Trout Bite

Debbie Franks with her 22-inch trout.

Hasn`t the weather been great the last week? Friday the 24th was a perfect morning as my four guests and I cruised away form Cedar Key on about a 155 degree compass course. That takes you just past Snake Key. We ran for 3 miles over rolling sandy, grassy bottom. Tide was coming in as we rode out with about 3 feet of water beneath us.

I picked a spot where bare bottom ended and the grass began. The water was just clear enough so I could see down 4 or 5 feet. I anchored up and we started fishing 2 floats and 2 on the bottom.

We didn`t have too long a wait before Carol Miner, fishing on the bottom, was tugging on the rod and watching the thrashing on the surface of our 1st big speckled trout. Then it was Debbie Franks` turn to hear the scream of line peeling off her reel as another big trout fought her rig.

I had 2 husbands and 2 wives on board that day, and the women were on the bow in swivel chairs and the men were seated in swivel chairs on the stern. Women fishing the bottom and men with floating rigs. The women kept catching trout and a mackeral or two and the men weren`t doing quite as well. We pulled off their floats and they fished the bottom too. They kept me busy running from bow to stern netting trout and mackeral and a couple of sharks.

There was a lot pinfish around so we had some real good cutbait. I`d fillet a pinfish and toss the carcass over the side and I think this 2 foot shark was hanging around the whole trip eating what I threw over. The action was pretty steady. As a matter of fact I didn`t move from that spot the entire trip.

One stop fishing. I have never made just one stop. There was plenty of hooking and fighting and netting and measuring going on for approximately three hours and 15 minutes.

We had accumulated a beautiful box of fresh trout and mackeral so we headed back to the dock where I filleted all the fish and placed them on ice in a big ziplock bag. Debbie, in the blue shirt, caught the biggest trout at 22 inches. This was Carol`s (in the White shirt), first time fishing in the Gulf of Mexico and she caught a lot of the fish on that trip.

Debbie`s husband, Marvin, has the airplane ride business on Cedar Key. He can provide you with a real birds eye view of the Cedar Keys.

Even in the chocolate brown flood water from the Suwannee the trout bite is ON. It`s great fun and good eating. Call me, 352-221-5463, and we`ll arrange a time to get out there on one of those beautiful Florida mornings. Go check out some good pictures on my website, www.inshorefloridafishing.com Thanks, Capt. Dan

Carol Miner flew all the way from Morgantown, WV to catch this beautiful trout.