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Fishing Report for the Florida Panhandle
Capt. Alex Crawford
October 11, 2003
Carrabelle - Saltwater Fishing Report
Blowin’ and rainin’ on football Saturday. Some guides take their customers fishing on days like today, but not this one. It is Saturday morning and the wind is SE at 15 knots, seas are 3 to 5 and my Doppler radar shows storm cells across the entire Panhandle. Bottom line is that today Mother Nature wins. If I were to take my anglers out in this soup, they would be miserable, when the primary objective is to have fun and catch fish. The prudent thing to do is reschedule, as difficult as that may be at times for everyone. Plus, anyone in their right mind would seriously question the Captain’s judgment and never come back again. And I would not blame them. Repeat customers are the very heart of my charter fishing service and creating new ones all the time is harder than making sure the regular folks are always happy.
So, today is a day off and I am already planning the party, FSU/Miami, UGA/TN and Sox/Yankees. BYOB!
Inshore, the Apalachicola Bay is chocked full of silver dollar size pogies. Perfect size baits for trout, reds and snappers. By the way, snapper season closes October 31st until about the third week of April. We still target gray, lane and vermillion snappers through the fall and winter. The groupers are moving nearshore with the cooler water. This week my catches included keeper size red and gags only 7 miles out. Live pogies did the trick. Triggerfish are stacked up in huge schools offshore now. We caught 3 dozen or so on squid and Number 1 live bait hooks last Monday. The biggest red snappers we had this week were caught on dead cigar minnows on top flat lines. Even had one 10 pounder eat a minnow on a wire leader intended for Kings. That is unusual for a snapper to bite on a wire leader.
White shrimp are in the bay and the trout are having a feast. Big reds are moving into the passes. The sheepshead bite is starting under the bridges. Whiting are numerous and good size in the surf. The flounder bite has turned on big time. More anglers should target this great-eating flatfish. The pesky cats and sharks are less of a problem now. So, get out of the woods and go fish!
Until next tide, tight lines and solid hookups,
Captain Alex Crawford
Proud Member Florida Outdoor Writers Association
Proud Member Florida Guides Association
www.topknots.com
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