tampa bay times Fishing Report 2025

For up-to-date information, look up the fishing report for the water of your choice. Field staff update the fishing reports each week through the fishing season, reporting on fishing success, lake levels, water temperatures, and other important information.

πŸ—ΊοΈ Location TAMPA BAY TIMES
🌎 Country UK
⏰ Fast Updates Every day
🐟 Species All Species
πŸ—“οΈ Next Update Tomorrow
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You also can get helpful information from the Fishing Forecast.

May 9, 2025 tampa bay times Fishing Report

Andrew Viola called in with a wrap up from the 1.5 day trip from the Pacifica out of Seaforth Landing in San Diego, CA.

We saw a good sign of fish yesterday. We picked up 48 Yellowtail and  4 Dorado to go with our 4 Bluefin Tuna.

The Pacifica is back out tomorrow night for a 1.5 day trip fishing offshore for Tuna and Yellowtail. Departs at 9PM.

May 8, 2025 tampa bay times Fishing Report

18 yellowfin tuna 13 skipjack. Unfortunately all of the fish we found were in the vicinity of bait. Tuna that have not eaten for a few hours are much easier to catch than tuna that are gorging themselves on anchovies.

May 7, 2025 tampa bay times Fishing Report

Thursday, October 4th, 2012

Hi friends. I don't know what's going on with me, it's like the fish just elude us in the morning time and around lunchtime, people start to get very down about our fishing day, myself included. We had a horrible morning. A boat just a few miles from us got on a kelp and had good fishing on bluefin, yellowfin, and dorado. Okay, maybe that means that we're in the right area. Nope. We went in all kinds of different directions only to find a boat already on a kelp catching fish or a boat already working the area. Very frustrating. Around lunch time, the mood on deck was starting to sour and the mood in the wheelhouse was the exact opposite of laughing babies, sunflowers, and Labrador puppies. It was straight death. I was pretty sure that I was about to lose my turkey caesar salad all over the dash and that would've been the highlight of my day up to that point. Yep, it was that bad. But as our boss's old boss, Steve Loomis, used to say, "west is best."

So I made the decision -- we're going to head west all day until we don't see a boat on the radar or we fall off the earth. As I was checking my water temperature charts, looking at the next area where I was sure that I was going to go and find another boat or non-biting fish, it happened. Not the sound of a single fish popping on the sonar or the mast-man yelling at me to rotate trollers, but the sound of a school -- a gigantic school -- on the sonar. I flipped from the computer screen to the sonar screen, throttled back the mains, and spun the wheel hard to starboard. In the excitement of the moment, I managed to tangle up the chord for the gyros in the wheel as I was spinning too (sweet), so I'm yelling in the P.A. system, chasing down the school, and trying to untangle the chord all at the same time and just like that, the school is off the edge of the screen, swimming away with my heart.

As I sit looking at a blank sweep of the sonar for a few seconds and the thoughts of ripping the wheelhouse chair from its base and throwing it out the window, I finally realize that Jed is screaming down at me from the mast. He was screaming profanities, but not directed towards me, at least not directly. His screams read something along this line, and I'll clean it up for everyone at home, "they're f-ing shinning!!" Bingo, as I came back around, the sonar lit up once again right in front of the boat and after a few seconds -- which seemed like a century -- the fathometer ran red. Oh my gosh, they're under us, thick! I can't remember if I cursed when I called for the bait to rain down on the school after we stopped the boat but I apologize to our anglers if I did. In all honesty, I don't think they could hear me on the P.A. as everyone was screaming their heads off as well and after shutting down the mains and running out to the back deck, the most beautiful sight I could've seen was right before my very eyes; fishing boiling everywhere and all the rods bent over. Sonny Jim!

We drifted with that school of five hours and after the initial rush where they were biting sixty pound line for a couple of hours, we kept two to five going for the remainder of the stop. We finished the drift with 120 bluefin tuna (limits) in the 15-30 lb. class and 40 yellowfin tuna in the 12-18 lb. class. Like I said before, Sonny Jim!

So there you have it. A day in the life of a sport-boat captain. It's life of stressing like you're a lady of the night in church and then in the blink of an eye, you're the fireman carrying out the baby from the house fire to place it into the loving arms of it's mother. Here you go, ma'am.

-The Supreme Team

May 6, 2025 tampa bay times Fishing Report

Oct. 11

Today wasn't the trip saver. Nope, that'll have to be tomorrow. There was a signal of that big yellowfin in the morning. We had a stop for a few 45-50 pounders and some jigging on the smaller yellowfin thats been around. We also had some of those late as well. The highlight of the day as would be the highlight on most any day of any trip was just before lunch time we found a beefer(that means about as big as they get)beefer school of big bluefin. We hooked about 10 or 12 of those beasts and landed 5, 75 pounds to over a 100 pounds. There were a few other schools seen today, a school of 40-60 pounders, and a school of 25-35 pounders so along with the beautiful weather we have high hopes for tomorrow.

Oct. 11

Polaris Supreme is back on line. Good evening folks. We had one of those very rare incidents happen out here that we just dread happening. A passenger took a fall on deck and broke his femur bone during the second night of the trip. Our only option was to bring him back to San Diego so that we could get him to a hospital so he could get the care that he needed. Unfortunately we were 250+ miles south when it happened and it cost us a couple days of our trip getting him back home. When I say rare incidents I mean that it's the first and hopefully last time I have seen it happen in my 12 year career on the Polaris Supreme. We safely got him off the boat yesterday afternoon and headed back out with 2 days in the trip now to get things done. Get well Bob. All of our thoughts are with you. We are now a blue fin boat. The weather has come down beautifully and with signs of blue fin yesterday up to 70 pounds we're excited to get our day going. Just waiting for the sun to rise as I'm writing this. Wish us luck. We'll take and deserve some good luck.

Your friends on the Polaris Supreme

May 5, 2025 tampa bay times Fishing Report

Polaris Supreme Trip Update 09-09-2019 This morning the bite started out early. We caught quite a bit of variety, an Amoco Jack, sum Pargo, an Amberjack, and the yellowfin tuna were still present! As daylight came around the skipjack slowly took over but not before we made a nice day out of it on yellowfin tuna with a few Wahoo sprinkled in. Guys are having a great time and our weather is beautiful. The Polaris supreme crew!

May 4, 2025 tampa bay times Fishing Report

~~Sept. 4
 About mid morning today I was pretty bummed. I felt we should've been here yesterday. I was thinking we were going to have to run in tonight to catch our tuna for the trip. I was wrong. Before lunch we had our best stop of the year on yellowfin. Not just number wise but size wise too. 20-30 pounders with a few 18's and a few 35's. That's right, feeling pretty good now. It didn't take very many of them to fill up a fish hold. We pretty much have 2 full fish holds and fortunately/unfortunately, we have to prepare another fish hold for tomorrow. I only say unfortunately because we'll be forced to use the beautiful sardine we've been saving. Out here we've been catching our own bait so we wouldn't have to use our stock but we have no room to put the bait we catch now.

 The bluefin weren't in the biting mode today. We still saw the schools as we have everyday since we've been fishing in this zone, but some days are bite days and some aren't. Obviously we're hoping tomorrow is a bite day. Some bluefin would be the cherry on top of this wonderful sundae.

 The weather sure was nice today and to top it all off, it looks like we'll have the same tomorrow. Sweet dreams. Life is good.
 

May 3, 2025 tampa bay times Fishing Report

Ok guys I just got the final report from captain Brian Kiyohara. Brian has been driving the San Diego occasionally while the American Angler is shut down. Brian reported seeing 5 or 6 really nice schools of yellowtail today. Most of the schools would pop up to the surface long enough to get the binoculars on them but would vanish by the time he got the boat to them. We have seen this behavior in the past. A mid-day drift however did produce 3 bites from these 15-20 lb. fish. In the end the final talley for 24 anglers was 2 yellowtail 9 barracuda and 1 calico bass. Like I mentioned in my earlier report, these fish should bite better with the improving weather. The coastal eddy that we have had for 2 1/2 days is breaking down. Looks like a lite load tomorrow, make those resos and come on down.

Capt. Ryan

May 2, 2025 tampa bay times Fishing Report

~~Sep. 9
 We spent today offshore mostly looking to top off on dorado.  There were 7 of us long range boats looking to do the same today.  There was plenty of this warm water for all though.  Unfortunately there wasn't enough kelps with fish on them for all.  We were one of the more lucky ones.  We didn't completely top off but we were only 20 fish shy.  Along with the dorado we caught some small tuna off a few spots.  3-5 pounders.  Now keep in mind most everyone on board have never fished out here in there lives.  When everyone on board hooked one of these tuna at once, it was great.  They were all so excited and they all just loved it.  Don't worry, I very much encouraged the release of these fish.  This was a great group of guys.  Great.  Super laid back and just enjoyed every minute out here.  Caught a bunch of colorful jumping dorado, lots of yellers and even a marlin.  I can't wait to have them back.  And you know it's true too because I usually don't write that.  I love all our passengers.

 Tomorrow we get in and leave again for just 2 days this time.  Hopefully we get out of there good and early and then et some fishing in tomorrow.  I have no idea what we'll do after that though.  Time will tell.
    

Weekly Fishing Reports

Fishing reports for tampa bay times are updated each week, usually by Thursday morning. The reports are compiled by an outside contractor who receives the information from bait shops, marinas and fishing guides.

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