Trout the best bet over the deep grass
Steve Gibson
February 17, 2010
Sarasota - Saltwater Fishing Report
Fishing has been good whenever we can get out.
The best bet is spotted seatrout on the deeper grass areas of Sarasota Bay.
We have been getting trout to 6 pounds on a variety of flies and lures. Top fly is my Big Eye Baitfish Fly. Top lures include the D.O.A. CAL Jig (1/8-ounce head) with a gold or root beer paddle tail and the MirrOlure Mirrodiine.
Potholes along the Intracoastal Waterway near Palma Sola Bay have been producing trout to 4 pounds on jigs and hard plugs. Redfish are fairly numerous in the Palma Sola shallows on the incoming tide.
Tim Peterson of Minnesota fished with me and did fairly well in trying conditions. He connected on seatrout to 4 pounds on the Big Eye Baitfish. Trout were plentiful, but the bite was extremely light and tough to detect. In all, we managed 30 trout, with Tim's 4-pounder topping the totals.
Another cold front hit the area earlier in the week. We're keeping our collective fingers crossed that we don't experience another snook kill. The species was hit hard in January.
Freshwater fishing has been fair at best, with bass, bluegill, shellcracker and speckled perch cooperating. Best flies include bead-head nymphs, scuds and Wooly Buggers.
Sarasota Fishing Forecast:
We're looking for improved action whenever we get four or five days in a row of warm weather.
Target Species:
spotted seatrout, redfish, snook
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