Go Fish for 9/30/ 12 by Capt. Bill Miller

   Spanish mackerel and kingfish continue to be the hot ticket for inshore and near shore anglers.

   Anglers on the Skyway fishing piers have been catching mackerel on spoons and live greenbacks under a cork. Kingfish in the 20-30 pound range are also being caught on the outgoing tide free lining big greenbacks.

   The Redington Pier reports big kingfish coming over the rail daily. Kings in the 30 pound class have been caught by anglers using pumpkin seeds, ladyfish and small legal mackerel for bait.

   Capt. Billy Miller has been guiding his parties to easy limits of Spanish mackerel and big kingfish along St. Pete and Indian Rocks Beach. Slow trolling scaled sardines has been the key for mackerel with ladyfish and blue runners the top baits for big kings. The inshore grouper bite continues to be good. Anglers fishing close in reefs and rock ledges have been reporting good catches of both gag and red grouper.

   The ship channel edges have been productive for grouper and mangrove snapper for bottom fishing anglers. Grouper trollers have been scoring with big plugs and spoons dragged along the edge of the ship channel and along the Skyway Bridge.

   Capt. William Toney took me and the “Fishing with Bill Miller” film crew on a redfish safari in Homosassa last week. Toney told me he thought we could have a great day sight casting to redfish and he was right. On the incoming tide, Toney poled newly wed anglers Wes and Tracey Crowell, Dr Tom Su and me around the St. Martin Key islands and we sight casted to redfish lying in the crystal clear water. If we judged the interception point right and our live shrimp or cut mullet got in front of the reds a hook up was certain.