Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action with tarpon the past couple of weeks. Tarpon schools have been plentiful in the coastal gulf off Sarasota. Some tarpon schools were as large as more than 100 fish, which are more common early in the season as they prepare to spawn. These schools of fish are sometimes difficult to get to eat since they are more focused on spawning than feeding.
However, anglers fishing with me the last couple of weeks had good action. Larry Ford, from Longboat Key, FL, fished a couple of days with me during the week of 5/25. Pete Molinari, from Sarasota, FL, joined Larry on Tuesday. They had several hook ups with live bait and jumped one. Tom Creel, from Sarasota, FL, joined Larry on Thursday, had several bites and jumped 2 tarpon, one on a pinfish and another on a threadfin. Rough conditions in the gulf on Thursday kept us in the bay for most of the morning, where one of the tarpon was jumped around a bridge. A tarpon fly trip that week had lots of shots and several follows, but no takers. West winds forced the cancellation or rescheduling of a couple of tarpon trips towards the end of that week.
Fly angler Hal Lutz, from Parrish, FL, fished with me on Sunday, May 31st. We had lots of shots at tarpon, a couple of bites and one in the air with a black and chartreuse Deceiver type tarpon fly. Cliff Ondercin, from Sarasota, FL, and his dad, Dennis Ondercin, from Middleburg Heights, OH, fished with me Monday through Friday of last week. They had lots of action fishing the coastal gulf from Siesta Key to Lido Key. They had a total of 15 bites or hook ups with a variety of live baits, DOA baits and a fly. They jumped 7 tarpon and landed one, a 95-pounder, on a live pinfish under a float.
Tarpon ate live crabs, pinfish, threadfins, DOA baits and a fly. They ate DOA shrimp and Baitbusters almost as often as live baits. We spent only a couple of hours one afternoon fly fishing for tarpon, had 7 or 8 shots and one bite on a black and chartreuse tarpon bunny fly. The wind switched to the west again on Friday, roughing up the gulf. We were able to fish for a few hours in the gulf, but it was very tough handling the boat in those conditions.
Tarpon will probably be less plentiful early next week due to tomorrow’s full moon. Many tarpon will be offshore spawning, however as we get further away from the full moon they will return to normal patterns along the beaches. With a front passing through this weekend, by the time winds switch back to the east we should be returning to a normal pattern with tarpon.
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
Dennis Ondercin's tarpon jumps off Siesta Key.
Capt. Rick Grassett prepares to land Dennis Ondercin's tarpon.
Dennis Ondercin, from Middleburg Heights, OH, caught and released this 95-pound tarpon while fishing off Siesta Key with Capt. Rick Grassett.
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