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Sarasota and Venice
Capt. Rick Grassett
May 8, 2005
Sarasota - Saltwater Fishing Report
Sarasota, FL & South Andros, Bahamas Fishing Report for 4/25 through 5/9/2005
Anglers on the Snook Fin-Addict had good action with bluefish, trout and ladyfish on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay during the last week of April. Sarasota Herald-Tribune outdoor editor, Steve Gibson, and “Guide To Fishing” TV host, Capt. Mel Berman, joined me for a trip in Sarasota Bay on Monday, April 25th. We had fast action with bluefish at the Middleground flat and trout near Buttonwood Harbor on CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos.
The following day, Pat Campbell from Toronto, OH, and Aledia Tush, from Sarasota, FL, fished Sarasota Bay with me on a windy day. We fished the Middleground flat and deep grass flats near Big Pass where they caught numerous bluefish and trout to 22” on CAL jigs with shad tails.
Later in the week, John Wolfstaetter from New York City, and Norm Worthington, from Siesta Key, FL, fly fished the shallow flats of north Sarasota Bay with me on two separate trips. Although we had many opportunities to sight cast to reds in shallow water with a fly, we weren’t able to catch any. John had a couple of strikes on Clousers and my Flats Minnow fly near Buttonwood Harbor, but didn’t hook either fish. We did catch a few trout, bluefish and ladyfish on Clouser flies fished on an intermediate fly line, just to bend the rod with something.
On Saturday morning, April 30th, Rusty Chinnis, from Longboat Key, FL, Ed Chiles, from Anna Maria Island, FL, Jim Knowles, from Bradenton, FL, Bill King, from Osprey, FL, Pat Campbell, from Toronto, OH and I traveled to Bonefish Bay Club at South Andros Island, Bahamas for a week of fly fishing for bonefish.
We had a great week catching numerous bonefish, which averaged 2 to 3-pounds. Jim and Ed had a particularly good day fishing the west side of the island one day when Ed caught and released a 9-pound bonefish. Some anglers caught as many as 7 or 8 bonefish per day with 3 or 4 fish per person being about average. I caught and released 5 one day and 3 or 4 on several other days. A #4 Gotcha was, by far, the most popular fly. A couple of cudas were also caught or hooked during the week on fly and spinning tackle.
We had a great time swapping stories at the end of the day over a cold Kalik while we dined on fresh Bahamian seafood. We were treated to snapper, grouper, lobster and conch prepared several different ways. Even more interesting than our own stories, were some of the stories our guides told during the week.
Several other anglers at the lodge, mostly from the Lakeland and Orlando, FL area also had good action during the week. A couple of them caught more than 20 fish per angler on a couple of days.
If you are looking for a quality bonefishing experience with good numbers of fish and the chance to catch a double digit bonefish, I recommend that you check out Bonefish Bay Club. Their location on South Andros gives them easy access to the south and west coasts of Andros Island where the fishing pressure is lighter than other areas of the island. They can be reached at www.bonefishbayclub.com or 1-800-766-9137.
Next week’s tides are favorable for reds, snook and trout on the flats, particularly early in the week. Tarpon should become plentiful any day now. The water temperature is still a little on the cool side, but with a few warm days it will warm quickly.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
www.flyfishingflorida.net
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