Just Reel Fishing Charters – Anna Maria Fishing Report 7/10/24
4th of July Festivities are over, now it’s time to fish
After recovering from mass amounts of alcohol, BBQ and small explosives, Anna Maria Island anglers are starting to creep out into our local waters to do some fishing.
With multitudes of people from all over being out on our local waters for the 4th of July weekend, the local wildlife including the fish, birds, manatees and sea turtles are finally venturing out from their hiding places.
The constant hum of outboard motors and jet skis has all but subsided except for the charter captains and recreational anglers that the fish are used to hearing cussing them out and to feed without being interrupted by all of the vacation traffic.
Many anglers are targeting mangrove snapper. Fishing inshore structure such as piers, bridges and docks is beginning to heat up. Snapper are also being found in the passes both north and south of Anna Maria Island as well. Using small shiners or “hatch bait” is working best as these baits are a favorite meal for the mangrove snapper.
In some areas, catching limits of the fish is attainable while in others the bite remains sporadic. Doing your homework is key to finding success. Have several of your favorite snapper spots in mind before you leave so you have some options to find the fish. And with the number of boats out targeting snapper, you’re definitely going to want to have options as you may find someone sitting on your spot when you get there.
On the flats, spotted seatrout are still abundant. Using live shiners as bait is leading to plenty of action on the deeper grass flats where good tidal flow exists. Many areas are holding trout 12-14 inches while some select areas are holding slot-size and even over slot-size fish. You’ll know after a few catches whether the larger fish are present. If you’re just catching small ones, one after the other, it’s time to move on.
Catch-and-release snook fishing is worth trying. Many fish are being caught along the beaches and passes. Catching snook along the mangroves in the back country is also working. Larger specimens seem to be closer to the beaches.
On my Just Reel charters, I’m seeing plenty of spotted seatrout being reeled in. Using live shiners as bait is leading to trout 12-24 inches. Plenty of slot-size fish 15-19 inches are being caught which is making daily limits attainable for my clients who wish to have some fish for dinner.
Targeting catch-and-release snook along the beaches and passe is proving to be good during swift moving tides. Snook catches are measuring 20-32 inches and are being caught on live shiners as bait. On many mornings we’re averaging about 15-20 snook. When targeting snook along the mangroves in the backcountry, I’m also seeing slot-size redfish being caught.
