Anglers fishing with me, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action with snook, reds, and jacks in Gasparilla Sound and snook around dock lights in Sarasota Bay on a couple of trips during the past week.
Connor Shoemaker, from Sarasota, with a red he caught and released on CAL Shad tails while fishing Gasparilla Sound with Capt. Rick Grassett.
Jon Yenari and Connor Shoemaker, both from Sarasota, fished Gasparilla Sound recently and had great action catching and releasing numerous snook and a couple of reds on flies, CAL Shad tails and topwater plugs. We also encountered several large schools of jacks and had several “doubles” on fly and spin tackle. One of the jacks was eaten by a shark at the side of the boat, topwater plug and all!
Mark Schusterman, from Houston, fished dock lights in Sarasota Bay with me on another trip. He caught and released his first snook on a fly and several other snook on my Grassett Snook Minnow and Gummy Minnow flies. Snook blasted tiny glass minnows and were picky. It took flies as small as #8 to get them to bite. Match the hatch!
Jon Yenari, from Sarasota, with a snook he caught and released on CAL Shad tails while fishing Gasparilla Sound with Capt. Rick Grassett.
Tarpon are thinning in the coastal gulf but are usually curious and aggressive this time of year. If you’ve got the patience to wait them out it can be worth it. They will move into estuaries as they thin out in the gulf. Fishing mangrove shorelines for catch and release reds and snook may also be a good option. Night fishing for snook and more is a dependable option and a good way to beat the heat.
Our natural resources are under constant pressure from red tides fueled by industrial, 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.
