


Opportunities exist to sight fish the areas directly across near Perico Bay, hook a little south into Palma Sola Bay, or head northeast towards the Manatee River near Bradenton. This stretch of flats is also framed by a deep channel at each (north and south) end that offers a direct feed to Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.īeyond Anna Maria Sound, literally just a few minutes by boat is yet another maze of flats, channels, and mangroves. Among all of that are channels, pockets, and finally Anna Maria Sound. Directly opposite of Holmes Beach, there are expansive grass flats that intermingle with mangroves. The flats located on the east side directly mate up to the island. You have beach and surf on one side, channels at either end, two bridge structures crossing the estuary, and shallow water flats that mate up to stellar backcountry fishing. It may be considered small in contrast to Tampa Bay, but it packs in quite the concentration of fishing opportunities. Anna Maria Island, located at the Southwest corner of Tampa Bay, is one of the many great fisheries in the area.
