Hey! Hey! Hey! Fat Albert! Anglers fishing with me recently on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released snook, trout, reds, Spanish mackerel and little tunny. The best action was with Spanish mackerel and little tunny in the coastal gulf off Sarasota and Boca Grande.
Bob Cole and a friend, from Venice, FL, and Bob’s son, Neal, from Boston, MA, fished Little Sarasota Bay and Blackburn Bay with me on Saturday, Oct. 10th. They caught and released trout and a couple of snook on CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Deadly Combos. Chad Allen, from the Detroit area, and his brother Brett and daughter, Lauren, from Bradenton fished with me on Sunday, Oct. 11. We fished the coastal gulf off Siesta Key where they caught and released several Spanish mackerel to 4-pounds on top water plugs. Numerous sharks, mixed with the mackerel, attacked our hooked fish making for some exciting action!
Mike Sprague, from NJ, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Monday. He caught and released several trout to 21” on CAL jigs with shad tails and a nice red on a gold spoon near Bishops Point. Peter Varga, from Sarasota, FL and a guest, Joshua Miller, fished Sarasota Bay with me the next day. We found very little surface activity in the coastal gulf with Spanish mackerel, so we fished Sarasota Bay. The action was slow, but they caught a few trout on CAL jigs with shad tails and flies. Fly angler Alex Ericsen, from CT, fished Blackburn Bay with me before dawn on Friday morning. He caught and released 8 or 10 snook to 23” and a redfish on Grassett’s Snook Minnow and Skitterbug flies. The Skitterbug is similar to a Gartside Gurgler, but tied to resemble a shrimp. A front blew through late Friday causing windy conditions for a few days, forcing me to cancel a couple of fly fishing trips.
Fly angler Nick Reding, from Sarasota, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Tuesday. We mainly waded and targeted reds, but the action was slow. However, Nick caught and released a slam near Long Bar consisting of a red, a snook and several trout on my Grassett’s Flats Minnow and Clouser flies.
The best trips of the week were with little tunny (a.k.a. bonito, false albacore or fat Albert). One trip was in the Boca Grande area with Jon Yenari and Kyle Ruffing, both from Sarasota, FL. We fished the coastal gulf outside of Gasparilla Pass on Wednesday and found lots of little tunny. They were moving fast and were hard to get on, but once we got dialed into them we had fast action. They caught and released numerous little tunny to more than 10-pounds on Enrico Puglisi style and Crease flies. We headed into Gasparilla Sound for the last couple of hours of the day and waded a sand bar where Jon caught and released a nice red on a black crab fly pattern that was swimming on the back of a large ray. Sweet!
Ed Chiles and Skip Raddick, from Anna Maria Island, got in on the action with me on Friday. This was a trip that I donated to a silent auction for the “Slaw Dog” fishing tournament to benefit Mote Marine Laboratory and Ed was the successful bidder. We fished the coastal gulf off Anna Maria Island and had fast action with little tunny and Spanish mackerel on Clouser flies. Friends Rusty Chinnis, from Longboat Key, and Jim Knowles, from Bradenton, FL, fished along with us in Rusty’s boat and also had fast action. We are in one of my favorite times of the year for fishing the coastal gulf, flats and snook at night. Water temperatures have cooled into the mid 70’s and many species of fish are on the move.
There are a few upcoming events that you may be interested in. I will be hosting a group of fly anglers at Andros South bonefish lodge from May 1-8, 2010. Please contact me if you are interested in joining the group or for more info. I will also be the instructor at CB’s Saltwater Outfitters Orvis-Endorsed fly fishing school on Nov. 7th. Cost for the school, which includes the use of premium Orvis fly tackle, a text book, instructional DVD and lunch is $150 per angler. Contact me for more info or CB’s Saltwater Outfitters at (941) 349-4400 to sign up.
If you are looking for something fun to do, the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers/Coastal Conservation Association’s “Fall Fly Fishing Challenge” is Saturday, Oct. 31st. Anglers will fish for snook, reds, trout and more in a digital photo-release format. Cost for the event is $50 per angler and includes an awards BBQ. Contact me for more info.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com
Alex Eriksen, from Redding, CT, caught and released this snook on a Skitterbug fly while fishing the ICW at night near Venice, FL with Capt. Rick Grassett.
Jon Yenari, from Sarasota, FL, caught and released this big little tunny on a fly while fishing with Capt. Rick Grassett off Gasparilla Island.
Ed Chiles, from Anna Maria Island, FL, caught and released this little tunny on a Clouser fly while fishing off Anna Maria Island with Capt. Rick Grassett.
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