American red snapper season has started with a real bang. Deep water anglers up and down the coast report great snapper action from 100 feet and out. Laurence Hall says the big flag yellowtail action is red hot off Boca Grande. Hall is finding them on hard bottom area with structure.
Chumming will bring the yellowtails up from the bottom. Free line a piece of fresh cut threadfin herring in your chum slick and expect to get bit quickly. A live shrimp on the bottom will also work if the snapper will not come up. Use a long fluorocarbon leader and a circle hook.
Tarpon action in Boca Grande Pass is off the charts. Jig fishing in the daytime and traditional drift fishing with crabs at night are both working well. The Boca Grande beach has lots of tarpon schools on it ready for a live white bait or threadfin herring.
Some big breeder snook are heading for the gulf passes getting ready to spawn. The upcoming new moon outgoing tides and the full moon tides after that will offer a chance to catch one of these big catch and release breeders.
The western end of the Egmont ship channel has lots of bait around the markers with Spanish mackerel and a few kingfish lurking nearby.