Pine Island Sound, Charlotte Harbor & Matlacha Pass
Capt. Glenn Grimes
February 13, 2005
Fort Myers - Saltwater Fishing Report
Well the cold fronts keep rolling thru but the fishing has been good to excellent between the fronts.The redfish have been good one day and next to impossible to find the next.The reds have been running anywhere from 18" to 25".Nice for the frying pan or grill.Seatrout fishing has been excellent especially on the afternoon outgoing tide.The trout have been running from 14" to 21".
On Wednesday the 9th the greenbacks were in by the thousands so I netted enough to fill my well completely full.I picked up my clients at the Punta Rassa boat ramp near the Sanibel causeway.We proceeded to go to a flat near St. James city.We managed to get some small trout with one of 18" keeper.After about an hour we moved to another spot to try as the tide was about to change.Fishing was kinda slow due to the lack of moving water but one of my clients managed to catch the biggest trout of the trip a 21.5"long.
The next stop proved to be a good one with the tide just beginning to move out.The trout went on a feeding frenzy.Using the greenbacks I had netted earlier we fished them under a cajun thunder popping corks with 16" of mono leader.This proved to be the ticket as they had a bite on just about every cast.The fish were nice average size of 16" to 20"long.They ended up catching around 40 + seatrout.The action was fast and furious for about an hour and then it was time to go.It is very hard to leave when the fish are still banging.
On Saturdays trip I was after some redfish but just about every spot that I wanted to fish somebody was already fishing the spots.After trying several spots I went to one flat armed with the cajun thunder corks and a D.O.A. shrimp imitation lure.The D.O.A. is the hot artificial bait at the moment.The tide was about half way thru the drop when I pulled up.The first 10 casts netted 8 fish from 14" to 18"long.I don't know how many were caught because they were hitting as fast as you could get a cast to the fish.I like it when a plan comes together.The trout were nice average size from 16" to over 20"long.
I am booking trips for the spring season.More and more resorts are coming back on line to serve your vacation needs.The snook will start their annual migration to the coast as soon as the water warms a little.They will be big and hungry females looking to put on weight for the upcoming spawn.Late March and April are the prime months for big snook.
Also tarpon are just around the corner.So book your trip now for some of the most exciting fishing that Florida has to offer.For more info on trips check out my website at www.pine-island-fishing.com.Well I will see you next week.
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