Trout and Snook Best Bets in Sarasota
Capt. Rick Grassett
April 26, 2009
Sarasota - Saltwater Fishing Report
Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB's Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action recently with trout on CAL jigs with shad tails and flies on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay. In addition, we also caught a few snook, pompano, blues and reds.
Fly angler Paul Dixon, from MI, and Todd Banner, from Bradenton, FL, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Monday, 4/13. They had steady action with trout on Ultra Hair Clouser flies, CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos along the west side of the bay near Buttonwood Harbor. The next day fly angler Terry Rychlik, from CT, fished the same area with me. He caught and released several trout on Ultra Hair Clouser flies fished on an intermediate fly line. A front was bearing down on us and forced us off the water by 10 AM. My new Garmin 545s GPS/Sounder combo unit with XM weather is great! We monitored the approaching front on the radar screen on my boat and were safely on the trailer as the front punched through. What a valuable tool!
The next day's trip was blown out as a strong northwest wind churned the area of the bay we had planned to fish. I was back on the water on Thursday with Marc Chiapperino and his son, Marc, from NJ. They had steady action with trout and a bluefish on Clouser flies and CAL jigs with shad tails. Marc caught and released a big red on my Grassett's Flats Minnow fly along a mangrove shoreline north of Long Bar.
Howard and Jason Rosenbecker, from Bradenton, FL, fished with me on Friday morning. Wind was an issue as it has been most of this spring, but they still had some action. They caught and released several trout on CAL jigs with shad tails and Clouser flies along the east side of the bay from Stephens Point to Bayshore Gardens. Jason used his new Orvis TLS fly rod and Battenkill Mid Arbor reel and christened it by catching a few fish. Detlev and Stephen Korff, from Germany, fished the same area with me that afternoon. The wind dropped a little and the action picked up. They caught and released numerous trout to 21" and a pompano on CAL jigs and Clouser flies. Longtime friend and customer Pat Campbell, from Toronto, OH, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Saturday. The action was slow to start but it finally picked up when the wind shifted to the west and allowed us to fish the west side of the bay. We caught and released several trout on CAL jigs and Clouser flies near Buttonwood Harbor.
We found reds and snook on the flats to be very challenging last week. Fly angler Jim Strouth, from Sarasota, FL, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Monday. We caught a few trout on Clouser flies near Buttonwood Harbor, but couldn't get reds and snook to bite. Fly angler Denis Clohisy, from WI, and his friend, Brian McInnis, from Sarasota, FL, fished with me for the next 3 days. We fished Little Sarasota Bay on Tuesday afternoon and evening. They caught and released trout, jacks and ladyfish before dusk on flies and jigs and 6 or 8 snook after dark on my Grassett's Snook Minnow fly. We fished hard for reds and snook the next couple of days, but just couldn't get it going. They caught and released mostly trout with a few other species (jacks, ladyfish and blues) along the way.
My friends Mark Nichols, owner of DOA Fishing Lures, and his wife, Jenny, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Friday and Saturday. On Saturday, we participated in the 14th annual Sarasota "All Release Challenge" fishing tournament. This is a fun, low stress tournament that also raises money for conservation. DOA has been a sponsor or donor, since the beginning of this event. You couldn't fish any harder for reds and snook than we did, but they didn't cooperate. We caught and released trout to 21 ½", jacks, ladyfish and bluefish on CAL jigs with grubs, jerk worms and shad tails.
Next week's two tide days are strong early next week and will get weaker by the end of the week. Trout fishing has been strong and reds and snook will have to begin eating sometime. Keep your eyes open for the first tarpon of the season, which should start showing around Sarasota Bay any time now.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
www.flyfishingflorida.net
Sarasota Fishing Forecast:
Capt. Rick Grassett's Sarasota, FL Fishing Forecast for May 2009
My favorite time of the year has arrived. Tarpon time! Tarpon fishing will take off during May as migratory fish arrive along our beaches, snook will be in the passes and in the surf and reds and trout will be feeding heavily on shallow flats. There may also still be a few king and Spanish mackerel in our area early in the month.
Usually by mid May, migratory tarpon will be plentiful along our beaches. There should be tarpon in our area before that but the numbers of fish depend on water temperature and moon phases. With a full moon on May 8th, if the water is close to 80 degrees, tarpon should be here in early May. Resident tarpon will be the first to show as they make their way out of rivers and creeks. You'll find them on deep grass flats in many areas from Tampa Bay to Charlotte Harbor. As migratory tarpon start to arrive from offshore, we should have schools of tarpon moving both north and south along our beaches. I use 50-pound braided line on a 7', medium heavy spinning rod and a reel with a smooth drag capable of holding a minimum of 250 yards of line. When fly fishing, I use 12-weight fly tackle with a large arbor fly reel with at least 250 or 300-yards of backing.
I prefer to set up anywhere from a few hundred feet to a few hundred yards off our beaches and wait for schools of tarpon to move past. Once you've seen the first school of fish, you can concentrate your efforts that distance from shore since other schools should be following the same route. Be quiet, using your trolling motor sparingly, especially in shallow water. Cast flies, lures or live baits (crabs and baitfish) ahead of schools of tarpon and be ready for a big bite! If the school passes you without eating your bait, lure or fly, let them get a couple hundred yards past you, make a wide loop out around them and set up for a second shot at them. If they are moving fast, I may not even take a second shot at them. Running your outboard within a couple hundred yards of them will probably spook them. Also, even though your 4-stroke outboard sounds quiet, it is no substitute for an electric trolling motor.
Snook season will close on May1st, so any snook fishing is catch and release only. You'll find them in passes, in the ICW around docks and bridges close to passes and in the surf. Since the season is closed, I recommend using tackle heavy enough to land them quickly. Once landed, they should be handled gently and released without removing them from the water. You can cast jigs, flies or live bait around docks and bridges close to passes. Drifting in the passes with live bait or bouncing a plastic bait or jig along the bottom should be effective. One of the most fun ways to target snook, is to walk the beach and cast jigs, plastic baits or flies to them in the surf. This is almost like fishing for bonefish on a crystal clear Caribbean flat. Longboat Pass, New Pass, Big Pass, the Venice Inlet and the ICW and surf close to those passes should all be prime areas.
Higher tides this month will mean that reds will spend more time feeding on shallow flats. Look for them along mangrove shorelines and around oyster bars when the tide is high and in potholes or along sandbars when the tide is low. I prefer to cast jigs, plastic baits and flies, but live shrimp or pilchards should also be very productive. When fishing shallow water for reds, be as quiet as possible. I prefer to use a push pole or wade. Reds are one of the most challenging species to catch on a fly. Since they can be very spooky, I like to wade for them when fly fishing to keep a lower profile.
You might also find reds around docks. Look for docks that have deep water and a good tidal flow for the most action. You will find that certain docks will often hold fish on a regular basis due to all the right ingredients. The Terra Ceia Bay area, north Sarasota Bay and Gasparilla Sound should all be excellent areas to fish for reds.
Trout will also spend more time feeding in shallow water due to higher tides. You'll find larger trout on the same shallow flats where you find reds. However, they will be more plentiful on deep grass flats. I prefer to cast jigs and flies on sinking fly lines for trout. A combo rig consisting of a plastic shrimp and "clacker" float also works very well. Drifting and casting ahead of the drift is usually the most productive method. Look for flats that have a good mix of grass and sand and good tidal flow. The Middleground and Radio Tower flats, Stephens Point, Bishops Point and near Buttonwood Harbor are all great trout areas in Sarasota Bay.
You may also find pompano, bluefish and Spanish mackerel on the same deep grass flats where trout are plentiful. They can be targeted in the same way as trout, but you may need to use wire or heavy fluorocarbon leader when toothy fish are around. You may also find Spanish and king mackerel, little tunny, cobia and tripletail in the coastal gulf. Keep your eyes open for surface activity such as diving birds, breaking fish or baitfish being forced out of the water which could indicate the presence of mackerel, blues or little tunny. Medium spinning tackle and 8 or 9-weight fly tackle should be heavy enough, although your tarpon spinning and fly tackle is not too heavy for cobia. Look for cobia either swimming on the surface or around navigational markers or buoys. I have found cobia swimming with schools of tarpon before. Tripletail may also be found around crab trap floats or buoys, where they can be targeted with live or plastic shrimp on spinning tackle. When fly fishing for tripletail, a floating line on an 8 or 9-weight fly rod with a shrimp or baitfish fly pattern should get the job done.
This is one of my favorite months of the year. If battling a big silver king is not your cup of tea, you should have plenty to do on both shallow and deep grass flats or in the coastal gulf. I'll be spending my time targeting tarpon in the coastal gulf unless conditions won't allow it. It's hard for me to fish for anything else, when 100-pound plus fish are around. There is something about casting a fly to a giant fish in shallow water! Whatever you choose to do, remember to always limit your kill, don't kill your limit!
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
www.flyfishingflorida.net
Target Species:
Tarpon, snook, reds, trout, pompano , bluefish, Spanish mackerel, little tunny, cobia and tripletail
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