Fishing the Pipeline Near Tampa Bay
Sometime next month, in May, a couple of us Island Anglerswill be headed well offshore with a good friend of mine and be fishing in about 110 feet of water along “The Pipeline;” a conduit which reaches from the northern Gulf Coast, delivering natural gas all the way into the Tampa Bay area. As most structure oriented fish, AJ’s, (Greater Amberjack), have made a home along this massive cylinder. The last time I was there, we arrived early in the morning, before the sun peaked up and began hauling in several gags and blacks. As soon as the sun was up, the grouper for the most part turned off and our baits were hammered by the AJ’s before we could lower them to the bottom. This was ‘Ok’ because that was our intention in the first place; to catch the Greater Amberjack.
Greater amberjack are related to pompano, runners and jack crevalles. A big hard-fighting fish that will test every muscle in your body, then it’s time for you to do battle with an amberjack. These fish seem to prefer to hang around some sort of bottom structure such as shipwrecks, reef areas, big rock ledges, springs and the deeper artificial reef structures; like a pipeline.
They are by no means a bottom fish, Amberjacks are more of a mid-water fish, moving at will throughout the water column. Just about any small live fish will work such as threadfin sardines, blue runners, grunts, pin fish, and pilchards. Actually AJs will eat just about anything, so include squid, crabs, and shrimp on their dinner menu. Amberjack have a dark stripe that extends from their nose to just in front of their dorsal fin that “lights up” when they are feeding. Often when you get into a school of feeding AJs, it is not uncommon for all anglers aboard to be hooked up at the same time. This fish can cause a grown man to grunt and groan every time his fishing reel screams out more line! If you’re truly looking to catch a big hard-fighting fish that will test every muscle in your body, then it’s time for you to do battle with an amberjack.
As our water temperatures climb higher and towards the 80’s, the amberjack will begin to show up in good numbers, along with big barracuda. These silver cigars, the Barracuda, have a knack for robbing your baits and catches when fishing these depths. Many a “B-liners” (vermillion snapper,) and mangroves or smaller red snapper are also caught while fishing for the AJ’s. Chances of you landing a smaller fish are slim to none when retrieving up past a waiting cuda. Your only hope is that one of the big bruisers, the AJ, clobbers your bait before it does! While fishing ‘The Pipeline’ you may also encounter large sharks as well. These fish can be caught on the same tackle as for the AJ’s except you might want to add a steel leader.
The ‘Pipeline can be accessed via any marine offshore navigation map but to play it safe, the novice should charter a vessel for an educational and fun trip out on the ‘Pipeline. In our area, Venice, Florida, there are a number of choices from boats docked at the Crows Nest Restaurant, Marker 4 Oyster Bar& Marina or you can contact one of the many charters out of Marina Jacks, in the Sarasota area. All are reasonably priced and look forward to giving you a catch of a lifetime, with a thrill for the dayâÂ?¦
“FISH ON”
