Hit the ditch for Kingfish action

If you read any local, up-to-date fishing report for the offshore waters of Tampa Bay, it should go something like this: Kingfishing is shaping up to be the best option for anglers fishing the nearshore and offshore waters of Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. With water temps still hanging in the low 70's, the Kings are feeling right at home....

Last Tuesday's pre-Thanksgiving fishing charter felt right at home too! David Devore and crew had little expectations when we departed from St.Pete Beach in search of the speedy predators known as Kingfish. As a matter of fact, Dave Jr. is a Bass fisherman, and he figured anything over 2-3 pounds would be a trophy catch...well, he was in for a treat, and after gathering several dozen live Sardines, we were on our way to the 'ditch' a.k.a. the Egmont shipping channel.

As we approached the first set of bouys marking the edges of the channel I could feel the energy we were about to unleash. Jon deployed the first 'livie' on a single stinger rig and started putting the next one out when it all went down-the water behind us exploded with action and we had our first Kingfish on, and then another....ladies and gentlemen, can you say 'double-header'? How about 'triple-header', because, as soon as Jon threw a third bait in to the mix, that's exactly what we were into! And we were just getting started. The first King to strike ended up being breakfast for a 200-pound Spinner Shark, but these guys got to see a show that left them wondering what the rest of the day was going to be like. Well, it was pretty much just like that for the entire trip.

The Kingfish bite was strong with most fish being in the 12-pound range, and a couple almost pushing 18...perfect size for the grill and/or smoker. The Sharks were thick as well, in size and numbers. Even though we caught our limit of 10 Kingfish that day, the Sharks probably ate an additional 10 fish or better. I mean, to call them aggressive would be an understatement. We put on a special rig for trolling a live 12-pound Bonito and fooled one of these massive beasts onto our hook. J.R. Fought the fish for over 30 minutes before bringing a 150-pound(plus)Shark boatside for a photo. J.R. was about done for the day after that one! Kingfish, Sharks, Bonitos...oh my! Good times were had once again, check out the crew above with their limit of Kingfish after a Jawbreaker fishing charter.(from the left Mike, J.R., Dave Jr., Johnny, Dave Sr.) Tight work guys!

Anyway, with Gag Grouper being closed again and Kingfish still roaming the local waters...it's a no-brainer, call Jawbreaker fishing charters and let's go Kingfishing. Happy fishing folks, Capt.Dan