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Sarasota and Venice
Capt. Rick Grassett
July 15, 2007
Sarasota - Saltwater Fishing Report
Capt. Rick Grassett’s Sarasota, FL Fishing Report for 7/9 through 7/15/2007
Anglers fishing with me this week had decent tarpon action with flies and live bait. Although tarpon have thinned out, there are still plenty of fish available. The pattern has been to have singles, doubles and smaller schools moving both north and south. Tarpon have not been showing well on the surface, so drifting baits early in the day in deeper water has been an effective technique. Later in the day, tarpon in shallow water have been providing sight-fishing opportunities with flies and live baits.
Eric Adamson and his daughter, Raene, both from Lakeland, FL, fished with me on Monday. They had an exceptional trip last year, landing a pair of tarpon on a fly and live bait, but this year they had to work harder. They jumped a pair of tarpon and Raene landed one of them, a feisty 85 or 90-pounder with a live crab on spinning tackle. We got to see the “take” as the big fish gobbled a live crab under a float in 6’ of gin clear water.
The next day Sarasota Herald-Tribune Outdoors Editor, Steve Gibson, fished with me. We had a few shots early in the day in deep water along Siesta Key and had one bite on a live crab. We moved to shallower water as visibility improved and before long tarpon began giving us the shots we needed to be successful with a fly. Almost every fish Gibby cast to with a big black Deceiver (Shubat’s Mr. Blackie) showed interest in the fly, followed or tried to eat it. He had two bites on the fly and hooked and landed the 2nd fish, a strong, young male estimated at about 80-pounds. Gibby fought the fish hard, rolling him over 10 or 12 times close to the boat, but each time the fish recovered and stayed just out of my reach. I finally got my hands on the fish and he gave me a face full of water as he surrendered!
We didn’t see many tarpon at all on Wednesday, but on Thursday they were back in their normal pattern. I started Thursday’s fly trip later in the morning and fished shallow water the entire trip. We had more than a dozen shots at tarpon but didn’t hook up. If you’ve ever tried to catch a tarpon on a fly, you know that the fly must not only be in the right place, but moving in the right direction. With several variables, it usually takes multiple shots before everything is just right. It is challenging but worth every bit of the effort!
Friday the 13th wasn’t unlucky at all for Matt Harris and Patrick Hogan, from Atlanta, GA, and Chris Buchanan, from Hilton Head, SC. They had 3 tarpon between 70 and 90-pounds, to the boat, all caught with a live crab. The first 2 were caught by drifting live crabs under a float in 15’ of water off Siesta Key and the last one was caught in 4’ of water with a live crab under a float. Lucky 13!
We didn’t see many tarpon in deep water early off Siesta Key on Saturday, but had a dozen or more shots with a fly and live bait in shallow water later in the morning. The 2.9’ extreme high tide, due to the new moon, allowed tarpon to be all over the place instead of tracking along a more predictable route.
When tarpon fishing in skinny water, there are several factors necessary to be successful. You must make a delicate presentation with a fly or a lightweight lure to avoid spooking them. Live baits are fished best under a float, so that they can be cast well ahead of tarpon. Large live baits or a heavy lure that lands close to tarpon in skinny water is like throwing a rock at them! Lastly, you must be quiet. No slamming hatches and stomping feet and use electric trolling motors sparingly, if at all. I prefer to anchor on the route they are traveling and take my shots from a “dead” boat if possible. If I can’t get a fly or bait in front of moving tarpon from an anchored boat, I’ll use a combination of my push pole and trolling motors to get in front of them. Using an outboard in shallow water will usually spook them for sure.
Tarpon fishing should hold up good for the rest of July, although they will thin out more toward the end of the month. As tarpon thin out along the beaches, they will move into bays from Tampa Bay to Charlotte Harbor and gorge themselves on a variety of baits.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
www.flyfishingflorida.net
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