is it possible that the spanish will show up somtime in febuary?
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is it possible that the spanish will show up somtime in febuary?
Possible but not likely. Probably around mid to late March.
And what about the bluefish? Will they come in with the Spanish, or at a different time? I know most consider them a junk fish and a nuisance, but boy are they fun to play with when they are hitting. I miss them...
Anybody who says those bluefish aren't good to eat just doesn't know how to prepare them. They're right tasty. (Don't taste like chicken, the way remoras do.)
Bluefish are not 'highly migratory' like spanish mackerel and can be caught year round.
They can be a pestilence at Perdido Pass in the winter...
Old timers from the FL Panhandle used to say "when it's been foggy three mornings in a row the spanish will show up."
After the mild winter we've experienced it may not happen that way this year, but we'll see.
The water temps are aleady in the low 60s just offshore so it wouldn't take long for 65-70 degree water to move to the coast.
Your best bet is to monitor fishing reports from the Tampa Bay area northward to Cedar Key to determine when the spanish schools are making a move northward.
Butthere is currently no indication from the most recent reports the spanish are moving northward...
http://www.cyberangler.com/fishing-r.../florida/west/
But you just never know as was the case in 1993.
I had caught spanish from the west jetty of Perdido Pass the first two Saturdays in March before we had a snowstorm on St Patrick's Day weekend.
That tumbled the water temp back into the low 50s and it was a month (mid April) before ANY spanish were caught at the GSPPier that year. :run
:-\
One was caught at little lagoon pass the other day.
Its not uncommon to see a few Spanish around this time of the year, but seeing them in numbers is another story.
New Years Day 2012 we got a few small Spanish from the pier.
If I recall correctly from last year, they showed up in decent numbers around mid-march. People occasionally posted pictures of some small ones caught before then. I went fishing the last day of my spring break (18th?) and there were spanish everywhere at dark. I think that the first king and cobia were caught the very next day.
Looking at my picture dates, March 17th last year was a full blown chew the pier down spanish mac fest. Me & the boy easily caught limit by 9:30 am. Nice ones too
long range forecast showing below ave temps through mid march....nothing above 65 predicted through the 19.....it changes daily but all signs are pointing to later than sooner
We have been spoiled with several above average winters the last few years. I can remember years when Spanish didn't show until late April early May so who knows.
following #r advice....i have been watching the tampa reports for anything good...not even a mention of a spanish.... gonna be a while....forecasts still say cooler than normal temps for 2 weeks.....one good thing is the days are getting longer that helps a lot with water temp...but need some warm south winds and lot less rain.... going to be a while for the cobia too....
[quote author=fishheadspin link=topic=2617.msg25080#msg25080 date=1362103034]
following #r advice....i have been watching the tampa reports for anything good...not even a mention of a spanish.... gonna be a while....forecasts still say cooler than normal temps for 2 weeks.....one good thing is the days are getting longer that helps a lot with water temp...but need some warm south winds and lot less rain.... going to be a while for the cobia too....
[/quote]
This little cold spell might just help for those brown fish
First good report I've seen...
http://www.cyberangler.com/fishing-r...port-27028.htm
:headbang:Quote:
Capt. Jon Fetter
February 28, 2013
Estero Bay - Saltwater Fishing Report
The fishing this past week in and around Estero Bay was quite good. The nearshore reef was on fire with spawning sheepshead in the 3-4 lb range. Shrimp tipped jig heads worked best for them. Anglers can also pick up flounder, snapper, Spanish mackerel, and the occasional gag grouper with this method. Just remember that the grouper must be returned for another day.
The passes are starting to fill up with Spanish mackerel.
I'm gonna go out on limb here, thinking the spanish should show up around here after the middle of March ;-)
I am with peach this cold front will hopefully have the meatballs swimming the beach this year
That is a good report that someone is catching them. the bad news is that is a long ways away!
http://www.cyberangler.com/fishing-r...ters-27037.htm
2.5 more weeks!!!!!
http://marine.rutgers.edu/mrs/sat_da...3.1449.n16.jpg
look at yesterdays image. cold water plumes coming out of the bays along the panhandle.
Not to mention the mud! :(
[img width=720 height=540]http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/imagery/subsets/tmp/AERONET_Stennis.2013065.terra.250m.jpg[/img]
god
well i guess any good thing to look at is that muddy water warms faster than clear water. i know that is stretching looking for something positive.
[img width=640 height=320]http://i49.tinypic.com/mv3ubr.jpg[/img] So from the discussion here I gather that the Spanish aren't likely to show up in numbers until the water temps get into the upper 60's to low 70's. The graph above (from NOAA station at Dauphin Island) shows not much movement in the water temp (green line) since mid Feb. I assume this is pretty much the case at GSP as well. This is a big problem :-[ it's less than a week till I get to come down and fish :-X !! I have an idea, how about everyone who's down close there, hook up a garden hose to your water heater, run the other end down to the beach, and let a couple of tankfuls run out down there for the next several days in a row!! Presto, :yay: spanish everywhere!
Seriously though, I can't wait to get down there, I fished the GSP for the first time two years ago and had an absolute blast. Was there on a day when several waves of Spanish came through, what a hoot. And a special thank you :headbang: to all the regulars here who are so generous in sharing their expertise. I know I've gotten several tips from this board (or it's predecessor) over the last several years that have been a great benefit for my beach fishing and especially leading up to my first trip to the pier two years ago. There's nothing like going out and doing it to learn how, but it's nice to at least have a clue before you get there! Thanks guys!
Welcome splashn :yay:
That's a great graphic to check out as the water temp seems so critical to the timing of the arrival of the mackerel in our waters. :headbang:
But Dauphin Island at the mouth of Mobile Bay is on a slightly different schedule than the GSPPier, especially this year with all the muddy/ freshwater discharge coming out the bay.
The mackerel are going to avoid that... :run
In addition it's good to check the water temp at Perdido Pass ...
http://www.mymobilebay.com/stationda...mp;charttype=5
[img width=450 height=350]http://www.mymobilebay.com/stationdata/chartdata/graph.asp?param=watertemp&stationID=122&Ch artYear=2013&jday=69&ChartType=10&SciU nits=0[/img]
and the bouy 12 miles offshore of Orange Beach...
http://www.mymobilebay.com/stationda...mp;charttype=5
which seem to reflect the water temps more indicatively for the pier. 8)
Hopefully we will soon (in a week or so) see a dramatic and sustained upturn in all the waters temps which will signal those long anticipated arrivals. :yippee:
Then we can all get back to what we enjoy so much ;-) :fishing:
Well Guys, the fish will be there on March 21st, they are going to wait till I get there :) :fishing:
Kevin
Thanks for the links #r, I had a hunch someone on here might have a more pertinent water temp source! I'm looking today at the forecast for GS and it is looking like the temps are supposed to be moving in the right direction over the next 10 days or so 8) . Fish in the area or not, can't wait to get down there where it's warmer and get a hook in the water.
Read a report of spanish being caught in port st joe....gettin closer