PRIOR Fishing Reports from Club Members and Area Guides

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Members Greg Huffman and Bill Hopper enjoyed a great tuna/dophin trip on the East coast on Saturday, May 5th, aboard Deland-based member Dana Fogle's boat the Legal Eagle. Lots of Tuna up to 69 pounds were caught 70-90 miles off of Daytona, but Greg enjoyed a nice battle with a close to 20 pound dophin on an 8-wt fly rod. Sorry guys, but this wasn't a catch and release trip.

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 4/22 through 5/4/2007
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, reds, snook, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, tripletail and barramundi during the past couple of weeks. That’s right, barramundi! We also jumped the first tarpon of the season with flies and a live crab. The best action continued to be on deep grass flats of Terra Ceia Bay, Sarasota Bay and Gasparilla Sound.

Sarasota Herald-Tribune outdoors editor, Steve Gibson, and I traveled to central Florida, near St. Cloud, to fly fish for barramundi with Osceola Outback Adventures on Monday, April 23rd. Byron Hennecy, along with his partner, Tony Burraston of Australia, operate Eco Barramundi, which raises and sells barramundi as a seafood product under licensing from the Florida Dept. of Agriculture. They also sell the opportunity to fish for the hard fighting fish. Steve and I were his guests for a morning of fishing that was a great experience. For 4-hours we caught and released barramundi in the 6 to 8-pound class with 8-weight fly tackle and floating lines. The barramundi ate a variety of flies including DT specials, Myakka Minnows, Estaz Marabou and MirrOlure flies. The deep bodied fish, cousins of our snook, slugged it out and jumped like tarpon. We caught and released 40 or 50 fish in 4-hours.

Mike Carducci, from NY, fished Terra Ceia Bay with me the next day. Mike caught and released a pair of reds and several trout with CAL jigs and shad tails. On Wednesday, I was the guest of my friend, Capt. Rick DePaiva, to do some scouting in Pine Island Sound. We checked a couple of spots for tarpon and saw one roll, but opted to hunt for reds and snook instead. Rick connected with a nice red that was sight-fished and we cast to some monster snook. A nice day!

Fly anglers, Kent Beveridge and Rob Oldham, from Vancouver, British Columbia, fished Gasparilla Sound with me on Thursday. Our best action was on deep grass flats with trout, ladyfish, Spanish mackerel and bluefish. My friend, Mark Nichols, of DOA Fishing Lures fished with me on Friday and Saturday for the 12th annual Sarasota CCA Photo All-Release Challenge. We fished the Terra Ceia area and caught and released snook and trout with night glow and holographic DOA shrimp. We had a good time fishing the event, which raises money for conservation in a low key, fun filled catch, photo and release format. The highlight of our fishing was when Mark bailed out of the boat to try and land a monster snook (and save his DOA shrimp) which had weaved it’s way around a series of pilings. Since anglers in the tournament are limited to fishing with lures provided to them by donors, it was as important to save the lure as land the fish. The snook won!

Bernie Blanche, from TN and his dad, Bernie from PA, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Monday. We spent a couple of hours hunting tarpon off Sarasota without seeing any. Bernie connected with a false albacore with a Clouser fly, but there wasn’t anything else going on. We came back into Sarasota Bay where they had good catch and release action with ladyfish, Spanish mackerel and bluefish on flies and jigs.

PHOTO: Fly angler, John Colwell from Seatle, WA, caught a pair of nice tripletail on a pink Clouser fly while fishing Sarasota Bay with Capt. Rick Grassett.

Fly angler, John Colwell from Seattle, WA, fished the same area with me the next day. The action picked up as John caught and released large ladyfish, Spanish mackerel, bluefish and a pair of 8-pound tripletail with Clouser flies.

Long time friends and customers, Norm and Francie Boardman from Sarasota, tarpon fished with me on Thursday in the Boca Grande area. We were pleasantly surprised to find a school of about 100 tarpon just leaving Gasparilla Pass as we headed out the pass. We stayed with the school for several hours, jumping one and hooking another on Enrico Puglisi flies (Black Mullet and Mullet). After a while the school of fish quit showing and stayed deep. We tossed a live crab at them, which was immediately eaten, putting another fish in the air. The first tarpon of the season!

I look for tarpon action to pick up next week as we get further away from Tuesday’s full moon. In addition, reds and catch and release snook should be a good option in skinny water. However, you will probably have faster action on deep grass flats in bays with trout, Spanish mackerel, bluefish or tripletail.

Tight Lines, Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

May 1 - First Tarpon of the year
We went 2 for 2 today on DOA Bait Busters. First fish was 70lb and the second around 130!!! Here are some great photos. The clients were Fred and Cathy Allen.
Thanks Capt Mark Phelps

April 29 by Ron Whiteley
Launched at Placida at 7:00 a.m. with Dick Tremblay and John Crowe from the CT/RI Coastal Fly Fishers. Got the last parking place in the lot!

Wind NW @10-15 slowing down and shifting to a sea breeze around 2:30. Temp 65 going to 87.

Looked in all the usual spots for tarpon, but couldn't find any rolling. Stopped in Bull Bay and got some large trout and ladyfish with some small jacks mixed in. Tried a few other spots with mixed results, few fish here and there.

Gin & tonic and Oysters Rockerfeller at the Fishery and back out after lunch. Wind died down and we headed over to Turtle Bay to look for tarpon. Found none, but did find a lot more trout and ladyfish with some lizardfish mixed in.

Home by 3:00, gin & tonic and a good cigar by the pool with grilled steaks for dinner.
Fine day on the water-------------><> Ron Whiteley

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report 4/8 through 4/21/2007
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, snook and redfish during the past couple of weeks with flies and jigs. Action slowed in Sarasota Bay following a couple of later season fronts. Although we continued to catch scattered Spanish mackerel, bluefish and trout, the frenzy that was going on before the fronts ended.

Fly anglers caught and released trout and ladyfish with Ultra Hair Clouser flies on a couple of trips in Sarasota Bay during the week of April 9th. Perry Greene and his son, Dirk, both from MI, had a good trip with lots of trout and ladyfish caught and released with flies and CAL jigs with shad tails on Tuesday, April 10th. Other family members fished Capt. Kelly Stilwell and had similar action.

Firman Schlabach and Junior Miller, both from Sarasota, FL, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Thursday, April 12th. The best action was at Bishop’s Point where they caught Spanish mackerel, bluefish and trout on CAL jigs with shad tails. Friday’s trip in Charlotte Harbor with Bill Beauchamp and Phil Bellmore, both from Bradenton, FL, produced trout and ladyfish on CAL jigs with shad tails and flies.

Rusty Chinnis and I instructed a group of fly anglers on Saturday at a CB’s Saltwater Outfitters Orvis-Endorsed Fly Fishing School. It’s good to see growing interest in fly fishing. We had students from 14-years old to senior citizens in our class, which demonstrates that this sport is for all ages.

PHOTO: Carl Borromeo, from MA, caught and released this Terra Ceia Bay snook on a pink Clouser fly while fishing with Capt. Rick Grassett.

Fly anglers fished with me every day last week. Carl Borromeo, from MA, fished the Terra Ceia area with me on Tuesday and Dick Miekka, from St. Petersburg, FL and Walt Durkin, from Tampa, FL fished the same area with me on Wednesday. They caught and released several snook and trout with a variety of flies. Sarasota winter resident, Chris Patrick and his guests from the UK, Chris and Gelly Sandford, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Thursday. They caught ladyfish on flies and jigs from the Radio Tower flat to Roberts Bay. Chris Sandford is a well known outdoor writer and broadcaster in the UK.

PHOTO: Jeff Higgins, from the Chicago area, caught this Spanish mackerel on a CAL jig with a shad tail while fishing Gasparilla Sound with Capt. Rick Grassett.

Greg Swanson, from WI and his friend Greg Higgins, from the Chicago area, fished Charlotte Harbor with me on Friday. They caught and released a variety of fish, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, trout and a redfish with flies and CAL jigs with shad tails.

Next week should be good for reds, snook and trout on the flats of Gasparilla Sound or the Terra Ceia area. We should also get some more action with Spanish and king mackerel once the gulf settles down some. Tarpon were showing up in lots of places in Charlotte Harbor and south prior to the fronts we’ve had and they should continue to become more plentiful. If you’re looking for a fun day of fishing, the Sarasota CCA Photo All-Release Challenge will be held on Saturday, April 28th out of the Sarasota Cay Club in Sarasota. Anglers will target snook, reds and trout in a catch, photo and release format with identical boxes of lures or flies provided to anglers. Entry forms are available at area fishing tackle and fly shops or on line at www.mangrovecoastflyfishers.com on the tournaments page.

Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
(941) 923-7799 - E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

Peacock Bass Fishing - Miam - By Preston Jones
Want a very interesting and out of the ordinary trip? Try Peacock Bass fishing with Capt. Alan Zaremba in Miami! In the company of a young friend (Ryan Humphries), I just returned from a memorable day on the canals of west Miami in search of what are certainly among the most beautiful fish that swim. Peacocks are a brightly colored (blues, greens, yellows, oranges, browns, etc. all with iridescent characteristics) fish and all are marked differently. We were there the day after a cold front and the fish were reluctant but not impossible. Let me relate the tale of one catch that will illustrate the fishing/catching conditions.

Very near the end of day we spotted two Peacocks tucked back in a hole very close to a bank lined with rocks. I was up and took about 25 casts to entice the smaller of the two fish to strike. She would charge the fly but took her time deciding to bite it. I landed her and my young friend (Ryan) was up. The wily old male was very wary. Ryan would cast, the fish would charge the fly to remove it from the area, but would not strike. According to our guide the fish was blowing water at the fly to frighten it out of the area. However,

Ryan was tenacious and equal to the task. After at least 100 casts and four flies (many being perfect casts bounced off the rocks), the fish got so exasperated he struck; the fight was on but as had been generally true all day, Ryan prevailed: A gorgeous six-pounder in the boat. With this scenario over-and-over all day we ended with a hard fought but respectable 20 Peacocks. Not a banner day in terms of numbers but very satisfying: great sight fishing and a lot of work! Captain Z was outstanding and in fact we fished for a hour+ overtime because Ryan was working on his fish.

With all of this said, I would be remiss in not advising that we were fishing canals in the western section in the City of Miami. Houses, roads, Miami airport, businesses, and who knows what else. lined each canal. Barking dogs were common and a variety of city smells wafted through the air (some pleasant, some less so). There was an abundance of trash in the water. I stopped the picked up a few spare parts for my Cherokee from a submerged model - NOT. All casts were short (less than 35’) and required pinpoint accuracy. Fortunately the fish were committed to their enclave, so numerous errant casts were no problem – “do it over and over until you get it right.”

So, if you are looking for a serene, peaceful atmosphere with tweeting birdies, humming bees, and swaying palms: “this ain’t it!!!” But if you want to sight cast to beautiful fish with a very competent, helpful and personally rich guide then fishing the canals of west Miami is one great place to do it and is considerably closer and less expensive than Brazil.

In my opinion this would not be a satisfactory venue for a general club outing but if there is sufficient interest I will be happy to put together small groups. If you are considering a guided trip, know that it will not be until the fall. Captain Z is completely booked through June. However, if you want to go in private boats, kayaks, etc., this is doable in a shorter time frame. I would never go to this area alone and I suggest that would be good advice for you to follow. If you go private, a GPS is a must; all canals begin to look the same after a while. Let me know if you want to be included on a Peacock Bass fishing trip and when!!!!! Preston Jones

Boca Grande, Fl. - 10 April 2007 - Capt. Pete Greenan
Fishing this week started great and deteriorated when the cold front hit us on Saturday. However, much needed rain came with the front and the fishing is picking up. Most importantly, tarpon are showing up in Pine Island Sound and Charlotte Harbor. Many of these fish have returned from wintering over in the deep creeks and rivers and some are early migrating fish.

John Biddinger and son-in-law Jim from Sarasota caught redfish and seatrout on spoons and jigs in Bull Bay and Gasparilla Sound on Monday. Jess Jones and Steve Myers of Sarasota took redfish and seatrout on artificial and fly on Tuesday near the same places.
Chris Anderson from Colorado took an on-water fly fishing class and landed nearly forty fish including bluefish, pompano, seatrout, ladyfish and jacks. Not bad for his first time fly fishing the salt.

Dick Hassel and his fishing partner Dick ( also), beat the water to a froth last week with some modicum of success. They each landed several seatrout and lady fish in Gasparilla Sound. A windy, high pressure day greeted them with tough conditions.
On Wednesday, two long time Boca Grande visitors fished the rising tide around Bull & Turtle bays with spinning tackle. They caught dozens of seatrout and ladyfish, but had two very good shots at large tarpon laid up in shallow water near Cape Haze. As soon as the weather settles down, the tarpon will be active again. I'll be fishing for them Thursday and Friday, so watch for the next report.

I still have days available for early season tarpon fishing in Boca Grande and Pine Island Sound. So make your reservations early and get a great shot at the Silver King.
Fishing Hard, Pete
Peter T. Greenan - Pres. Fl. Council FFF
captpete@floridaflyfishing.com
http://www.floridaflyfishing.com/
Tel: 941.923.6095 - Cell: 941.232.2960

Fishing Report 04/08/2007 - Capt. Terry Frankford
Anglers aboard the Reeling & Chillin have been doing fantastic to fair depending on the fronts moving in during the last couple of weeks. Some days when the fronts came and the fishing slowed we had to work for our catch, however we still managed to land some nice fish including snook, redfish, trout, pompano, and sheepshead inshore. When the weather cooperated the near shore reefs were targeted for King Mackerel, Spanish Mackerel, and Cobia. Angler's caught plenty of Mackerel both Kings and Spanish, a Cobia at thirty-six inches was also caught at the Silvertooth reef just off Lido Key. Here are a few fish stories from the Reelin & Chillin during the last couple of weeks. Peter and Nicole Brozio enjoyed a little of both nearshore and inshore fishing. The mackerel didn't turn on for them, however Nicole picked up two nice sheepshead on a nearshore reef. We then moved to structure in the New Pass area and on the first cast both angler's hooked up - Peter with a three pound bluefish and Nicole with a nice sheepshead. Then both angler's ended up catching several more sheepshead to end the day with great light tackle action.

Ken, Eric, Jacob Paulsen and Jerry Baker tackled some nice trout during an inshore trip bringing several in the slot to the boat. Pompano also showed up for some great action on ten pound test and providing some great eats for dinner. Bill Meisle with sons Liam, Adam, and Cole enjoyed some great King Mackerel action fishing the M1 reef out of New Pass. All caught King Mackerel from five pounds and up with Cole catching one just over ten pounds. Cole at nine years old had a tussle with his ten plus pound king but he managed to get it on board for a nice photo. Tom Longwell with son Mark, and Grandson's Alex and Jake had a slow day that ended with a bang. We were fishing the day after a front moved in and things started out slow. Alex managed a sheepshead to around four pounds and Jake picked up a trout just at fifteen inches that was to close to keep. We tried several spots with no luck just pin fish dinning on our hand-picked shrimp. At the end of the trip dad told the boys "one more cast guys then we need to wrap it up" both Alex and Jake hooked up with redfish and both fish were in the slot. A great ending to a slow day for the Longwell crew.

When targeting the Kingfish I used a Rapala CD-11 Mag lure tied to a twelve inch steel leader with a swivel, then a three foot piece of fifty pound mono leader went to the thirty pound test line to the reel. A Shimano Spheros 8000FA reel on a St. Croix eight foot tidemaster rod, extra heavy-extra fast was used to handle these smokers. Live bait used on the inshore trips was hand-picked shrimp, I used a number four or two MUTU Owner Circle hook for most species - free lining a handpicked shrimp or sometimes I would use a small split shot to keep the bait in the target area. A twenty-pound test fluorocarbon leader was tied to my ten pound test mono with a surgeons knot. An Okuma V-30 spinning reel mounted on a St. Croix Tide-master fast action rod made for great light tackle action.

Tight Lines & Good Times, Capt. Terry Frankford
Reelin & Chillin Charters Inc. - 941-228-7802
www.charterfishingsarasota.com
terry.frankford@verizon.net

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 3/26 through 4/7/2007
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action the past couple of weeks with Spanish mackerel, bluefish, trout, pompano and reds. The best action was on the deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay and the inshore artificial reefs off Lido Key.

PHOTO: Fly angler, Nick Reding from Longboat Key, caught and released this red on a pink Clouser fly while wading a Sarasota Bay sand bar with Capt. Rick Grassett.

We caught Spanish mackerel, bluefish, pompano, trout and ladyfish on CAL jigs with shad tails and flies on several trips during the week of 3/27. The best trip of the week was on Wednesday, 3/28 with Sarasota winter residents, Harry Beaty and Tom Schalk. They caught more than 40 fish including Spanish mackerel, bluefish, pompano and trout on CAL jigs with shad and grub tails at the Middleground flat, Stephens Point and near Buttonwood Harbor. They caught and released about 10 trout and ½ of them were between 18” and 20”

Fly anglers, Dave Macomber from MN, and his brother, Scott Macomber from MA, fished with me on Monday evening. They had good action with ladyfish and a pompano before dark and a couple of snook after dark. Mark Bonnett from Portland, OR and Dick Badman, from PA, caught and released ladyfish, trout, Spanish mackerel and bluefish on Clouser flies in Sarasota Bay with me on Thursday. Stephen Lewis and his young son Danny, both from NYC, and a guest fished with me that Friday. They had fast action with trout and ladyfish on flies and jigs.

Mike Perez, from Richmond, IN, his daughter Kelsey and a friend fished Sarasota Bay with me on Sunday, April 1st. They had steady action with ladyfish, trout, bluefish and a Spanish mackerel on flies and jigs. Fly angler, Bruce Maguire from MI, fished a couple of days with me during the week of April 1st. Bruce is a serious fly angler who enjoys sight-fishing whenever possible, so that was our focus. Bruce caught and released a red with a chartreuse Clouser in the Terra Ceia area on Monday. A front pushed through on Thursday evening and forced us to cut our full day trip on Friday to a ½ day.

John Wolfstaetter, from NYC, fished the same area with me on Tuesday. He had a couple of takes by reds on his Clouser flies, but neither fish stayed hooked. Fly angler Nick Reding and I waded and fly fished along the east side of Sarasota Bay on Wednesday. We had good action in the morning, catching and releasing 4 reds and a pompano on chartreuse and pink Clousers.

PHOTO: Fly angler Marc Chiapperino, from Marlboro, NJ, caught and released this nice king on an olive and white bunker fly pattern fished on an Orvis 300 grain Depth Charge fly line while fishing an artificial reef off Lido key with Capt. Rick Grassett.

The best trip of the week was with fly angler Marc Chiaperrino and his 12-year old son Marc, both from Marlboro, NJ on Thursday. I heard some “dock talk” about plentiful Spanish and king mackerel at the Lido Reef, 3 miles off of Lido Key. We headed out to check it out and found fast action. Marc and his son, Marc, caught more than 25 Spanish mackerel to 24” and an estimated 15-pound king mackerel on flies and jigs. The king ate a Puglisi style bunker fly fished on a 300 grain Orvis Depth charge fly line. Another king of about 30-pounds chased the fly to the boat, but saw the boat just before it ate the fly. We came back in to Sarasota Bay in the afternoon where they caught more Spanish mackerel, bluefish, ladyfish and trout on jigs and flies.

Following this weekend’s front, next week should be good for reds, snook and trout on the flats or Spanish and king mackerel in the coastal gulf. I will be instructing a fly fishing school next weekend, April 14, at CB’s Saltwater Outfitters, 1249 Stickney Point Rd. on Siesta Key in Sarasota. Cost is $150 per person and includes the user of premium Orvis fly tackle, a textbook and an instructional video. Contact CB’s Saltwater Outfitters at (941) 340-4400 to sign up.

Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net or www.snookfin-addict.com

4/4 FISHING REPORT by Ron Whiteley
Launched at Placida at 7:00 a.m. with Capt. Al White (Boca on the Fly) in my boat. Incoming tide all morning, azure blue, clear water from the Gulf. Clear skies, light & variable wind, temp 65 going to 85.

Headed out Gasparilla Inlet in to the Gulf. Found lots of birds spread out about a mile off shore with some fish breaking on a lot of bait. Caught quite a few Spanish mackerel and blue runners.

Went to the back side of Boca Grande near Grouper Hole and got into some nice snook under the mangroves.

Headed over to Sand Fly Key and found the first tarpon of the season rolling. Could not entice a strike. Had a 6 foot lemon shark come up to the boat.

Bull bay was next. Found more tarpon and had one roll on and miss the fly. Found a large school of 6 -10 lb. jack crevalle marauding bait on the flats and had some fun with them for a while.

Over to Turtle Bay next. Found more tarpon, no takers. Had a 8 foot shark buzz by the boat. Caught some ladyfish, trout and mackerel on tarpon flies. Watched a large shark chase an 80 lb tarpon across the flats, Quite a show!!

Fishery for lunch, gin & tonic and grouper sandwich.

Back to back side of Boca Grande for some more snook More snook at Bird Key as the tide turned to go out.

Great day on the water! Home at 4:00. Pool temp is 75, still a bit brisk. Gin & tonic and a good cigar.

-----------><> Ron Whiteley

Capt. Pete Greenan's Report - Boca Grande, Fl. - March 25, 2007
I've had a tough few days catching fish with a fly. The water is so clear and the days so bright that every fish seems to spook as soon as the rod moves. The solution is longer casts, more accurate casts, smaller flies, etc., but the reality is the fishing is tough. The fact that there are a lot of fish to cast to is important. Everyday we see dozens of snook and redfish. Big ones too. We see a lot of them in shallow, clear water where fly fishing is the most fun. So... I'll try a new approach tomorrow.

We did meet with some success on spinning tackle this week. Wendal and Mary Hough, from the Meadows in Sarasota, made away with a limit of redfish on Monday. Mary did catch the biggest one too. I'll enclose a photo.

You may be hearing about the tarpon by now. There are some 'poons showing up. These are mostly resident fish that have been hiding in the creeks and deep holes all winter. The warmer water is drawing them out to the deep flats little by little. It's not the time to mount a tarpon campaign, but you should carry a 10 wt. or 12 wt. from now on. Stick to smaller patterns and fish them slowly.

A slight change in the weather pattern is needed to help us catch more redfish adn snook. A couple of really warm nights and some over cast days or a little rain would help. The wind from the southeast would also help. Everywhere you search you'll generally find redfish and many of those places will hold snook also. Try wading your favorite areas. Your approach may spook less fish.

Look for super good fishing from the 15th of April to the end of the month at least. For more info or reservations email captpete@floridaflyfishing.com or call 941 232 2960.

Fish Hard,
Pete
Peter T. Greenan - Pres. Fl. Council FFF
captpete@floridaflyfishing.com
2416 Parson Ln. - Sarasota, Fl. 34239
http://www.floridaflyfishing.com/
Tel: 941.923.6095 - Cell: 941.232.2960


Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 3/12 through 3/25/2007
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action with Spanish mackerel and bluefish during the past couple of weeks. In addition, we scored with snook, reds and trout in Charlotte Harbor, Sarasota and Terra Ceia Bays. The fastest action was with Spanish mackerel and bluefish in Sarasota Bay. Fishing is also improving in Sarasota for trout and reds.

PHOTO: Justin Suarez, from NJ, caught this Spanish mackerel on a jig while fishing New Pass in Sarasota with capt. Rick Grassett.

Several trips in Sarasota Bay during the week of 3/12 had fast action with Spanish mackerel and bluefish. Frank Watson, from Youngstown, OH, got in on the action in New Pass on Monday. Longtime friends and customers, Norm and Francie Boardman caught them on flies and jigs the next day. Justin Suarez, from NJ, and his cousin, Jason Puckett from Sarasota, kept the streak going on Wednesday. In addition, we caught and released Spanish mackerel, bluefish, and ladyfish at the Middleground flat and trout at Stephens Point.

Jason and Justin also fished Charlotte Harbor with me on Friday where they had good action with trout to 18” and a red caught with CAL jigs and a variety of shad tails. Dennis Stehlik, from Wheaton, IL, and Ron Mosetich, from Tiverton, RI, fished the same area with me on Thursday with similar results.

I participated in the Florida Sportsman Fishing show in Sarasota last weekend as a seminar speaker and was back on the water again on Monday morning. Rick Peregord, from Southgate, MI, fished 3 days with me last week. We fished Terra Ceia Bay on Monday where Rick had a slam consisting of 3 snook, a red and several trout caught and released with CAL jigs and shad tails. We fished Sarasota Bay on Tuesday and the action was fast with Spanish mackerel and blues in New Pass and one of the artificial reefs off Lido Key. Rick probably caught more than 25 mackerel and blues before we shifted gears to fishing for reds in skinny water. He caught and released a pair of reds to 24” on CAL jigs with shad tails along the east side of Sarasota Bay.

Thursday’s trip with Rick resulted in lots of bluefish, a couple of Spanish mackerel, several trout and a red. We didn’t catch the red fair though. Rick spotted a float moving ahead of the boat as I poled along a sand bar and snagged it with an accurate cast. It had a feisty red attached, which we unhooked from its rig and released. I’m sure the red was glad to be rid of the hook and float that it was towing around!

Stuart Reeve and his son Teddy, from Nashville, TN, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Wednesday. Teddy is a devoted flyrodder and his Dad used spinning tackle. They caught and released ladyfish, trout, bluefish and Spanish mackerel on jigs and flies. Fly angler Kirk Norris, from Des Moines, IA fished Gasparilla Sound and the backcountry of Bull and Turtle Bays on Friday. He caught and released trout and ladyfish with Clouser flies. He had shots at numerous reds and snook, but they wanted nothing to do with us. I think the persistent high pressure that’s affected us all week was the biggest factor.

I instructed several students on Saturday at a CB’s Saltwater Outfitters Orvis-Endorsed fly fishing school. There is still space in the next school on April 14th. You can contact CB’s Saltwater Outfitters at (941) 349-4400 to sign up. Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers had their annual banquet last night with Keys fly tier and artist Tim Borski as the speaker. He gave a great fly tying presentation, which had lots of good stuff that will work for our reds and tarpon.

Fishing should be favorable next week for Spanish mackerel and blues in and around the passes in Sarasota and trout, reds and snook on the flats. Tides will improve toward the end of the week. Also, look for cobia and little tunny along the beaches.

Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
(941) 923-7799 - Email snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

Steve Gibson - March 11, 2007
There’s nothing like the elixir of the Everglades. Paul Drewry, a Ludington, Mich. Veterinarian, joined us for a two-day trip to The ‘Glades. Our plan was to target juvenile tarpon in some remote areas.

Unfortunately, a late cold front sent the baby tarpon scurrying for warmer water. So, we loaded the kayaks on top of the truck and headed for another spot. We launched at a creek and found the snook hungry. Paul used a 6-weight fly rod, sinktip line and a D.T. Special on a No. 4 hook to catch and release seven snook.

The fish were typically small. Our largest fish was about 22 inches. The fish were attacking small minnow along the mangroves. On a scouting trip the day prior, I saw a couple of snook that were 30 inches or more.

In all, we totaled 17 snook. I caught a number of fish on MirrOlure’s new MirrOdine, a scaled sardine imitation that has been pretty hot.

The next day, we switched to freshwater exotics on light fly rods. We launched at a remote spot and immediately got into the action. We were targetting oscars and Mayan cichlids, but also caught bass, bluegill and stumpknocker.

PHOTO: Paul Drewry of Ludington, Mich., shows off a monster oscar taken on 4-weight and popping bug in The Everglades.

Oscars in the remote portion of The ‘Glades are larger than average. We caught 20 of them, with most being around 2 pounds or slightly more. If you’ve never caught an oscar, you might want to give them a try. They’re extremely strong and quite willing to rise to a well-place popping bug. We used No. 10 chartreuse bluegill poppers. Our fly rods were 4 and 5 weight. Floating lines are perfect. Our leaders were 5X.

Key to successful oscar fishing is figuring out the pattern. In this case, the fish were congregated around fallen trees and root systems. We eliminated most stretches of shoreline and concentrated around heavy structure. When you hit an oscar oasis, it wasn’t tough to figure out. When your popping bug hit the water, you’d see the wakes of the beefy panfish heading toward the bug like a torpedo. You had to resist the urge to set the hook until the proper time.

The battle is unlike most freshwater fish. Oscars are super strong and will head for the structure when hooked. Breakoffs can be frustrating. We often have to beef up our leaders in order to stop the fish.

Believe it or not, but Mayan cichlids might be even stronger than the oscars. However, we caught only two Mayans on the outing.

We did see a number of large snook. Our light fly rods wouldn’t have been of much use.
Everglades fishing should remain hot for at least another six weeks. After that it will be too hot, humid and buggy.

Tarpon should show up any day. On one trip last year, we jumped 10 tarpon and landed five. We also caught and released four snook.

Prior to our ‘Glades trip, we fished with Rod Corson of Fort Wayne, Ind. He was on vacation with his wife, daughter and mother-in-law and wanted to do some fly fishing.
The wind was blowing 17 to 20 mph out of the south. Such conditions are not conducive to fly fishing. We gave Corson his options: Cancel the outing, spin fish, or try to get out of the wind and fly fish. He opted to fly fish.

We launched at Blackburn Point and got a little relief. We paddled north to channel the runs from the Intracoastal Waterway to the west side of the bay. Using a 6-weight fly rod, sinktip line and chartreuse-and-white Clouser Deep Minnow,

Corson landed a number of feisty, high-leaping ladyfish. He hooked another fish that took him into his backing. I figured it was just a larger ladyfish or foul-hooked lady. I was wrong. Turned out to be a hefty pompano.


PHOTO: Rod Corson of Fort Wayne, Ind., caught this hefty pompano on a Clouser Deep Minnow in Little Sarasota Bay.

Later, Corson picked up a spinning rod and caught spotted seatrout to 22 inches on Cotee Jigs with root beer grubs. I nailed a 24-inch trout.

In all, he totaled 15 ladyfish, four seatrout and a hefty pompano. Not bad considering the wind.

We strongly suggest an all-day Everglades trips this time of year. Cost is $300 and includes a full day of fishing, lunch, drinks and transportation. Fishing can be hot and the scenery is gorgeous.

Steve Gibson
Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing
www.kakayfishingsarasota.com
(941) 284-3406

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 2/19 through 3/11/2007
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, have had good action during the past several weeks with trout. We also caught reds, snook, bluefish, pompano and Spanish mackerel on CAL jigs with a variety of plastic tails and flies. The best action has been with trout in Gasparilla Sound and the backcountry of Bull and Turtle Bays.

Keith McClintock, from Lake Forest, IL, fished a couple of days with me the week of 2/18. Tom Frahm, from MN, joined him on one of the trips and Bill Garrett, from Naples, FL fished with us the other day. They had fast action with trout to more than 20” and several reds on CAL jigs with shad and curly tails. Dick Reece, from Dayton, OH, and his grandson, Daniel Rheinhart, from MA, also fished with me that week. They caught more than 40 trout to 18” and a pair of reds, also with CAL jigs.

Fly angler John Cronley, from Long Island, NY and his daughters Jenny and Kelly, fished Little Sarasota Bay with me that week and had fast catch and release action with large ladyfish and trout on CAL jigs and Clouser flies.

Fly angler Marshall Dinerman and his son, Mike, both from Atlanta, GA, fished the same area with me the week of 2/25. They caught and released ladyfish, trout and a pompano on CAL jigs with a variety of plastic tails and Clouser flies. Bill Moore, from the Chicago area, fished Terra Ceia Bay with me the same week and had fast action with trout to 20”, ladyfish, bluefish and a snook. Fly angler Herb Ramerman, from Cleveland, OH, also fished that area with me. The trout action slowed but he made up for it with lots large ladyfish caught and released with Clouser flies fished on a sink-tip fly line.

Fly anglers Nick Reding and Jim Ewoldt, both from St. Louis, MO, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Monday of the week of 3/4. We were on a redfish mission and we found some along the east side of Sarasota Bay. We waded after we’d located some reds and Nick connected with one on a Clouser fly in a pothole. Bernard Caussignac traveled all the way from Paris, France to visit friends in Sarasota and try his hand at saltwater fly fishing. We fished Gasparilla Sound where he did very well with trout to 22” on an Estaz Marabou fly.

Sarasota winter residents, Harry Beaty and Tom Schalk, fished the same area with me later that week and caught more than 40 trout to over 20” on CAL jigs with shad tails.

My brother, Kirk Grassett from Middletown, DE, visited for a few days at the end of the week. We fished Charlotte Harbor a couple of days and Terra Ceia Bay another day. We had great action with large trout to 21” caught with crab Clouser flies (olive, tan and white with gold flash). The fly, which has the colors of a blue crab, was popularized in the Chesapeake Bay for striped bass. We also caught and released bluefish, Spanish mackerel, pompano, ladyfish and a red. The best action was in Gasparilla Sound and the backcountry of Bull and Turtle Bays, but Terra Ceia Bay also fished well for trout.

Next week should be favorable for trout on the flats of Gasparilla Sound and Terra Ceia Bay as we continue in a mild weather pattern. Reds have been tough with jigs and flies, although we’re catching a few. In addition, Spanish mackerel, cobia and little tunny may also show up in force at any time.

In case you’re wondering why you haven’t seen my fishing report lately, I’ve had some computer problems but I’m getting back on track now. I’ll be speaking at noon next Saturday and Sunday, March 17 and 18, at the Florida Sportsman show in Sarasota at the Sarasota Convention Center (old Sam’s club). I’ll be speaking on tarpon fishing and what’s currently happening with our flats fishing. I will also be instructing an Orvis-Endorsed fly fishing school at CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on March 24th. You can contact me at snookfin@aol.com for more info on either event. Hope to see you there.

Sincerely,
Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and http://www.snookfin-addict.com/

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 2/9 through 2/17/2007
Anglers fishing with me during the past week had good action with little tunny and trout. We also caught and released several reds in Charlotte Harbor and scattered bluefish and trout in Sarasota Bay. The best action was with little tunny out of Venice and trout in Charlotte Harbor.

PHOTO: Eric Dinnerman, from Atlanta, GA, caught and released this little tunny on a CAL jig with a shad tail while fishing the coastal gulf out of Venice, FL with Capt. Rick Grassett.

Fly angler Marshall Dinnerman, his son Eric Dinnerman and son-in-law, Alex Medeiros, all from the Atlanta, GA area fished the coastal gulf out of Venice, FL and Little Sarasota Bay with me on Feb. 9th. After receiving a report of little tunny in the coastal gulf, we decided to check it out on Friday morning. The report was accurate, as we found them plentiful along Casey Key within a couple of hundred yards of the beach. Although they weren’t breaking on the surface, I located rafts of birds sitting on the water and diving on baitfish with the little tunny feeding underneath them. The guys had non stop action for about 3 hours catching and releasing more than a dozen little tunnies to 12-pounds on Ultra Hair Clouser flies fished on an intermediate fly line and CAL jigs with shad tails fished on spinning tackle. They had 3 doubles and a triple. Great action!

The following day fly anglers Bernie Feinberg, from Sarasota, FL and Fred Weeman, from Elmira, NY, fished the same area with me. The action had slowed a little but they still managed to hook 5 little tunny, landing 3 of them, with olive over white Ultra Hair Clousers. There was more surface activity with large schools of little tunny traveling just under the surface with their backs out of the water. Blind casting the areas they had just passed through caught a couple of fish. If you’ve never caught one of these speedsters, you’ve got to do it. They are one of my favorite fish to catch with a fly!

An afternoon/evening trip the next day was very slow. We caught ladyfish and trout before dark in Little Sarasota Bay with CAL jigs and shad tails. We found very few snook in the lights and the ones we found would not eat. It has been a strange winter for snook that normally are very aggressive on flies and jigs through the winter. Monday’s trip was cancelled due to a steady rain all morning long.

Dave Crawford, from Sarasota, FL, and his guest John Danneker, from Maiden Rock, WI, fished Gasparilla Sound in Charlotte Harbor with me last Tuesday. They had good action with trout and reds. They caught 15 or 20 trout, including 3 over 20”, and 3 reds on CAL jigs with shad tails. Most fish were caught out of potholes in the backcountry of Bull Bay. The following day Sarasota winter residents, Harry Beaty and Tom Schalk, fished the same area with me. Reds were finicky that day and refused us, but they caught about 40 trout to 18” on CAL jigs with shad tails including 7 fish in the slot. Nice action!

Marshall Dinnerman was joined by another longtime friend and customer, Dick Reece, from Dayton, OH, on Thursday. The action was a little slow in Sarasota and Roberts Bays, but they managed to catch a pair of bluefish, several trout and ladyfish with Clouser flies and CAL jigs with shad tails.

A strong cold front moved through on Friday, dropping the air temperature below 40 degrees on Saturday morning. I think fishing will be slow for a couple of days, as the water temperature will probably fall below 60 degrees. Fishing potholes and deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay and Charlotte Harbor in the afternoon will probably be the best option for the next several days.

Tight Lines, Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
(941) 923-7799 - E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

Ron Whiteley - Feb. 8-9
Launched at Placida at 10:00 on Thursday. Light & variable wind. Temp 68 going to 80.

Found lots a ladyfish and a few blues in Placida Harbor. Trout at Sand Fly and one snook in Bull Bay. Saw more snook and reds in the clear water, but they were very picky. Had to really work to get one to hit. Good 6 wt day. Grouper sandwich at the Fishery. Home by 2:30 PM.

Launched at Placida at 8:30 on Friday for a spin fishing trip with my brother Bob. Wind NE @10 going to SW @10. Temp 65 going to 80. Used 6 lb line with 1/4 oz twister tail jigs.

Same as yesterday in Placida Harbor, Ladies and blues in the morning. Headed over to the area around Little Cape Haze and caught small trout. Spotted Some snook about 4 feet long cruising the shore, but they didn't want to look at anything. Hot bowl of gumbo at the Fishery and back to Placida Harbor for some more ladies and blues. Got one nice pompano for dinner. Home at 2:30.

-------><> Ron Whiteley

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 1/29 through 2/8/2007
Anglers fishing with me during the past couple of weeks had good action with trout and reds in Charlotte Harbor and ladyfish, scattered trout, reds and pompano in Little Sarasota Bay. There has been plenty of action in Little Sarasota Bay, but Charlotte Harbor has had the most options and variety.

I spent a couple of days fishing Pine Island Sound on Jan. 29 and 30. A front blew through the day before and we were greeted with the coldest weather of the season. The first day was cold and windy with water temperatures in the high 50’s. The 2nd day had less wind, but was even colder (I had ice on my boat that morning). We found a few reds in potholes, but nothing tailing on the negative low tides.

Keith McClintock and Hal D’Orazio, both from Lake Forest, IL, fished the other side of Charlotte Harbor in Gasparilla Sound and Bull and Turtle Bays with me on Wednesday. Fish had adjusted to the cold water by then and became more active. They caught and released numerous trout, including about 6 in the slot, a pair of reds and a pair of snook to each complete their slams. Not bad for water that started in the 50’s and barely made 60 degrees.

Fly anglers, John Freeman, Jr. from Venice, FL, and his son-in-law, Tony Ryan, from Sarasota, FL, fished the same areas with me on Saturday. We had a few shots at tailing fish, but no takers. They caught and released about a dozen trout and one red with Clouser flies.

PHOTO: Dennis Grau, from MI, caught and released this pompano on a CAL jig with a curly tail while fishing Little Sarasota Bay with Capt. Rick Grassett.

The next several days were spent fishing Little Sarasota Bay with flies and jigs. Ladyfish were plentiful, but had dropped into the ICW channel due to water temperatures in the high 50’s on the flats. By the end of the week, the water had warmed into the low 60’s. We also caught and released trout to 18”, a couple of reds and a pompano. Most fish were caught with CAL jigs and shad or grub tails. Fly anglers scored with ladyfish and trout on Clouser flies fished on intermediate and sink-tip fly lines.

Tides are favorable for tailing and reds and trout in potholes reds in Gasparilla Sound as we head towards a new moon on Feb. 17th. There are also reports of little tunny and Spanish mackerel in the coastal gulf off Sarasota and Venice, so that might also be a good option when conditions are right.

Tight Lines, Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict guide Service, Inc.
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

Steve Gibson's Everglades Report
Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing has made two trips to The Everglades recently.

John and Cindy McClure joined us for an all-day outing. They bid on a trip that I donated to Ladies! Let’s Go Fishing last summer in Sarasota.

I met them just east of Naples and they followed me to Picayune Strand State Park. We launched our kayaks on a calm morning under partly cloudy skies.

John and Cindy used spinning rigs. They caught oscars, Mayan cichlids and some decent largemouth bass. They used 3-inch Bass Assassins rigged Texas-style for the larger bass.

Photo: Cindy McClure of Bradenton shows off a typical Everglades bass the she caught in a Picayune Strand State Forest canal.

I fished a 4-weight fly rod, floating line, 5X leader and a No. 10 chartreuse bluegill popper. That’s my standard rig for the exotics, bluegills and bass. I would estimate I caught a total of 40 fish. Most were bluegill, but I did encounter some nice oscars and Mayans in the afternoon.

Fishing in The ’Glades has been off somewhat, but should pick up in about a month.
We’re scheduled to fish Dr. Paul Drewery, a Michigan veterinarian in early March. We’ve got two day on the agenda and plan to target tarpon one day and the exotics the next. We’ll be strictly fly fishing.

Paul took me salmon fishing in early October a little more than three years ago in Michigan. We fished the Pere Marquette River near Ludington. It was fantastic.
I landed 12 king salmon up to 30 pounds on fly. And I lost a number of others that got into fast water and I couldn’t stop them.

Don’t pass up a chance to fish the west coast of Michigan. I fished the White River in March 2003 and caught a pair of hefty steelheads on fly with guide Kevin Morland of Baldwin. In addition, I caught a nice walleye.

This past summer, I fished with former Sarasota Jon Fryer, who is now a trout guide in Michigan. We spent and afternoon on the Muskegon River near Newaygo. We caught a number of brown and rainbow trout on dry flies. It was fantastic.

Photo: Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers' member Capt. Rick Grassett fly fishes of Florida freshwater exotics in The Everglades.

A week ago, Sarasota guide Rick Grassett and I spent a day fishing the canals around The Everglades. Fishing was extremely tough because of low and clear water. We used 4-weigh fly rods and my Myakka Minnow.

We did best in the canals along Loop Road. We caught bass, bluegill, Mayan cichlids and stumpknocker. The afternoon bite again was best.

Photo: This oscar went for a No. 10 chartreuese bluegill popper.

Grassett and I were headed for the Florida Council of the Federation of Fly Fishers’ mini-conclave at the International Game Fish Association in Dania. Grassett did a seminar on fly fishing in Southwest Florida. I was a featured fly tier. The conclave was attended by nearly 300 fly enthusiasts throughout the state.

I will be giving a seminar on backcountry kayak fishing at C.B.’s Saltwater Outfitters’ Captains’ Fishing Extravaganza on Saturday, Feb. 10. My seminar is scheduled at 11 a.m. In addition, guides Ed Hurst, Kelly Stilwell, Rick Grassett, Jack Ryan, Bruce Burkhart and Jim Klopfer will conduct seminars. All will offer discounted fishing trips the following day.

On Feb. 17, I will join Pete Greenan of Sarasota and Rex Gudgel of Athens, Ga., at an Introduction to Fly Fishing school at Phillippi Shores Park in Sarasota. If you’re interested in learning to fly cast and to fly fish, you might want to check this one out. Cost is $95 per person.

Greenan and Gudgel are Federation of Fly Fishers’ Master Certified Casting Instructors.
To register, you can call me at (941) 284-3406 or Greenan at (941) 923-6095.
We’re going to explore Phillippi Creek. The most recent cold front should have pushed snook up the creek. Phillippi annually produces monster snook during the winter. In addition, it has a sizeable population of large jack crevalle.

Steve Gibson
Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing
(941) 284-3406
http://www.kayakfishingsarasota.com/

Here is a nice Trout Bob Parker got on fly while fishing Capt. Mark Phelps.

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 1/15 through 1/28/2007
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action during the past couple of weeks with trout and reds. The best action was in Charlotte Harbor.
Fly anglers, John Freeman and his son, John, president of the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers, fished Charlotte Harbor with me on Monday, Jan. 15th. We had good action with trout to 20” on Clouser flies. We also had a few shots at tailing reds early in the day and hooked a snook along a mangrove shoreline in Turtle Bay late in the day. The best trout action was in Gasparilla Sound near Sandfly and Devilfish Keys.

Keith McClintock, from Lake Forest, IL and Victor Feldman, from Champagne, IL, fished the same area with me the next day. They had a great day catching 5 reds to 32” and numerous trout, including several in the slot, with CAL jigs and shad tails. The reds were caught in Turtle Bay and the trout were caught just about every place we fished, including Gasparilla Sound and Turtle Bay.

Brad Cox, from Sarasota, FL and Dan Rutishauser, from St. Pete, FL, fished Little Sarasota Bay with me on Wednesday, Jan. 17. A couple of their colleagues fished with Capt. Kelly Stilwell. We had good action with lots of large ladyfish, a redfish and several nice trout caught and released with CAL jigs and shad tails from Stickney Point to near Blackburn Point.

Fly angler Tom Gould, from Longboat Key, FL, fished Terra Ceia Bay with me on Tuesday, Jan. 23rd. Tom caught and released about a dozen trout with Clouser flies and had a few shots at reds. The following day Sarasota winter resident, Harry Beaty, and his friend, Paul Rotz from St. Catherines, Ontario, fished Charlotte Harbor with me. They caught more than 25 trout, including 6 slot-sized fish and a pair of reds with CAL jigs and shad tails in Bull and Turtle Bays.

On Friday, Sarasota Herald-Tribune outdoors editor, Steve Gibson, and I fished our way across the Tamiami Trail south of Naples toward the east coast. We found low water in many places and not a lot of fish, but we did catch and release about 10 Mayan cichlids and 6 stumpknockers with poppers and Myakka Minnow flies on 4 and 5-weight fly rods. We both participated in the first Federation of Fly Fishers-Florida Council Conclave in Dania Beach on Saturday. Steve was a featured fly tier and I was a seminar presenter at the event, which had about 300 people in attendance. Some of the best fly tiers, casting instructors and guides in the state were in attendance.

A front pushed through on Saturday evening dropping temperatures with a blast of wind. Next week’s tides are favorable for tailing reds in Charlotte Harbor and trout on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay as we head toward a full moon next Friday.

Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

Boca Grande Fishing Report from Pete Greenan - Jan. 22nd
The last four days we have been fishing under a high pressure area of weather. There were no clouds to speak of and a fairly strong wind. The fishing, which should have been very slow, was quite good due to the warm air and water temperatures. It is amazing to me that it takes only one aspect of the weather to be out of sync to effect everything else. The cool front approaching and the threat of rain signals a dropping barometer. Fishing should get even better, but you never know.

Bill Ricarrdi and his friend Tony from Longboat Key fished Charlotte Harbor on Thursday with moderate success. They each caught several nice seatrout and a bunch of ladyfish on Clouser minnow flies. Bill made a valiant attempt at the spookiest redfish on the planet tailing on the Smith's Island flat. Later, we caught bluefish and large ladyfish in Placida Harbor, again fishing Clouser minnows.

Kurt and Susan Kraly from Davisburg, MI. fished spinning tackle with me on Friday. They caught several redfish to 22 inches and all the seatrout you would ever need in one day on Cotee gold spoons. Interestingly, the gold spoon out-fished both the Gulp Shrimp and the unscented Cotee Jig. I believe this was because of the clear water. The jigs were to easy to detect as artificials to the fish. The spoon forced them to make a decision instantly. It was an offer they could not refuse.

A family of intrepid anglers descended upon me this weekend. Ken Barker, grandpa from South Dakota, Kurtis, his son from Ridgefield, CT., and Ryan, the grandson from Charlotte, NC. spent Saturday and Sunday learning how to fly fish, not just fly cast, in the back country of Bull and Turtle bays. Wading all day and practicing their casts was a lot of fun and they caught as many seatrout and ladyfish as they could ever want. Kurtis even took a 22 inch redfish on a 6 wt. with a Clouser minnow. I know a lot of people who would love that.

The warm days and clear water make fishing just superb. I don't know how long it will last, so take advantage of it if you can.
Fish Hard,
Peter T. Greenan - Pres. Fl. Council FFF
captpete@floridaflyfishing.com
2416 Parson Ln.
Sarasota, Fl. 34239
http://www.floridaflyfishing.com/
Tel: 941.923.6095 - Cell: 941.232.2960

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 1/2 through 1/14/2007
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released reds, snook, trout and bluefish during the past 2 weeks. Action was fast in Little Sarasota Bay prior to a front last Monday. There was plenty of action with trout, reds and ladyfish with the water temperature at 72 degrees. Pompano were plentiful and skipping all over the flats, but not biting well. Behind the front, the water temperature dipped to 60 degrees and the action slowed.

Fly anglers Randy Sengel, from Alexandria, VA, and Terry Reideler, from MA, fished Gasparilla Sound in Charlotte Harbor with me on Jan. 2nd. They had numerous shots at tailing reds near Whidden Creek, but we didn’t connect. However, we found trout in Bull Bay willing to eat later in the day. Randy and Terry switched from 8-weight fly rods to 5-weights and we caught about 15 trout with Clouser flies. Randy caught and released a 24” trout and a 23” snook. Nice trout!

PHOTO: Randy Sengel, from Aexandria, VA, caught and released this 24" trout with a Clouser fly on a 5-wt fly rod while fishing Bull Bay in Charlotte Harbor with Capt. Rick Grassett.

Bob Harness and Nick Reding, both from St. Louis, MO, fished the same area with me on Jan. 4th. We found reds tailing, but in fewer numbers than the previous trip, and not giving us many good shots. They caught and released a few trout on Clouser flies near Catfish Creek.

Keith McClintock, from Lake Forest, IL, Victor Feldman, from Champagne, IL and Jack Lyons, from Chicago, fished Little Sarasota Bay with me on Friday, Jan. 5th. They had a great day catching 15 or 20 trout, several reds, a nice pompano and bluefish on CAL jigs with shad tails from Stickney Pt. to Midnight Pass. A couple of other trips in the same area resulted in trout, ladyfish and bluefish on jigs and flies.

A front pushed through last Monday and the water temperature dropped more than 10 degrees slowing the action. Keith McClintock and Victor Feldman fished Charlotte Harbor with me on Tuesday under tough conditions. We started off with a few trout and a nice bluefish near Catfish Creek on CAL jigs with shad tails. Then the wind cranked up to 20-mph and blew all the water out of the backcountry and kept it out forcing us to fish deep grass flats and sand bars around the outside of Bull and Turtle Bays. The wind dropped at the end of the day and we fished docks along Gasparilla Island where they finished the day with several snook including a couple estimated at more than 30”. The larger snook bullied their way back under the docks where they were hooked giving us a glimpse of them before they said goodbye.

Nick Walter, the new outdoors writer for the Bradenton Herald, fished with me on Thursday. We were scheduled to fish on Wednesday but the wind was howling at 20-mph so we bumped it back a day. With the water temperature at 60-degrees compared to 72-degrees on Saturday, we found fishing to be tough. Ladyfish were plentiful on deep grass flats, but trout had disappeared. Fishing got better as the day went by and we finished with a snook and a few trout. Friday’s trip was similar with a red and several short trout. It is inevitable that you’ll catch lots of ladyfish this time of the year while probing deep grass flats in search of trout, blues and pompano.

Next week’s negative low tides will have reds and trout concentrated in potholes of Gasparilla Sound. Reds should tail on shallow grass flats as the tide starts to rise. I look for trout fishing to improve on the flats of Sarasota Bay as the water warms.

Tight Lines, Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc. (941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

Capt. Pete Greenan's Fishing Report - 6 Jan 2007
Fishing has been excellent all week. I'm surprised everyone is not on the water. Redfish, snook, seatrout, gag grouper, ladyfish, jack crevalle, pompano and Spanish mackerel were caught this week in both Boca Grande and Sarasota. Water temps have been in the high sixties and low seventies all week. winds are generally from the eastern quadrant picking up to 15 to 20 mph in the afternoon. Air temps have hovered around 80 to 82 degrees. All-in-all, very pleasant fishing with lots of action.

Jess Jones of Longboat Key caught over 200 ( that's right -200) ladyfish on fly in one and a half days fishing in Sarasota Bay. Some were over 24 inches. He also caught a dozen seatrout. We used every old, torn-up Clouser I had. Great six weight fun for him, but a bit boring for me. If it wasn't for his good company the days would have been tough. Jess did give me a wonderful cookbook to try so watch for some great recipes later on.

I fished with Nick Cliff, a Sarasota County employee and good friend, on Tuesday in Little Sarasota Bay. Nick caught several seatrout on jigs with gold or motor-oil colored tails. He also caught as many ladyfish as he could handle. Maybe 75 or 80.

Phil Saul of Sarasota, an old, old friend, and I fished spinning gear in Charlotte Harbor on Wednesday. Phil took 5 redfish to 25 inches on gold spoons. In fact they were Cotee Live-Eye gold spoons which I haven't used in five years. Don't know why, just didn't. We also caught a nice snook about 25 inches and seatrout and ladyfish until our arms got tired. We were actually north of Turtle and Bull bays in very shallow water.

Ron Whiteley and I had a super morning yesterday in Placida Harbor and the back country of Bull Bay. It seemed to be a big seatrout day. We caught seatrout to 25+ inches on Estaz Marabou flies and chartreuse Clouser Minnows. Ron caught a nice gag grouper adn a ton of ladyfish also. Placida Harbor yielded a few nice bluefish to the Estaz. We noted that the blues this year are somewhat bigger than normal. Remember 1988 when the 12 lb. blues showed up. You never know.

Time to go fishing,
Peter T. Greenan - Pres. Fl. Council FFF
captpete@floridaflyfishing.com
http://www.floridaflyfishing.com/
Tel: 941.923.6095 - Cell: 941.232.2960

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 12/18/06 through 1/1/07
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, during the past couple of weeks had a variety of action. Tarpon, little tunny, bluefish, redfish and trout were caught and released with jigs and flies.

Only one other time have I encountered tarpon either on the flats or in the coastal gulf in December, but it happened on Dec. 20th. Fly anglers Todd Spivey, from Saratoga, WY, and Jim McKiney, from Bradenton, FL, fished the coastal gulf along Gasparilla Island and found blitz of little tunny, sharks and tarpon all feeding on several large schools of threadfins.

Since the baits were big, we used large white flies, “Illegal Flies” to be exact. No funny business here. The “illegal fly” is fly that my friend, Capt. Scott Hopkins of Fly’s Down Guide Service from PA, uses to target large stripers with his clients on the Susquehanna Flats in the spring in upper Chesapeake Bay. It is a large white (2/0 or 3/0) Bozo Hair Clouser fly with a rattle tied into the body of the fly. It matched the bait perfectly as Todd and Jim hooked up 6 or 7 times with little tunny, only to have ½ of them eaten by a variety of species of sharks from 4’ to 8’ long.

Todd hooked and landed about an 80-pound tarpon with a 9-weight rod and an Orvis 350-grain depth charge fly line on one of his first casts of the day. With tired arms from battling tarpon and little tunny to 10-pounds, we headed for the backcountry to hunt for tailing reds. Even though the tide was getting too high and the wind had whipped up to 15 to 20-mph, we found reds tailing in Placida Harbor. We waded the flat to better deal with the wind and to allow both fly anglers to fish. Jim landed a pair of reds with a crab pattern. A great day!

Fly angler Nelson Alcaraz and his son, Lucas, from NY, fished the Terra Ceia Bay area with me on Dec. 23. They caught and released several trout and ladyfish with Clouser flies and jigs. I fished the same area the following Wednesday, Dec. 27 with Bill Beauchamp, from Bradenton, FL and daughters Noelle and Michelle. They had a great day catching and releasing about 30 trout to 18” and 7 or 8 reds to 26” with CAL jigs and shad tails. Fly angler Stan Miller, from the Baltimore, MD area fished there with me on Friday, Dec. 29 and caught and released 7 or 8 trout to 18” and a bluefish with Ultra Hair Clouser flies.
Fly angler Vince Georges and his girlfriend, Kristen Mickey, both from the San Francisco Bay area fished Little Sarasota Bay with me on Dec. 26. A front had just passed through on Christmas Day and there were a few rain showers and some wind lingering behind the front. Despite challenging conditions, they caught and released numerous large ladyfish and trout with Clouser flies and CAL jigs with shad tails.

Fly anglers Mike Delaney, from WA, and his brother Bob Delaney, from NY, fished Charlotte Harbor with me on Thursday, Dec. 28. The morning was slow probably due to cold water but the action picked up in the afternoon. They caught and released a pair of reds and numerous large ladyfish to finish the day up. Fly angler, Bryan Beebe from Sarasota, FL, fished the same area with me on Saturday, Dec. 30. We had a few shots at tailing reds and Bryan briefly hooked one with a crab pattern, but then they quit tailing. We checked the coastal gulf out of Gasparilla Pass and found birds diving just outside the pass. Although I was hoping it would be little tunny or more, it was bluefish. Bryan caught and released several small blues with a pink over white Ultra Hair Clouser fly.

Next week’s negative low tides tides should be good for tailing redfish in Charlotte Harbor. Trout season reopened today in the south region and they should be concentrated in potholes along with reds when the tide is low.

Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict guide Service, Inc.
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

Dec. 21st - Ron Whiteley
Launched at Placida at around 7:00. ESE wind @ 15-20 going to 10 to 15, temp 72 , outgoing tide.

Headed out Gasparilla Pass and picked up a few small bluefish under the birds. Headed for the mother lode about 2 miles south and found all the birds still there and a little closer to the beach. Still acres of bait and only one other boat, Capt. Tony Petrillo, but he didn't stay long and I had the whole load of fish to myself again. Didn't see any tarpon on top today, but some big sharks where there. Big enough to make you back away from the side of the boat.

Hooked up some good sized spanish mackerel in close to the beach. The bluefish barbershop was open and doing a great job of trimming the hair on my flies.

Brought a 12 weight with me today and started dredging an area of muddy water, that was loaded with sharks, using a 10 inch offshore fly pattern. Hooked up 2 BIG fish and deliberately broke them off after 10 minutes or so to avoid having to spend a lot of time trying to get them to the boat. Got some minor bloodied knuckles.

Back to the 10 wt rod and picked up 2 nice little tunny on the outside of the bait. Back to the house at 12:30. Another great day on the water!!!

------------------><> Ron Whiteley

Boca Grande, Fl - 20 Dec., 2006 - Capt. Pete Greenan
I am sorry you missed the fast and furious run of little tunny we experienced this week. It was amazing, to say the least. It may not be over yet, but a cold front is approaching fast and it may end the blitz. Little tunny ( called bonito here) have been close to shore feeding heavily on a variety of baitfish. the shoals of bait have been as large as I've seen in many years. These fish are much bigger than usual too. Some have reached 15 lbs. Often they would smash bait on the surface, but we found most of them around the edges of the bait. We took most of the fish on Estaz marabou and super Clouser flies. I'll attach a picture of the Estaz.

Mixed with the bonito were foraging tarpon. I proves that tarpon are conditioned to water temperature and availability of food. Bob Parker can attest to that with sore knuckles he acquired while fighting one on Wednesday. My friend, Capt. Rick Grassett and his clients landed one about 70 lbs. on a nine weight fly rod. Great job!

The most amazing part of this was the sharks. Bull sharks, mako, lemon, spinner and others were all over the bait. Hundreds of sharks were present. We lost several bonito to them and hooked a few more. I managed to land only one small black-tip. I had a shark so excited it struck my fly line as it zipped through the water cutting it off above the leader. It was very exciting, to say the least.

To keep the day full we would stop in Gasparilla Pass at daylight to catch the Spanish mackerel and bluefish busting the bay anchovies schooling there. The conditions are right for great fishing in southwest Florida and I hope you all get a chance to fish soon. I'm sure we'll have some tough days if the weather gets very cold, but it isn't forecast to do so.

We haven't even mentioned the great back country fishing going on now. Redfish and seatrout are plentiful and active. Spin fishers with artificial lures are taking record numbers of seatrout and lots of redfish. There are scattered schools of jack crevalle roaming the shore and back country. These guys are big and fast, and you never know exactly where they will show up. When they do, you have to be quick. Oh, and hang on to the rod with both hands.

For more info or reservations call me at 941 923 6095 or 941 232 2960.
Fish Hard,
Capt. Pete Greenan - Pres. Fl. Council FFF
captpete@floridaflyfishing.com
2416 Parson Ln.
Sarasota, Fl. 34239
http://www.floridaflyfishing.com/
Tel: 941.923.6095
Cell: 941.232.2960

Dec 19th - Ron Whiteley
Capt. Pete Greenan arrived at the house at 6:30 and we launched at Placida at 7:00. Temp 70 going to 82. Wind NE at 10 - 15. Tide, last of the outgoing - to incoming.

We headed out Gasparilla Pass and were greeted by hoards of birds working fish breaking in the Pass. Each cast produced a Spanish Mackerel or bluefish.

After a while it slowed down we headed down the beach about 2 miles and found the mother lode of bait and birds still about 100 yards from the beach. As the sun got higher and visibility improved, we could see large sharks and tarpon breaking near, and swimming under the boat. Pete hooked a nice little tunny that took him well into the backing on the 8 wt. By the time we got it back to the boat he only had the front half of the fish.

I spent a lot of time throwing big herring flies on a 10 wt at the tarpon to no avail.

We managed to get 7 and a half little tunny and Pete got a small black tip that ate the estaz marabou fly.

Even after sending out several fishing reports and photos of the area, not a single boat was in sight all morning. Still acres and acres of bait with fish cruising through them there as I reported last week.

Gin & Tonic and Cajun Catfish with black beans and rice for lunch at the Fishery. Home by 12:15.

--------------------><> Ron Whiteley

Dec. 16, 2006 Report from Steve Gibson
The weather has been warm and the fishing hot. Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing has been busy over the past week, guiding fly fishers to decent catches in Blackburn Bay.

On Tuesday, John Sommers of Madison, Wisc., joined us for a half day of fly fishing. Sommers, 71, caught and released 13 ladyfish and a dozen spotted seatrout.

Now, ladyfish aren’t something that Southern Drawl emphasizes or usually pursues. However, we’ve found that they’re perfect for the beginning saltwater fly fisher. And, trust us, the ladies of Blackburn Bay are running very large. When they hit the fly, you’re in for a battle.

In fact, we caught and released one healthy lady that went 3 pounds on the Boga Grip. That’s a world-record candidate, according to the International Game Fish Association (tippet class).

On Friday, Frank Merino of Connecticut, another new saltwater fly fisher, wanted to give kayak fishing a try. He connected early on his first marine fly-rod fish. He caught and released several leaping ladyfish, including one that ran him in circles. Merino later added a couple of small spotted seatrout to his total.

Most of the fish during the week were taken on chartreuse-and-white Super Clousers, a variation of the famous Clouser Deep Minnow. Super Clousers are tied with Super Hair, a tough synthetic that holds up to the punishment that ladyfish, Spanish mackerel and other saltwater brutes dish out.

We joined Pete Greenan of the Gypsy Guide Service on Wednesday for a trip into the inshore Gulf of Mexico. Our target was little tunny. The action began slow, but improved as the day went on. We landed five chunky Spanish mackerel early on off Grassey Point on Casey Key.

We got into little tunny a little further south. Fishing just north of the Venice Inlet, we found the tunny herding up glass minnows in the surf. We hooked and lost three (two breakoffs) in short order.
Photo: Steve Gibson took this 32-inch cobia on a Super Clouser and 8-weight fly rod with an intermediate sinking line.

The action quickly ended and many of the boats in the inshore Gulf headed home. Pete decided to head back north where we’d caught the macks. As we neared the spot, we saw birds. However, when we go there, we noticed the pelicans were grouped together and just sitting on the water. Gulls were hovering over them.

Upon closer inspection, we saw that the pelicans were dipping their bills into the water and coming up with baitfish. There were no signs predator fish.

“Something’s driving those baitfish to the surface,” Pete said. “They wouldn’t just be there and allow those pelicans to eat them.” When we got close enough, we cast to the edge of the pelicans. We immediately hooked up. We landed three little tunny to 12 pounds on Super Clousers.

The highlite of the afternoon was a 32-inch cobia. After that, we called it day.

Five Spanish mackerel, three little tunny and a cobia. Not bad in anyone’s book.
All of our fish were taken on 8-weight fly rods with intermediate sinking lines.

Steve Gibson
Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing
http://www.kayakfishingsarasota.com/
(941) 284-3406

12/15 report by Ron Whiteley
Had to do some routine scheduled maintenance on the boat this morning. Got to the Placida boat launch at 10:30 a.m.. Light north wind, temp 75, incoming tide.

Headed out to Gasparilla Pass and found birds working all over. I ran out to the outside edge of the bar and got on a bait ball that stayed up for over an hour. False albacore, mackerel and 3 large sharks were coming up on it steadily for over an hour. I managed to land 6 albies and a mackerel before my arm got tired. I was the only boat there. Estaz maribou on the 8 wt did the trick, except when one of the sharks grabbed a mackerel I hooked and spooled me. Lost the fly line when the backing broke.

North wind kicked in around noon and I headed up the north end of Placida harbor and found some reds on the flat near the mangroves. Got 1 about 28 inches and headed in. Home at 12:45. Great morning, had a ball---a bait ball, all to myself. Didn't even have to strip the fly to hook up. They ate it as soon as it hit the water.
-------------------><> Ron Whiteley

Melissa Littlewood's pics
Had to send these in. Fly fishing with the Prez (John Freeman) with Capt. Mark Phillips Boca Grande.
Melissa

From Captain Mark Phelps: Here are some great photos of club members who had trips with me catching False Albacore this week.

Bob Parker's first Albie caught off Venice on TFO 8 wt. with SA clear sink tip line. "My first ever albies on a fly." Nice smile too Bob!

Georgia Fishing Report 11/26-29 - By Ron Whiteley
Went to North Georgia to do some trout fishing with Pete Greenan and Steve Gibson on Sunday. We got there abot 5 p.m. after a 9 hour drive. Got our licenses and some last minute gear at the Unicoi Fly Shop.

Met Guide Rex Gudgel Early Monday and fished the upper Chatahotchee River and the lower end of the Soque River. Did great!! Found a lot of trout in both rivers, but the Soque fish were larger. Rex did a super job of putting us on fish and showing us how to catch them. The rivers were all low with gin clear water and extremely spooky fish. The weather was cool with frost on Monday morning and then getting near 70 each day. We had some clouds and drizzle late Tuesday and Wednesday.

Tuesday we headed west to fish some private water on a tributary of the Toccoa River. The place had a lot of very healthy rainbows, my best went 26 inches. Lots of rainbow parr (juveniles) in the River from natural reproduction. The fish were really hot and made a good accounting of themselves.

Wednesday morning we fished the Chestatee River at Frog Hollow. Beautiful place loaded with quality fish. I got 15 more nice rainbows before we hit the road at noon. Got back to Sarasota about 8:30.

We had a great rental house on the river from Black Forest rentals in Helen, GA. Spent some time each night in the hot tub with the obligatory Gin and tonic and Cohiba cigar. Ron Whiteley

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 11/13 through 11/25/2006
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released a variety of fish during the past couple of weeks. Snook, reds, trout and Spanish mackerel were caught on a variety of lures and flies in Sarasota Bay and Charlotte Harbor.

Sarasota winter resident, Tom Lamb and Jack Miller, also from Sarasota, fished with me on Nov. 13th in Sarasota Bay. We looked for Spanish mackerel in the coastal gulf around a couple of the inshore artificial reefs, but it wasn’t going on. They caught and released several trout, a Spanish mackerel and numerous ladyfish. We fished Sarasota’s Big Pass and deep grass flats close to the pass with CAL jigs and DOA Deadly Combos.

Fly anglers Bob and Diane Harness, from St. Louis, MO, fished Charlotte Harbor with me the next day. Our best action was on the deep grass flats of Gasparilla Sound where they caught and released trout on Clouser flies. We had several shots at tailing reds but they were tough to approach.

The next day, I fished in Tampa Bay with Rusty Chinnis and Capt. Bryon Chamberlin. We were on a cobia mission, but we only found one cobia, a nice 25 or 30-pound fish. I was up and had a good shot with a fly, but the fish ignored me. We also had several shots at blacktip sharks. I fooled one with an Enrico Puglisi black and purple Peanut Butter fly. The 10-pound shark took me well into my backing and put up a very nice fight.

PHOTO: Capt. Rick Grassett caught and released this blacktip shark on an Enrico Puglisi black and purple Peanut Butter fly while fishing a Tampa Bay flat with Rusty Chinnis and Capt. Bryon Chamberlin. Photo credit: rustychinnisimages.com

Bill Travers, from Baldwin, MD and his son, Sean, from Gainesville, FL, fished Sarasota Bay with me last Saturday. The action was slow to start due to cool water. We found some warmer water in Roberts Bay in the afternoon where they caught and released caught a nice trout and several reds and snook on CAL jigs with shad tails to complete their slam.

A front blew in the first of this week and we had several days of cool windy weather, dropping the water temperature to 60 degrees. Fly anglers, Tim Koehler from San Francisco, CA and his brother, Rich Koehler, from Reno, NV, fished Charlotte harbor with me on Friday. The action was slow but steady. The caught and released 3 snook, 4 reds, a jack and a grouper on CAL jigs, my Flats Minnow, Estaz Marabou and Clouser flies. We caught the reds and snook on deep mangrove shorelines of Bull Bay and Gasparilla Sound.

Next week’s tides are favorable for reds on the flats and snook in the ICW or backcountry creeks and canals. There may be some opportunities for tailing reds early in the week and again next weekend in Gasparilla Sound. You also might check out the coastal gulf on nice days for cobia, tripletail or little tunny.

Tight Lines, Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc. (941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

Boca Grande, Fl. - Nov. 17, 2006, Captain Pete Greenan

Fishing before a front; you gotta love it. Three days in a row before Thursday morning's rain and squalls the fishing was excellent. A lot of tailing redfish on the afternoon low tide on the "tailing flat" west of Whiddens Creek were waving at us, big reds too. We found a ton of snook in the back country under the mangroves. Okay, they were mostly small, but there were enough bigger fish to make it very interesting. An occasional jack crevalle showed and we caught a very nice flounder in a pot hole in the creek. While looking for redfish in the pot holes we only managed three with several seatrout up to 20 inches. What a shame.

Kevin Cooke and Bob parker of Casey Key Anglers and Outfitters in Nokomis (http://www.caseykeyanglersandoutfitters.com/) fished Monday and landed at least 20 snook and a few jacks behind Bull Bay against the mangroves. Ron Whiteley's Estaz Marabou pattern tied with a weed guard caught everything.

Bill and Fran Thomas of Fort Collins, Co. fished Tuesday and took a lot more snook including one 30 inch fish. Bill also caught three redfish in the pot holes of the tailing flat. See attached picture.

Bob and Brian Davies of Sarasota caught snook and seatrout on fly and spin just before the weather broke down on Wednesday afternoon. Bob also caught the 5 lb. flounder. That one went home.

Fishing will be about the same for the Thanksgiving week and will improve if the temperature comes up a little. Tie some Estaz and some Tampa Bay Clousers and you'll have all the flies you need.

I will be in Helen, Ga. fishing with Rex Gudgel of Unicoi Fly Shop (www.unicoioutfitters.com/shop.htm) for big rainbows Nov. 26 - 29 and will be available before and after that. Call Jill or Me at 941 -923-6095 or email for reservations.

Fish Hard, Capt. Pete
Peter T. Greenan - Pres. Fl. Council FFF
captpete@floridaflyfishing.com
http://www.floridaflyfishing.com/
Tel: 941.923.6095
Cell: 941.232.2960

NOV. 13th Kayak Fishing Report - Steve Gibson
We’ve been getting out on local freshwater lakes and streams and doing well. We launched the kayak on the upper Myakka River and found the water very low. In fact, it was so low that it ruined plans to paddle down the river and fish. We were restricted to fishing a 50-yard stretch.

However, any deep water we could find held fish. They had no place to go but into the holes. It was a lot like fishing sand holes in salt water at low tide.

The bass were on a minor feed. We caught and released eight before the action subsided. We were using a 4-weight fly rod, floating line and 5-pound leader. Fly of choice was the chartreuse-and-white No. 10 bluegill popper. We caught a majority of the bass on that, but the two largest came on the Myakka Minnow.

A lot of people have expressed interest in the Myakka Minnow. It’s a fly that I designed after a couple of frustrating trips to the Myakka River. I could see bass and bluegill busting on small minnows, but I couldn’t get them to hit anything in my arsenal. So, I decided to come up with a reasonable facsimile of one of the tiny river minnows.

I use fine mono thread and a No. 10 or 12 streamer hook. The tail can be either marabou or a clump of Krystal Flash. The body, which is built up into a minnow shape, is made out of pearly Bodi-Braid by Spirit River. I add 3D Prismatic Stick-On eyes and coat the body with Devon 2-Ton Epoxy. The minnow has resulted in a lot of fish. I go to it when the topwater bite ends. I cast it out, let it sink and retrieve it extremely slow. I’ve taken big bluegill, bass to 4 pounds, tilapia, stumpknocker and speckled perch on it.

It also has produced good results in the Everglades. There, I’ve caught oscar, Mayan cichlids, bluegill, bass and gar on the Myakka Minnow.

On my most recent trip to The ‘Glades, I did the freshwater thing, then hit a brackish spot. The water was running and fish were busting pretty good. I caught and released eight snook to about 20 inches on the Myakka Minnow. Didn’t get any monsters, but not bad on a 4-weight.

It’s the time of year where we’ll start concentrating on fishing tidal rivers and creeks for snook. The lower Myakka can be hot from November to February. In addition to snook, we catch bass, gar, mudfish and sometimes a tarpon or two.

When the weather gets cold, we don’t put the kayaks away until spring. Just dress in layers as you would on any day on the water. I suggest a t-shirt, fishing shirt, sweatshirt and jacket. Long fishing pants and wading boots are suggested. As you warm up, you can chuck the jacket, then the sweatshirt.

If wading is in the plans, a good pair of waders comes in handy. The water can be wet-waded at present, but it won’t be long until it’s simply too cold.

When we get northeast winds, we like to head for Placida and fish the sand holes for spotted seatrout, snook and redfish. It’s also a good time to find tailing reds in the shallows.

There are days when a catch of 50 or more fish is possible. We’ve taken up to 150 on some outings during low tide.

We launch at Placida. The paddle to Whidden Creek takes about an hour. In kayaks, we can fish the holes much sooner than those in flats boats.

If you’ve never fished out of a kayak, you should give it a try. Our fleet consists of Heritage Redfish 14-foot kayaks. They’re “sit-on-top” kayaks and very stable, offering a steady platform from which to fish. The kayaks are extremely comfortable and easy to paddle. We do like to find a spot to get out and stretch our legs every 3-4 hours.
All of the kayaks come with three rod holders. The tank well in stern can be used to carry a cooler, tackle, etc. I supply life vests, whistle, paddles, paddle leashes, food and drink. You can either ride with me to the fishing spot or meet me at a prearranged location.

Steve Gibson
Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing
www.kayakfishingsarasota.com

For Archives of Older Fishing Reports, Click here...