Snook Fishing Double Branch

Snook fishing this first season has been great, We have caught our share and released our share. The Mouth of Double Branch is one of the good fishing spots for Snook the Deep cut near the Mangroves goes from 1ft to about 6 ft deep almost immediately the shallow side of the channel has a large oyster bed that draws many bait fish to feed. Our Last trip on 28 April produced no Snook but plenty of hits from smaller fish including some reds and ladyfish. The fish were turned off due to the Storms that hit Tuesday. We will now switch gears and look to the bay and near the beaches for our fish.

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Double Branch Snook Fishing

Snook are still around and we have a 32 incher in the kayak to prove it. The Fish were hitting and chasing bait all over the mouth and throughout the creek on the way to the mouth. The evening top water bite is exceptional and on the Strong Outgoing tide you couldn't ask for a better bite. We initially hit a double hookup of Jack Creval they were coralling bait like Piranha. As the sun went down we switched to the favorite 8" Bomber-A-Brokenbacks and started trolling the mangrove line. The first trip past brought in the 32" and then the next few were small and had to be returned. As the moon came up (Day after full) the fish returned to the top water and the bite really turned on. But since we work for a living, we had to rest sometime so, we headed back and took our one keeper. Even with the front that came in and today's supposed rain the fishing was still great and within a week or so the bite should be even better. Our next trip is this Friday on a 34 hour trip with the Hubbard's Marina Guys. A little change to the inshore but hopefully we can hook up with some serious Red Snapper since they just came into season on the 21st. Tight Lines.

Redfish in Double Branch

Monday Night Fishing at Double Branch seemed to be about the Redfish. Alot of the Snook are moving around and feeding in different areas and so the Redfish seemed to have moved into the Double Branch creek area all the way to the Hillsborough Bridge. We put the Kayaks in and headed towards the mouth throwing Topwater pulgs along the way. (Small Zara Spooks) seemed to be the favorite in a White/Red or Silver/Black color. The Reds continuosly swatted at the spooks as we dog walked them back to us. A slow steady retrieve triggered most strikes and the slow twitch-stop allowed the Reds a chance to inhale the plugs. The best time to be on the water right now is at HIGH tide possible the top of the tide and when the tide is outgoing. Live bait is always a sure thing out here and after dark a REAL Flashy RattL Trap can help increase your catch.
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Hook Tip

When fishing Saltwater and fishing for big fish a BIG SHARP HOOK is always a good bet. Most Lures no matter how expensive or impressive have inadequate hooks. Switching the hooks out for sharper hooks that are stronger and larger can increase your hook ups. A typical 52m Mirro comes with a #2 2x Treble Hook. Switching this hook out for a #3 or #4 3x will give you that little extra edge. Switching to a RED treble hook may increase your chances as well giving your lure that little extra "wounded prey" look. Switching the Rear and middle hooks may be all that is needed, look at your lure to determine what may be best. For Instance: a Large Rattle Trap really works well by switching the FRONT Treble to a Larger RED Treble hook. Give it a try and see how it goes and drop us a line and let us know what you think might be the best. Check out our Fishing Forums at the Top of the main page for more Lure Tips and Tests. Be Sure to look for our Favorite Lure page coming soon.

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Double Branch Fishing Report

Double Branch is on FIRE! On the water by 6:15pm we hit the top of the tide and the wind was blowing, but most of the channel was protected. The slight ripple didn't stop the top water bite. Using a "Jumping Finger Mullet" (from Denny B's) the first cast caused a huge swirl and a strike and from then on it was FANTASTIC. We fished all the way to the mouth using top waters. The Snook and Reds were hitting the Reds had a hard time hooking up on topwater but the Snook had no issues. They hit whatever was there and a little twitch and stop for abotu 5 seconds and another twitch and they were on we both hooked up about 10 times and landed about 4 fish each. The first keeper was 27" that hit the ZARA SPOOK about 6 times before latching on. The next Keeper about 26" hit a chug topwater. Even though they were keepers we released all the fish we caught. Even after the sun went down the bite was still on and on our way back we trolled 52m Mirro-Lure's and had strikes all the way back in. One Jack Creval about 20" and a good strong pull almost at the put in point that shook its way off the hooks. The Bite was great and with the clear skys and the moon moving towards full on the 25th the bite should be good until then. Tight Lines !

Upper Tampa Bay Fishing Report

Double Branch and Rocky Creek seem to be good locations for Trout and Red Fish. The red fish are hitting Freelined Shrimp and Silver Rattle Traps. Large Schools of bait have been seen there near the changes of the tide and the Reds are following them. The flats near Double Branch are holding some Reds during the incoming tide and a few cobia have been spotted swimming with the rays. The Courtney Campbell seems slow still with a lot of Lady Fish and the Dolphins, Shore Fisherman seem to be doing good on both sides with a few snook being caught using cut white baits, Even a large cobia was landed on the Western bank. The Gandy seems to have some Spanish Macks Running hitting anything flashy and at night Snook are hanging out hitting freelined pinfish. Even the tarpon have been spotted near the bridge but we suspect they won't be real active till the Blue Crabs are flowing out of the bay regularly. Both days this past weekend were good Fishing days for us with a few Reds caught and ton of lady fish. TightLines

Courtney Campbell Causeway Fishing

Fishing the Bay Bridges can be quite exciting. Yesterday when the wind was whipping and the waves were a good 2ft. The Motion of the Ocean was more then enough to send every fish to the bottom to look for cover. We on the other hand thought a little time on the boat would count towards us putting in our time on the water and get us closer to the big one. We started in the mouth of channel A out of the wind and moved to the Courtney Campell shortly after just to see what was biting. Jigging and Live shrimp were the thought and we tried a few different combinations until we hit something that caught fish and when we did it was non-stop. But the fish were not what we wanted. LadyFish and tons of them were hitting our jigs everytime we dropped a line over the edge to the bottom. It won't be long and we should be able to catch a Cobia or two in these exact spots. Also now with the time change the Fishing at night will start to pick up and our Tarpon hunt will be on as well. (Next Trip: Tonight Evening Snook using Topwaters).
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Morning Double Branch Fishing

Made our way to the mouth early Friday Morning. On the way we stopped at one of the deeper holes to try for some reds with Live Shrimp. After about 20 minutes of fishing this deeper cut we hit a few small sheephead that were picking our shrimp to pieces and decided that the reds had moved out. The current from the incoming tide was strong and the anchoring up made it dificult but we finally managed and almost immediately hooked and landed a large Jack Creval and then shortly after landed two small reds (released) . We only stayed until we ran out of shrimp.
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