With both red and gag grouper closed, amberjack is now the top species to target. Big ‘reef donkeys’ are thick on structure and springs in the deeper waters off Tampa Bay.

I headed out this weekend on the Getaway Sportfishing Charter in St. Pete Beach. We hit the usual spots to gather bait, but the pinfish were scarce and small. Eventually we had a full livewell, and we headed out to a wreck in just over 100′. As we reached the structure, the bottom finder lit up- yeah, the amberjack were home. With the clear water, it was possible to see them schooling 80 feet below. We fired down some medium sized pinfish, and soon the action was on.

If you’ve never caught amberjack, you’ll be amazed by how hard the fight. You’ll definately be feeling it the next day.

The bite was not the frenzy that sometimes occurs;  we’d hook up, fight the fish for 15 or so minutes, then circle back around for another drop.  We did manage a couple of double headers, and we had a couple of breakoffs as well.

The amberjack limit is one fish per person. And, yes, we limited out on 25 to 30 pound fish. Then it was catch and release.  We did have a surprise- a 30″ redfish whacked one of our pinfish:

Amberjack is delicious grilled, smoked or (my favorite) blackened. Here’s the final result of the trip:

Key West Snapper. White Grunts. Doesn’t matter what you call ’em, they sure are tasty! I ventured out on a half day trip Sunday on the Miss Pass-A-Grille. We pulled out of the Merry Pier at 8:00 a.m., and lumbered westward.

White Grunts

 The last few times I’d been on this boat, I’d been after grouper (with mixed results). Today Grunts were the target. I had a fairly light spinning outfit, fresh 20 lb. SpiderWire, light fluorocarbon leaders, and small hooks (1’s and 2’s). It proved to be perfect for this type of fishing, and over the course of four drops, I nailed a couple dozen nice size grunts. I was hoping that there might be some triggerfish around, but there was no sign of them.

I did see a few gag grouper brought aboard, up to around 25″. With the season closed, though, they were returned safely, as was an 18″ red grouper. Other than the occassional puffer, it was all grunts for the 20 or so passengers on this trip.  Compliments to Randy and Rich, who, as always, did a great job of putting us on fish, helping out the tourists, and cleaning the catch.