Fishing Report for Pine Island Sound to Sarasota Bay, Florida

Capt. Butch Rickey
December 10, 2005
Pine Island Sound - Saltwater Fishing Report

REPORT FOR WEEK ENDING 12/10/05 by Capt. Butch Rickey

I managed to get in three trips this week. We had a cold front early in the week that hung around and mixed with yet another cold front late in the week, causing unsettled weather for most of the week. The threat of rain was with us, but for the most part manifested only as some scattered showers.

The week began on a sour note, as well. I was supposed to have my first trip with Dale Grantman, who winters here in Punta Rassa from Iowa, and his son-in-law, Brad. But, that morning could easily have turned into disaster. While at the Circle K fueling up and getting the boat ready I had a real scare.

I had the fuel nozzle locked and was at the van doing something when I saw a guy bale out of his truck and run to the boat and turn off the nozzle. Unbeknownst to me, the nozzle had failed to turn off when the tank was full, and at that point I calculated later there was nearly ten gallons of raw gasoline in the cockpit and motor well of the Talon, and on the ground all around the trailer. One spark and it would have looked like a terrorist bombing! I wasn’t sure what to do first, but all I could visualize was some passerby tossing a cigarette butt and blowing everything up. So, I jumped into the van and pulled the boat away from the growing puddle of gas. At that point, most of the gas had run out of the cockpit through the scuppers, and I finished cleanup of the boat with rags.

Susan, the store manager was already aware of the situation and in the process of closing the store. I guess they have a process they have to go through to treat the fuel spill, which includes pylons, treating the area, and closing the store.

Finally, I headed to the ramp happy that the situation hadn’t escalated into something horrible. When I got the Talon into the water and jumped in to crank her up, the engine alarm came on and the motor wouldn’t start. I had no idea what was going on, but in retrospect maybe God was looking over my shoulder and not allowing me to start the motor just yet.

I met Dale and Brad as they arrived a few minutes later. I already had the boat back on the trailer and ready for a trip to the shop. We were able to reschedule the trip for Tuesday morning. I was upset about missing the fishing on Monday, as the front was on our door and the wind was out of the south. I knew the fishing would be as good as it gets this time of year. I also knew that if the front pushed on through, the bite would be tough on Tuesday. A quick trip to Fowler Marine revealed there was a problem with the kill switch.

Tuesday morning Dale, Brad, and I were ready to try it again. The front had passed and the wind was around to the north. We had a big low tide at around 1 PM. The water would be falling all morning long. Not the kind of tide I like to fish, but what Mother Nature was dealing all week.

I had hoped to get to the flats while there was enough water present to give us a shot at redfish, but by the time I got there the water was well on it’s way out, and the wind was pushing it hard. I was concerned about getting stuck on the falling tide. We had fish on the flat, but they were laid up and not a bit interested in eating. We moved on.

The next spot is one of my favorite places to be on a cold and blowing winter day. It’s full of snook, gag grouper, snapper, trout, and small redfish. But, the front had everyone tight-lipped and we only managed to catch a small snook, a Jewfish, and a trout as we worked the area hard for a couple of hours. As the water was getting really skinny, the opportunity for pothole fishing opened up. It’s my favorite winter fishing activity. We headed off to the first hole, that is rarely not full of speckled trout. The fish are usually a mix of smaller juveniles and plenty of slot fish. The hole, for whatever reason, rarely has outsized trout. But, I was looking for action, and it was there. It wasn’t the blazing hot action the hole usually produces, but it was enough of a bite for us to have fun.

Once that action began to slow I asked the guys if they wanted to catch some big trout. Of course, the answer was “yes”. After a quick move we were again in trout, but they were indeed much bigger. I don’t remember how many we caught, but the boys caught a number of nice fish before they lost interest on the slack tide.

Now, I wanted to find someplace that still had some water moving, and decided to take a look a Long Cut. Usually, it’s full of trout by this time of year. We only saw two boats in the whole area, and the guys in one of them told us they hadn’t seen a fish all morning. Not promising. We fished our Bass Assassins and managed a couple of small Jewfish, but that was it.

It was OK, though. Dale, who is 77 years young, and in great shape, was getting tired and about ready to call it a day. He’s a great outdoorsman, and said that he’d really enjoyed the day and learned a lot. I hope I’m still fishing at his age.

I knew the bite would be tough for my trip with my old friends Chic and John Bruning, on Wednesday. The wind was around to the east at about 20. But, I knew that whatever transpired out there, we’d have a good tide. Chic, John, and I share a historical connection to Captiva. His mom still lives there, and has since the late 30’s. And, Chic and John are both great fun to have in the boat, and we always have lots of laughs.

With the wind already up from the east, we decided that staying on the east side of the Sound would be prudent. The tide wasn’t as strong outgoing as the day before, but with the help of the brisk east wind it was moving out pretty quickly.

Our first stop was at a series of oyster bars that always have plenty of fish. I had the boys throwing a Johnson Silver Minnow 1/2 oz. spoon, and an Exude RT Slug. We worked the area over very well, and had a couple of half-hearted hits, but the fish just weren’t interested in eating.

We moved on to a place where we could take advantage of the falling tide and hopefully tangle with a some scrappy gag grouper, and maybe a snook or two. We switched to a Rattletrap, a DOA TerrorEyez, and an Exude RT. We caught probably 7 or 8 grouper, about equally on each bait. Nothing seemed to steal the day as far as production was concerned.

Once we had fished the area completely we headed on to another area where we could again take advantage of good moving water on the falling tide. We managed a couple of gag grouper, one trout, a couple of juvenile Jewfish, and a jack crevalle, but no snook. When other boats began to show up, we moved on.

The tide was finally getting low enough to push fish off into the potholes. It was finally time for trout action. At the first stop we found plenty of action, and the best colors seemed to be yellow/gold fleck and pink/gold fleck. The fish seemed to be bunched up in certain parts of the hole for not particular reason. They weren’t staged where they usually are. But, John and Chic found and caught them, and we had fun catching them on about every other cast for quite some time.

I asked the boys if they’d like to leave these fish biting and catch some outsized trout. Of course, they were ready to go! I figured they probably thought I was full of BS, but one of the things I’ve learned in almost 20 years of guiding is what fish hold up where. We didn’t have a proper scenario for fishing this spot, as the wind and tide were both blowing in from behind us. The only way I could have gotten a proper setup on the current would have meant throwing jigs into what was now a good 20 knots or better. Not doable. So, instead of catching a lot of big trout, we settled for less than a dozen, along with a couple of snook. John and Chic both commented on each fish they’d never seen such big trout caught on artificials. They were pleased with those fish, which were all caught on Bass Assassins and Exude RT’s.

As the tide slowed, so did we. We were all tired and wind weary, and decided to head in. We knew the ride would likely get exciting as we rounded the corner at York Island, and had to face what was now a southeast wind at 20. And, the water didn’t disappoint. The falling tide was running against the wind, and the chop was nasty. But, knowing the Chic and John are both experienced boaters and fishermen, I felt I could use the Talon’s great hull as it was designed to be used. I sped up, and let the Talon hop merrily across the chop with no harsh banging around and no water in our faces.

Back at the ramp as we parted, Chic and John gave me as nice a compliment as you can get as a guide. They told me that they had again learned a lot of new stuff, and that they catch more on their own when they’re down visiting using what they’ve learned from me in the past, than they ever did before. Made my day. It was a tough day, but lots of fun.

As fun as the first two trips were, the last trip on Friday with my old friend and loyal customer Bob McGuire, and his son Tom, was just great. We were at the first spot on the top of the high tide, just in time for the kick on the first of the falling tide.

We began with Exude RT Slugs on two rigs, one with weight, and one without, and Tom throwing a gold spoon. Well, it wasn’t too long before Tom, who hadn’t been fishing since the last time he was here with me and his Dad several years ago, had the first redfish. It was funny. I saw the hit, and Tom reacted like he thought he’d snagged an oyster, or something. Then, he realize the oyster was alive and fighting! He brought the first redfish of a day full of them, to the boat.

Then, Tom caught the second redfish. Bob and I both missed several hits on our jigs, but finally scored a couple of redfish. The tide was fast going out, and we’d had several boats blast by. The bite stopped. I don’t know why, but I decided upon fishing a spot in the north end of the Sound that I hadn’t fished in probably two years. Perhaps it’s a function of many years of experience on the water and data and memories that we guides file away in our memories. Anyway, something was calling me to the spot, and I went. It was a long ride, but the reward came to Tom on the first cast when he hooked a redfish on a gold spoon.

Things went crazy. We had a school of redfish wadded up in a hole about a long cast in front of us. I had parked right on them. We were catching redfish two and three at a time on gold and silver spoons. A boat appeared around the corner of the island from us. He kept running his big motor instead of his trolling motor to make small moves. He could see us and could see that we were catching. And, he could certainly hear us carrying on and having fun. For the life of me, I don’t know why he wouldn’t use his trolling motor.

From that point the bite began to slow, but we’d pick up a red every once in a while. I decided to fish my way around the island, to see if we could find another school. We didn’t find a school, but we did manage a few more reds along the way. By the time we had decided to leave and turn our attention to something else, we had caught several very nice trout, and somewhere around 25 redfish!

We were fishing on my light action St. Croix Legend Tournament Series rods, which I switch to for the winter trout fishing. Tom was really impressed with how those winter redfish, which are only around 3 pounds, could pull. Bob and I decided that Tom needed to take on some small grouper on the same light tackle. That’s a challenge. The hit so hard and fast, and spin and try to run you right into the rocks where they flare their gills and dare you to get them out. It usually means a re-tie if you let them get you into the cover.

The grouper usually prefer the DOA TerrorEyez and Rattletraps, but on this day they were eating the same jigs we use for trout. Bob had the hot rod, and caught most of the fish. Most were small, but Tom did get a chance to feel the pull, and eventually caught one of his own.

By the time we had worked the area well, Bob and I realized we were both starving to death. We had worked up big appetites catching all those redfish. Fishing is hard work, but someone has to do it. So, we decided it was time for a lunch at the Waterfront Restaurant in St. James City. We capped the day with cold seafood salads. It had been an unbelievably beautiful weather day, and a day of great redfishing. We couldn’t have asked for more.

Next week we have the promise of cold weather in the 40’s, and the super low tides that come with winter. That means pothole fishing early and perhaps redfishing later on the tide. Stay tuned.

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