Good Action on Sarasota Bay Flats and ICW near Venice at Night
Capt. Rick Grassett
March 27, 2016
Sarasota - Saltwater Fishing Report
Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had great action catching and releasing trout, Spanish mackerel, bluefish and cobia on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay and snook at night in the ICW near Venice on flies, CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos during the past couple of weeks. With water temperatures bumping up into the mid 70's, action turned on with a variety of species in Sarasota Bay.
Anna Maria Island and Sarasota winter residents, Bill Morrison and Gary Marple, fished the ICW near Venice with me on Monday evening, 3/14. They had good action catching and releasing snook on my Grassett Snook Minnow flies. Alan Sugar, from MI, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Tuesday afternoon, 3/15. He had some action catching and releasing trout and Spanish mackerel on Ultra Hair Clouser flies fishing deep grass flats on the west side of the bay.
Mathew Gray, his dad Bob Gray and uncle, John Gray, all from Ontario, Canada, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Wednesday. 3/16. We fished deep grass flats on the east side of the bay and they had great action catching trout, Spanish mackerel and a cobia on CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos. Tony Merlis, from NH and his daughter Jen, from MN, fly fished the same areas with me on Thursday, 3/17 and caught and released trout, Spanish mackerel and bluefish on Ultra Hair Clouser flies.
I participated in the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers (MCFF) fly casting clinic as an instructor at the Meadows Community Association property in Sarasota on Saturday, 3/19. Sponsors CB's Saltwater Outfitters, Economy Tackle, West Wall Shallow Water Outfitters and The Compound displayed their lines of fly tackle for participants to cast. This a great benefit for MCFF members and the event was well attended with 40 to 50 members participating.
My brother, Joey Grassett and Chris Johnson, both from Seaford, DE, fished several days in Sarasota Bay with me during the week of 3/21. We fished deep grass flats and they had good action catching trout and bluefish on CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos.
There will be two more CB's Saltwater Outfitters Orvis-Endorsed Fly Fishing Schools, next Saturday, April 2nd and Saturday, April 16. There are still some spots available in the schools, which will be the last ones until the fall. The course will cover fly casting basics, line control, shooting line, the roll cast, leader construction, fly selection and saltwater fly fishing techniques. Designed for beginning and intermediate fly casters, we will focus on basics but also work with intermediate casters on correcting faults and improving casting skills. Cost for the school, which will run from 8:30 AM to 2:30 PM, is $150 per person and includes the use of Orvis fly tackle, a text book and lunch. Contact CB's Saltwater Outfitters at (941) 349-4400 or [email protected] to make reservations.
Trout, Spanish mackerel, bluefish and more on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay and night snook fishing around lighted docks and bridges in the ICW with flies and DOA Lures should be good options. Look for reds, snook and big trout mixed with mullet schools or cruising shallow flats and edges of bars in Sarasota Bay and backcountry areas of Charlotte Harbor and lower Tampa Bay. Tripletail should also be a good option in the coastal gulf when conditions are good.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
IFFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
Orvis-Endorsed Fly Fishing Guide at CB's Saltwater Outfitters
Orvis Outfitter of the Year-2011
Sarasota Fishing Forecast:
Capt. Rick Grassett's Sarasota, FL Fishing Forecast for April 2016
This is a great month for snook on shallow flats or around lighted docks and bridges in the ICW at night. Reds and trout will also be more active as the water warms and baitfish become more plentiful. You might find Spanish mackerel, blues and pompano in passes or on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay. Look for Spanish mackerel, false albacore (little tunny), cobia and tripletail, in the coastal gulf this month. Tarpon should also make an appearance in back country areas and in the coastal gulf later in the month.
Tarpon will become more plentiful this month as resident fish make their way out of rivers and creeks and early arriving migratory fish begin to show along beaches, particularly by the end of the month. Water temperature in the gulf is a key factor with 80 degrees being an optimum temperature. As the water warms towards that, fish will become more plentiful. Resident fish may be rolling on deep grass flats in some of the same places that you find trout, laid up on edges of shallow grass flats or along sand bars. Spin anglers might score with a DOA Shrimp, Baitbuster or 4" CAL Shad Tail while fly anglers might connect with a black Deceiver or Tarpon Bunny fly. Keep your tarpon tackle, rigged and ready, this time of year so you're able to take advantage of any opportunity that arises.
Snook season remains open this month, but will close on April 30th (full regulations can be found at www.myfwc.com). Personally I'll continue to ask clients to release them since they are such a magnificent gamefish and slot-size snook are still relatively hard to come by. They should be staging on flats, around sand and oyster bars, on points of islands and around docks and bridges close to passes in the ICW. Spin anglers should score with CAL jigs and a variety of plastic tails including the new 4" CAL Shad, DOA Baitbusters and Airheads or surface walking top water plugs. Fish the edges of bars and potholes when the tide is low and mangrove shorelines or points of islands when the tide is high. You'll also find snook around docks and bridges in the ICW. Night snook fishing should be productive with small white flies, like my Grassett Snook Minnow fly, CAL jigs with shad tails and jerk worms, DOA Shrimp and Tiny TerrorEyz. Fish peak tidal flows for the best action. Docks and bridges in the ICW from Sarasota to the Venice Inlet are usually productive for snook in the spring
Reds will spend more time feeding on shallow flats due to more plentiful bait. Look for them in potholes, the edges of bars and around docks when the tide is low. You'll find them higher on flats over shallow grass or around mangrove shorelines when the tide is high. I like CAL jigs with shad tails for reds in shallow water. They are easy to fish in shallow water and are a good way to find reds. My Grassett Flats Minnow is my "go to" fly for reds. It fishes well in shallow water and its bend back design makes it very weedless. You may also find big trout in skinny water in many of the same places that you find reds. The same lures, flies and techniques used to find and catch reds will also work for big trout. I like the flats of north Sarasota Bay for reds and big trout in April.
Trout should be plentiful on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay. I like to drift and cast ahead of my drift with CAL jigs and a variety of plastic tails or DOA Deadly Combos. Fly anglers should score with weighted flies on sink tip fly lines. I tie Clousers with Ultra Hair on long shank hooks so that they are durable and will hold up to toothy and rough mouth fish. Deep grass flats with a good tidal flow like the Middleground, Radio Tower and Marina Jack flats are usually good due to their close proximity to passes and good tidal flow.
You might also find blues, Spanish mackerel, pompano or flounder mixed with trout on deep grass flats. The same lures, flies and techniques that you use to find trout on deep grass will work for these species, too. You'll need to tip your leader with wire or heavy fluorocarbon when blues and mackerel are around. I prefer heavy fluorocarbon and long shank hooks whenever possible, since that usually won't affect the trout bite. Blues and mackerel usually don't feed on the surface in the bay like they do in the open gulf, but you may see bait showering or boils indicating fast moving fish, feeding just below the surface. Pompano may "skip" when you run or drift past them giving their location away. When that happens, circle back upwind and drift the area. Flounder are often found in potholes, on the edges of bars or on mud bottom.
There should be good action in the coastal gulf this month with Spanish and king mackerel, false albacore (little tunny), cobia and tripletail. Look for Spanish mackerel or albies feeding on the surface. You might find tripletail or cobia around crab trap floats. Your tarpon spin or fly tackle can do double duty for cobia and medium spinning tackle or an 8 or 9-weight fly rod will cover everything else. Artificial reefs or natural areas of hard bottom may hold any of these species. When fishing these areas you will need to get your lure, fly or bait down in the water column to the level where fish are located.
April is one of my favorite months. There should be good action in Sarasota Bay on both shallow and deep grass flats, in the coastal gulf for mackerel, albies, cobia and tripletail and with tarpon by the end of the month. I like early season tarpon, since they are usually aggressive, but there should be lots of other options, too. Whatever you choose to do, please limit your kill, don't kill your limit!
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
IFFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
Orvis-Endorsed Fly Fishing Guide at CB's Saltwater Outfitters
Orvis Outfitter of the Year-2011
Target Species:
reds, snook, trout, bluefish, Spanish mackerel, pompano, tripletail, false albacore
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