Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action with reds, snook, trout and tarpon during the past couple of weeks. The best action was with reds caught on a fly in Charlotte Harbor. We also had a bonus of large late season tarpon, also on a fly.
My friend, kayak fishing guide Steve Gibson of Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing, invited me on my first kayak fishing trip on Monday, October 16. Many of you also know Steve as the outdoor editor of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Steve took me to Picayune Strand State Forest, south of Naples to fish freshwater canals for Oscars and Mayan cichlids. We saw something out of the ordinary as we drove into the state forest, which we both agreed was probably a black bear.
After getting accustomed to fishing out of the kayak, we paddled several of the canals and caught a few Oscars, but Steve opted to move further south to fish canals along Tamiami Trail where the action might be faster. It was a good move, as we spent the rest of the afternoon catching and releasing numerous Oscars and Mayan cichlids on 4 and 5-weight fly rods with poppers and Steve's Myakka Minnow. I took one of his Myakka Minnows to Montana recently and caught a nice brown trout on the Madison River with it. That's a versatile fly! Steve can be reached at www.kayakfishingsarasota.com to book a saltwater or freshwater guided kayak fishing trip.
Phil Scott, from Richmond, IN, and his brother, Brian, from OH, fished Sarasota Bay with me the next day. The action was slow to start, but we got on a good trout bite in Roberts Bay where we caught and released more than 15 trout to 18" on DOA Deadly Combos. Fly angler, Eric Adamson from Lakeland, FL and a guest snook fished with me that evening. The action was slow but steady, despite a strong incoming tide. They caught and released 5 or 6 snook to 23" and lost a few others on a variety of flies.
Suzy Nolan and Jessie Smith, both from Sarasota, FL, fished Little Sarasota Bay with me on Thursday, Oct. 19th. We worked around oyster bars from Point Crisp to Blackburn Point with DOA Deadly Combos and CAL jigs with shad tails. They caught and released a pair of reds, several snook and a couple of jacks.
Fly anglers, Kyle Ruffing and Jon Yenari, both from Sarasota, FL, had a banner day with reds in Charlotte Harbor on Friday. We waded a sand bar near Bull Bay where they caught and released 5 reds to 24" on a black crab fly pattern. They also caught a couple of trout to 18" and a bluefish on Clouser and Jiggy flies. Great day!
My son-in-law, Andy Cotton and I fished the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers/Coastal Conservation Association's "Fall Fly fishing Challenge" on Saturday, October 21st. Since I had been on a good bite the day before, we headed back to the same area. Although there weren't as many fish there on Saturday, there were still enough for us to be winners. Andy won the redfish division with 38" and I was 2nd with 29.75". We had a great turnout for the tournament with 40 of the top fly anglers on the west coast of Florida participating.
Hal Lutz, from Parish, FL and Shannon Ward, from Atlanta, GA, tarpon fished with me in Port Charlotte the next day. We checked several of the canals that normally hold fish and found a few that wouldn't bite. However, we did find large tarpon feeding on ladyfish in the Peace River from the 41 bridges all the way to the mouth of the river. Hal jumped a tarpon of about 130-pounds or more on a black and purple Enrico Puglisi Mullet fly. He had 5 spectacular jumps before the fish landed on the leader breaking it. We hit a couple of other canals and then poled a shoreline along the west wall of Charlotte Harbor where Shannon caught and released a redfish on a bendback. We were headed in for the day when we found another tarpon feeding frenzy. This time the tarpon didn't want the black and purple fly, but when I changed to an Enrico Puglisi pinfish pattern, Hal had an immediate hook up. He landed the fish, an estimated 120-pounder after a long battle. The fish slugged it out below the surface conserving her energy, but in the end Hal had her along side the boat. Congratulations Hal!
Stan and Mary Order, from Owings Mills, MD, fished Charlotte harbor with me on Monday and Wednesday of this week. They caught a redfish and several trout each day on DOA Deadly Combos and CAL jigs with shad tails. A front came through on Monday evening, forcing the cancellation of our trip on Tuesday. Stan is a retired physician and professor at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore who was instrumental in perfecting the radiation process used for bone marrow transplants.
Ken Kolinski and Jim Essig, both from Toledo, OH, tarpon fished with me in Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda canals on Thursday. The large tarpon that were feeding on ladyfish in the Peace River were gone following Monday's front, but there were some smaller fish in canals. They jumped a pair of tarpon to 10 or 12-pounds and caught and released a 24" snook on DOA TerrorEyz.
We are coming into one of my favorite times of the year. Reds on the flats, snook at night or false albacore, Spanish mackerel, cobia and tripletail along the beach will all be good options in the coming days and weeks. Wade for reds and look for tailers on low tides, choose a strong tide for snook at night or head for the beach when the wind is out of the east.
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