South Shore Tampa Bay Fishing Forecast
Typically in March we begin to see Snook move out of the rivers and into there spring time spots but that’s a typical year. This year is far from typical. With the weather staying cooler look for the snook migration into the passes to be somewhat delayed. I would expect to see a few snook poke there head out of the river and creeks in early March but will not expect the spring bite to start until well into March.
Red Fish and trout should be up on the flats and I expect the bite to be off the wall. I would look for grass beds in the 3 foot ranges. The Southshore flats should also hold a few schools of Redfish. Look for the reds in the schools of mullet that roam the area.
Schools of Big black drum should make there appearance buy the beginning of March. Look for these fish in deeper water off the flats. The schools will be easy to spot with these 30 lb plus fish swimming near the top of the water column.
White bait may be a problem this year due to the cold weather we had in January. I think we may have lost a lot of white bait thus making it more difficult to locate and catch in the spring.
Look for the big bait pods to arrive in late March and then the schools of Mackerel not to be to far behind.
This time of year I like to mix it up by targeting Snook in the passes and Redfish and trout on the flats. White bait will be my bait of choice.
Capt Danny Guarino a life long resident of the Tampa area and full time fishing guide on Tampa Bay. 813-956-2010
Capt Danny Guarino
813-956-2010
