Everglades Pro-duce Great Fishing

Everglades Pro Fishing Charters

Captain Doug Stoner reports great action on large tarpon fishing from Chokoloskee to Lost Man's River. His clients are also catching good numbers of redfish along outside points and beaches. Captain Jim Stoner reports catching large cobia and mackerel around outside markers.Fishing out of Chokoloskee Island, Capt. Jim Stoner along with co Captain, Douglas Stoner guided Jack Kuhn and his partner Jack Hughes to a second place finish in the Guided Bait Division of the Redsnook. Both of the Jacks are officers at M&I bank which was one of the major sponsors of the tournament. The team also took second place in overall points, first place corporate team and were invited to the IGFA Inshore Invitational Tournament in the Florida Keys.The Redsnook was held October 5-7, 2007 out of Naples, Florida. Capt. Douglas Stoner of Everglades Pro teamed up with Robert Pence to compete in the 14th Annual Firefighters & Friends Tournament out of Port of the Islands which is south of Marco Island, Fl. Doug took the prize for second largest Redfish losing out to another Redfish which weighed only 3 ounces more. He took home $175 dollars for the second place Red. The Redfish earned Doug first place in the 60/40 Calcutta which returned $220 dollars for his effort. He also caught the largest Seas Trout of the tournament. He wasn't able to enter the Trout because you can only enter one winning fish. Robert took home the prize for a 15 pound Black Drum. Robert won $100 dollars for his effort. The Firefighters & Friends Tournament was held this past weekend.
Sorry we do not have any pictures for this event.

Everglades Pro Fishing Charters

Captain Jim Stoner

Captain Doug Stoner

954-444-9995

http://www.evergladespro.com/

snook4341@yahoo.com

East Coast Fishing Outlook 11-07

Florida's East Coast Fishing Outlook for November 2007

Compliments of Mosquito Creek Outdoors, Apopka Florida

November on the Indian River Lagoon Coast of Florida

With the exception of a few more gray hairs that haven't fallen out yet, I welcome the arrival of fall and the changing seasons brought forth by falling temperatures on the Indian River Lagoon coast of Florida. The cool crisp morning air in my lungs and on my cheeks is a refreshing change from our hot dry summer and our rainy humid October.

As the sun rises and sets further to the south, both anglers and game fish celebrate the tail end of the bait run; gathering in the inlet passes on the falling tides to fulfill their natural gratifications, one of indulgence, the other contentment. As the steady migration of mullet, pilchards, threadfin herring, and other baitfish pack into the IRL's inlets, an overabundance of hungry gamefish lay in waiting. When tide is right, the inlets explode in a flurry of feeding gamefish, fleeing baitfish, and aggressive anglers.

Although November is notorious for greeting us with howling easterly winds as our first significant cold fronts pass, fishing in and around the inlets will remain outstanding until water temperature drop below 70 degrees. In the inlets of Ponce De Leon, Port Canaveral and Sebastian, snook fishing will remain excellent during low light periods and at night as the remaining baitfish traveling down the beach are forced in close to the jetties and other structure with the best action occurring during slack tidal periods, especially the end of high tide. During these periods hungry gamefish take advantage of slow currents and feed heavily. As the tide begins to fall, gamefish move into their ambush locations to finish off their frenzy. Breeder Redfish, jack crevalle, bluefish, ladyfish, Spanish mackerel, sharks, and tarpon all share in the fury, so step up your tackle size and hold on.

Captain Chris Myers with an October Inlet Redfish

My favored technique is to cast net live mullet, and drift them through the passes on a sliding sinker rig. Look for areas of feeding activity, birds diving and fish busting, and adjust the size of your weight based of current. The rig I use starts out with a Daiichi Bleeding Bait circle hook proportionate to your bait size to allow a natural swimming appearance. In simple terms, small bait small hook, large bait large hook. Next, I attach a 30-inch section of 30 to 40 pound test fluorocarbon leader to a 20-pound test braided mainline. If large tarpon are your target, step your leader size up to 60-pound test. Before I tie on my hook, I slide my slip sinker on to the leader, then attach the hook, and finish the rig off by using a split shot located between the barrel sinker and the hook adjusted to keep the weight off of the hook. As I drift through the passes, I like to cast parallel to my drift with just enough weight to keep the bait in the feeding zone, and increase the barrel sinker size as the current picks up. Additionally, as we near the end of November and finger mullet diminish, switch to pinfish on pigfish as bait. Finally and most important, pass fishing in November can be dangerous, so as I drift through the inlet, I keep the helm manned with my engine running, keeping a close eye on boat traffic and sea conditions, and always be prepared for evasive action if needed.


Chris Murray Proudly Displays His Sebastian Flounder Caught on a RipTide Mud Minnow

As the first significant cold front passes and surf temperatures reach the 68-degree mark, flounder slide into the inlets on their annual spawning migration out to sea. The exodus usually begins with the arrival of the smaller 1 to 3-poung gulf flounder (three spot), which are later joined by the doormat size 2 to 14-pound southern flounder. Many anglers prefer to anchor up and fish live finfish on the bottom, but I favor drifting the lagoon side of the passes bouncing a RipTide Mud Minnow Jig on the bottom. I've also learned adding the element of sound to my jig by inserting a Woodie's Rattle Capsule improves my catch. This vertical jigging technique allows me to cover more area and catch a wider assortment of species. Likewise, as lagoon temperatures cool, pompano are another likely target as they congregate on the lagoon side of the passes before moving out to their winter haunts along the beaches to feed on sand fleas (mole crabs) their favorite winter food.



Mark Blyth's First Cobia

Cobia and tripletail fishing can be very good this time of year depending on ocean temperatures (71 to 74 degrees is best) and winter weather conditions. To target them, head east out of Port Canaveral or Sebastian Inlet looking for rips, sargassum and flotsam pushed in by the easterly fetch. Once you have located the floating structure, work the rip with the sun to your back looking for fish suspended underneath, and catch then on spinning tackle or fly, and a live jumbo shrimp on a jig works best.

Inside the lagoons, falling water levels and cleaner conditions will facilitate increased sight fishing prospects for both redfish and sea trout. Also remember spotted sea trout are out of season in our region of the state for both November and December, so please handle and release them with extreme care.

Seminars and Events

November 17th 9am - 11am, Anglers for Conservation presents the Hook Kids on Fishing program at the Volusia County Fair Grounds, Coastal Angler Magazine's Boat Show & Fishing Expo. The first 100 kids will receive a new fishing rod, reel and tackle box on completion of the program.November 16th, 17th, and 18th, Coastal Angler Magazines Boating and Fishing Expo at the Volusia County Fairgrounds, the event features a full program of speakers and seminars. Hands on Angler Improvement Clinic presented by Mosquito Creek Outdoors, learn to rig soft plastic baits and utilized braided fishing line, knots, and leaders for inshore applications, and participants will receive free samples from RipTide, D.O.A, Woodies Rattles, and coupons redeemable at Mosquito Creek Outdoors while supplies last.

Call now to purchase your holiday charter gift certificate for the 2008 fishing season.As always, if you have any questions or need more information, please contact me.Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn
Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters
http://www.irl-fishing.com/
407-366-8085 landline
407-416-1187 on the water
866-790-8081 toll free
Visit http://www.mosquitocreekoutdoors.com/ for your outdoor adventure needs, its Where the Adventure Begins!

The Last Resort And The Indian River

The Last Resort


Mother Nature did not smile on us during a recent trip to Homosassa for some shallow water grouper fishing. So, as a Last Resort (pun intended, see below) we went trout fishing and caught numerous trout on Rip Tide Flats Chubs and Rip Tide Shrimp. Both were pinned on a ¼ oz. Rip Tide Pro Jig Head and suspended under a popping cork. The weather was just too severe to venture out to the deeper water, which in this part of the country is 20 to 30 feet deep out 20 or 30 miles. That’s why they call it shallow water grouper fishing. Stay tuned however, because I plan to reschedule the grouper trip for a later more favorable date. I will report on it when I do. This is the time of the year to get to the Homosassa area if you want to catch some shallow water grouper. Just do it.
Now about the pun I mentioned in the opening paragraph. As it turned out I stayed at a facility called The Last Resort. What a great place to stay while fishing or doing anything else in Homosassa. It features second story lodging with a great view of the river and parking underneath each unit for easy access. A boat ramp and boat dock are part of the property, so if you bring your own boat you leave from your back door and if you hire a guide they can pick you up at your back door. It doesn’t get any better than that.

As far as the rooms are concerned they were immaculately clean. The resort is well equipped with a kitchen and all utensils. You would never have to leave the place if you didn’t want to. If you bring the spouse along they will be perfectly content to enjoy the extreme relaxation offered by The Last Resort while you are out fishing. When you return from fishing a quick shower will prepare you to spend the evening on the deck with the sun setting slowly behind you as the river traffic slows and daylight turns into night.
In between sleeping in the roomy comfortable bedrooms and spending the evenings on the deck you can be fishing for redfish, sea trout, cobia, shallow water grouper, or a variety of other saltwater fish. It just depends on what time of year you are there. When you get back to The Last Resort there is a convenient fish cleaning station right there on the dock. The last day I was there I woke up to the sunrise pictured below and I just didn’t really want to pack and go home. I know I will go back and if you get a chance check them out. You can visit their website at www.thelastresortonline.com.
If you want to go up to the Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park you can be there in about 10 minutes. There is also plenty of other stuff to do at Homosassa and the surrounding county too. For more information just go to www.VisitCitrus.com to see what’s in store for you!

Earlier in the week I fished with good friend Capt. Terry Lamielle in the Indian River near Sebastian. We started off early and caught a nice topwater trout on a Zara Spook. Terry later added a redfish on a Gulp Shrimp and I completed a boat slam by hooking up a big momma snook on a gold spoon. There were still plenty of mullet in the river but the bite was slow. We worked hard for the fish that we got.
The Indian River near Cocoa was also slow last week but there were plenty of mullet and lots of schoolie trout between Hwy 520 and Hwy 528. The trout were eager to hit the Rip Tide 3 inch mullet on a ¼ ounce jig head. I netted a few of the mullet and set one out on a favorite location only to have about a 50 pound tarpon hit just after I had placed it in the rod holder and turned around to the cooler for a soda. I heard the commotion, turned around and there it was, airborne and shaking that head. I quickly picked up the rod but it was too late. He had snapped the line at the leader. Timing is everything.
The next Florida Sportsman Fishing Show is in Orlando on November 10 and 11 at the Fair Grounds. Stop by the Florida Guides Association Booth and say hi if you get a chance. The following weekend, November 15, 16, and 17 we will be in Deland at the Coastal Angler Magazine Boat Show and Fishing Expo. The event will be held at the Expo Center, just off SR 44 at exit 118 on I-4, the first exit west of I-95. The address is 3150 E. New York Ave, Deland Fl.
As always, you can visit my website at www.inshorefishingadventures.com to view pictures of the fish we catch in the Cocoa Beach area. That's what it's all about. Good fishin'.

Capt. Ron Presley
www.inshorefishingadventures.ocm
presleyr@bellsouth.net

Tough Conditions But Respectable Fish

Indian River Lagoon Coast Fishing Report, October 27, 2007
Compliments of Mosquito Creek Outdoors, Apopka Florida

Well folks, if frogs had wings they wouldn't bump their butts when they hopped, and the only critters loving the weather this week are the frogs, ducks, and the fish. It's 4 AM, and I'm sitting behind my keyboard listening to the sound of raindrops tapping on my windows. Throughout this past week tough weather conditions have dominated making fishing very tough, and the bad news is this weekend and the first part of next week are going to be a blow out.

From the left, Craig and Max Welch, Brent, and Wesley

Although the weather was tough, I did manage to find some determined anglers willing to step up to the challenge, and we did manage some respectable fish. On Saturday last week, I had the pleasure of fishing with father and son team Craig and Max Welch, and Max's fishing buddies Brent and Wesley. This was the third year in a row we celebrated Max's birthday fishing with his friends.


Max Welch's Birthday Redfish

The catching overall was slow, but with hard work and determination we ended the day with some nice redfish and one tarpon.


One important observation this week is the lagoon water levels are dropping and clearing up a bit, so the redfish should be returning to the flats and sight fishing should improve. Also, there have been a good number of snook being caught in both the Mosquito Lagoon and IRL. Hopefully, the seas will settle down long enough to allow us to fish the waning phases of the mullet run.

Seminars and Events

November 17th 9am - 11am, Anglers for Conservation presents the Hook Kids on Fishing program at the Volusia County Fair Grounds, Coastal Angler Magazine's Boat Show & Fishing Expo. The first 100 kids will receive a new fishing rod, reel and tackle box on completion of the program.November 16th, 17th, and 18th, Coastal Angler Magazines Boating and Fishing Expo at the Volusia County Fairgrounds, the event features a full program of speakers and seminars. Hands on Angler Improvement Clinic presented by Mosquito Creek Outdoors, learn to rig soft plastic baits and utilized braided fishing line, knots, and leaders for inshore applications, and participants will receive free samples from RipTide, D.O.A, Woodies Rattles, and coupons redeemable at Mosquito Creek Outdoors while supplies last.

Call now to purchase your holiday charter gift certificate for the 2008 fishing season, and catch a memory with Captain Tom Van Horn. As always, if you have any questions or need more information, please contact me.Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn
Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters

http://www.irl-fishing.com/

407-366-8085 landline

407-416-1187 on the water

866-790-8081 toll free

Visit http://www.mosquitocreekoutdoors.com/ for your outdoor adventure needs, its Where the Adventure Begins!

Everglades Kayak Fishing

WHAT'S New ...
For about a month now, the "shiner" fishing has come to life. Schools of very small bait fish that we call "rain minnows" have been moving in close to shore. Ladyfish attack the schools repeatedly in a blitz and froth the surface forcing the bait into a tight "ball". If you watch closely, you will see the 100 lb tarpon "shine" in the schools as they slurp up big gulps of these tightly packed minnows. Last time, the tarpon eagerly ate jigs, plugs and plastics ... where was the fly rod?
We are please to be able to now offer online booking for all our trips. However, we are still right here to speak you on the phone or via email. Please never hesitate to call about any of the charters, to personally work out the details of your fishing trip, discuss accommodations, or anything! We will always be here for you. Click for online booking.
Yep, there are still plenty of triple-tail around. Most fish are in the 5-12 lb range. DOA Shrimp work well.
Sight fishing has been spectacular. The Redfish and Snook, in water as shallow as 4-6", are waiting for baits to be forced out of the mangrove. These fish risk attack from ospreys in the shallow water for one reason to feed. Plant a small bait in front of them and they will eat. Timing the tide is paramount for these trips. A 1/2 or 3/4 days is best and you do not have to get up early. A sight fished snook in the shallows ... What can be better?
Am I nuts or did I just feel a chill in the air.
Pick up a copy of Mike "Stubbs" Stubblefield's new book "Confessions of a Fisherman and Other Lies". It is a collection of over 30 of Stubbs funniest short stories. Here is his website http://www.yakerobubbas.com/!
We are very please to announce the launch http://www.evergladeskayakfishing.com/, The road here was long and a bit bumpy, but we kept diligently moving forward. We have added a second kayak transport boat, the Yak Attack 2, some great captains & guides, over 20 new kayaks and three new kayak trailers to the operation. We can now offer kayak anglers a wide variety of fishing experiences throughout the area You can sight fish laid up snook on the flats one day, cast to rolling tarpon in a remote back country creek the next, and catch large mouth bass and Oscars on fly the third. This all comes about from lot of hard work, but most of all, from the continued support of our anglers. Vickie and I would like to thank every one of you. The sport of kayak fishing has come a long way and EKF is simply a reflection of where the sport is sport today.
We just finished the first Marquesas, Overnight "Special Destinations" trip. We took a 43', twin air-conditioned, Torres out of Key West loaded with fishing kayaks for. The trip was awesome. I can hardly wait until next fall, but at least we are planning the dates now for these three day excursions. Click for more information.
Please congratulate the winners of this month's drawing for the free fishing trip!! Don McCumber (Naples, FL), Jeff Bivins (Atlantic Beach, FL) and Greg Travis (Houston, TX) were the three winners from the August 31st drawinf. Rob Phelan (Ft. Myers), Benny Landrum (Houston, TX) and Ed Chamberlain (Atlanta, GA) won July 31st. Gary Robinson (St. Pete, FL) & Jim Dolan (Allen, TX) won in June and Thomas Todd (Daphne, AL) & Stephen Moon (Hebron, KY) were the May winners. Remember, you must register for each drawing to be eligible to win. Click here for more info on the Kayak Fishing Trips
October begins the camping season in Everglades National Park. Overnighters in the Park are a blast. Several of the camping/fishing trips are booked full already. Dec 21st and 22nd we will be camping and fishing Wizard Creek. Feb 15th, 16th & 17th, & March 17, 18 & 19 we will be camping on Cape Sable again .... great snook fishing. (Read more about out trip last February fishing amongst crocodiles.). There is still availability on the trips.


Captain Charles Wright
239-695-9107
http://www.chokoloskeecharters.com/
http://www.evergladeskyakfishing.com/

Half Hitch Tackle Report 10-25

Report for 10-25-2007

Salt Water
MEXICO BEACH AND OFFSHORERED TIDE UPDATE: Reports of red tide moving about inside St Joseph Bay continue this week. Remember, red tide can show up at nearly anytime or anywhere in salt water. For an up to date report, or to report red tide please give us a call at 227-7100.
The water has been rough offshore, but the boats who did make it out reported good grouper catches in 120’ depths. Big cuts of Bonita for bait is working well with 80lb fluorocarbon and 10/0 size circle hooks. Jigging is producing nice sized fish too.
The natural bottom, South of Cape San Blas is a hot spot right now. Anglers braving the high waves found a few king mackerel hanging around in 100’ of water and can still be caught on flat lines or trolling Mann’s Stretch 25’s and 30’s.
Some decent amberjack are around the deeper wrecks hitting live cigars/pinfish. Big Spanish mackerel and bluefish schools continue to feed along the shoreline.
ST JOSEPH BAY

Not much change here and with the red tide still around, fishing is hard and you will have to search for the bite. Some trout are moving to the deeper pockets as the waters cool down and a few have been caught inside the St Joe Marina on DOA shrimp and live shrimp. They should start their move into the intercostals soon. Fishing a live shrimp on the bottom with a lightweight on a Carolina rig is a simple straightforward rig to get started.
Blacks Island is a good spot for redfish and trout when the water is clear. Fishing outside the flats with live bait works well.
For artificial baits, you might try a red/white topwater plug in the morning. A few pompano and redfish caught this week along the shore in Mexico Beach. Use a pink pompano jig or fresh shrimp on a surf rig for these species.
DESTIN

Even though the weather was not the best this week fishing was still good. The Blackfin Tuna bite has been good about 20 miles out on the rocks. The Wahoo and Dolphin also showed early in the week around the nipple.
There have been very good catches of Amberjack and some very nice Snapper at the docks the last few days for the few that braved the seas to run offshore a bit.
This week in the Destin Fishing Rodeo we had a true Black Grouper caught (often called a Carburetor Grouper) and a Speckled Hind locally known as a Kitty Mitchell, (see pictures below).
The trout have finally started to show back up and Tuesday we had a nice 3.8lb trout weighed in. The weekend weather looks fishable and the red tide is dissipating with the cooler nights, this should also turn the kings on.
Everyone is invited to the Halloween Party at the Destin Rodeo Docks on the 31st for the final weigh-in for the rodeo for this year.

Black Grouper

Speckled Hind

Miss Destin Rodeo with a Mackerel

PANAMA CITY AND OFFSHORE

The red tide seems to be nearly gone. No reports of significant blooms this week.
The King Mackerel bite is still slow. Small Kings are being caught around in-shore reefs. Better reports are coming from hard bottom areas well offshore. Troll Dusters and free-line live or dead bait for the most action. Try a Stretch 25 or large Drone Spoon with 4-6 ounces of lead for bigger Kings.
The Grouper bite is good well offshore over hard bottom areas. Live bait, whole Boston Mackerel and jigs (Shimano Butterfly or Williamson) are working well. Jigs with a glow color to them are a sure bet.
Amberjack are on many of the inshore wrecks and reefs in good numbers. Try the Bridge Spans for lots of action. The larger fish will be well offshore over hard bottom. Live Cigar Minnows or Pinfish will entice the larger fish, while jigs (Williamson Jig or AJ Jig) will trigger the most bites.
Snapper action is still very good. Squid, Cigar Minnows and chunks of Northern Mackerel are working well. The bag limit for state waters remains four Snapper per person and 16” length, however in federal waters only two Snapper per person and 16” length. Federal waters start basically nine miles from land; this is noted on your maps as the Natural Resources Boundary.
Ladyfish, Bluefish and Bar Jacks are everywhere up and down the beaches right now. Throw Pompano Jigs, Gotcha’s and Spoons on light tackle for a lot of fun.
ST ANDREWS BAY SYSTEM

Mangrove Snappers are all over the jetties right now. They are easy to catch and great to eat. Use live shrimp or chub minnows with light weight and small hooks for best results.
Flounder are starting to move and are still being caught on drop-offs in the bays and on the edges of grass flats. Try the deep channel leading into the Spanish Shante in St. Andrews Bay. Use a Carolina rig with live bull minnows for the best results. For artificial bait fishermen, use an 1/8 oz. jig with Gulp Curl Tail Minnows in a variety of colors.
The Trout bite is very good and with the cooler weather they have been biting throughout the day. Target spotty bottom grass flats in the 1-3 foot range. Big trout can be caught early in the day on topwater plugs close to the shoreline. When the sun gets up, throw a Rebel Jointed Minnow in Gold or Silver.
Redfish are biting good again in Grand Lagoon. Gulp, Gold Spoons, Live Shrimp, LY’s, Bull Minnows and Cut Bait are working well. Many more bull reds are starting to move into the pass. Live bull minnows, shrimp and LY’s work best.
DAN RUSSEL PIER

Spanish Mackerel and a few Kings are being caught every day at the pier right now. Sharks, Pompano, Whiting, Blue Fish, and Lady Fish are also being caught. Call 850-233-5080 for the latest pier fishing information.
Fresh Water
The big bluegill bite is on right now. Fish live crickets and wigglers along the drop offs in 5-6 ft of water to catch some nice ones.
DESTIN RODEO REPORT

One customer Bill Conally caught a Blue Marlin this week while his wife ran the boat it was just the two of them and they were 50 miles out on the 100 fathom line 15 miles from the squiggle trolling toward the squiggle. It was the first marlin of any description they had caught. He wired the fish himself and cut the leader after he saw that the fish had swallowed the hook. It was approximately 125 inches long and the calculated weight from the internet at about 350 pounds. They caught the fish on a blue and white islander with a ballyhoo. It took them 2 hours and 20 minutes to land the fish. Can you say MAKO SHARK, well this week in the Destin Rodeo we had the largest fish ever brought to the dock in the 59 year history of the Destin Fishing Rodeo. While we are all about tagging and releasing sharks this one was amazing. To date we have 2 vessels tied with 5 tagged sharks each the Charter Boat Twighlight with Captain Robert Hill had a 844.2 pound Mako. This Mako is the new bench mark for the Destin Fishing Rodeo, to even bring a shark to the dock it has to beat the previous rodeo record which was 339.6 pounds and now the new official record after the Mako was drawn is 638.6 pounds. The Twighlight was grouper fishing when the huge shark started eating the groupers they were catching 70 miles from shore. Then the massive Mako came to the surface. They used a 20 pound amberjack for bait to catch the beast. It took over 30 minutes to catch the shark and even with the help of 10 men they could not get the fish in the boat. They eventually ended up tying the fish to the boat and dragging it to the dock. Once at the Destin Fishing Rodeo dock, it took over 30 minutes and a block and tackle to get the giant Mako from the water and onto the dock to be weighed. As for what is happening with the fish for those concerned that such a magnificent fish was killed; the Mako is an excellent eating fish and it was cleaned at the Fleet Marina Docks. The patrons, captain and crew divided up much of the fish for them selves. They also gave some to the dock helpers for there friends and family and the rest was donated to a local fish market for distribution to those in need. Lastly the angler is having the head mounted for his house.
Fishing Report prepared by Half Hitch Tackle Staff.
The Captains Corner Fishing Report is provided by local charter captains and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of Half Hitch Tackle.

Half Hitch Tackle

850-234-2621

2206 Thomas Dr

Panama City, Fl 32408

www.halfhitch.com/
This report is dedicated to the memory of Al Hubbard. Al Hubbard was a field editor for Florida Sportsman magazine, an outdoor writer for the News Herald and a board member of the Florida Outdoor Writer's Association. Mr. Hubbard was also the owner of Al's Outdoors Outfitting Services.

Everything Biting At North Skyway Pier

I spoke with the North Skyway Fishing Pier this morning, and they say that every thing is biting. Huge schools of small white bait have invaded the pier, bringing all of the predator fish with them. Use a sabiki rig or a cast net with a 1/4" mesh to gather your bait.Spanish mackerel, large bluefish, and bonita are creating most of the action. About 6" of wire leader is needed to prevent cut offs from there razor sharp teeth. If the fish start shying away from the wire, switch to 6' of 40lb to 60lb mono or fluorocarbon leader and long shanked hooks. After every hit, check your leader for nicks and re-tie if needed.The whitebait are the best bait right now but small silver spoons and Got-Cha Plugs will also work. A few king mackerel are being caught. Tie a balloon above your leader with a rubber band and float you bait away from the pier. Blue runners, hardtails, and greenbacks will be the best baits. Use a stinger rig to increase your odds of hooking the kings. Tarpon and cobia are hitting on top of the water. Watch for them cruising the pier and try to drop your bait in there path, but far enough ahead of the fish, to not spook them. A few grouper are being caught off of the bottom. White bait and pinfish will be the best baits. For more information contact;

North Skyway Fishing Pier
727-865-0668
10501 Sunshine Skyway Bridge
St Petersburg, FL 33711
http://www.skywaypiers.com/

Fly Fishing Tournament This Saturday

Just a reminder to all of you fly fisherman out there. The Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers/ Coastal Conservation Association 'Fall Fly Fishing Challenge' will be held this Saturday,October 27, at Ken ThompsonPark, City Island, Sarasota. This is one of the largest flyfishing tournaments held outside of the Florida Key's, so don't miss the fun! More information can be found at, http://www.flyandfish.com/articles/news_18330723 , or by clicking the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers link above. To get an advantage on the competition, check out Captain Rick Grassett's post, 'Flies And Lures Produce In Gulf And Bays', in this blog.

The Surprises Of Fall!!!

The Suprises of Fall!!!
Report Date: October 29, 2007
The light winds and foggy, overcast days of October and November help keep the temperatures down and the productivity of topwater fishing extremely high. I love to Walk-the-Dog in the middle of light drizzle or during a foggy day.

Bass, Redfish, and Snook what a SLAM!!On a recent scouting trip myself and a long time fishing friend spent the day exploring a remote area of the Salt River, which is known for its miles of winding creeks and islands. As we trolling motored along a shoreline we noticed that there were tons of little finger mullet scurrying along the bank. Every once in a while we would hear a little pop and turn around only to see a small boil behind us. Our topwater lures and Berkley Gulp! Flukes were exactly the same size as these finger mullet we were seeing so we knew it would only be a matter of time before something would come to checkout our baits.Of course the very first fish to show up was an 8 lb Jack Crevalle which was actually a great fish to break the ice with. As we entered a little cut in the shore line my partner and I both made perfect casts along the edges. BANG! BANG! We were both hooked up. The funny part of the whole fight was that his fish jumped and my fished really pulled drag. On the same part of the cut laid a 3lb largemouth bass and slot sized redfish. I have caught bass in brackish water before but never as many as I caught in this particular area. Now, the bass and reds were a welcome sight but the 30” snook that surprised me really made the day. After three or 4 jumps she was released to fight another day.

Crystal River SNOOK!!Fishing has been phenomenal lately. If your excited about fishing or just catching fish give Red Hot Fishing Charters a call today were are in the fishing memories business. (352) 634-4002

kylemessier@yahoo.com

http://www.redhotfishingcharters.com/

Red Hot Fishing Charters

Crystal River and Homosassa, Florida

352-634-4002

kylemessier@yahoo.com

Bonefish And Permit Lurking The Flats

Key West Fishing Reports

By Capt. Steven Lamp.

Professional Veteran Fishing Guide of Key West Florida.

Key West Inshore Fishing Report for Oct - Nov 07

Capt. Steven Lamp
The calendar says October however the mercury is thinking it must be August. Here in the lower Florida Keys and Key West we are definitely still in our summer patterns. The inshore fishing has been everything that one would expect for the late summer and early fall with larger bonefish and permit lurking the flats with the extra bonus of a much later than usual tarpon season. As of writing this report we are still catching sizable tarpon in Key West daily.
Key West comes alive in the fall with the hard core visitors that truly love Key West for its culture. With room rates down (except during Fantasy Fest) and the weather traditionally starting to cool things off a bit, Key West as a destination is an awesome place to visit this time of year. Seems like every weekend there is some sort of party brewing making the night life fun and enjoyable. As locals we are all breathing another sigh of relief for our hurricane season being as uneventful as it has. To learn more about Key West and the events check out http://www.gotothekeys.com/ to see what is going on.
The fishing forecast at this point is anyone’s guess. Traditionally things start to cool off and that means lots of fishing action right through November.
The cooling scenario drops our water temps a bit and really changes things up. More species come to Key West looking to get their fill on baitfish and shrimp. The mullet muds inshore will start to increase as the temps get cooler and there you will find an ample supply of trout, reds, pompano, bluefish, spanish mackerel and of course the high flying lady fish. This does not mean the flats are void of our big three. The bonefish will seek a bit deeper water and come on the flats in the top of the warm days to feed on the higher tides. The permit generally will not be affected, in fact Late October and November permit fishing is really incredible. The tarpon will start a fluctuation of warm versus cold. After a good cold front in November don’t discount the nice South Easterly that follows a few days later for some hard core tarpon action as they come in out of the gulf to feed, some of these fish are huge.
Offshore things change as well. With increasing northerly winds our offshore captains can taste the sailfish. Here again don’t discount the South Easterly’s for some large dolphin and other migratory species lurking around under the birds. On the reef one can expect the black fin tunas to come on for the traditional Feed Fest over the deeper wrecks and humps along with an ample supply of our smaller kingfish population. On the bottom expect the grouper and snappers fishing to get better as the cooler waters come. The late fall can be windy but the fish get closer to shore making for shorter runs for the fun. That’s a good thing these days with the price of fuel.
Planning a trip to the Keys bringing a boat or not the fishing is incredible this time of the year. Hiring a guide is a great way to go as it certainly lowers the learning curve and in the long run saves you time and money on your well deserved fishing vacation. Feel free to contact us at Dream Catcher Charters, we will be delighted to offer you our professional fishing guide service or share some local knowledge to help you find your way here in Key West. Check us out on the web at http://www.chartersofkeywest.com/.
While your hear in the Florida Keys be sure to listen to AM WFFG 1300 for My fishing show called “Live the Dream” fishing in the Florida Keys every Wednesday at 5 pm and don’t forget to also check out Fish Monsters Radio with your host Capt. Scott Hopp and his cast of characters from 7am-10am on Saturday mornings for the weeks fishing wrap up and forecast.

Sincerely,

Capt. Steven P. Lamp

Office 1-888-362-3474

Cellular 1-305-304-0497

President Dream Catcher Charters

Fishing Guide for Flats, Back Country, Wreck and Reef Fishing.

http://www.blogger.com/

http://www.blogger.com/

Florida Surf Casters Winners

Fishing Report
Florida Surf Casters Fishing Tournament
Here's the list of great fishermen from this years Tournament.
There were some wonderful catches on the October 20th 2007

12 & Under Category
1st Place - Zachary Allison - Black Drum/5.75lb
2nd Place - Justin Morris - Bluefish/2.75lb
3rd Place (Tie) - Trey Nadin - Red Fish/2.15
Drew Davies - Pompano/2.15

Team Aggregate Category
1st Place - Bart Barry/Noel Kuhn/31.75lb
2nd Place - John Greco/Walt Matuszak/30.25lb
3rd Place - Brian Pease/David Guido/29.85lb

Individual CategoryPompano
1st Place - Josh Serre/3.60lb
2nd Place - Sue Clark/3.45lb
3rd Place - Bart Barry/2.90lb

Aggregate Pompano
1st Place - Noel Kuhn/13.25lb
2nd Place - Bart Barry/12.45lb
3rd Place - Lyndon Godwin/11.75lb

Redfish
1st Place - Phil Serre/5.4lb
2nd Place - Steve Bentley/5.35
3rd Place - John Greco/5.05lb.

Whiting
1st Place - Noel Faust/1.50lb
2nd Place - Larry Fennell/1.25lb
3rd Place - Josh Serre/1.20lb

Aggregate Whiting
1st Place - Jacob Karst/8.25lb
2nd Place - Walt Sturtward/5.40lb
3rd Place - Noel Faust/4.0lb

Blue Fish
1st Place - Hugh Anderson/12.60lb (This is not a typo, it was a single fish)
2nd Place - Walt Matuszak/2.75lb
3rd Place - Sean Wirick/2.45lb

Black Drum
1st Place - John Kelley/6.30lb
2nd Place - Paul Anderson/4.80lb
3rd Place - Sherrie Smith/3.40lb

Anthony EdmonstonTournament Chairman
Roy's Bait House
386-439-2200
105 N 2nd St
Flagler Beach, FL 32136
http://www.roysbaithouse.com/

Outstanding Weekend For Native Sons

Oct 21, 2007 - Outstanding Weekend for Native Sons
Congratulations to Captains Peter Deeks, Roland Jones and Don Patterson for outstanding performances in the inaugural Treasure Coast Flats Circuit finals held this past weekend in Sebastian, Florida. Peter won the TCFC ‘Fish-Off’, the championship among the top 25 finalists, with the heaviest inshore slam of redfish, snook and trout. Roland and Don finished the year first and second respectively in the trout classification from among 200 of the top area guides and tournament anglers. (Pictured below are Peter Deeks, Jr. flanked by Capt. Don Patterson and Capt. Roland Jones)

Native Sons Fishing Guides

Captain Rocky Van Hoose

321-986-9588

rvanhoose@cfl.rr.com

Captain Brad Jones

321-626-5072

jonesmelb7@bellsouth.net

30+ Reds A Day From Apalachicola

Patsy Joyner with an 8 lb Redfish caught with Capt. Chris Robinson

November first may be the official close of Red Snapper season but that certainly doesn't stop you or us from fishing for all the other fish in the Gulf and the Bay. As I'm writing this in October, we are experiencing some of the best redfishing of the year. David Patten from Chattanooga wrote

"Chris & I just finished the 2 best redfishing days of my life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He is such a great guide and great guy. I really like fishing with him. We caught 36 on Monday and 34 today with several in the 7-9 range. You guys are the best!"

This trend historically continues on through Thanksgiving and sometimes even until Christmas, so don't be shy about coming on down to fish.

As soon as the weather officially cools off some, the striped bass fishery should fire off - I've promised several individuals to let them know via email when Capt. David Heinke (who is already on the hunt) catches his first one of the season. The great thing about this area is that when you can't go offshore for Red Snapper, you can fish in the bay for redfish and when you can't fish the bay for redfish, you can head up the river for stripers. There's always something going on.

On Gulps & such. I may have mentioned that we have started stocking a few items here in the office that our guides use regularly and one of those items is the Gulp Alive bucket (I like to call it "Bucket O Gulps"). I know some people and guides especially have been skeptical about the product but based on the number of buckets that Chris Robinson has gone through, the things work. Capt. Jason Rucker tried his own Gulp test. He had some spin fishing anglers on board and he rigged them with the Gulps, then he threw everything in his box from electric chickens to whatever else he had on hand. Keep in mind that Jason casts more accurately than the average joe angler and he says he definitely cast more often but still they outfished him 4 to 1.

December Forecast - This may sound simple minded but as long as the weather is good, the fishing is going to be good all month. Bad weather = not as good fishing. We've been keeping fishing records here for the past 12 years or so and have proof that unless we get attacked by a Nor-Easter, we'll be fishing every day.

Kathy Robinson

Robinson Brothers Guide Service

118 Commerce St.

Apalachicola, Florida 32320

850-653-8896

850-653-7196 (cell)

http://www.blogger.com/ http://www.blogger.com/

REALTOR - Robinson Real Estate Company http://www.blogger.com/ 850-653-1653

Member:Apalachicola Bay Area Chamber of Commerce http://www.blogger.com/Carrabelle Chamber of Commerce http://www.blogger.com/Gulf County Chamber of Commerce http://www.blogger.com/Florida Guides Assn. http://www.blogger.com/Florida Realtors Assn.

Best Action At First Light And Tide Change

October 18, 2007
Inshore:
Early morning fishing remained good this week on the Treasure Coast. First light bought us some nice action around the bridges in Fort Pierce as the snook continued to gorge themselves on the bait schools. Getting out early for that first light bite or fishing the tides around the inlet can help your chances on hooking up. Looks like the weather will cooperate this coming weekend, so plan on getting out on the water soon!
We had some good action on snook in the early part of the days while fishing around the inlet in Fort Pierce. Lots of shorts out there to give you some action and we also missed a couple of good hits. Mark Amorello ended up with a slot size after a number of shorts at first light. The bite has been good on both tides as long as the water has been moving. Live bait has worked best with either live shrimp or mullet. We fished around some bait schools on the flats and found some shorts hanging around there also.
We found a few trout out there, but the bite was off most of the week with all the dirty water around the river. Look around the usual trout areas to find some clean water. We did catch a few around Bear Point and north of Fort Pierce. Live shrimp on floats will give you the best opportunity. Try some top water at first light. The water should start clearing up a bit by the weekend with the wind laying up some.
We found a few redfish, but they were just short of slot size. Try along the mangroves or around the docks and you might just catch a keeper redfish. Live bait or a DOA shrimp can give you the edge on getting a bite. We did find some glass minnows out on the flats and found fish feeding on them. I had a few reports of reds around the jetties this week. With the dirty water, it's a good time to break out the gold spoon on the flats.
Snapper around the bridges and channel edges are still a mainstay for anglers out there. Mark Amorello nailed a nice 4 pound snapper at the north bridge. Most are in the pound range, but great table fare! Ladyfish and jacks are just about anywhere you look. We found some big ladies around the bridges this week along with a few grouper.
Tip of the Week:
It's always a good idea to clean out the ol' boat a few times a year. Dampness, especially like we have had lately, can creep into compartments and end up with mildew in and on things. Life preservers can mildew quickly when damp. Flares, if not protected, and draw dampness and not work properly. You might find that favorite lure buried somewhere with rusty ol' hooks. Boats are made for water.....but water isn't always good for boats.
As always, remember, fishing is not just another hobby....it's an ADVENTURE!!
Good Fishing and Be Safe,

Captain Charlie Conner
www.fishtalescharter.com
email: captaincharlie@fishtalescharter.com
772-284-3852
(Captain Charlie Conner has been fishing the Indian River Lagoon for over twenty-five years. Specializing in light tackle fishing in Fort Pierce, Vero Beach, Jensen Beach and Port St Lucie, Florida. His weekly South Indian River Lagoon Fishing Report gives you the latest inshore fishing information for the Treasure Coast area on the Indian River Lagoon.}

'Do As I Say, Not As I Do'

October 2007
10-8-2007
I snuck out yesterday by myself to get some fishing in for a few hours. I don't get to actually fish by myself a whole lot these days so it was a welcomed, relaxing, trip. My passion is fishing with artificial lures for redfish so that was the plan for the day. However, after I went through about a half dozen Gulp shrimp (because of the ferocious pinfish), I decided to switch to using pinfish for bait. I did get two redfish on the Gulps but the pinfish were just costing me money with every bait they shredded. So I took a small gold hook, cut up some Gulp shrimp into tiny pieces, and caught a half dozen pinfish. Two of the pinfish I caught were small so I used them live and cut the larger ones up into smaller chunks and used them as dead bait. The two live pinfish didn't last long while fished next to the mangroves while the tide was high. Each one produced a frisky 20-22" redfish. While I prefer a rising tide for redfish, today the tide was falling and as it dropped I fished off of the shoreline near and area that had scattered limestone rocks on the flat. The fish in this area really seem to like hanging around these rocks. I started cutting up the larger pinfish and the redfish really liked the easy meal. I ended up getting 8 reds between 18"-25". Granted they weren't big fish, but for only having a few hours, I was satisfied with the day.
No pictures today because of not having anyone with me to take them. But you probably wouldn't have enjoyed the pictures of the fish half as much as you have enjoyed seeing pictures of me jumping into the water to chase a brand new rod and real that I let jump out of the boat. The real highlight of the day was when I committed a cardinal sin by laying the rod down on the deck while I turned around to grab a drink out of the cooler. I heard noise and turned around just in time to see my rod jump off the deck into the water. I think I could have won America's Funniest Home Videos if someone had caught me on film leaping into the water, snagging my rod, and hopping back in the boat in less than 5 seconds. All I could think about when I got back in the boat was how often I had asked clients not to ever lay their rod down unattended. I guess the moral of the story is, "Do as I say, not as I do."
Tampa Bay Fishing
Captain Clay Eavenson
813-300-2147
http://www.captainclay.com/
gofishing@captainclay.com

Flies And Lures Produce In Gulf And Bays

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Report for 10/15 through 10/21/2007

Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had action with a variety of fish during the past week. Fly anglers caught and released little tunny (false albacore) and Spanish mackerel off Siesta Key. Anglers using spinning tackle caught and released little tunny, bluefish, trout, snook, jacks, ladyfish and a cobia in Sarasota and Charlotte Harbor on a variety of lures. There are still Spanish and king mackerel and little tunny in the coastal gulf off Sarasota, although that action has slowed from a couple of weeks ago. Even though it’s still warm, snook are making their move from the surf and passes to backcountry flats of Sarasota Bay and Charlotte Harbor. Shorter days and slightly cooler water prompts them to move at this time of the year.
Orvis Regional Business Manager, Robert Bryant from Greensboro, NC, fished the coastal gulf off Sarasota with me on Monday. There were numerous schools of little tunny and Spanish mackerel breaking on the surface off Siesta Key. We connected with several little tunny and large Spanish mackerel with olive/white and chartreuse/white Ultra Hair Clouser flies. The new Orvis Helios rod performed fantastic! It’s like fishing with a rod 2 or 3 sizes smaller.
Keith McClintock and Barry Slee, both from Lake Forest, IL, fished with me the next 3 days. We fished canals in Punta Gorda and Port Charlotte for juvenile tarpon on Tuesday and found very few fish. We worked a concentration of tarpon in a spot for more than an hour without a hook up and moved on in search of better action. With a low tide at mid day and not much water moving, we worked the sand bar on the east side of Charlotte Harbor south of Alligator Creek. We caught and released a small cobia and a couple of trout with weedless-rigged CAL shad tails and jerk worms.
The next day we fished Sarasota and started in the coastal gulf off Siesta Key. We found a large bait ball being blitzed by little tunny just outside of Big Pass. We hooked up several times with a large white Clouser fly and a MirrOlure Top Dog, Jr. and they disappeared as quickly as they popped up. Later we fished the east side of Sarasota Bay where we caught and released snook, trout, bluefish and jacks on DOA Deadly Combos and CAL jigs with a variety of plastic tails.
Barry had to leave on Wednesday evening, but Keith and I fished Charlotte Harbor again on Thursday, but this time in Gasparilla Sound. We started off by locating a nice school of reds and hooking up a couple of times with a MirrOlure Top Dog, Jr. We found the rest of the day tough, catching and releasing a few trout and a 26” snook with CAL jigs and plastic tails and DOA Deadly Combos.
Next week’s tides are favorable for fishing the flats of Sarasota Bay or the coastal gulf as we head towards a full moon on Friday. There is still time to enter the 3rd annual Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers/Coastal Conservation Association “Fall Fly Fishing Challenge” to be held out of Ken Thompson Park next Saturday, Oct. 27th. Applications and more details can be found at http://www.mangrovecoastflyfishers.com/ on the tournament page or by contacting me.

Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
http://www.flyfishingflorida.net/ and http://www.snookfin-addict.com/

Orvis Regional Business Manager, Robert Bryant from Greesboro, NC with a nice Sarasota albie caught on a Clouser fly while fishing off Siesta Key with Capt. Rick Grassett.


Keith McClintock, from Lake Forest, IL, with a 26" snook caught and released in Charlotte Harbor with a CAL jig and a rootbeer/gold grub while fishing with Capt. Rick Grassett.


Barry Slee, from Lake Forest, IL, with a nice Sarasota Bay bluefish caught and released with a CAL jig and shad tail while fishing with Capt. Rick Grassett.

Near Shore Reefs Producing Great Action

Fishing Report 10/19/2007

Capt. Terry Frankford

With Gulf temperatures dropping just a little, and plenty of bait in the Gulf and along the Beaches several species have moved into the near shore reefs. King and Spanish mackerel, Cobia, Little Tunny, and small sharks are all over the near shore reefs. Bait is plentiful, scaled sardines (whitebait) can be netted in bays and along the beaches just look for diving pelicans, gulls, and terns. If your going for the big Kings little Blue Runners can be caught right where you fish using small baits or a chicken rig. Trolling these little Blues brings big fish, however one of my clients did pick up an eighteen pound King on a small whitebait this past week. Casting and trolling lures can also be productive, jigs, spoons, anything flashy will bring a bite. A favorite trolling lure of mine for King Mackerel is the Rapala CD-11 MAG with the Silver Mck design. Just a quick review of a few trips aboard the Reelin & Chillin this week:It's a Reelin & Chillin record breaker - forty and a half inch Redfish!Jon McCubbin, brother Bill, and friend Mark had a fantastic day of both near shore and in shore fishing, Starting at a near shore reef these anglers had a ball catching King Mackerel, and Spanish Mackerel with Bill landing a nice eighteen pound King using only fifteen pound test line. Heading inshore Mark had a great light tackle fight using ten pound test line catching a Jack Crevalle that tipped the scales at eight pounds. Jon had the catch of the day and for that matter the catch of the year for me. He caught and released a huge forty and a half inch Redfish. This is a client record for my boat, up until this time it was David Wright who held the record of thirty five inches.Bob Tetu, brother Bill, and friend Dan Cerone dodged the weather in North Sarasota Bay, however they still managed to find some great action and bring dinner home. We hit several locations catching a few here and there, then at a spot near Longbar we hit pay dirt. We had non-stop action until a thunder storm ran us off. Bluefish, Spanish Mackerel, and Trout was the catch of the day for these light tackle anglers.Jay Scouggins, Larry Smith, Jeremy, and Jamie Chester had great action on one of Sarasota's near shore reefs. Larry had the big King of the day catching and releasing one up to thirty-six inches. Jeremy caught one just over the limit that we decided to keep because it looked like it may not survive a release. All anglers caught a good bit of Spanish Mackerel taking dinner home to a hungry crew of visitor's from Canada.It was family time for my son Jesse, daughter-n-law Shelly and myself to see what we could do at a near shore reef. To make a long story short Shelly picked up her first King Mackerel over thirty-six inches. Jesse caught a nice Cobia at thirty-five inches and a Little Tunny around eight pounds. We also caught plenty of Spanish Mackerel. And yes we had a big family fish fry that evening - grilled Cobia, fried Spanish Mackerel, and Sashimi Little Tunny.Brad Johns, wife Lavren Stone, and two sons Rowen (6), and Ethan (4) did the near shore and in shore trip with great success. Starting off on a near shore reef Jack Crevalle, Blue Runners, Spanish Mackerel, and a nice Little Tunny kept these anglers plenty busy. Then it was in shore to some structure in Sarasota Bay where the Redfish turned on long enough for Brad to pick up two in the slot. Also, Rowen picked up his first keeper Redfish that went to twenty-four inches, way to go Rowen. Lavren likes fishing all right, however I think she got a kick out of a pod of bottle-noise dolphins we found in New Pass. They entertained us for a while and after a few photos we went on to more fishing, a fun day for all aboard.Frank Habic, wife Joanie, and nephew Jim Lee had a ball catching and releasing sharks in the Gulf of Mexico. We were looking for Spanish Mackerel, however I think the sharks had the same idea. Must be that the sharks ran off the Mackerel and decided to take us up on our whitebait. The first shark was hooked by Joanie and she just couldn't turn it. Almost one hundred and fifty yards of line screamed off the reel. I had to cup the spool so the line would break off at the fish. It wouldn't be good having a shark running around with that much line hanging off it. Frank ran into one that was almost as large, however he did manage after a long battle getting it to the boat. We were able to remove the hook, no longer was in the shape of a "J" now it was more like a corkscrew. Jim Lee also tackled a couple of these fun Lemon Sharks getting them to the boat for a photo and release. Not much dinner went home that afternoon, however all had great action on light tackle.

Rigging:Spanish Mackerel have really sharp teeth and rigging correctly is important or you may spend a small fortune on tackle, and time re rigging instead of catching. The best way I have found to keep terminal tackle on for at least a little while is as follows: Starting with a twelve inch length of #2 wire leader I use a haywire twist attaching a 1/O "long shanked" hook on one end, and a #8 swivel on the other. This makes a wire leader approximately eight inches long, just long enough to bypass the teeth. I then tie a thirty-six inch length of forty pound test mono to prevent chaffing from tail and body swipes, this is especially important if you happen to hook a King, Cobia, or Shark. After a few fish the wire will curl - just keep on fishing, the Macks don't mind. You will still lose rigs, however for me this keeps bait in the water the longest. Some may think this is down sizing just a little to much, however this week alone these set ups have landed eighteen pound King Mackerel, thirty-five inch Cobia, and four foot Lemon Sharks. Small terminal tackle helps to keep the bait looking natural making for more hook ups.

Tight Lines & Good Times,

Capt. Terry Frankford

Reelin & Chillin Charters Inc.

941-228-7802

http://www.blogger.com/

Half Hitch Tackle Fishing Report 10-19

Report for 10/19/2007

Salt Water

RED TIDE UPDATE

The best available information says red tide continues to hold to the east and south of St. Joe bay. However, the wind and rain from this last cold front may have helped scatter the red tide. As of right now, there are still pockets of red tide in the bay and along Mexico Beach and in Crooked Island.

MEXICO BEACH AND OFFSHORE

Remember! Red snapper season closes the end of this month in state and federal waters. Grouper closes in federal waters only for November and December. The red snapper bite is still good around the wrecks and reefs. Big Spanish mackerel and bluefish schools are along the shoreline, at the buoy line and around the Air Force tower. Throwing gotcha plugs and trolling Clark spoons will work very well.

ST JOSEPH BAY

With red tide in the bay, common areas for fishing is inhibited, so look for clear water. Some trout are moving to the deeper pockets as the waters cool down. Expect trout to start their move into the intercostals, creeks, and tributaries soon. Fishing live shrimp on the bottom with light lead on a Carolina rig is your best bet. Black’s Island is a good spot for redfish and trout where the water is clear. Fishing outside the flats with live bait works well. For artificial baits, try some pink pompano jigs and green gotcha grubs with a light green jig head in the afternoon and red/white topwater in the morning. Gold spoons are almost always great for the redfish.

DESTIN

Can you say MAKO SHARK, well this week in the Destin Rodeo we had the largest fish ever brought to the dock in the 59 year history of the Destin Fishing Rodeo. While we are all about tagging and releasing sharks this one was amazing. To date we have 2 vessels tied with 5 tagged sharks each the Charter Boat Twighlight with Captain Robert Hill had a 844.2 pound Mako. This Mako is the new bench mark for the Destin Fishing Rodeo, to even bring a shark to the dock it has to beat the previous rodeo record which was 339.6 pounds and now the new official record after the Mako was drawn is 638.6 pounds. The Twighlight was grouper fishing when the huge shark started eating the groupers they were catching 70 miles from shore. Then the massive Mako came to the surface. They used a 20 pound amberjack for bait to catch the beast. It took over 30 minutes to catch the shark and even with the help of 10 men they could not get the fish in the boat. They eventually ended up tying the fish to the boat and dragging it to the dock. Once at the Destin Fishing Rodeo dock, it took over 30 minutes and a block and tackle to get the giant Mako from the water and onto the dock to be weighed. As for what is happening with the fish for those concerned that such a magnificent fish was killed; the Mako is an excellent eating fish and it was cleaned at the Fleet Marina Docks. The patrons, captain and crew divided up much of the fish for them selves. They also gave some to the dock helpers for there friends and family and the rest was donated to a local fish market for distribution to those in need. Lastly the angler is having the head mounted for his house. On other fronts the black fin tuna bite is awesome right now along the edge. One of our customers tagged and released a blue marlin estimated at 450-500 pounds Sunday at the nipple. As for bottom fish, the Legal Dose had 3 snapper over 20 lbs one day along with a nice scamp near 15 lbs and then a 170.4 lb Yellow Fin tuna to top off the box. The kings have been good this weekend and the flounder bite off the Pier was really hot on Monday morning. Around the jetties and the bay the redfish are very good, some flounder and a few trout are being caught. As the weather cools off even more expect the bite to get even better. For those of you that love the elusive red snapper make sure you take advantage of the next 16 days as the snapper season closes November 1st.

PANAMA CITY AND OFFSHORE

The red tide has started to diminish tremendously. Grand Lagoon and St. Andrews Bay are nearly free of any signs of the bloom. Offshore, there are still sporadic patches, but it seems to be vacating our waters. The King Mackeral bite is still slow. Better reports are coming from hard bottom areas well offshore. Troll Dusters and free-line live or dead bait for the most action. Try a Stretch 25 or large Drone Spoon with 4-6 oz.s of lead for bigger kings. The Grouper bite is good well offshore over hard bottom areas. Live bait, whole boston mackerel and jigs (Shimano Butterfly or Williamson) are working well. Jigs with a glow color to them are a sure bet. Amberjack are on many of the inshore wrecks and reefs in good numbers. Try the Bridge Spans for lots of action. The larger fish will be well offshore over hard bottom. Live cigar minnows or pinfish will entice the larger fish, while jigs (Williamson Jig or AJ Jig) will trigger the most bites. Snapper action is still very good. Squid, cigar minnows and chunks of northern mackerel are working well. The bag limit for state waters remains four snapper per person and 16” length, however in federal waters only two snapper per person and 16” length. Federal waters start basically nine miles from land, and is noted on your maps as the Natural resources boundary. Ladyfish, Bluefish and Bar Jacks are everywhere up and down the beaches right now. Throw Pompano Jigs, Gotcha’s and Spoons on light tackle for a lot of fun.

ST ANDREWS BAY SYSTEM

Mangrove Snappers are all over the jetties right now. They are easy to catch and great to eat. Use live shrimp or chub minnows with light weight and small hooks for best results. Flounder are starting to move and are still being caught on drop-offs in the bays and on the edges of grass flats. Try the deep channel leading into the Spanish Shante in St. Andrews Bay. Use a Carolina rig with live bull minnows for the best results. For artificial bait fishermen, use an 1/8 oz. jig with Gulp Curl Tail Minnows in a variety of colors. The Trout bite is very good and with the cooler weather have been biting throughout the day. Target spotty bottom grass flats in the 1-3 foot range. Big trout can be caught early in the day on topwater plugs close to the shoreline. When the sun gets up, throw a Rebel Jointed Minnow in Gold or Silver. Redfish are biting good again in Grand Lagoon. Gulp, Gold Spoons, Live Shrimp, LY’s, Bull Minnows and Cut Bait are working well. Many more bull reds are starting to move into the pass. Live bull minnows, shrimp and LY’s work best.

DAN RUSSEL PIER
Spanish mackerel and a few Kings are being caught every day at the pier right now. Sharks, Pompano, Whiting, Blue Fish, and Lady Fish are also being caught. Call 850-233-5080 for the latest pier fishing information.
Fresh Water
The big bluegill bite is hot right now. Fish live crickets and wigglers along the drop offs in 5-6 ft of water to catch some slabs.
Fishing Report prepared by Half Hitch Tackle Staff.
The Captains Corner Fishing Report is provided by local charter captains and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of Half Hitch Tackle.

Half Hitch Tackle
850-234-2621
2206 Thomas Dr
Panama City, Fl 32408
www.halfhitch.com/

This report is dedicated to the memory of Al Hubbard. Al Hubbard was a field editor for Florida Sportsman magazine, an outdoor writer for the News Herald and a board member of the Florida Outdoor Writer's Association. Mr. Hubbard was also the owner of Al's Outdoors Outfitting Services.

Cooler Water Will Improve Fishing

Ahoy there Anglers,

Well, it seems the FWC's Commission wants to hold off making any rule changes for the red drum this year. The Commission has asked the Division of Marine Fisheries Management to hold off any more recommendations until the next red drum assessment is complete and that will be in November 2008.
What I'm afraid of is this, since they didn't make any decisions this year, we may be looking at more drastic measures after the next assessment. This is why everyone who targets these great fish needs to come to the public hearings and let their opinions be known. The FWC really does want to hear from the fishing public. Who they do get to hear from is the environmentalists and that's a lot. Now I don't have anything at all against the environmentalists but come on, the studies show the redfish are not in any emanate danger of becoming extinct. I also want to help to protect the redfish from unnecessary take of the breading stock and also from all the ones who are taken that are undersized but I believe there has been a great comeback for this species and if we all help we can keep this fishery healthy. Take only what's allowed by size limit as well as bag limit and be sure to release the oversized ones and undersized ones with care. Be sure they can swim off on their own power. Revive those oversized ones and vent if necessary.
RIVERS:
Well, I guess you've heard that the best thing going on right now in the rivers are the larger croakers. People call them Virginia croakers because as they grow up - up river they begin to follow the shrimp out of the river in the fall and after reaching the ocean they proceed up the coast to Chesapeake Bay. Now there are no limits to these guys, size or bag but please take only what you are going to eat of freeze and eat later. I've had a couple of trips this week where people are going to use the croakers they caught for fish fry's this weekend and they're very good for that. The trips I had for that I had one guy and I caught 174 of them by 1:00pm and the next day three guys caught 166 of em and then we went flounder fishing. Yesterday I had two guys and we only fished for the croakers a little while and they caught 61. Now of course they didn't keep every one they caught. We only kept the larger ones. Out of the 174 he kept 124 and out of the 166 they kept 113. There's a few yellow mouth trout still around and some are real nice. Flounder was doing very good last week when the water temperatures dropped a few degrees and we were catching 7 to 14 of them per trip but yet again, the water temperature has come back up, (the wrong way to go) a few degrees, back to 80 yesterday so they as well as some of the other species slowed back down also. The flounder will pick back up again after next week's cool down. Speckled trout here and there but not as good as they're going to get in a few weeks. Bull redfish are in the river but not schooled up in the masses as they should be. Again, I think it's the water temperatures. A black drum or two here and there also but they'll really get better very soon too.

JETTIES:
Yes, I know, it's sheepshead time! One of my favorites but, the water temperature should be about 71 to 73 during this time of the month but it's running 80 and 81 so each time we get a slight cool down I head to the rocks but with no luck. One day I had two guys and after croaker fishing we went to the jetties and caught two sheepshead, two reds and one black margate. The next day after croaker fishing we went out there and caught two sheepshead then yesterday after the temps rose again we only caught one 18" drum. Those sheepshead have got to start soon.
Bull redfish are at the jetties now. They'd be a lot thicker if we had some pogies around but this year the pogies disappeared and never showed back up. A few of the mangrove snapper out at the rocks are nice but most are small again. Some legal sized black sea bass are chewing there also and some days the whiting bite is great and some days it's slower. Some real nice flounder out at the rocks now also, inside and out.

CREEKS:
Redfish and flounder in the creeks are your best bet if you're not croaker fishing. Nice redfish to 32" are being caught in the creeks now. When these flood tides begin to taper off the action will get even better. During the flood tides the reds can get up in the spartina grass flats and gorge on fiddler crabs and small blue crabs so much that when they come back down into the creeks as the tides fall they're not looking for much. Oh you can still catch them as we've been doing but it's slower than normal because most of the fish are full.
Flounder at creek mouths and shore lines where you have a good slope to it or roll downs where the water doesn't just drop off suddenly straight down but kinda rools down to the deeper area.
SURF:
My surf fishing buddy tells me he's catching slot-sized redfish in the surf along with black drum, whiting and small bluefish and he caught a flounder the other day. So get out there and get em when you can. People on the Jacksonville Beach Pier are doing good now also.
Remember, let's keep our waterways clean. When I rode with the FWC a few weeks ago I couldn't believe how much trash, bottles, cans, bait paper, bait bags, grocery bags, food containers and discarded trash fish were all over the bridges. People!!! Clean up your own mess! You took it out there. Bring it back. There are trash cans in the parking lots. After our radio show last Saturday, I took a shovel and a bucket and went and cleaned up the bridges on Heckscher Dr. If it rains most of the day today, (like the forecast shows) I'll go and do the same thing. If someone doesn't clean it up it'll only wind up in the water when the wind blows it off the bridges. Somebody has got to do it, it might as well be me.

You can say what you want about the South but, you never hear of anyone retiring and moving up North,,,,,

Capt. Vic Tison

VIC2FISH & ADVENTURES, INC.

Web site: http://vic2fish.com/

904-699-2285

P.O. Box 28208

Jax., Fl. 32226-8208

Neither Captain Vic nor Vic2Fish & Adventures, Inc. claims any responsibility for any injury or loss of property arising out of any party using these Fishing Reports.If you no longer wish to receive Capt. Vic's Fishing Reports, please e-mail me to unsubscribe and I'll remove your address from the lists.

Changing Conditions Shifts Fish Patterns

Indian River Lagoon Coast Fishing Report, October 18, 2007

Compliments of Mosquito Creek Outdoors, Apopka Florida

As my good friend and lagoon mentor Captain Rodney Smith would say, "the fishing this week was excellent, it was the catching that varied". High water and cooler temperatures have shifted fish patterns experienced on the lagoon last month, so more time was spent looking for fish then catching them. The winds have settled down a bit and even switched from the south today, but the numbers of quality fish just weren't there this week.


Jason Johnson and his friend George from Sanford, Florida joined me on Wednesday for a half-day on the Indian River Lagoon where we only managed two slot redfish and some ladyfish, but we didn't get skunked and we didn't get too wet.


Today I was joined by father and son team Corbin and David Koenig from Port St. John, in celebration of Corbin's 10th birthday. Our mission was to put Corbin on his first redfish, and although the catching was again tough, he managed two slot redfish and an 18-pound black drum.


Corbin is an excellent angler, and he managed to catch all three fish on his own, excepting only limited assistance from his dad.

Several other points of interest this week effecting fishing are the red tide has once again returned in the Atlantic off of Flagler Beach, with some reports coming from as far south as New Smyrna Beach. Additionally, the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge will be closed this weekend in support of Space Shuttle security measures, so the North end of Mosquito Lagoon will be closed as well as the No-Motor Zone.

Seminars and Events

November 17th 9am - 11am Hook Kids on Fishing program at the Volusia County Fair Grounds, Coastal Angler Magazine's Boat Show & Fishing Expo.November 16th, 17th, and 18th, Coastal Angler Magazines Boating and Fishing Expo at the Volusia County Fairgrounds, with a full program of speakers and seminars. Hands on Angler Improvement Clinic presented by Mosquito Creek Outdoors, learn to rig soft plastic baits and utilized braided fishing line, knots, and leaders for inshore applications.

Call now to purchase your holiday charter gift certificate for the 2008 fishing season, and catch a memory with Captain Tom Van Horn. As always, if you have any questions or need more information, please contact me.Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn
Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters

http://www.irl-fishing.com/

407-366-8085 landline

407-416-1187 on the water

866-790-8081 toll free

Visit http://www.mosquitocreekoutdoors.com/ for your outdoor adventure needs, its Where the Adventure Begins!

Different Ways To Fish And Be Rewarded

10.12.07
The Fall mullet run is here and in full force! The southerly migration of the small silver and black baitfish has put these fish on our doorstep and we are opening the front door on a daily basis to target the predators that are awaiting this prey. Here on the treasure coast, mid September through mid October is the general arrival time period for the pods of bait and how long it actually will last from one year to the next is anyone’s guess so we position ourselves to take full advantage of the phenomenal fishing that these little baits inspire as they pass through our area. The beauty (which also can be the challenge) of fishing this time of year is that there are so many different ways to fish and be rewarded.

Top water lures: This of course is one of the most exciting ways to fish because when the fish strikes the plug everyone on the boat hears and sees it! Casting and retrieving top water lures is an effective way to fish in our area 12 months out of the year however this time of year is special in that a perfect cast or technical retrieve is not always necessary to catch fish. It seems as though the target species are genetically programmed to feed up in the Fall and will often move out of their comfort zone to strike a lure.

Sub-surface lures: Take your pick! Of course everything does not work all of the time but choosing a confidence bait that resembles a 3-6” bait fish is a good place to start. We like DOA baitbusters, jerk baits and terror-eyz as well as Mirror lure and Luckycraft suspending jerk baits. Often our first choice is the soft plastic lures due to their effectiveness as well as most of them encompass a single hook as opposed to multiple trebles which I believe results in less -lost or missed- fish. The single hook is not only better for the fish as there is only one hook point to penetrate the fish it also insures a more sporting battle as the hook point will most likely be in the mouth of the fish enabling the angler to control the fish from the head as opposed to several treble hooks which can end up lodged in a dorsal or anal fin or worse. When a double digit fish is boated Single hooks are also safer for everyone on the boat considering the head thrashing of a large fish with large treble hooks on its body.

Fly fishing: The night time dock light and bridge fishing on fly is excellent here most months out of the year. This time of year lends itself to daylight fly fishing for snook as well as any other. The year before last I had a stretch in the late morning hours where I caught 13 snook and a trout on 15 presentations. Mullet size flies often get the nod over small minnow patterns for obvious reasons so a rod weight capable of throwing larger patterns is necessary. An excellent fly pattern that worked well for us in the past is the Hot flash minnow. There are many variations of this pattern and the version I tie is that similar to a mullet of course, the mackerel pattern has worked well for us some days as well. When in doubt tying on a clouser minnow and working the water column at different levels is a great approach.

Live bait: For our inshore fishing Capt. Ray and I have both always seem to prefer to fool the fish with artificial offerings as opposed to fishing with live or dead bait and waiting for the fish to find it. That being said there are times throughout the year and especially this time of year when the fish are so tuned in to all of the live bait surrounding them that it is all they will eat. When the mullet schools are prevalent we throw our cast nets on them and fill the bait well for some live bait fishing. Free lining finger mullet with no weight is not only productive but a really fun way to fish! These baits swim close to the surface as long they can and while they don’t always stay in the strike zone eventually they tire and find themselves struggling over an area where they can be trapped, blasted and consumed. Because they are trying to hold close to the waters surface they are often visible lending themselves to kind of a livebait-topwater style of fishing. This is really cool to experience for many reasons and again when the fish strikes you are able to hear and see it as well. At times an egg sinker tied in line is necessary to coax the fish to strike and provides opportunities for other specie such as large flounder. When the mullet are here thick as they were last week it is common to spot them in virtually any area of the waterway. Last year I was giving a fly casting lesson at a park situated on the St. Lucie River and my student pointed over my shoulder to the river where a school of bait several hundred feet in diameter worked its way up the river channel. Rivers, seawalls, dock lines, mangroves, bridges, inlets and of course the beaches are all highways or holding areas for these migrating baitfish. This seasonal fishing pattern if one of many that we enjoy in this fishery but the Fall mullet run is here now and who knows how long they will bless us with their presence, sooo Now is a great time to be on the water and see this spectacle and go fishing!!! Have fun, be safe and we wish good fishin’ to you!

Capt. Duber Winters

Green Water Charters

772-631-1023

http://www.greenwatercharters.com/

duber@wintersnet.com