Hello fellow anglers March 2024 . I was just sitting here and trying to figure out how many years I have been contributing to this magazine. I started with the original owner  Rodney Smith from Satellite Beach Florida. I am not sure but I think it was close to 2010ish , I will have to ask Robert the manager at Fishin Franks he is the one that got me started writing this article. Most of the time it is fun to share with yawl but I remember when there was red tide it was not so fun. But we don't have that now it has been cool for some time and personally I am not tired of it yet. This year I have had some of the best sheepshead catches that I have ever had. Most of the keepers we have harvested have been in the 15" range. We have been working the boat docks close to the gulf and the near shore reefs out to about 35-40 feet of water. We have been using a knocker rig with live shrimp, the shrimp I use are about 3" seem to work the best. Also in these depths there have been some mangrove snapper too. Near the end of the month the water may start warming up and the reds and trout will fire up. Also this month the snapper start to pile up in the passes along the edges where there are those little out cropping's of rock ledges. Yes this time of year is a transition time from cool water to summer time water temperatures. So if you run offshore start looking for the large schools of bait and you may find blackfin tuna or a king mackerel flying along the edges of these bait balls. Also some of the reefs that are in 100' of water may be holding yellow tails. If you find a structure that holds them , anchor up from the structure and start chumming to pull to your boat away from the wreck. This helps with the goliath problem. With that said you may still have to deal with cudas and sharks. If you are able to get them chummed away all you need is a hoo with bait and let it float down with the chum, watching your line come off the spool when it speeds up flip the bail and hold on till the hook is set and start reeling to bring the fish in before the tax man in the grey suit comes to collect. And he will! So, if you don't have a boat, you can call on Capt. Bart Marx 941-979-6517 or e-mail captbart@alphaomegacharters.com and we can schedule your trip to try some of this fun and catch something to eat too. And for you guys that have moved to S.W. Florida with your boat and need help I can. I do training sessions on your boat to show you how and where you can use your boat and gear too. So, give me a call to shorten your learning curve. And always remember singing drags and tight lines make me smile. <*(((((>{