Spotted Sea Trout Season

Tarpon Spring's fishing guide, Capt. Rich Knox, of Absolute Florida Flats Fishing report's very good Spotted Sea Trout fishing, running fishing charters in the New Port Richey to Clearwater inshore fishing barrier island's and vast pothole laden grass flats that run the entire main-shoreline of the West central Fl. gulf Coast. Winter has finally arrived with the water temperatures staying in the 60′s now the bigger breeder Trout have begun to move to the shallower flats of our coast.{%image_id=36469%} Trout from 18″ to 27″ are becoming common catch's on most inshore flats fishing charters, these 2 to 8 lb. fish are hitting both artificial lures and live bait's depending on the depth and tide your fishing, there are still some remaining pod's of pilchards (whitebait) around if you spend some valuable tme to locate them and cast net up a 100 or so,{%image_id=36465%} select shrimp purchased at your local tackle and bait shop also work very good along with the readily available pinfish that can be caught on any grass flat in the area. Artificial lures that work the best when fishing the drop-off's of a flat your working are the 1/4 oz. jig with a variety of color's depending on water clarity, chartreuse being my favorite followed by motor oil, or brown colored, on the dirty water day's white seems to do the trick. Mirro-lure plug's like the mirro-dine or mirro-mullet work in the shallower pothole laden flat's, retrieve and twitch slowly the sink very slowly,{%image_id=36463%} the jerk-shad either weighted lightly or rigged Texas style (weedless) no weight, worked just like the name are deadly on sunning fish in a foot of water.