lots of tarpon and snook
Capt. Van Hubbard
June 14, 2009
Boca Grande - Saltwater Fishing Report
Web report for June 14th of 09. Captain Van Hubbard
Lots of tarpon and snook but they can be challenging with our crazy weather.
Winds have calmed down but recent high pressure system has held there direction from the north; holding our bite back. We have plenty of tarpon and crystal clear waters. They have turned on briefly here but lack the consistency we are used to. We have caught some nice silver kings but not landed any real whoppers in the last week. Crabs are still the early AM ticket and threadfins work as the sun gets up and you can catch some. Fluorocarbon leaders are a must with clear waters. You can see most bites and the silver shine as the fish eat in the crystal blue/green waters will imprint on your brain forever. Even after thirty-four years of tarpon guiding every tarpon stills gets my juices flowing. The passion for silver king acrobatics has not diminished and I hope hangs with me forever! It took slow motion videos when we were doing the TV Series back in the eighties to illustrate the gyrations and contortions these beautiful fish can achieve. We are so lucky to share and view these gymnastics exercises. I expect a better bite as our tides pick up later this week on the New Moon. The crabs should flow again and turn on these big sardines.
Snook finally showed up in the Passes and I have no idea where they hid during the season but they are abundant now! We have seen schools of hundreds of snook and even about one hundred big fish. Larry Dean of Toledo, Ohio had a life fishing experience last Monday. He landed his first snook between rain storms and she was over twenty seven pound on the Boga Grip, not an estimate, and forty some inches. Then we tackled tarpon and got him a nice eighty pound fish while Merry Beth shot some great photos for him to share. Sable Trust had a group tarpon trip Friday and most boats hooked or caught tarpon. We all saw plenty of fish and had fun followed by a great lunch at the Stump Pass Grille after fishing. It's an annual event and a ton of fun plus time for them to visit and get better acquainted.
George McNab and family had a great day of snook fishing we caught some small ones then looked for other fish and came back to release some ten to twelve pound linesiders for the climax. Other boats can be challenging but the fish are hungry. Bait minnows have been harder to find and the little fry minnows are showing up. I've been lucky most days but forty years of minnow catching has helped increase the odds in our favor. Calmer winds have helped this week too. We caught a few redfish and trout but no hot bites yet. Permit are around but hit and miss. It is fun when we intercept a school but not dependable. Crabs, shrimp and Doc's goofy Jigs are our secret weapons when we lock in on a bunch. Cliff and John flew in from Vegas to catch a bunch of snook and try some tarpon Saturday. The snook made our day, they released fish to almost twenty pounds, and Tarpon teased us for hours. We could see the fish swimming around our baits for almost thirty minutes before we decided to move on and give another captain his shots. Snook will remain the easy catching for the next few weeks. It's time to get the kids and grandchildren out since we can get fast action before they are bored. Fish early to beat the heat! Let's Go Fishin' soon. Captain Van Hubbard
Boca Grande Fishing Forecast:
better tarpon catching with stronger tides later this week. pleanty of fish but clear water. snook hot!
Target Species:
tarpon, snook
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