Florida- SW Gulf Coast Report

Fishing report for item #68.

Fishing Report:   Sarasota, FL Fishing Report for 3/4 through 3/13/2005



Anglers on the Snook Fin-Addict had good action during the past week with big trout and reds in skinny water. There was faster action on deeper grass flats for mostly small trout and ladyfish, but “gator” trout moved onto shallow flats along with reds and snook toward the end of the week.

I was off the water last weekend, speaking at the Frank Sargeant Outdoor Expo in Tampa on Friday and conducting an Orvis-Endorsed fly fishing school at CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Saturday. It was a good couple of days top be off the water as hundreds of redfish tournament anglers swarmed Sarasota Bay. I fished Sarasota Bay with a couple of fly anglers last Sunday and found almost no reds in shallow water where they were plentiful only a few days before. We caught and released trout and ladyfish on Clouser flies fished on intermediate fly lines on deep grass flats of north Sarasota Bay.

The following day fly angler, Herb Ramerman from Cleveland, OH, fished Sarasota Bay with me. Again we covered lots of skinny water in search of reds and found only a few. Herb caught and released several trout and ladyfish on deep grass flats with a Clouser fly fished on an intermediate fly line.

I lost Tuesday and Wednesday as a front pushed through the area and then lingered an extra day. When we hit the water on Thursday, the couple of days rest had done wonders for the shallow water fishing. Fly anglers Nick Reding and Jim Ewoldt, both from St. Louis, MO, fished north Sarasota Bay with me on Thursday. Conditions were ideal for sight-fishing, with crystal clear water and sun most of the day. We waded and fished my Flats Minnow fly early and then switched to the old standby, a chartreuse Clouser, as the tide rose. Nick and Jim caught and released 4 reds and 15 or 20 trout from 18” to 23”. A great day with a fly!

Trent Robinson and his son-in-law, Paul, both from the Toronto, Canada area fished Sarasota Bay with me on Friday. They were more concerned with quantity rather than quality, so we fished the deep grass flats where they had plenty of action with trout to 18” and ladyfish on CAL jigs. I fished the new CAL Chug Head, which is a concave plastic head that fits over the end of their (and many other) plastic tails and turns them into top water bait. The larger trout were all caught on this combo. What a great addition this is going to be!

Gary Lasky and his friend, Tom, both from Milwaukee, WI, fished with me on Saturday. The action slowed somewhat, probably due to a high pressure that settled in on us after a reinforcing front came through on Friday. However, the big trout and reds were still in the skinny water and although they were finicky, they managed a few quality fish. Although the action wasn’t fast, they caught and released trout to 21”. They connected with the biggest trout and a red in shallow water. Again the largest trout was caught and released on a CAL Chug Head with a 5 ½” jerk worm tail combo.

Next week’s tides are favorable for night snook fishing, particularly for fly fishers. Flats action should continue to improve as the water warms and fronts become less frequent. There are still a few spots available for the Orvis-Endorsed fly fishing school to be held next Saturday on Longboat Key in conjunction with CB’s Saltwater Outfitters. Federation of Fly Fishers certified casting instructors, Rusty Chinnis and I will be the instructors for the course. Cost is $150, which includes an instructional video, a textbook and the use of premium Orvis fly tackle. Contact me to sign up.

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