Pat Beckwith, from Sarasota, with a nice bluefish caught and released while fly fishing in Sarasota Bay with Capt. Rick Grassett in a previous November.
There should be good action with snook this month. You should find them around docks and bridges in the ICW and on shallow flats. The height of the tide is a factor in where they may be located, along mangrove shorelines on a high tide or along the edges of sand bars or in potholes at low tide.
Live bait anglers should do well with live pilchards and those fishing with lures should have good action with DOA CAL jigs and paddle tails or PT-7 top water baits. Small white flies, like my Grassett Snook Minnow, with work well around docks and bridges and Grassett Flats Minnow is a good shallow water fly option.
Reds and large trout should also be a good option on shallow grass flats during November. Like snook in shallow water, the height of the tide is a factor in where on the flat that they may be located. The same lures and flies used to target snook are also good options for reds and trout. I feel that it’s important to protect large trout, which are usually female breeders.
You may also find trout mixed with blues, Spanish mackerel or pompano on deep grass flats this month.I like to drift and cast ahead of my drift while fishing deep grass flats, which are usually 3’-7’ or deeper. Live pilchards or a live shrimp under a popping cork, DOA Deadly Combos or CAL jigs with a variety of tails should all work well.
When fly fishing, either a fly popper on a floating line or a baitfish fly pattern on a sink tip line should get the job done. I like a 1/16 or 1/8-ounce chartreuse CAL jig head with a variety of plastic tails. You’ll need to add larger diameter fluorocarbon when toothy fish are around to keep them from biting you off.
Pat Beckwith, shown this time with a nice trout she caught and released while fly fishing in Sarasota Bay with Capt. Rick Grassett in a previous November.
There should be good action in the coastal gulf this month with false albacore (little tunny), Spanish mackerel, blues, tripletail or cobia.
Look for diving birds or fish feeding at the surface to find mackerel, blues and albies. Fly anglers should score with small white flies, Ultra Hair Clousers, poppers or Crease flies. Tripletail and cobia may be found around crab traps or swimming on the surface.
Fly anglers should score with baitfish or shrimp patterns. DOA Shrimp or Baitbusters, CAL jigs with shad tails or DOA TerrorEyz should work well for spin fishing anglers for tripletail and cobia. Fish the strongest tides for the best action. Full regulations and details for all species can be viewed at www.myfwc.com.
This a great month for fishing the flats or the coastal gulf. I like to fish the coastal gulf when conditions allow it. However there will also be plenty of action for a variety of fish on shallow and deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay.
Our natural resources are under constant pressure from red tides fueled by agricultural, industrial and residential runoff, toxic spills and discharges, freezes, increasing fishing pressure and habitat loss and degradation, please limit your kill, don’t kill your limit!
Rick is the owner of Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc. He's a full time fishing guide and outdoor writer based in Sarasota, FL. He’s been guiding since 1990 and is an Orvis-Endorsed fly fishing guide here at CB’s Saltwater Outfitters, the 2011 Orvis Outfitter of the Year.
There should be good action with snook this month. You should find them around docks and bridges in the ICW and on shallow flats. The height of the tide is a factor in where they may be located, along mangrove shorelines on a high tide or along the edges of sand bars or in potholes at low tide.
Live bait anglers should do well with live pilchards and those fishing with lures should have good action with DOA CAL jigs and paddle tails or PT-7 top water baits. Small white flies, like my Grassett Snook Minnow, with work well around docks and bridges and Grassett Flats Minnow is a good shallow water fly option.
Reds and large trout should also be a good option on shallow grass flats during November. Like snook in shallow water, the height of the tide is a factor in where on the flat that they may be located. The same lures and flies used to target snook are also good options for reds and trout. I feel that it’s important to protect large trout, which are usually female breeders.
You may also find trout mixed with blues, Spanish mackerel or pompano on deep grass flats this month.I like to drift and cast ahead of my drift while fishing deep grass flats, which are usually 3’-7’ or deeper. Live pilchards or a live shrimp under a popping cork, DOA Deadly Combos or CAL jigs with a variety of tails should all work well.
When fly fishing, either a fly popper on a floating line or a baitfish fly pattern on a sink tip line should get the job done. I like a 1/16 or 1/8-ounce chartreuse CAL jig head with a variety of plastic tails. You’ll need to add larger diameter fluorocarbon when toothy fish are around to keep them from biting you off.
Pat Beckwith, from Sarasota, with a nice bluefish caught and released while fly fishing in Sarasota Bay with Capt. Rick Grassett in a previous November.
There should be good action in the coastal gulf this month with false albacore (little tunny), Spanish mackerel, blues, tripletail or cobia. Look for diving birds or fish feeding at the surface to find mackerel, blues and albies. Fly anglers should score with small white flies, Ultra Hair Clousers, poppers or Crease flies. Tripletail and cobia may be found around crab traps or swimming on the surface.
Pat Beckwith, shown this time with a nice trout she caught and released while fly fishing in Sarasota Bay with Capt. Rick Grassett in a previous November.
Fly anglers should score with baitfish or shrimp patterns. DOA Shrimp or Baitbusters, CAL jigs with shad tails or DOA TerrorEyz should work well for spin fishing anglers for tripletail and cobia. Fish the strongest tides for the best action. Full regulations and details for all species can be viewed at www.myfwc.com.
This a great month for fishing the flats or the coastal gulf. I like to fish the coastal gulf when conditions allow it. However there will also be plenty of action for a variety of fish on shallow and deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay.
Our natural resources are under constant pressure from red tides fueled by agricultural, industrial and residential runoff, toxic spills and discharges, freezes, increasing fishing pressure and habitat loss and degradation, please limit your kill, don’t kill your limit!
Rick is the owner of Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc. He's a full time fishing guide and outdoor writer based in Sarasota, FL. He’s been guiding since 1990 and is an Orvis-Endorsed fly fishing guide here at CB’s Saltwater Outfitters, the 2011 Orvis Outfitter of the Year.
