Hooking a fish near a bridge frequently leads to a, rod-bending, pulse-elevating experience.

Pretty much any beach between Anclote Key and Marco is likely to have tarpon motoring along it in spring. The fish show up anywhere from 200 feet off the sand to three miles out. Larger concentrations often hang around the big passes. Everybody knows about the phenomenal numbers of fish at Boca Grande, but in the last five years, the mouth of Tampa Bay has become nearly as productive, at least for beach fishermen. Check the north and south bars around Egmont Pass, as well as the beach on the west side of Egmont Key, the deep flats off the pilot docks on the east side of this island, both sides of Southwest Pass, the flats off Passage Key and the big bar at Bean Point as starting areas. Around Boca Grande away from the madness of the boat jams in the pass, you’ll find loads of fish around Johnson Shoal, Captiva Pass and all the beach areas in between, as well as in Pine Island Sound.

The big challenge in beach fishing is to be where the fish are; it’s common to find hundreds of fish in one 5-mile stretch, and then almost none in the next five miles. So tap your network of fishing buddies to find out where the action is before you go—or expect to do a lot of running until you find the hotspot for the day. (You can cheat, if you don’t mind investing $100 to $150 bucks; visit an airport near the coast and pay for a Cessna flight along the beach; in an hour, you can cover miles of water, and you can see the fish down there as if they’re painted on a white canvas. The nice thing about this strategy is you’ll sometimes find a big wad of fish that other anglers have not discovered, which means they’ll be happy—and hungry.)

Once you get out on the water, it can be a bit of a challenge to see the fish, particularly if you don’t have a lot of experience under your belt. Take along binoculars, and use them to look up and down the beach for tarpon clues. (No peeking at the bikinis up on the sand.)

Sometimes, the tarpon make it too easy; they’ll make spectacular busts on big bait, and the splash can be seen a mile away on a calm morning. But much more often, you’ll be looking for a “push” of water as the school moves steadily, or maybe “busy” water, rippling softly, as the school circles. At times, lazy fish relaxing on top will show only the tips of their fins and tails. And sometimes submerged fish will release the telltale silver bubbles.

A tower boat definitely makes it easier to spot the fish, and to keep an eye on them as you prepare to cast. However, like tracer fire, towers work both ways; they also make it easier for the tarpon to see the boat, and they tend to shy away after they’ve been pressured for a few weeks.

Most anglers who succeed consistently have learned the “quiet boat” tactics. Get positioned far in front of the fish and let them come to you, rather than trying to use outboard or even a troller to close the gap to casting range. The fish are far more likely to bite if your boat is sitting still and silent.

Justin Moore, who fishes out of Anna Maria, has developed a tactic that also seems to work well. Rather than motoring toward the fish, he uses electric trollers to pull his baits away from them. He swims threadfins, well back of the boat, and eases along fast enough to stay just ahead of the fish. It’s sort of like trolling, but with a visual lock on the fish you’re after. Sooner or later, one of them can’t stand it and latches on.