Fishing Reports by Captain Rick Grassett

About The Author: Captain

Company: Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.

Area Reporting: Soutwest Florida

Bio: Capt. Rick Grassett, owner of Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc., is a full time fishing guide and outdoor writer based in Sarasota, FL. He has been guiding since 1990 and is an Orvis Endorsed Outfitter fly fishing guide at CB's Saltwater Outfitters in Sarasota. Specializing in fishing with flies and lures on light spinning tackle, Capt. Rick fishes the bays, back country and coastal gulf waters from Tampa Bay to Charlotte Harbor in his 18' Action Craft flats boat. He is a Federation of Fly Fishers certified fly casting instructor. Destination fishing trips are another specialty of Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service. Capt. Rick has lead groups of fly anglers to remote fishing locations around the world. Crane Meadow Lodge, MT, Los Roques, Venezuela, Andros Island Bonefish Club and Bonefish Bay Club in the Bahamas are several destinations where he has hosted groups in the past. Capt. Rick is a field editor for Saltwater Angler magazine and a monthly columnist for the Tampa Tribune. He has written articles for The Fisherman magazine and Orvis News. In addition to writing for these publications, he has been featured in articles in Florida Sportsman, Sportfishing, The Fisherman and Fly Fishing in Saltwater magazines. Capt. rick's web site, www.snookfin-addict.com features weekly fishing reports, current photos and and monthly fishing forecasts. He also maintains a second website that is specific to fly fishing and fly casting instruction, www.flyfishingflorida.net.

941-923-7799
Click Here For Past Fishing Reports by Captain
Good Action in Sarasota Bay & Coastal Gulf of Mexico (11/10/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released Spanish mackerel, false albacore (little tunny) and jacks in the coastal gulf off Sarasota and snook, reds, trout, blues, Spanish mackerel and jacks in Sarasota Bay on flies, top water plugs and CAL jigs with shad tails during the past couple of weeks
Good Action on Sarasota Bay Deep Grass Flats (10/27/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released snook, trout, tripletail, false albacore (little tunny), blues, Spanish mackerel and jacks in Sarasota Bay and the coastal gulf and trout and flounder in Gasparilla Sound on flies, CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos during the past couple of weeks.
Good Snook Action in Sarasota (10/12/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action catching and releasing snook, trout, redfish, Spanish mackerel and jacks on flies, DOA Deadly Combos and CAL jigs with shad tails in Sarasota Bay during the past week. The best action was with snook around lighted docks.
Good Action & Variety on Sarasota Bay & Gasparilla Sound Flats (9/29/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action catching and releasing trout, bluefish and jacks on DOA Deadly Combos, CAL jigs with shad tails and top water plugs in Sarasota Bay and reds, snook, trout, bluefish and flounder in Gasparilla Sound on CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos during the past week
Good Snook and Deep Flats Action in Sarasota Bay (9/21/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action catching and releasing snook, trout, bluefish, Spanish mackerel, mangrove snapper and jacks on flies, DOA Deadly Combos, CAL jigs with shad tails and top water plugs in Sarasota Bay during the past couple of weeks. The best action was with snook and a variety of species on deep grass flats.
Good Action on Sarasota Bay Deep Grass Flats (9/07/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action catching and releasing reds, trout, bluefish and jacks in Sarasota Bay during the past couple of weeks. The best action was with a variety of species on deep grass flats.
Good Tarpon & Snook Action in Charlotte Harbor & Peace River Canals & Creeks (8/25/2013)
[Port Charlotte,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action catching and releasing snook and had numerous shots at tarpon in Charlotte Harbor canals on a couple of trips during the past week. A juvenile Goliath grouper was also caught and released.
Good Trout Action on Beaverhead and Ruby Rivers (8/21/2013)
[Southwest Montana,MT] I was away on a family vacation during the week of 8/5. When I returned I hosted a group of 8 fly anglers at Crane Meadow Lodge in Twin Bridges, MT during the week of 8/12. This is an annual trip for me and was our 12th year at the lodge.
Good Tarpon Action in Sarasota (8/03/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Fly anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action with tarpon in the coastal gulf in Sarasota during the past week. We had numerous shots at tarpon each day, jumping 3, landing 1 and getting several other eats on Deceiver and Tarpon Bunny flies.
Good Action & Variety in Sarasota Bay and Tarpon in the Coastal Gulf (7/28/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action fly fishing for tarpon in the coastal gulf. Fly anglers jumped 2 tarpon and had several other eats in the coastal gulf during the week of 7/15. We also caught and released a variety of species including snook, trout, bluefish, mangrove snapper, sheepshead and tripletail on flies and CAL jigs with shad tails in Sarasota Bay during the week of 7/22
Good Snook Action in Sarasota (7/13/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action catching and releasing snook, trout, bluefish and jacks on flies in Sarasota Bay and had shots at tarpon with a fly in the coastal gulf during the past couple of weeks.
Hot Tarpon Action in Sarasota (6/29/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had great action jumping numerous tarpon and catching and releasing a couple up to 120-pounds on DOA Baitbusters, flies, live crabs and pinfish in the coastal gulf during the past couple of weeks.
Sarasota Tarpon Fishing is Red Hot (6/15/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had great action jumping and catching and releasing numerous tarpon up to 110-pounds on flies and live baits in the coastal gulf during the past couple of weeks. In addition to tarpon, anglers fishing with me also caught and released trout to 3-pounds and blues and Spanish mackerel to 2-pounds on DOA Deadly Combos in Sarasota Bay.
Great Tarpon Action with Spin and Fly Tackle in Sarasota (6/01/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had some shots at tarpon and caught and released one on a fly and also had great action with tarpon on spinning tackle with live bait in the coastal gulf during the past couple of weeks. In addition to jumping and landing numerous tarpon, we also caught and released a couple of sharks and a huge king mackerel
Good Action with Bonefish in South Andros & Tarpon, Trout & Snook in Sarasota (5/18/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] I hosted a group of 7 anglers on my annual trip to Andros South Bonefish Lodge from 5/4-11. Back at home in Sarasota, anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout in Sarasota Bay and snook at night in the ICW near Venice on flies during the past week. We also had lots of shots at tarpon in the coastal gulf and caught one on a fly.
Good Sarasota Bay, Night Snook & Tarpon Action (5/03/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, redfish, flounder, bluefish and Spanish mackerel in Sarasota Bay and snook and bluefish in the ICW at night near Venice on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks. We also jumped a tarpon and landed another tarpon in the coastal gulf on a fly for the first 2 tarpon of the season!
Hot Action on Sarasota, Charlotte Harbor Flats & Night Snook near Venice (4/21/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released snook, reds, trout, Spanish mackerel and flounder in Sarasota Bay, snook, reds and trout in Gasparilla Sound and snook and bluefish in the ICW at night near Venice on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks.
Shallow Water Action Turning On in Southwest Florida (4/08/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released reds, trout and flounder in Sarasota Bay and Spanish mackerel in Gasparilla Sound on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks. I also fished the 10,000 Island area of the Everglades out of Everglades City on a short family vacation where we caught and released reds, trout and snook on lures.
Good Action on Sarasota Bay Deep Grass Flats (3/24/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, flounder, redfish and Spanish mackerel in Sarasota Bay and snook and bluefish in the ICW near Venice at night and flies on lures during the past couple of weeks
Good Action on Sarasota Bay Flats and Snook at Night (3/09/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, silver trout, Spanish mackerel, blues, pompano and flounder in Sarasota Bay and snook and trout in the ICW near Venice at night on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks.
Good Action in Gasparilla Sound & Sarasota Bay (2/24/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, reds, flounder, Spanish mackerel and blues in Sarasota Bay and trout, Spanish mackerel, bluefish and redfish in Gasparilla Sound on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks.
Good Action & Variety on Sarasota, Tampa Bay & Charlotte Harbor Flats (2/10/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, Spanish mackerel and blues in Sarasota Bay, trout, reds and a pompano in the Terra Ceia Bay area and trout, blues and reds in Gasparilla Sound on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks.
Good Action & Variety on Sarasota Bay Flats (1/26/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, Spanish mackerel, blues, pompano, flounder and snook in Sarasota Bay on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks. Water temperatures cooled to the low 60's following the last front but there was still good action and variety on deep grass flats.
Good Action and Variety in Sarasota Bay (1/12/2013)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released snook, trout, redfish, Spanish mackerel, pompano, blues and ladyfish in Sarasota Bay and trout, redfish and pompano in the Terra Ceia Bay area on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks. Large ladyfish, mixed with trout, Spanish mackerel and blues, are plentiful on deep grass flats close to passes.
Good Action with Trout in Sarasota & Night Snook in Venice (12/29/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout and Spanish mackerel in Sarasota Bay, trout and redfish in Gasparilla Sound, snook and blues in the ICW near Venice and tripletail in the coastal gulf off Sarasota on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks.
Trout, Blues & Reds, Good Sarasota Bay Options (12/16/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] I was away the first week of December, so I have no fishing report for that time frame. However, anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, during the past week caught and released trout, redfish, bluefish and pompano in Sarasota Bay on lures and flies.
Tripletail, Spanish Mackerel and Trout Good Options in Sarasota (11/30/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout and Spanish mackerel in Sarasota Bay and tripletail in the coastal gulf on lures and flies during the past week.
Good Action and Variety in Sarasota Bay and Coastal Gulf (11/25/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, bluefish, Spanish mackerel, flounder and reds in Sarasota Bay and false albacore (little tunny), Spanish mackerel and tripletail in the coastal gulf on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks.
Good Action in Sarasota Bay & Coastal Gulf of Mexico (11/10/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released reds, trout, blues and a permit in Sarasota Bay and Spanish mackerel in the coastal gulf on flies and lures during the past couple of weeks. Action has been good with big Spanish mackerel in the coastal gulf and with bay water cooling down, big trout have moved into shallow water.
Fast Action in Sarasota Bay & coastal Gulf of Mexico (10/26/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released snook, trout, redfish and flounder in Sarasota Bay and false albacore (little tunny), Spanish mackerel and tripletail in the coastal gulf off Siesta Key and Longboat Key on lures and flies during the past couple of weeks
Action Good on Flats and in Coastal Gulf in Sarasota and Gasparilla Sound (10/11/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released false albacore (little tunny), Spanish mackerel, trout, flounder, redfish and snook in Gasparilla Sound and the coastal gulf in that area during the past couple of weeks. We also caught and released numerous Spanish mackerel on fly poppers off of Longboat Key one day.
Good False Albacore Action in Sarasota (9/27/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout and jacks in Sarasota Bay and false albacore (little tunny) and Spanish mackerel in the coastal gulf off Sarasota during the past week.
Snook, Tarpon & False Albacore Action Hot in Sarasota & Charlotte Harbor (9/21/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released snook, redfish, trout and jacks in Sarasota Bay, false albacore (little tunny) and Spanish mackerel in the coastal gulf off Sarasota and in Tampa Bay and jumped and landed tarpon in Charlotte Harbor canals during the past couple of weeks.
Reds and Snook on Flies in Sarasota (9/07/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, scored a slam-catching and releasing reds, snook and trout on a fly in Sarasota Bay on a recent trip. In addition to Spanish mackerel in the coastal gulf, we also had some shots at juvenile tarpon and jumped one in upper Charlotte Harbor.
Trout. Reds and Snook Good Options in Sarasota Bay (8/25/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] After being away for a couple of weeks on a family vacation and hosting a group of clients on my annual trip to Crane Meadow Lodge in Twin Bridges, Montana, it's good to be back home in Sarasota. As beautiful as it is in many other places, returning to the paradise we live in makes the end of a fishing trip or vacation easier to accept. Late summer is typically a slower time of the year with great fishing!
Tarpon Action Continues in Sarasota (8/03/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Conditions were good for tarpon fishing late in the week of 7/22. However early that week we had lots of cloud cover, saw only a few tarpon and didn't have any good shots at all. By the end of the week, tarpon became more plentiful and returned to their normal patterns. The action continued into the week of 7/29.
Tarpon On a Fly Still a Good Option in Sarasota (7/21/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Conditions were good for tarpon fishing during the week of 7/9 and they got aggressive as we got further away from a full moon the previous week. Anglers fishing the coastal Gulf of Mexico off Sarasota with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had numerous shots at tarpon with a fly, jumped 4 and landed 3 fish to 120-pounds.
Tarpon Return in Sarasota Following TS Debby (7/08/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Good conditions and tarpon returned last week following TS Debby, although following a full moon on Tuesday, 7/3, they weren't aggressive. Conditions ranged from poor to terrible for more than a week as TS Debby approached, hovered in the northeast gulf and finally moved on.
Tarpon Action Should Resume Following TS Debby (6/28/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing the coastal Gulf of Mexico off Sarasota with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released a tarpon on a live crab early last week. Conditions deteriorated later in the week as tropical storm Debby formed in the southern Gulf of Mexico and pumped clouds and moisture over us.
Good Tarpon Action off Sarasota Beaches (6/17/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing the coastal gulf off Sarasota with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action with tarpon during the past week. A total of 10 tarpon were jumped with 5 of those fish landed. We hooked up with live crabs, a pilchard, DOA Baitbuster, DOA 4 shrimp and flies. We also caught and released a few small sharks and an estimated 12-pound false albacore (little tunny) on live baitfish.
Sarasota Bay or Tarpon Good Options Depending on Conditions (6/06/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing Sarasota Bay with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout and snook on CAL jigs with plastic tails and top water plugs and jumped several tarpon on live pinfish and crabs in the coastal gulf during the past 10 days.
Tarpon Plentiful in Sarasota (5/25/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing the coastal gulf off Sarasota with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, jumped several tarpon on live crabs, landed one on a fly and had lots of shots during the past couple of weeks. We also caught and released trout, bluefish and a nice red on DOA baits on a trip in Sarasota Bay.
Tarpon Action Heating up in Sarasota (5/13/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing the coastal gulf and Tampa Bay with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, jumped a pair of tarpon on flies and had numerous shots at tarpon during the past week. We also caught and released several bonnethead sharks and a large southern stingray
Good Shallow Water Action with Big Trout, Reds & Snook in Sarasota Bay (4/22/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing Sarasota Bay with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, snook and reds on flies, plugs, CAL jigs and DOA Deadly Combos during the past week. An angler fishing with me caught and released one of the largest trout ever caught on my boat!
Good Action with Trout, Reds and Snook in Sarasota (4/15/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing Sarasota Bay with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released silver and spotted sea trout, snook and reds on flies and jigs during the past couple of weeks. Although silver trout are often found in deeper areas along beaches and in dredge holes or channels in bays, we have been catching them consistently at the Marina Jack flat, which is a deep grass flat close to Big Pass.
Good Red & Trout Action in Sarasota Bay & Gasparilla Sound (4/01/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing Sarasota Bay and Gasparilla Sound with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released mostly trout, including numerous slot size and larger fish, reds, flounder and snook on flies and jigs during the past couple of weeks.
Good Action with Reds, Snook & Trout n Sarasota & Venice (3/18/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing Sarasota Bay, Little Sarasota Bay, Blackburn Bay and the ICW near Venice with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released snook, trout, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, pompano, flounder, redfish and a small cobia on flies and jigs during the past couple of weeks.
Good Red, Snook and Trout Action in Southwest Florida (3/03/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Shallow water action with reds and trout was good during the past couple of weeks. Anglers fishing Sarasota Bay, Gasparilla Sound, the ICW near Venice and the Terra Ceia Bay area with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action with catch and release snook, reds and trout on flies and jigs.
Good Snook, Red and Trout Action in Sarasota Bay & Gasparilla Sound (2/19/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing Sarasota Bay and Gasparilla Sound with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action with catch and release snook, reds, speckled trout, silver trout, Spanish mackerel and bluefish on flies and jigs during the past couple of weeks. The best action was with reds and trout in skinny water and with snook at night in the ICW.
Good Action on Shallow and Deep Grass Flats of Sarasota Bay (2/05/2012)
[Sarasota,FL] Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout, blues, sheepshead, snook and Spanish mackerel on jigs and flies during the past couple of weeks.
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