I managed to spend a few hours both Saturday and Sunday with the gang at the Merry Pier. While fishing was not exactly spectacular, there were a fair amount of fish caught – but the variety of species was impressive. I saw:

-A 32″ over-the-slot Redfish
-A couple dozen Mangrove Snapper, to 15″
-A nice Bluefish
-LOTS of Flounder – mostly small, but a few to 15″
-Several Bonnethead Sharks
-A few decent Gag Grouper
-A couple of Sheepshead (nobodywas really targeting them)
-A few decent Macks
-The usual Pinfish, Puffers, Lizardfish and Grunts

Just a quick note – I managed to get in a few hours of fishing last week. Small tarpon were rolling in Blind Pass; larger ones were spotted in Boca Ciega Bay. Fall is in the air – I caught a small cobia, along with a 16″ RED grouper and a half dozen gags in Pass-A-Grille. There were a few flounder around, the small snapper were biting, and a nice bluefish was caught. There was a strong outgoing tide early, with lots of weeds, making for somewhat difficult conditions. There were still plenty of macks and jacks around, working the bait schools.

Cooler mornings and north winds are at hand. At the Merry Pier, bait continues to be plentiful, and flounder have started to fire up. Macks are working the bait schools at high tide, and a few snook have been reported. A keeper grouper was landed over the weekend. I spent Saturday fishing in Ft. DeSoto, targeting the Bay Pier and the grass flats. Tons of bait, tons of mullet, but not a lot else happening.