Category: Fishing Reports

A few things I’ve noticed lately on the water are from years back. South of the river there have been some mudds. A mudd can be from stingrays, mullet or feeding fish. The ones that have been occurring on the incoming tide are feeding fish. From what I have learned it is a shrimp hatch, when shrimp are exposed during the day. It creates a feeding frenzy with trout, spanish mackerel, blue fish, lady fish, flounder and jacks. If you find a mudd, think of it like a comet: the head of it is where the fish are and the tail is where the fish were. Two areas I like best for this experience are along the pole line in Chassahowitzka and near the Bird Rack off of St. Martins Keys. Soft dark plastics that are jigged vertical will get the bite.

Another fish that has made a comeback on the Big Bend is sea bass. I’ve caught a few over 15″ and that’s a good fish on the Gulf side. The best depth is 6′ to 10′ on low profile rocks, ledges and hard bottom. The hard bottom will be yellow in color with black sponges. I catch a lot of trout on this same bottom and the sea bass are mixed in. To concentrate on just sea bass anchor on the west side of the structure during the incoming tide and use live shrimp on a jighead, free lining it. Have a second rod ready because the sea bass will follow up a hooked fish and the follower will even bite a bare hook — that’s the truth. On the same rocks expect a good bite with mangrove snappers and grunts. Look for incoming tide around mid morning.

Captain William Toney
Homosassa Inshore Fishing
Call 352-422-4141 to Book Your Charter

With a quick week of summer we are heading back into winter for a few days. All I want to know is when it will be spring LOL. Well I guess we’ve had a few days since. I’ve smelled the sweet orange blossoms in my yard and love that scent this time of year. One of my favorite fisheries off of Homosassa is getting ripe with fish and I look forward to the easy fun fishing with all the different species to be caught. Along the Big Bend many shallow areas in 5 to 10 feet of water will have shrimp hatches with trout, sea bass, spanish mackerel, blue fish, blue runners, lady fish and small gag grouper that will put a bend in your rod.

The best spot off of Homosassa is the Bombing Range. It’s halfway between Crystal River and Homosassa, or about 5 miles northwest of the St. Martins Keys. This spot has many different natural rocks and at one time was a military bombing range during WW2. My go to baits are soft plastics in glow or natural colors that resemble shrimp either in true life molds or similar shapes. My two favorites are D.O.A. or MirrOlure in glow, bourbon, watermelon red flake, electric chicken, new penny and golden bream. I’ve found that a 1/8 oz. jig head works best. As far as jig head color, I go with chartreuse with glow baits and red on dark colors. The retrieve I use is a rod high vertical 5″ to 10″ hop near the bottom like a shrimp jumping out of the grass.

The big fish that an angler may encounter fishing the Bombing Range is a cobia. Still might be a long shot but I’ve seen big sharks already and they tolerate the same water temperature. So keep a heavy spinning rod onboard to be ready. I’ve caught more cobia by chance and being prepared. Looks like this weekend the best incoming tide will be in the afternoon.

Captain William Toney
Homosassa Inshore Fishing
Call 352-422-4141 to Book Your Charter

With a little bit of warmth, winter continues to push as far south as it can. Before this late February cold front most of the Big Bend’s game fish — trout, redfish and snook — were all outside on the keys and limestone rock piles. Some of the snook I saw were in spots that I would target in April. A few days of warm weather is all it takes to move fish west along with the manatees, because when I see them heading out it is a clue to follow them because of the warming waters. Manatees will overeat the river’s grasses and when it’s warm enough they will race out and eat on the Gulf’s edge. If a manatee can handle the bays and Gulf’s cool water then it is game on for our inshore fish.

To catch some really good quality sea trout work the outside western points on the incoming tides. If the tides are low like this coming week target the deeper creeks that are near the Gulf that have deeper channels and holes, because this week’s cold mornings will have fish stacked up according to water temperature. I always start east and work my way west until I start catching fish. All it takes is a keeper trout or a snook and then you will be on the line running north and south for the best temperature to catch fish.

The best baits have been soft plastics in glow or pearl. I like a nose hooked D.O.A. 5.5 jerk bait or the MirrOlure Provoker in pearl with a 1/16 oz. red or chartreuse jig head. The best live bait for redfish has been live shrimp for sight casting them in the very clear waters. I believe the tides this week will be low and lower.

Captain William Toney
Homosassa Inshore Fishing
Call 352-422-4141 to Book Your Charter

For a hot summer and warm water I have found the trout bite to remain strong on the bars south of Homosassa. It’s still the same routine: if it’s a breezy day the popping cork with jig combination is the best bait and if it’s a calmer day I prefer to use a 1/8 oz. jighead with a MirrOlure LiL John. Some of the best colors are watermelon red flake, pearl with chartreuse and molting. Outgoing tide is best because it pulls the bait across the bar into the trout’s strike zone.

Redfish have been good on the incoming tide. On the outside keys my bait of choice is live or cut pinfish and south of the river I like to use a cork with a shrimp under a 1/8 oz. jighead. The cork will keep the bait from hanging on the rocks and the jighead will keep the bait directly under the cork. I like to check the depth I’m fishing in and make the leader length accordingly. On the nearshore rocks I’m still catching some big grunts with a few good mangrove snapper mixed in. High incoming tide will be very early morning or late evening this weekend.

Captain William Toney
Homosassa Inshore Fishing
Call 352-422-4141 to Book Your Charter

Looking for a great week of fishing with the upcoming new moon. If I had a moon phase to choose to fish I would always vote for the new moon. I have caught plenty of fish on a full moon but the tide push is much more extreme than a new moon. A full moon can go from a winter low tide to a full on over the dock flood, depending on time of year and wind direction. When this happens fish tend to move to the interior of the keys and places that are deep into the backcountry that even seasoned Big Bend anglers have trouble figuring out. On a new moon, the tides are more gradual and push in at an even pace so fish will feed throughout the tide phase all the way into the backcountry. I have caught trout, redfish and snook on a good incoming new moon tide from the outside keys all the way back towards the tree line in a 6 hour period following the tide.

The nice trout I’ve been catching on the inside have been on ribbon rock using D.O.A. glow 5.5 jerk baits. Sometimes there’s a little rock grass mixed in with the hard bottom north of the river but south of Homosassa it’s yellow bottom. On a high sun during midday it does look yellow compared to the surrounding flat. The trout that are on top of this type of rocky bottom are spawning so please keep enough for dinner but the big females are full of roe and the producers of our future stock so handle them with care.

Redfish are doing well on the outside keys. I have caught most of mine with live pinfish. As the tide gets higher, move more towards the inside keys and look for jumping mullet along the western facing points. In this area I use a float and shrimp on a jighead free lined along the shoreline or point. The float helps from being snagged on the rocks and the jighead keeps the bait under the cork instead of being kited behind it. I will tie on the hook according to the depth of the water at the side of my vessel. High incoming tide will be mid morning this weekend.

Captain William Toney
Homosassa Inshore Fishing
Call 352-422-4141 to Book Your Charter