upper tampa bay Fishing Report 2025

Polaris Supreme docked September 17 at Fisherman's Landing under owner Tom Rothery's hand following an eight-day Gary Roberts charter trip to Alijos Rocks and The Ridge. "It was a good trip," said Roberts, "with lots of fish caught and lots of fish lost." Sizeable tuna were hard to catch at the rocks, said Tom, because the skipjack, small tuna and sharks were all thick and hungry. The tuna were there, however, as were some wahoo. The Ridge got a good lock from the 24 anglers aboard the Supreme. They said there were plenty of yellowtail and lots of grouper and snapper biting there. Rothery said the temperature on The Ridge was very warm, at 81.5 degrees. Tom estimated that his anglers each released about 20 small tuna and four or five yellowtail. Jay Kotsier of Tulare showed off a pink pargo, also known as red snapper. These are excellent eating, especially if they have been kept in refrigerated sea water instead of under a frozen brine spray. Tom, Kroes of Tipton was first, for a 65.2-pound yellowfin tuna he got with a sardine on a 5/0 Mustad hook, 50-pound Big Game line, a TLD 30 reel and a Calstar 7465 rod. Everett Combs of PAZlm Springs was second, for a 62-pounder, and Alan Holleyman of Napa won third place for a 60.6-pound tuna. Bill Kuehl of Poway stood in with the winner, posing with his 50-pound wahoo taken on a Burns Bomb in Christmas colors.

Well the weather has kicked up a little and it's a little bumpy. We will be at the dock at 6:00 am tomorrow. Come down and say hi if you can. We will be in until Thursday Nov. 8 when we depart on Lon Mikkleson's OTR charter. There are still spots available if you want to come with us.

Yesterday we had a travel day. It was a little bumpy and choppy coming up the line. The passengers just relaxed and enjoyed a fresh tuna sandwich and Ceasar salad for lunch and for dinner we were treated to crab stuffed chicken on rice with a black bean sauce and grilled squash on the side. Really good. This morning we are still traveling and it is still bumpy. It looks like it is nicer up above and we should have a nice afternoon and a few hours of fishing before we have to head in. We will be a the dock at 6:00 am Wednesday morning.
We have a last minute cancellation on our trip that departs tomorrow. It is Don Fischbeck's annual 5 day charter. Give Susan or Don a call if you can get away and come fish.

Hello Everyone,

Today was a fun day of fishing with lots of action. Mainly bi catch and non targeted species. We were able to scrape up some Yellowtail but it was not easy. Between Sea Lions and other boats it was a grind. Very fun and entertaining day just not for the targeted fish. We will be in tomorrow and out for a 4 day. Big thank you to Archie Steele for another great charter!

Oct.12

Today was a good day out here. We started our morning off with a few yellowfin strikes and at 8:30 we hit a good school of stock 25-30 pound bluefin, a few bigger and a few smaller with some yellowfin and dorado mixed in. We drifted with them for two and a half hours. For most the rest of the day we didn't drive for more then an hour before seeing something. We found a dab of 40-60 pound bluefin and landed one, we found another dab of 25-30 pounders and landed 10, we found a kelp for a handfull of yellowfin along with the occasional yf jig strike. An action packed day, just what we needed. Good weather for us today but the guys down below are complaining about rough weather. We're heading in now and Tommy Rothery is coming back out after a long land stretch and is taking the boat out for 8 days. I'm sure he's looking forward to getting out of the office and back on the water.

Polaris Supreme Update 8-5-11

Hello everyone. So here we are again as we wrap up Dr. Jim Prigmore's 4 day fishing trip. I must say, the fishing gods made us work this week and weren't quite as rewarding as we would have liked. Our first day out there was nothing short of perfect conditions, water temp, color and choice bait to choose from. We weren't graced with the counts that we were after, but the fish holds did get some company from the 3 pelagic species that wre being hunted. The anglers got a taste of what it was like to get blind jig strikes from yellowfin tuna and tuned up on offshore kelp patty fishing for dorado and yellowtail. Anytime the deck hatches are being opened and fish are sliding in, that's a good thing. Making sure to beat feet south in time to wake up to a cow yellowtail bite is exactly what we did. A few lunkers were already in the box well before the sun rose and continued into the post dawn hours. Things were looking up for the day, but as the morning progressed our conditions did not prevail. The current was not with us and we all know, you need current to catch fish. All of the grounds were covered, sometimes 2 and 3 times over until we did drop in on a couple spots that were holding some quality halibut. I believe one that was around 30 lbs hit the deck that day with a couple more just shy of that were soon to follow. As the day came to a close and the grounds were more than covered, Captain Tommy had to point the Polaris Supreme north to get us up the line for our final day of fishing. By daylight were sending bait to the bottom only to be bringing up a nice score of lingcod, vermillion reds and some miscellaneousottom dwellers. We only had til about lunch time to keep the lines wet before the trip was called from the bridge. Time to head for home.

Team Galley, as usual came through day after day with one superb meal after the next. From breakfast anyway you wanted it, to the sushi/sashimi spreads and the dinners that would rival any 5 star gourmet resteraunt. Chef's David Schooler and Barry Benson never let us down. Look for the Polaris Supreme tomorrow at Fisherman's Landing about 7 am to depart with Eric Rogger and his fine group that he brings year after year. Be sure to check back in with us as Captain Richie takes over the keyboard with has always entertaining fishing reports. Thanks for checking in and talk to you tomorrow!

Jed and crew

Jackpot winners were as follows:

1st Place: Sean Arbunich 37.2 lb Yellowtail

2nd Place: Dave Smith 35.8 lb Yellowtail

3rd Place: Steve Larsen 33 lb Yellowtail

Congratulations Winners!!

Polaris Supreme Update 8-4-11

Good afternoon and thanks for stopping by faithful Polaris Supreme followers. This morning we once again woke up to beautiful weather at the seriola lalandi grounds (yellowtail for those of you that aren't up to speed on scientific names). At o'dark thirty we already had two premiums in the box. 30 pounders. As Mr. Sun showed his face, we continued to plunk away at a few more in the upper 30 pound class. Knot too long after breakfast was done, the bending of the rods came to a hault and it was time pull the pick and go looking. South bound we headed to locate the school grade yellows. About 45 minutes into the journey, we found the right conditions and started chasing down the breezing forktails. The anglers picked away, a few here, a few there, but then the fish decided to get a nice case of lock jaw and eventually were nowhere to be found. That led us on an hour and a half tour to drag some sardines along the sandy ocean floor.Some success was had as we hauled 3 halibut over the rail, one being about 30 pounds! Congratulations Tom! After about another 2 hours of searching, it was time to switch gears and get back into travel mode. Have to make sure we cover plenty of ground the rest of the afternoon to get us into position for a few hours of wet lines tomorrow as we get ready to wrap things up and call it a trip.

This evening Team Galley is going to be serving up a delicious grande veal chop with risotto and mixed veggies. Certainly one of my favorites. Well folks, until tomorrow with my final trip undate and I turn the reigns back over to our trip reporter extraordinaire Captain Richie Elias, I say good night and check back tomorrow.

Jed and Crew

P.S. Richie, only one CB order

 

 

Polaris Supreme Update 08-03-2011

Good evening friends. So to start our offshore adventure today, the morning was surprisingly warm. We all rolled out of bed just as the sun cracked and right into shorts and t-shirts. The seas weren't quite so friendly, but very workable. Our coarseline prevailed for most of the day and gave the crew some descent looking conditions for spotting those kelps and any other activity on the water that might lead us to find a score. The kelp patties were fairly plentiful for a good portion of the day, but we just couldn't find that right boomer to shut down on. However, we were able to gather up a couple handfuls of dorado and just when we thought there might be a lull in the day, the beautiful sound of 4 clickers screaming at once got us right back in the ball game. Although nothing of size came, we did get the guys on some yellowfin tuna in the 12-15 lb range, with a couple anglers landing their first ever! As the sun closed the distance between itself and the horizon, we got on a string of smaller kelps that produced plenty of just below keeper size yellows. Those stops gave the anglers a real idea on working together at the rail in some fast paced action here on the Polaris Supreme. We got the blood flowing and gave'em a small taste of what's to come.

Tomorrow is a brand new day as we head south to the yellowtail grounds to target big numbers on 18-25 lb forktails and go in search of those mighty 30-50 lb cow yellows! The weather forecast looks great and we are excited. Just as I'm typing up the evening report, I smell the aroma of Chef David's famous seafood alfredo pasta seeping it's way into the wheelhouse. With shrimp, giant scallops and an A alfredo clam sauce, it's always a gormet delight! If there's one cure to a rough day of fishing, it's to sit down to an amazing meal prepared by none other than the Polaris Supreme's "Team Galley". So on that note, I'm going to head downstairs to enjoy a tasty dish myself. Until this time tomorrow my friends, I bid you a good night.

Jed and the one and only Team Supreme

Polaris Supreme Update 08-02-2011

Good afternoon sports fans! Reporting to you live from the bridge of the Polaris Supreme, we departed today on Dr. Jim Prigmore's 4 day fishing extravaganza. We have an ample load of beautiful sardine on board with us and are anxious to get them over the rail and let the feeding begin. Where we end up isn't set in stone yet, but where ever we do end up, we are going to show this eager group of anglers how we do it Baja California style. The weather is gorgeous rolling down the line and let's hope that holds up for us over the next 4 days.

We were lucky enough to have our lunch plates graced with Chef David Schooler's Polaris Supreme style cheese burgers that had to weigh at least a half-pound sided with some awesome maccaroni salad. As always on our departure days, the group will be putting down a more than healthy portion of the always delicious prime rib. So our hopes are high and our fingers are crossed to go get the job done Supreme style. Well, it's about time to head downstairs for the fishing seminar to get the guys all tuned up on fishing for the days to come. Make sure to check back with us tomorrow after dinner for our day 1 report. Talk to you tomorrow!

Tight lines and bent rods,

Jed and Team Supreme

P.S. We would like to send out one last thank you to Mr. Tom Chapparo and his fine anglers with and extra special thanks to Mr. Herb Yamanaka and his beautiful gifts that he so graciously brings us every year. A big congratulations goes out to our jackpot winners: 1st Place goes to Joe Gigliotti with a 39.6 lb yellowtail, 2nd place was Charter Master Tom Chapparo with a 38.8 lb yellowtail and not very far out of 2nd place was Dr. Steven Gammer with a very nice 38.2 lb yellowtail.

Fishing report for the week of sept 16-22. This past week was all about looking thru the binoculars and praying that you find the lucky kelp. Scores for the 3/4 day boats this week have ranged anywhere from 0 to 150 fish. The highlight of our week was a kelp we found on Thursday which kicked out 44 nice size dorado and 100 yellowtail. On Friday we caught our first yellowfin tuna of the season. This season is showing no signs of slowing down so make those reservations and come on down.

Good evening from the Polaris Supreme bridge. Today was our first full day of travel. We still have this big swell following us down the line, but it's not doing us any harm.  We're rolling down swell with it, so it's not a real big deal.  I wouldn't mind it being a few degrees warmer, but it is the middle of February.  Everyone got to sleep in a little bit and have a nice breakfast at 0800.  The crew gave a wahoo seminar mid morning the get the guys tuned up on catching some "skinnies".  It's nothing new to the OTR guys,  but a little refresher course never hurts.  They got right into making their leaders, rigging wahoo bombs and so forth. Certainly helps break up a travel day.  Chef Mike and Gringo put out a real nice Chicken and artichoke penne pasta with pesto sauce and garlic bread for lunch. That dish always makes for a nice nap afterward.      

                The rest of the afternoon was just a bunch of catching up with old friends, eating more food as we always do on these trips and the crew doing a few chores before dinner.  Just another standard travel day here on the Polaris Supreme. Till tomorrow, this is the Supreme boys out.

 

Jed and crew