August heat is still with us with water temperatures in the high 80’s. Water clarity was good with most days resembling the Caribbean. Bait schools were here including baby Bonita. The mornings produced better catches with the heat taking its toll in the afternoons. However, there was a short King run Friday afternoon. The following species were caught, King Mackerel, Spanish Mackerel, Bonita, Ladyfish, Red Drum, Hardtails, Cigar minnows, Alewives, and Pin fish.
The King Mackerel bite was limited to two days. Friday afternoon the wind picked up and there was a short bite. Geovani put a nice King on the deck and reported 4 were caught before the bite ended. Then Monday morning early, Carlos brought a nice King to the gaff.
Spanish Mackerel moved in several days. A few fish were of legal size, but a majority were well short of the 12-inch requirement. Most were being caught using Sabiki rigs. Every cast usually brought a combo of Hardtails and tiny Spanish.
The big summer Bonita bite has dropped significantly but the small ones moved in behind them. There were a few big ones decked but lots of the small and/or bait size Bonita were caught. I heard numbers as high as 100 baby Bonita in one morning. Mahmoud had fun Saturday morning putting 25 small Bonita on the pier.
Red Drum have been in schools of 10 to 50 fish prowling the shallow water. The bite was hit or miss as they seemed to only want free lined live bait.
Daily activity:
Thursday: water temp 84.8 – 88.0 Red Drum prowling the shallows, bait schools.
Friday: water temp 86.0 – 87.8 Red Drum prowling the shallows, a few Bonita off the end, 4 afternoon King Mackerel as of 5:50pm, Alewife and Hardtail bait schools.
Saturday: water temp 86.2 – 88.5 Lots of small Bonita.
Sunday: water temp 87.1 – 88.9 Lots of baby Bonita, Hardtails and Pinfish.
Monday: water temp 86.2 – 87.8 Baby and medium Bonita, a few Spanish Mackerel, Carlos got a King Mackerel, Hardtails and Cigar minnows.
Tuesday: water temp. 85.5 – 87.3 Baby Bonita, tiny undersized Spanish Mackerel, Hardtails.
Wednesday: water temp 85.1 – 87.1 Hardtails, Spanish Mackerel (most were too small) Large school of Red Drum prowling the shallows, schools of Cigar minnows on the surface.
Red Tide status: The red tide organism, Karenia brevis, was not observed in samples collected from or offshore of Escambia, Okaloosa, Franklin, Wakulla, Dixie, Levy, Hernando, or Pasco counties. No samples from Santa Rosa, Walton, Bay, Gulf, Jefferson, Taylor, or Citrus counties were analyzed this week.
Tides Link
https://tides4fishing.com/us/florida-west-coast/panama-cityngin g
Full Moon Monday Aug. 19, 2024 New Moon Monday Sept. 02, 2024 -
Tides for the upcoming week:
Sunrise: 6:14am Sunset: 7:15pm
Thursday 22nd. 6:12am Low 0.9 2:08am High 0.9
7:46am Low 1.0 2:11am High 1.3
Friday 8:47am Low 0.7 1:49am High 1.2
Saturday 11:10am Low 0.5 1:27am High 1.5
Sunday 1:52pm Low 0.3 1:49am High 1.7
Monday 3:17pm Low 0.2 2:35am High 1.9
Tuesday 4:19pm Low 0.1 3:36am High 1.9
Wednesday 28th. 5:12pm Low 0.1 5:09am High 1.9Sunrise: 6:17am Sunset: 7:08pm CDST
The Marine forecast for the next several days is:
THURSDAY
East winds 5 to 10 knots. Waves 1 foot or less. Wave Detail: East 1 foot at 3 seconds and south 1 foot at 4 seconds. Protected waters a light chop. A chance of showers and thunderstorms.
THURSDAY NIGHT
East winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas around 2 feet. Wave Detail: East 2 feet at 4 seconds. Protected waters a moderate chop. Showers and thunderstorms likely.
FRIDAY
East winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Wave Detail: Southeast 2 feet at 4 seconds. Protected waters a moderate chop. Showers and thunderstorms likely.
FRIDAY NIGHT
East winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Wave Detail: East 2 feet at 4 seconds and south 1 foot at 4 seconds. Protected waters a moderate chop. Showers and thunderstorms likely.
SATURDAY
East winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Wave Detail: East 2 feet at 4 seconds. Protected waters a moderate chop. Showers and thunderstorms likely.
SATURDAY NIGHT
East winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Protected waters a moderate chop. A chance of showers and thunderstorms.
SUNDAY
East winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Protected waters a moderate chop. A chance of showers and thunderstorms.
SUNDAY NIGHT
East winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Protected waters a moderate chop. A chance of showers and thunderstorms.
MONDAY
East winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Protected waters a moderate chop. A chance of showers and thunderstorms.
MONDAY NIGHT
East winds 5 to 10 knots, increasing to 10 to 15 knots after midnight. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Protected waters a moderate chop. A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the evening, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after midnight.
(local forecast).
THURSDAY (89/73 rain 39% wind ENE-10)
FRIDAY (90/73 rain 07% wind ENE-13)
SATURDAY (90/75 rain 41% wind ENE-12)
SUNDAY (91/77 rain 24% wind E-10)
MONDAY (90/77 rain 24% wind E-08)
TUESDAY (91/77 rain 37% wind ESE-08)
WEDNESDAY(91/78 rain 23% wind SE-09)
PIER MANAGEMENT CONTACT INFORMATION:
Bay County Parks and Recreation – 5304 Majetti Tower Road Panama City, FL 32404
850-248-8730
Vince Martin – Bay Co. Parks Division Manager - vmartin@baycountyfl.gov - 850-896-6580
Timothy Pentice- Bay Co. Asst. Div. Mgr. – tprentice@baycountyfl.gov – 448-217-4219
Tight lines and screaming drags,
Sam
SLP053@BELLSOUTH.NET
770-265-2879
