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Venice Inlet and the Gulf of Mexico
Capt. Dave Pinkham
April 28, 2005
Venice - Saltwater Fishing Report
May offers some of the best gulf fishing of the year
Are you geared up and ready for some of the best fishing of the year? If you are not, I would strongly recommend that you get ready.
The reasons for my upbeat outlook are straightforward enough. First off, in the course of the next few weeks it appears as if we are in for plenty of good old Florida sunshine. More sunny days equates to warm weather. Warmer air temperatures mean rising gulf water temperatures.
Actually, just about any species that swims in the gulf is a good target during the month of May. Other encouraging factors for anglers would be that it’s not sweltering hot yet, and an added benefit is that you don’t have to worry about dodging the afternoon thunderstorms yet.
All this considered, the month of May is high on my “monthly get out and go fishing” must do list. Following is a list of target species to go after while you’re fishing out the gulf this month.
- Kingfish and Spanish mackerel should still make a decent showing in the next few weeks. Look for both species in the areas where you see white baits such as pilchards, Spanish sardines, and cigar minnows. Live baits will usually out fish artificial baits so make sure when you have the opportunity to load up the live well with them. Keeping your lines and wire leaders as light as possible will help to account for more hits. Single-strand piano wire for leader material is mandatory to prevent cutoffs from the big ones.
- Permit should make a showing on area wrecks and reefs later in the month. These beautiful fish game fish prefer crustaceans so bring some jumbo shrimp or crabs along. If you see permit finning at the surface, cast your bait out in front of them allowing it to fall naturally. You more than likely won’t need any lead weight on this rig.
- Grouper and snapper fishing is always a dependable standby on the gulf coast. When targeting these bottom species consider fishing around a wreck or some good broken hard bottom. There are plenty of 2-foot ledges scattered all over the gulf floor so keep your bottom machine running. When you notice a change on you bottom graph indicating a rock crevice below, toss a marker jug and try it. Normally if you hook into gag grouper or mangrove snapper then you’ve located good structure. When bottom fishing be sure to put out the extra effort and keep a couple of livies free-lined out on top. You never know when a school of kingfish, some mahi mahi, or blackfin tuna may swim through. As the water continues to warm up this month, red grouper should make a good showing. For the keepers concentrate your efforts 20 to 50 miles offshore. Bouncing baits along the bottom while drifting is a great way to locate these bottom feeders
- Black fin tuna should make a good showing this month in the 80 to 140-foot range. A good place to start looking would be in the area of an anchored shrimp boat. These commercial shrimpers normally pull their trawls during the night. Often, come first daylight the shrimpers will anchor down their boats and go to work picking through their catch, and then throw the by-catch overboard. This in turn can draw fish such as blackfin tuna.
-Tarpon should make a showing later in the month. Sight fishing for them just west of area beaches is one favorite way to fish for them. Once a pod of tarpon is located, try casting live or artificial baits at them. Some of their favorite natural foods are crabs, shrimp, threadfin sardines, and pinfish. Large numbers of tarpon should also begin showing up in Boca Grande Pass this month. On the falling tide the Tarpon will be feeding on the small crabs that are washed out of the bay. Bring along a long handle net and try scooping up your own crabs.
-Shark fishing for some anglers is about as good as it gets. For the rest of us, they can sure mess up a good grouper bite. Regardless of your personal feelings, this is the time of year to tag into a shark. Lately on just about every trip, whether we want to or not, we’ve been hooking into one or another species of shark. To target shark, bring along some chum and fish a couple of lines up off the bottom while anchored.
-Cobia is another fish to target in the month of May. Clearer gulf water will make them easy to see. Casting live baitfish in front of sighted cobia is about as exciting as it gets. Cobia tend to hang around any sort of structure, so when fishing around these areas keep looking into the water.
-Greater amberjack and giant jack crevelle will be hanging around the deeper wrecks and big ledges. Healthy live baits will often provoke fish into hitting that otherwise wouldn’t feed. Be sure to keep your rigs simple as clear water makes it harder to get them to hit.
May is one of the best months of the year for fishing on the gulf. Remember if you’re too busy to go fishing you’re just too busy! Get out and go fishin cuz’ it’s good fer ya!
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