Anglers fishing with me, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action catching and releasing snook and trout in lower Tampa Bay on flies, CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos and snook at night in the ICW on flies recently.
Mike Perez with a snook he caught and released on a CAL jig with a shad tail while fishing lower Tampa Bay recently with Capt. Rick Grassett.
Mike Perez and Stewart Lavelle, both from Sarasota, fished a day with me in lower Tampa Bay and had good action catching and releasing snook to 26” on CAL jigs with shad tails and Grassett Flats Minnow flies.
Bill Beauchamp, from NC, and Greg Beauchamp, from Sarasota, also fished the same area with me and caught and released a few snook and trout on CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos. Adam and Cass Lawson, from Ennis, MT, fished the ICW at night with me recently and had good action catching and releasing snook to 26” on my Grassett Snook Minnow fly.
Adam Lawson, from MT, with a snook he caught and released on a Grassett Snook Minnow fly while fishing the ICW at night.
Snook on the flats and around lighted docks in the ICW has been the best option lately which is a good indication that snook regulations are working. Look for Spanish mackerel and other migratory species in the coastal gulf. Action with trout on deep grass flats is improving as the water warms and baitfish become more plentiful. Catch and release night snook fishing is a dependable option and a good way to beat the heat.
Our natural resources are under constant pressure from red tides fueled by agricultural and residential runoff, 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.
