait and cruised through calm seas as the sun came up behind us.  We pulled up to our first spot and decided to make a drift before anchoring up. The first bait down got hammered almost instantly and it was non stop action from then on.
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July 27, 2011
Published by Capt. Matt Santiago on July 27, 2011
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Offshore for Some Drag Screaming Amberjack!

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Last weekend I got a call from Dean who wanted to take his son and his buddies out for some offshore fishing before they all went off to college.  He requested nice weather, a nice boat and some fish that would wear out the boys and I had just the plan.  Sunday we ran offshore on the big Cabo yacht and were greeted by calm seas and sunny weather. After some bottom fishing to put some fish in the cooler for dinner, it was time for the guys to battle some Amberjack,
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