Catching Tarpons at Night
Tarpons are nocturnal in nature. Those same bridges where they can be found in the morning are their living space as well at night. They are drawn to bright lights too, which is great for those who are still out at sea after the sun has set or for those who plan to do so later in the evening.
Some anglers use the ladyfish as bait, drifting it to the shadow line where tarpons are. You can catch the bait under the lights using a quarter-ounce Cotee jig head and dark-colored (like motor oil) grub.
But if you want a bit of excitement, get under that bridge and do sight-casting. A cruising tarpon is something which you will never forget. Now, if you are going to do this, try rigging a spinning rod with a test line up to 30 pounds plus a short piece of leader up to 80 pounds. Next, affix an Owner 7/0 SSW hook using a loop knot. Slide a 4-inch, black and pearl Cotee shad body on the hook. Finally, about two inches above the hook, crimp a 3/8 ounce split shot sinker.
The weight will fall off the leader which will prevent the tarpon from using the rig’s weight to throw the hook.
Some are worried that they wouldn’t find menhaden or ladyfish. But the truth is any palm-size fish and even shrimps are effective live baits. The tarpon will eat your offering even just a foot or two away from the boat and you will see the whole thing happening. And if that’s not enough, wait until the tarpon ‘goes bad’ and looks straight at you as it jumps.
Some are not quite convinced that they will see this at night, dark and all. But under those bridge lights, you most definitely will! It’s just like watching a baseball or football game at night in the stadium.
Don’t Forget, They Aren’t Just in Bridges…
You need not hang about around bridges all day (and night). The Hillsborough River and nearby ship basins have tons of summer tarpons too. Apollo Beach, MacDill Air Force Base, and Mermaid Point have deep flats where fish abound. The mud flats close to St. Pete – Clearwater Airport are great spots too.
If you do fish in these areas, using plugs (Mirrolures, Cotee Button Eye Minnows, Shad Tail Jigs) are great producers.
Tarpon Fishing Guide for Newbies
As I have mentioned earlier, it’s not that hard to hook up with tarpons swimming around the bridge. But to consistently find one, you will need to know how they move around the structures, taking into consideration the tide phase. You should also know that it’s a waiting game, and this is the hardest part of it all. If you don’t have the patience, tarpon fishing is not for you.
Learning more about this is best done through experience. Short of it is, get out there and start tarpon fishing!
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