It's that time of year that I can't wait to great the sun in the mornings, the sunrises are spectacular and the bait is just plain thick, a very enjoyable combination.
Charlotte Harbor has been giving us non-stop action when my clients are looking for fast fishing. We fished near Oyster Shoals off of Bokeelia and found great action with big, fat Spanish mackerel. The only problem was keeping the bluefish and big ladyfish off the baits long enough for the macks to get them. We also caught a couple cobia, a few big flounder, sharks and sea trout from the same areas. Look for a mottled grass/sand bottom mix in six to ten foot depths. Our best action came over the incoming tide. This fun should continue until colder water pushes the bait schools south.
Catching large trout and redfish was a little tougher this week, patiently working oyster bars and shorelines was the key to success.
We found a few nice redfish on the eastern side of Pine Island Sound and trout up to twenty-three inches around mullet schools near oyster bars in Matlacha Pass.
Bait continues to be about as thick as possible and every gamefish we catch looks like it's about to pop from over eating. As we come off the full moon I expect fish to continue fattening up and this should continue until a hard cold front pushes the bait schools south, but hopefully no time soon. Keep an open eye and take advantage of a fishing opportunity when it comes knocking, and don't forget this is the last week to go catch a trout dinner before season closes until the first of the year.
For charter information, please contact us at:
Phone: 239-283-7960
Website: www.fishpineisland.com.
E-mail: gcl2fish@live.com.
"Catch the Action" with Captain Bill Russell
