We began the 7-day period, Thursday, with the water at 60 degrees and it remained above 60 until Saturday night. We had several cold nights and the temperature dropped to 56.8 by Monday morning. We made it back above 60 this afternoon (Wednesday). The clarity has been good. Bait fish are still missing but the Squid were here almost every day. Sheepshead, Red Drum, a few Pompano on Sunday, and Squid were caught mostly in the evenings.
Red Drum were prowling the shallows Sunday morning, Monday and Tuesday morning. Each day they disappeared before noon. Fresh Squid or Ghost Shrimp on a Carolina Rig got their attention. Robert hooked several and decked two. Jim got the only slot fish. Several other anglers hooked big Reds too.
Sheepshead were thick around the pilings Friday but would only tease us. They ignored every type of bait. None would be caught until Monday when Mikel decked a huge one. Tuesday, we decked two and Wednesday, two were caught. All the Sheepshead were caught off the back side of the end Tee. Live Fiddler Crabs or Ghost Shrimp were the ticket bait.
Sunday afternoon a school of Pompano came into the shallows and stayed just long enough for 6 to hit the deck. They were gone as quickly as they came. At least they were all legal-size fish.
Daily activity:
Friday: water temp 61.0 – 60.3 Squid all day. Sheepshead everywhere but would not bite. No fish caught. The water was mostly clean.
Saturday: water temp 60.8 – 61.0 – 60.6 Wind, rain and dropping temps back to the 40’s.
Sunday: water temp 59.7 – 58.8 - 59.5 Red Drum, Pompano and Squid.
Monday: water temp 56.8 – 59.2 Red Drum, a few Squid and a huge Sheepshead.
Tuesday: water temp 57.7 – 59.5 Red Drum, Sheepshead and Squid.
Wednesday: water temp 59.4 – 61.2 Two Sheepshead, one Bonnethead Shark, Squid.
Red Tide status: In Northwest Florida over the past week, K. brevis was not observed.
Northwest Coast Red Tide Status Report February 16, 2024 (myfwc.com)
Tides Link
https://tides4fishing.com/us/florida-west-coast/panama-cityngin g
Full Moon Saturday Feb. 24, 2024 New Moon Sunday Mar. 10, 2024
Tides for the upcoming week:
Sunrise: 6:16am Sunset: 5:36pm
Friday 6:54am Low -0.4 9:42pm High 0.9
Saturday 6:44am Low -0.2 10:26pm High 0.8
Sunday 6:26am Low -0.1 12:59pm High 0.2
3:07pm Low 0.2 11:16pm High 0.6
Monday 6:73am Low 0.0 12.42pm High 0.3
5:03pm Low 0.2
Tuesday 5:49am Low 0.2 12:14am High 0.5
6:54pm Low 0.1 12:25pm High 0.5
Wednesday 28th. 4:58am Low 0.2 1:27am High 0.3
8:42pm Low 0.0 12:02pm High 0.7
Sunrise: 6:09am Sunset: 5:40pm CST
The Marine forecast for the next several days is:
FRIDAY
West winds 15 to 20 knots. Seas 3 to 5 feet with a dominant period of 6 seconds. Protected waters choppy. A chance of showers with a slight chance of thunderstorms in the morning, then a slight chance of showers in the afternoon.
FRIDAY NIGHT
Northwest winds 15 to 20 knots. Seas 3 to 5 feet with a dominant period of 7 seconds. Protected waters choppy.
SATURDAY
North winds 15 to 20 knots, becoming northwest 10 to 15 knots in the afternoon. Seas 3 to 5 feet with a dominant period of 6 seconds. Protected waters choppy.
SATURDAY NIGHT
Northwest winds 10 to 15 knots, becoming north after midnight. Seas 2 to 4 feet with a dominant period of 5 seconds. Protected waters a moderate chop.
SUNDAY
Northeast winds 5 to 10 knots, becoming southeast in the afternoon. Seas 2 to 3 feet with a dominant period of 5 seconds. Protected waters a light chop.
SUNDAY NIGHT
South winds 5 to 10 knots. Seas around 2 feet with a dominant period of 5 seconds in the evening, then 1 foot or less. Protected waters a light chop.
(local forecast).
THURSDAY (68/63 rain 07% wind SSE-17)
FRIDAY (70/52 rain 40% wind WNW-15)
SATURDAY (68/47 rain 01% wind WNW-15)
SUNDAY (65/57 rain 02% wind SSE-09)
MONDAY (67/61 rain 04% wind SSE-14)
TUESDAY (70/63 rain 06% wind SSE-17)
WEDNESDAY(71/61 rain 18% wind SSE-15)
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
Tight lines and screaming drags,
Sam
