Fishing Report - Tampa Bay to Sarasota, Florida. Saltwater flats and backcountry fishing guide Capt. Matt Ercoli.

I hope everyone is out there taking advantage of this beautiful weather, I sure have been. This is what makes winter in Florida so great. Perfect dry mid 60s to low 70s air temperature and bright bluebird skies, it’s hard to beat. Fishing has been equally as good. The water temps are back up from our previous cold snap. Water temps are in the low to mid 60s consistently now and I have even seen a few temperatures late in the day that have been as high as 69 degrees. These are perfect water temps for my winter time redfish patterns. I particularly like water between 58 and 64 degrees, it makes the fish easy to locate by concentrating them into warmer water holes and is still warm enough to keep their metabolisms high. The past couple of weeks have paid off for us real well. The Redfish have been very consistent. We have been catching lots of them and some real nice ones too. On some of the better days we have been putting over 30 a day in the boat up to 30 inches with lots in the keeper slot of 18 to 27 inches. The nice thing about running my winter time redfish pattern is that we get a lot of varieties mixed in which is great for keeping the action fast, something is always tugging at you line. Nice Sheepshead up to 5 pounds and plenty of Black Drum up to 25 inches, and even a few Flounder have been feeding amongst the Redfish.

Trout fishing has been equally as good. As soon as one of my schools of Redfish slow down a bit we head for the Trout or for another school of Redfish. The Trout have been very consistent and some of the bites are literally as fast as you can reel them in. Some of the Trout are real nice ones too. The Trout outlook for this year is pretty favorable. There are plenty of trout out there that are 20 plus inches and tons of nice keepers in that 15 to 20 inch class.

The back water fishing as a whole has been really good lately, my charters have been easily burning through 15 dozen shrimp on a full day charter and there aren’t many bait stores selling Pin fish right now.

The offshore fishing has been quite good as well. There are lots of Grouper in the bay still, so it’s nice not having to run real far to find them. There are also a pile of fish in 100 ft of water, lots of Gags, Reds and Amber Jack action for those willing to make the run. Kingfish are showing up off Fort Myers in massive schools, so it shouldn’t be too long before we are catching some ourselves.

I think we may have a little cold snap coming up the end of the week which should concentrate the fish and making for good fishing, especially before the front arrives. I have some available days to get out there and enjoy some good Florida winter fishing, so let me know if you would like to get out. Also my spring and tarpon schedule is filling quickly so it’s time to start making your plans.

Matt, I tell you what...On a day when every boat in Tampa was on the beach spooking fish, we were still able to create quite a crowd of enthralled weekend warriors with the leaps of an illusive silver king! This was oursecond trip with Captain Matt and just as he put us onto some of the best snook holes in the Bay, our hunt was successful in finding our target fish onceagain. The tarpon were more leader shy than they were at the beginning of the summer but with Matt's pin point accuracyand knowledge,we were still able to get our bites out there! I have been a saltwater fisherman for 19 years and every time I go out with Matt, I am able to learn something new that improves my overall fishing performance,and increases my love for the sport. This was the first acceptable full-size tarpon I haveever landed and justthree days following our trip, I landed my second good tarpon, a 70 pounder, over on my coast! Matt, your professionalism and character have shown to be top notch.We will continue to be strictly your clients, just as themany other truesaltwateranglersthat use your service. Here are pictures of the great fish that we landedanda pictureof the one that I caught by the residual good luck that everyone gets when they stepfoot out on your Sheaffer. Thanks again for the memories, our summer was greatand I hope your video of the jumps turned out well!

Matt, both Mike and I were once again blown away with the fish you got us into! In the five or six years I have been coming up to fish with you we have never had a bad day! The offshore fishing this year for the kingfish was incredible and the day on snook was just about the best day fishing I have ever had (I won't even guess at how many we had on)! You can plan on us being back next year, and for that matter, every year! I have had the good luck to fish all over the world, and your area is at the top of my list for great saltwater fishing! Thanks and tight lines until next time.
Sincerely, Steve Brugger

Matt, Hope all is well and the bite is still on! Just wanted to thank you again for a great time on the water. We had a blast! Also, wanted to see if you'd mind forwarding on the pic's your father took at your dock (FYI: trip was on May 2nd, caught several large kingfish). Anyway, Caroline, her father (especially), and I are all anxious to see if we made this month's fishing report. We'll keep checking, but we realize that your much busier fishing than advertising this time of year. Take care and we're hoping to plan another trip soon. I've already given your info to a friend that'll be in the Tampa area next month.

WOW!!! What a trip I had with Captain Matt!!! I went fishing with Captain Matt to catch a tarpon. Not only did I catch a tarpon but a wide variety of fish from grouper to snook. Captain Matt is very experienced at what he does and when I go back to sunny Florida I will fish with him again!!!! Captain Matt, Thanks for filling a dream with the tarpon I caught!!!

Just wanted to thank you for the WORLD CLASS fishing trip you guided my son Justin and I to on April 30, 2002! I have fished all over America including guiding and tournament fishing at senior levels and have never found a more professional guide. Your equipment, boat, bait, and knowledge are all SUPERIOR. After many "flats" trips in the Tampa Bay Area with other guides you are now my permanent yearly choice!

This was the 1st time I was able to bring my son along and contacted you in advance with one request, "keep my son hooked up and don't worry about size". I cannot describe the trill of watching Justin land 76 Snook. And we had size to go with the numbers. And as you described in your 5/6 fishing report we only fished one rod at a time. As soon as we cast the 2nd rod( usually before) we were hooked up on the 1st rod and I just reeled in the 2nd rod to watch Justin have the time of his life. I do want to differ a bit from your report stating we could have caught 100 fish. I honestly believe if we would have fished both rods hard we would have caught 200.

I am very grateful for your efforts. I have personally guided for bass, crappie and stripers and know what it takes to keep equipment in first class shape. I was especially impressed with the quality of your bait(Greenbacks) and the amount you had to chum and fish with. I am already looking forward to fishing with you next year and please feel free to post this if you wish and if any one needs a reference please do not hesitate to have them contact me.