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Sarasota and Venice
Capt. Rick Grassett
September 12, 2004
Sarasota - Saltwater Fishing Report
Florida Keys and Venice, FL Fishing Report for 9/4 through 9/12/2004
Blame it on Ivan! Lost days of fishing that is. Even though he’s not even here yet, Ivan has already caused me to lose a day of fishing. We’ve all got our fingers crossed that he’ll stay away.
I spent a couple of days fishing in the Florida Keys last week before we were thrown out of the Keys by a mandatory evacuation on Friday. I traveled down to Islamorada with my wife, Karen, on Tuesday to fish the Islamorada-Sarasota Shootout, an informal, family fun, fishing tournament organized by anglers from Islamorada and the Sarasota Sportfishing Anglers Club.
I fly fished with Capt. Duane Baker on the ocean side flats of the upper Keys on Wednesday and Thursday. Wednesday was a tough day with several shots at bonefish in the morning and only one hook up. I lost that fish due to a knot in my fly line that didn’t clear all the guides of the rod and caused the hook to pull.
Thursday was a better day, with lots of shots and more aggressive fish. I caught and released 3 bonefish, the largest a 7-pounder, that day on a crab pattern. That fish was large enough to win 2nd place in the bonefish category of the tournament. We also had a shot at a permit each day. Capt. Duane is an experienced Keys flats guide and he did a great job putting me on fish repeatedly. If you are in the upper Keys and want to catch bonefish, permit or tarpon with a fly, I would strongly recommend fishing with Capt. Duane. He can be reached at 305-852-0102 or www.keysflatsguide.com
When we returned to the dock on Thursday, we could see the panic as people were starting to pull their boats from the water to flee from Ivan. We learned that there was a mandatory evacuation, so the tournament had to be cut short by a day. Final score: Islamorada 20, Sarasota 8. Sarasota had fewer anglers this year than in past years due to the threat of Hurricane Ivan, which affected the outcome of the tournament. Lookout for Sarasota next year- Islamorada!
I made the trip back to Sarasota on Friday morning with my neighbor and friend, Capt. Rob Roberts, in his 31’ Tiara Sportfishing boat. It was an 11-hour trip across Florida Bay and up the west coast. We saw the destruction caused by Hurricane Charley on Sanibel and Captiva Islands as we passed by them. In some place it looked like a giant weed eater had passed through the area chewing up trees and stripping them of their vegetation.
Fly angler, Pat Bennett from Ft. Lauderdale, FL, sneaked in an evening snook trip ahead of Ivan with me on Saturday. The action was slow to start due to a turning tide, but once the incoming tide built up some speed the bite began. Pat caught and released about 10 snook to 23” and a 22” redfish on Grassett’s Grass Minnow, a larger profile baitfish fly and several shrimp patterns. We fished lighted docks in the ICW near Venice.
Next week’s tides are favorable for fishing the flats, snook at night and juvenile tarpon as we head toward a new moon. Hopefully, Hurricane Ivan will leave Florida alone. After Charley and Frances, we don’t need any more.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
www.flyfishingflorida.net
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