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.
Dick Reece, from Dayton, OH, and Keith McClintock, from Lake Forest, IL, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Monday, 2/25. It was a windy day, but we found some protection along the west side of the bay. They had good action catching trout to 18", including 7 or 8 in the slot, and several blues to 3-pounds drifting deep grass flats near Bishop Point on CAL jigs with shad tails. A front passed through on Tuesday, 2/26, and with the wind gusting to more than 25-mph that morning, we decided to reschedule.
Linda Foy, from Twin Bridges, MT, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Wednesday, 2/27. We fished the west side of the bay near Bishop Point. We caught and released 4 or 5 Spanish mackerel and several blues and trout on Ultra Hair Clouser flies fished on sink tip fly lines.
Anna Maria Island and Sarasota winter residents, Bill Morrison and Gary Marple, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Thursday, 2/28. Action was a slower than Wednesday, but they caught and released trout and a Spanish mackerel on Ultra Hair Clouser flies on deep grass at the Middleground flat and near Bishop Point..
Fly anglers Nick Reding, from Longboat Key, FL, and Tony Merlis, from NH, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Friday, 3/1. We had a brisk northwest wind and very little sun as another front moved through. We waded a sand bar and I poled several shallow flats on the east side of the bay. Despite tough conditions they caught and released a few trout and a nice flounder on Clouser and my Grassett Flats Minnow fly.
I spoke on "Saltwater Fly Fishing" and helped my friends at the DOA Fishing Lures booth at the News Channel 8 "Outdoors Expo & Boat Show" (formerly the "Frank Sargeant Outdoors Expo & Boat Show") on Saturday, 3/2. Retailers, manufacturers and fishing and hunting experts shared their knowledge and showcased new products at one of the biggest annual outdoor shows in the southeast. DOA's hot new bait, the Airhead, has a wide profile and an enticing wiggle that is sure to drive fish crazy!
Martin Marlowe, from NY, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Monday, 3/4. He had steady action with trout to 18", including several in the slot, near Long Bar on Ultra Hair Clouser flies fished on a sink tip fly line. I threw the new DOA Airhead bait for a while over deep grass and caught and released several nice trout on it.
Anna Maria Island and Sarasota winter residents, Bill Morrison and Gary Marple, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Tuesday morning, 3/5. We fished an area of deep water with a mud bottom, which will often hold fish in winter, and caught several silver trout and a flounder on Ultra Hair Clouser flies and a CAL jig with a shad tail. They also had good action with spotted sea trout over deep grass near Long Bar also on Ultra Hair Clouser flies. Tony Merlis, from NH, and his daughter, Jennifer, from MD, fished the same areas with me that afternoon. They also caught and released trout and several nice Spanish mackerel
on Ultra Hair Clouser flies.
A front blew through on Wednesday morning, 3/6, and with wind at 20 mph before our start time, that fly fishing trip was canceled. Mike Perez, from Sarasota, FL, fished Sarasota Bay with me on a blustery day on Thursday afternoon, 3/7. Following Wednesday's front it was sunny, but cool and windy. However, he had steady action with trout, Spanish mackerel, blues and a pompano on Clouser flies and CAL jigs with shad tails near Long Bar.
Bruce Marlowe, from RI, got out of the northeast just ahead of the latest snow storm just in time to snook fish with his dad, Martin Marlowe from NY, and me on Friday evening, 3/8. We fished lighted docks in the ICW from Little Sarasota Bay to the Venice Inlet. They had steady action catching and releasing more than a dozen snook to 25" and several trout on my Grassett Snook Minnow fly.
With a new moon on Monday, tides will be good all of next week. Since water temperatures have dropped sharply following a couple of strong fronts recently, afternoons may fish better than mornings. You should find trout, Spanish mackerel, blues, pompano and more on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay. You may also find blues and Spanish mackerel in passes when the tide is moving. Look for reds around docks, in potholes and on the edges of bars when the tide is low or on shallow flats on sunny afternoons when the tide is high.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
Orvis- Endorsed Outfitter Guide
CB's Saltwater Outfitters-2011 Orvis Outfitter of the Year
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com
