Forgotten Coast Fishing Report
Vermillion snapper and triggerfish have been good offshore on squid; start at 80-foot mark and work out from there. Wahoo are starting to show up around the weather buoy. Scamp and grouper have been picking up in waters over 80 feet. Live bait like cigar minnows and pinfish top the list. Amberjack season opens May 1, so don’t forget to stop in Bluewater Outriggers and stock up on all your tackle needs before heading offshore.
Redfish have been excellent inshore using Carolina Rigs and live bait. Slot fish around the docks seem to be the key. Mackerel are turning on. Try trolling Gotcha Lures, as well as straw, rigs and spoons. Pompano and whiting will keep you busy using sand fleas, and/or fish bites. Trout have been plentiful using top water baits at first and last light. The Rapala Skitter Walk and Mirrolure Top Dogs have been great choices. Shark fishing has been good on the beaches with cut bait such as bonita doing the trick.
Bass fishing as well as shellcracker were good in freshwater before the rain hit. The rivers are on the rise so watch for floating debris. Lakes and ponds should be good this week with shellcrackers biting worms and crickets. Bass should be chewing up the plastic worms and lizards. The best colors to try are green, pumpkin, or watermelon red using a Carolina Rig. Until next week. Good luck and tight lines. Don’t forget to wear those lifejackets.
Tom Gannaway
Meet the Editor
David Adlerstein, The Apalachicola Times’ digital editor, started with the news outlet in January 2002 as a reporter.
Prior to then, David Adlerstein began as a newspaperman with a small Boston weekly, after graduating magna cum laude from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He later edited the weekly Bellville Times, and as business reporter for the daily Marion Star, both not far from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
In 1995, he moved to South Florida, and worked as a business reporter and editor of Medical Business newspaper. In Jan. 2002, he began with the Apalachicola Times, first as reporter and later as editor, and in Oct. 2020, also began editing the Port St. Joe Star.