Rick Grassett

Anglers fishing with me on the Snook fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released Spanish mackerel and trout on a couple of trips recently. The best action was with Spanish mackerel in the coastal gulf. I also spent some time in Delaware visiting family and had an opportunity to fish the Chesapeake Bay for stripers.

My brother, Kirk Grassett from Middletown, DE, and I fished the mouth of the Choptank River out of Tilghman Island, MD in his new 18' Jones Brothers Cape Fisherman, which is a great boat for light tackle and fly fishing in bigger bodies of water such as Chesapeake Bay. We were on "breaking" stripers and blues most of the day. Although they weren't large, they were plentiful and great fun on 6 and 7-weight fly rods. We caught them on Crease flies, Clouser Floating Minnows and Clouser Deep Minnow flies. A great day!

After returning to Florida, fly angler Ladd Weinberg from CT, fished with me on Sunday, Oct. 4th. He caught a Spanish mackerel and several trout on Ultra Hair Clouser flies. We were feeling the effects of the full moon, which sometimes causes fish to feed at night rather than during the day. The action picked up later in the week when Greg French and Justin Stewart, from Newfoundland, Canada, fished with me. We found Spanish mackerel plentiful in the coastal gulf off Siesta Key. There were also lots of sharks mixed in with them. They caught and released more than 20 Spanish mackerel to 4-pounds on Crease flies, poppers and surface walking top water plugs. Justin had a big Spanish mackerel eaten by a large shark and had it on for a few minutes until it chewed the mackerel off his fly. Great action!

Fishing flats and the coastal gulf should improve as we get further away from the full moon. Fish the coastal gulf for Spanish mackerel, little tunny, cobia and more or Sarasota Bay for trout, blues, Spanish mackerel, snook and reds. I will be the instructor at CB's Saltwater Outfitters first Orvis-Endorsed fly fishing school of the season on Nov. 7th. The school will cover fly casting basics, line control, shooting line and roll casting. Hours of the school are from 8:30 AM to 4 PM and will also cover leader construction, fly selection and saltwater fly fishing techniques. Cost is $150 per angler and includes the use of premium Orvis fly tackle, a text book, instructional DVD and lunch. Contact CB's Saltwater Outfitters at (941) 349-4400 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 and www.snookfin-addict.com

Fish Species: Spanish mackerel
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Greg French Sarasota top water plug Spanish mackerel
Greg French Sarasota top water plug Spanish mackerel

Justin Stewart Sarasota fly Spanish mackerel
Justin Stewart Sarasota fly Spanish mackerel


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Rick Grassett

About The Author: Captain Rick Grassett

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 Rick Grassett