Unfortunately, we have had another week of black Bay water and NO Kings. Water temperature has been hovering around 82 degrees. Bait availability has been small Hardtails, Alewives with a few Goggle Eyes (Big Eyed Scad) in the mix. There have been lots of Ladyfish and Blues primarily early mornings and late afternoons. Decent catches of Spanish Mackerel have been happening during the same time frame. Bubble rigs with small jerk bait or spoons worked best.
Skinny water action has been better than off the end Tee. Red Drum were cooperating most days with several fish in the slot. Flounder have begun to show. Several were caught along with a few meeting the new 14 inch requirement. Slick managed six fish with two big enough to go into the cooler. The irony is that they are showing just as the recreational season comes to an end. Recreational harvest will be closed from October 16 to November 30, 2021.
In other pier news, Bay County Commissioners (BOC) approved $40,000.00 to go towards replacing the pier decking. This is a good start that should cover enough panels to complete the entire end Tee. If you get a chance, thank Pier management for presenting the need and justification to the BOC and the BOC for approving the funds.
The BCO 1st King Tournament continues with 109 anglers registered as of 10-13-21. You can still register. The leader board has not changed as no Kings were weighed in this week.
You can check the Tournament registration list here: https://www.facebook.com/sam.patrick.315/posts/10219817864222223
The registration page is on-line and the link is listed below. The details are as follows:
Bay County Outdoors (BCO) 1st Fall King Mackerel Tournament
BCO, in cooperation with Bay County Recreation, is sponsoring a King Mackerel Tournament September 10th through October 22, 2021, at the M. B. Miller (County) Pier. Registration is FREE and open to all anglers fishing from the M. B. Miller Pier during the tournament. Registration is on-line at WWW.BayCountyOutdoors.com/tournament. Your name, phone number and email are required to register. A registration list will be posted on the BCO and Tournament Official’s Facebook pages. Prizes will be awarded for 1st place - $500.00 and 2nd place - $350.00. All prizes will be gear/tackle provided by sponsors, no cash. Prizes will be awarded at the close of the Tournament at the Pier. Sam Patrick will be the Tournament Official and can be contacted at: 770-265-2879 and SLP053@BELLSOUTH.NET.
Tournament rules:
- Fish must be caught (physically landed on the pier deck by a single angler) by rod and reel while fishing on the M. B. Miller (County) Pier during Tournament times.
- Fish must be landed between the official start and finish dates and times.
- The official catch times are between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.
- All fish must be weighed by the Tournament Official to qualify. Prior registration must be completed to enter a fish. Weigh-ins will be between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. Sunday through Friday and 1:00 p.m. through 6:00 p.m. on Saturday at M. B. Miler Pier.
- Fish may be caught by natural or artificial bait.
- In case of a tying weight, the first caught and officially entered fish will qualify for that position.
- Anglers may win both 1st and 2nd place with qualifying fish.
- All Florida Wildlife Commission (FWC) laws, rules and regulations must be followed.
- All Bay County Recreation rules and regulations must be followed.
- Any angler found to have violated any of these rules shall be disqualified.
Good luck and Thank-You for participating in the Tournament!
Water temperature: 83-81
https://tides4fishing.com/us/florida-west-coast/panama-cityngin g
Full Moon Wednesday Oct. 20, 2021 New Moon Thursday Noc. 04, 2021
Tides for the upcoming week:
Sunrise: 6:44am Sunset: 6:12pm
Saturday 5:02pm Low 0.6 7:47am High 1.5
Sunday 4:35pm Low 0.8 9:04am High 1.4
10:30pm High 1.1
Monday 3:33am Low 0.9 10:22am High 1.2
4:04pm Low 0.9 10:25pm High 1.2
Tuesday 4:54am Low 0.7 11:57am High 1.1
3:04pm Low 1.0 10:20pm High 1.4
Wednesday 20th. 6:00am Low 0.6 9:53pm High 1.5
Sunrise:6:48am Sunset: 6:06pm CDST
The Marine forecast for the next several days is:
SATURDAY
Northwest winds 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet.
Dominant period 3 seconds. Protected waters a moderate chop.
Chance of showers through the day.
SATURDAY NIGHT
North winds 20 to 25 knots. Seas 4 to 6 feet
with occasional seas up to 8 feet. Dominant period 5 seconds.
Protected waters choppy.
SUNDAY
Northeast winds 15 to 20 knots. Seas 3 to 5 feet with
occasional seas up to 6 feet. Dominant period 4 seconds.
Protected waters choppy.
SUNDAY NIGHT
Northeast winds 15 to 20 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet.
Dominant period 4 seconds. Protected waters a moderate chop.
MONDAY
East winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Dominant
period 4 seconds. Protected waters a moderate chop.
MONDAY NIGHT
East winds 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet.
Dominant period 4 seconds. Protected waters a moderate chop.
TUESDAY
East winds 15 knots. Seas 2 to 4 feet. Protected
waters a moderate chop. Slight chance of showers in the
afternoon.
local forecast) A cool front is approaching with cool temps starting this weekend.
SATURDAY (80/55 rain 41% wind NNW-16)
SUNDAY (75/57 rain SUNNY wind NNE-15)
MONDAY (76/60 rain SUNNY wind ENE-11)
TUESDAY (80/65 rain Sunny wind E-11)
WEDNESDAY(81/66 rain 11% wind eSE-10)
PIER MANAGEMENT CONTACT INFORMATION:
Bay County Parks and Recreation – 5304 Majetti Tower Road Panama City, FL 32404
850-248-8730
Travis Barbee – Bay Co. Parks Division Manager – tbarbee@baycountyfl.gov – 850-381-8155
James Beattie – Bay Co. Beach Operations Manager - jbeattie@baycountyfl.gov - 850-814-3771
Tight lines and screaming drags,
Sam
