Saltwater Fishing Report for Sarasota, Florida.
Capt. Bob Smith
May 21, 2001
Sarasota - Saltwater Fishing Report
Tarpon are here
The Tarpon have finally shown up in good numbers. What took them so long? It was probably the cold water, but they are here now. You did not need to go far because Lido beach had plenty to keep you busy. The tarpon were not Greyhounding, so you needed to look for the dark spots or shadows to find them. Afternoon had been best. This was probably due to the position of the sun and being able to spot the shadows easily.
I fished every day for the last three weeks, but until now I had very little to write about. The last good fish we caught was a 35 pound king mackerel caught by Joe Bodnar on the 3rd of May. We caught the king on artificial reef (M-1). Joe free lined a Threadfin herring on spinning tackle and also caught some other nice fish. You can see the photo of Joe's king on my web site.
The fishing then dropped off along the coast and on the Bay. This was probably due to high pressure and an overload of blue runners. The coastal waters have been and still are loaded with all kinds of baitfish. Goggle-eye and 6" baby bluefish are some of the newcomers and are all mixed in with the large schools of bait.
All of the artificial (M) reefs are holding fish now. Spanish mackerel, kingfish, permit, barracuda, little tunny and snapper on the bottom. Drifting live bait for all but the snapper is working well. Live shrimp has been best for the Spanish and snapper with live crab and shrimp for the permit. Live baitfish works for the big kings and cuda. Little tunny will take it all.
The (I) reefs still have too many blue runners on them but it can be a lot fun for the kids. The (I) reefs are still the best place to look for cobia.
On the Bay grass flats, we found some nice trout and Spanish mackerel. Snook are also being caught in the surf, passes and around some docks. A few redfish are also being caught but I would not want to spend my day looking for them.
Enjoy and Protect
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