Good Times With Good Friends!
Capt. Butch Rickey
December 12, 2013
Pine Island Sound - Saltwater Fishing Report
Week ending 11/16/13...........
The week began on Sunday morning when my close friend Ellen Hennigan and I delivered Don and Dawn Marano's kayak to them at their condo in Bokeelia. I took two of my Ultimates along so that we could all go do a little fishing. There's an area we've been wanting to explore, but the prevailing north/northeast wind made that impossible. We decided to launch from Pineland and explore the flats to the south.
Our tide was not very favorable for a descent bite, but we weren't real concerned with how many fish we caught. The ramp and Pineland is a good one, and kayak friendly, and the folks there are very nice and helpful. As we left Pineland Marina we stopped to make a few casts along the rock that line the south side of the channel. Back in the 80's I used to launch from the old Pineland Marina, and would begin my day right there catching nice snook and wicked fighting gag grouper along those rocks with nothing more than a jerk bait on a jig head. We got a bunch of bumps on our jigs, but weren't able to hook up. We figured it much have been small snapper, and moved on.
Don and Dawn headed due south and found some oyster bars to fish. Ellen and I went exploring the shallows on the flats that were thick with mullet. The water was pitch black and it was also overcast, so we blind-cast into the mullet schools looking for some redfish action. Mullet and redfish are one of Mother Nature's partnerships, and I've caught many a redfish casting into mullet schools. Not on this day, though. We managed a trout here and there.
Ellen and I kept working our way toward the closest mangrove island, trying to find potholes along the way. It was very hard to see anything with the low sun and other conditions. Once we made it to the island we found anchoring very difficult, as the bottom as either so hard it was nigh impossible to get the stake into the bottom, or so soft it wouldn't hold.
Don and Dawn were slowly making their way out onto the flats as well. Now, later into the morning, it was easier to see some of the bottom features, and Don found a pothole that was full of trout. We were in touch over the radios, and he told us he was catching on every cast! Great!
Once we got to them, Ellen and I were also catching plenty of trout, and a couple of nice flounder. Like all bites, it eventually ended, and we called it a day and headed home.
You know how you sometimes meet someone, or a couple, and you just take to them immediately? Well, with the Maranos, it was love at first sight. They are just wonderful people, and so much fun to be with. And, our fun was far from over this day. Dawn and Don asked us to stay into the evening so that we could prepare a fresh fish dinner. Dawn is a great cook, and prepared an absolutely wonderful meal, served with white wine. It was a perfect day and evening capped off with fantastic food, great conversation, and lots of laughter.
Monday, Veterans' Day, Ellen and I made a trip out to Captiva Island to check out the launch potential at the Bruning House, and to drop off some of Tom Joseph's "Song Of The Tides" books that I still had left over. We needed to make sure I could get my van/trailer in and out of the narrow drive from Captiva Drive back down to the water on Roosevelt Channel. It was a tight fit, but no problem. Tom was out fishing, so we left the books inside the door. We would be fishing with Chic Bruning the following Monday. Of course, while we were on Captiva, we just had to hit the Green Flash Restaurant for lunch, and the Captiva Salad is as good as it ever was.
Tuesday was a busy day that began with a two hour Florida Society for Ethical Eco-tourism (Florida SEE) seminar, followed by a seminar of my own with my new friend Bonnim Tanzman (BeeTee) over on the river in North Ft. Myers. We spent the rest of the afternoon at the Irish Pub, and using their wi-fi went over using Google Earth and Bing Maps to find fishing spots such as flats, potholes, oyster bars, and more. Google is the better tool for finding them initially, and Bing is much better for getting a close look at them.
I also went over understanding tides and weather, in particular low pressure centers, and how they affect fishing, while we enjoyed a fantastic lunch and a couple of cocktails! That time also gave BeeTee and me a chance to get to know each other better. He's a fascinating and funny guy, and a lot of fun to be with. We will soon do some exploring of the river by kayak around where he lives. Should be lots of fun.
Nothing else going on the rest of the week but fronts and wind.
Target Species:
Anything That Will Bite!
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