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Southwest Florida - Naples, Marco, 10,000 Islands
Capt. Jeff Legutki
September 16, 2006
Ten Thousand Islands - Saltwater Fishing Report
Sept 16 Fishing Report Estero, Naples, 10k Islands and Everglades National Park
Fall is on the way!
Fall is on the way! Red fish are starting to gather and make large schools, as well as tarpon starting to make their way back south for the winter!
This summer was one to remember. From July through September, fishing the outside points with top water plugs provided the infamous slam on almost every trip. I think I acheived more slams this year than the past two years together.
Using the Storm Chug Bug almost exclusively was the lure to beat. The fish smashed these lures until the finish was completely knocked off, just a white piece of plastic with hooks. Talk about exciting action, I even got one of the fly fishing purist to switch over Mr. Tom Shadely of Mangrove Outfitters. One who prefers the long rod over the spinning rod had a great time on one particular outing. To say the least, I saw him jump out of his shoes a couple times with boat side smashing hits from tarpon and red fish as well as snook. The facial expression said it all!
Red fish are gathering in schools and getting ready for the spawn. This is when they get really aggressive, trying to protect their eggs from needle fish and other egg stealing critters. Making them selves visible by cruising on the top of the water colomn pushing visible wakes. A reddish tone can be seen in the water from a considerable distance. The schools move at a quick pace making it tough to keep up with them with the push pole. A light spinning rod like the St. Croix Tidemaster 7 1/2 foot med. action with a Quantum Catalyst 20 spooled with 10 lb. Power Pro will help you achieve making long cast with top water plugs, Long cast will keep you from getting to close and disturbing the schools. Most of the fish on the flats range from slot size up to the mid 30 inch range. Off the beaches and on the in-shore wrecks you can find the real brutes getting as big as 40 plus inches, here you will need th beef up your tackle up to the 30 lb. class.
Tarpon are also on their southern migration, heading back to their winter haunts. Making pit stops along the 10K Island's and resting in calm quiet bays to rest and feed. Early in the morning you can find school off the beaches rolling at first light along with the schools of glass minnows. Thread fin herring and crabs are the number one choice in baits. These are large fish ranging from 80 - 100 plus pounds. Heavier tackle is needed for these hard fighting brutes. I prefer spinning tackle in the 30 lb. class and stout rods. If conditions will allow and the fish are rolling slow and happy, the flyrod can be hard to beat. I prefer an 11wt with intermediate line. Its hard to beat the Scott Heliply and a Bauer MZ combo, the heliply has as much backbone as any other for the deeper water and the drag on the Bauer has the smoothest drag on the market in my opinion.
Snook are also on the move, starting to leave the outside points and beaches to the back bays in the tannic waters. I like the last two hours of the outgoing tide and the first two of the incoming. he low water makes them easier to see and tougher for them to hide under the branches or cut you off in the razor sharp mangrove roots.
Top water plugs and flies are my favorite method for these wonderful fish. Depending on the choice of the clients its one or the other. Bait fish patterns as well as shrimp patterns are taking their share for the top three fish mentioned above. There is one shrimp pattern that has been knocking them out in the skinny water that I fear to mention. I came up with this pattern to skip over the shallows with out snagging or getting hung up in the grass. I call it Legutki's Lazy Shrimp. Thats as much as I'll say about that because a local captain here took one of my other creations and exploited it for H2O flies in his name stealing credit and is now getting royalties off of someone else's work and creation. I wont mention any names but he knows who he is!
Other species that are making a presence is pompano. Out side on the beaches on the mid incoming tide you can find schools cruising white sand flats looking for food. Fish range from 1-4 pounds will jump all over a tube jig tipped with shrimp or a clouser in pink or tan. These little hard fighting fish are a blast with sizzling runs like a bonefish. Ultra light spinning rods or 7 wt. flyrods will get the job done. I use a floating line for this since the fish that I have been finding are in 2-3 foot of water.
Bait fish are also starting to gather along the beaches like glass minnows and pilchards, behind them are all kinds of hungry fish. Whether you prefer artificials or live bait there is no better time than now to be on the water. The crowds are still minimal and the fish are plentiful, get out and gather these riches of south Florida has to provide. Winter will be here before you know it, so take advantage now!
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