Smoker King Mackerel Making a Showing in Tampa Bay

King Mackarel

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The smoker King Mackerel have shown up in big numbers in Tampa Bay! YACHTFISH Charters out of Saint Petersburg has been targeting these fish for the past couple weeks gearing up for the big King Mackerel Tournament this weekend! The King of the Beach fishing tournament is one of the largest Kingfish Tournament in the world with over 600 boats usually fishing. The King Mackerel or aka Kingfish is a migratory species of mackerel of the Gulf of Mexico and Western Atlantic Ocean. These fish are commonly found in depths of 40-150 ft of water over areas of natural hard bottom. Kingfish grow about three to four pounds a year so a 40 pound King Mackerel could be around thirteen to fourteen years old. In the Gulf of Mexico, they must be at least 24 inches to the fork of the tail to harvest and have a daily bag limit of three per harvester. Some of their favorite food to eat are: blue runners, sardines, cigar minnows and threadfin hearing. We have been slow trolling live baits around bait schools having some great success the past few weeks. They are known for their long and fast runs screaming off hundreds of yards of line in seconds. A wire leader is preferred with the King Mackerel known as a stinger rig which has a lead j-hook followed by a treble hook. This must be done because the Kingfish commonly bite the tail portion of the baitfish while slow trolling the live baits. The Kingfish have some edible value and are best prepared by grilling, baking and by smoking. YACHTFISH Charters in Saint Petersburg will be competing in this weekends tournament so stand by for the results. Best of luck to all the great teams fishing this weekends event and most importantly everyone is safe out on the water. #YACHTFISH #fishingcharters #saintpetersburg #florida #tampabay #fishflorida #fishing #stpetebeach #monster #kingfish #kingmackerel #tournaments #competition #maythebestwin #money #goodluck

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About the Author...
Matt Douglas

Matt Douglas

Captain Matt Douglas is the founder of YACHTFISH and is a licensed United States Coast Guard 100 ton Master Captain. Captain Matt grew up on the waters of Tampa Bay and lived and worked in Costa Rica for over 11 years. He has extensive experience in Central America, the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas and Florida. Captain Matt is a tournament-winning captain who has an intense passion for boating, fishing and creating life time memories for his Clients. These passions, combined with his experience, were the catalysts for YACHTFISH. Captain Matt is laser-focused on what he enjoys the most, and knows the best, in Tampa Bay and Costa Rica.
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We had such a good time and we caught so many fish!! The captain was super cool and the mate was really helpful. 10/10 day!!
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Our family recently had a fantastic 6-hour inshore charter in St Petersburg with Captain Johnny and First Mate Cooper! They were very professional and knowledgeable of the area, and put on us fish almost the entire time. After a slow start in the mangroves we moved out to a number... read more
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My son and I fished with Captain Scott and 1st Mate Austin on June 21, 2024, out of St. Petersburg. We truly enjoyed our time out fishing with these guys. I can't say enough about their integrity and work ethic. While we didn't catch a ton of fish, we caught... read more
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Had an awesome time! Highly recommend these guys, nick was the best captain we could have! He was on it from beginning to end, really made the Father’s Day special for us. Thank you guys
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My 12 year old son and I booked our charter the night before and we had the BEST day. We were on the fish right away and the boat ride was so fun. Scott and Austin were unbelievable, and got my quiet son chatting and smiling from ear to ear... read more
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Incredible fishing trip - Sam and Maverick got us on fish fast and kept us catching the whole day. They were always trying new things to catch different types of fish and were super helpful and informative. Made our experience great!! Will definitely use Yacht Fish again!
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