Capt. Rick Grassett’s Sarasota, FL Fishing Report for 5/3/2013
Anglers fishing with me on my Action Craft flats skiff the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released trout and blues in Sarasota Bay on flies during the past week. We also landed the first tarpon of the season in the coastal gulf on a fly!
Mark Bowler, editor of the Scottish magazine Fly Fishing & Fly Tying, and his guests Ron and Rick, all from Scotland, fly fished Sarasota Bay with me on Sunday. The best action was fishing deep grass at Stephens Point where they caught and released trout (both spotted and silver trout), blues, jacks and ladyfish on Ultra Hair Clouser flies fished on intermediate sink tip lines. Ron connected with a good snook while we were wading shallow water and they had some shots at reds on top of a bar when the tide was high.
Ross Shedden, from Bradenton, FL, fished Sarasota Bay on an instructional fly fishing trip with me on Monday. He was casting 40-feet or more in short order and was able to catch and release several trout and bluefish fishing deep grass flats on the west side of the bay with an Ultra Hair Clouser fly fished on an intermediate sink tip fly line. Good job!
Patrice Camillieri, from France, fly fished for tarpon in the coastal gulf with me on Tuesday. We saw singles, doubles and several small schools of fish throughout the day. Despite some slow periods, we had spurts of good activity and fish were happy. Patrice caught and released his first tarpon, a young male of about 50-pounds, on a fly. The fish was so aggressive that it slammed its brakes on and went vertical to eat the fly and then jumped numerous times around the boat before being landed in about 15 to 20-minutes. A great first tarpon!
Conditions were poor for tarpon fishing on Wednesday morning. With heavy cloud cover and rain looming just offshore, we decided to wait for better tarpon fishing conditions. Thursday was similar, poor visibility and a big swell in the gulf. Seth Koch, from PA, and Bill Miller from MS, fly fished Sarasota Bay with me on Friday morning. We fished deep grass flats on both sides of the bay where they caught and released a few trout to 20” on an Ultra Hair Clouser fly fished on a sink tip fly line.
If you want to learn to fly fish, there will be an Orvis Fly Fishing 101 introductory fly fishing class at CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Sun, May 5th. The 2-hour free class will cover fly casting basics and participants will have an opportunity to cast premium Orvis fly tackle. Contact CB’s at (941) 349-4400 to sign up.
Tarpon are becoming more plentiful in the coastal gulf and should be a good option next week. Look for reds, snook and big trout in potholes and on the edges of bars when the tide is low or on shallow flats on sunny afternoons when the tide is high. Catch and release night snook fishing in the ICW from Sarasota to Venice should also be good.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
Orvis- Endorsed Outfitter Guide
CB’s Saltwater Outfitters-2011 Orvis Outfitter of the Year
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com
Ross Shedden, from Bradenton, FL, caught and released this bluefish on an Ultra Hair Clouser fly fished on a sink tip fly line while fishing a Sarasota Bay grass flat with Capt. Rick Grassett.
Patrice Camillieri, from France, caught and released his first tarpon on a fly while fishing the coastal gulf with Capt. Rick Grassett (below with landed tarpon).
Bill Miller, from MS, caught and released this 20" trout on an Ultra Hair Clouser fly while fishing Sarasota Bay with Capt. Rick Grassett.
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