The trolling speed should be slow enough to allow the live pogies to swim behind the boat rather than be dragged. Some boats won't throttle down that slowly, but a 5-gallon bucket or two dragged over the side as sea anchors normally drop the speed enough.

One key factor to the kings' arrival is water temperature. It needs to be above 77 degree, which may not occur in early June -- or if a thermocline develops on the beach. If that occurs, Goldstein goes to option two.

"The wrecks and live bottom areas within 9 to 25 miles of the beach will have good water temperatures," the captain said, "and they're often covered up with school kings that run below 20 pounds. In 2006 we were even catching dolphin on them, and if you have enough boat you can get in on some fast action."

The same rigging, bait and tactics work on the wrecks, but Goldstein often prefers to use a Sabiki rig to catch the baitfish that inhabit the wrecks, instead of using the beach-hugging pogies.

Either way, it's hard to go wrong in St. Augustine if kings are on your "to do" list this month.

To book a king mackerel charter with Capt. Dennis Goldstein, give him a call at (904) 810-2455.

NEW SMYRNA TROUT
This is one of the top months for seatrout virtually anywhere in the state, and there are a number of locales with well-deserved reputations for both numbers and gator-sized fish! One of the most overlooked areas, however is the Intracoastal Waterway just south of New Smyrna Beach and to the north of Mosquito Lagoon. In fact, on my last trip a 5- and a 7-pound trout, along with numerous smaller fish, found their way to the boat. Those bigger ones were taken at noon on a bright day. That's some serious trout action, and in this area it's not hard to get into.

Start at the Apollo Beach federal boat ramp and head north into Government Cut. This area is a maze of mangrove islands, back bays, and tidal creeks. But savvy anglers don't wander around much this month.

"The primary trout habitat this month is the Government Cut/ICW area," said Capt. Scott Trip, "and their movements within that narrow area are geared to the tide, light levels, and water clarity. It's a very simple area to fish."

The ideal situation is to have a high tide at dawn. This pushes some trout into the back bays, but the larger fish stay in the Cut. They just move right up to the edge of the shoreline mangroves to feed. This is a prime time for a noisy topwater plug, and don't be surprised if it's also assaulted by snook or tarpon. The east side of the Cut stays shaded longer and is often a better bet.

The rising tide tends to scatter fish, but the situation changes when the water falls.

"Once that water starts to drop out of the back bays," Tripp said, "the fish start to stack up down current of the creek mouths and cuts. That's where the food is coming from and they don't have to work very hard for it. If the light levels are low the trout may be up closer to the shoreline in 2 to 4 feet of water, but during the brighter periods a very key area is the first drop from the shoreline flat to the main channel, which is normally in 5 to 8 feet of water."