Anglers' fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, jumped 6 tarpon and landed 3 of them during the past couple of weeks. Fishing has been below average due to cool water. We've found fewer schools of tarpon than is to be expected this time of the year and very few happy schools. Many tarpon schools are moving fast and not showing well on the surface and not giving us many good shots. However, the happy schools we've found have eaten a crab, lure or a fly readily.
Keith McClintock, Barry Slee and Hal D'Orazio, all from Lake Forest, IL, and Dave Kinnamon, from Milwaukee, WI, fished with me the week of May 21st. Capt. Jack Hartman fished with us as the 2nd boat. We fished from north Casey Key to Longboat Key and jumped 3 tarpon, one each on a black and purple Toad fly, DOA Baitbuster and a live crab.
My friends, Russell and Annette Johnson from Clovis, NM, and sons Justin, Kyle and Pat fished a couple of days with me the week of May 28th. We rotated anglers each day, so they all had a chance to fish a day. Justin and Kyle each had tarpon of about 90-pounds to the boat caught with live crabs near Midnight Pass. A fly angler landed another tarpon of about 60-pounds later in the week fishing Longboat Key with a brown shrimp fly. Larry Ford and Pete Molinari, both from Sarasota, FL, finished out the week. Pete connected with a tarpon with a live crab near Turtle Beach, but the fish broke off. We got off the water that day just ahead of Tropical Storm Barry, which pounded us on Friday evening and early Saturday, but gave us some much needed rain.
Maybe after the weather clears early next week, we'll get back into a normal pattern? We've still been having cool weather (jackets in the morning) and water temperatures have struggled to make the high 70's, still a few degrees below the ideal temperature of 80 degrees.
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
