CATCH OF THE WEEK |
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Dean Fields, from Indianapolis, IN, had good action catching and releasing snook at night on a Grassett Snook Minnow fly while fishing the ICW near Venice with Capt. Rick Grassett. |
FWC reports that dozens of sea turtles were rescued during the recent cold weather. During 2013, a preliminary total of 829 manatee deaths were also documented. Our contributing captain, Rick Grassett, recommends fishing deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay for trout, Spanish mackerel, blues and more should continue to be a good option. Catch and released night snook action in the ICW should also be good option during warm ups as long as water temperatures don’t dip below 60 degrees.
FWC busy responding to manatee deaths
New FWC buoy in Tampa Bay to aid water quality, harmful algal bloom monitoring
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Capt. Rick DePaiva, from Ft. Myers, FL, battles a tarpon jumped on a fly while fishing the coastal gulf with Capt. Rick Grassett. |
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, blues and trout in Sarasota Bay, trout, flounder and redfish in the Terra Ceia Bay area on CAL jigs with shad tails and snook at night on flies in the ICW near Venice during the past week.
Keith McClintock and Victor Feldman, both from IL, fished the area from Palma Sola Bay to Terra Ceia Bay with me on Monday. They caught and released numerous trout, a couple of flounder and a red on CAL jigs with shad tails, fishing potholes in the morning and shallow grass flats in the afternoon.
Dean Fields, from IN, snook fished with me in the ICW near Venice on Tuesday night. A front passed through that day and we had a cool northwest wind that evening but snook were aggressive. Dean caught and released more than 20 snook and several jacks, ladyfish and trout on my Grassett Snook Minnow fly. Despite an incoming tide that was slowed by the northwest wind, the snook bite was steady.
Cold air pushed in by a strong NW wind caused us to cancel Thursdays’ fly fishing trip. A full moon, high pressure and a sharp drop in water temperature made for some tough conditions. However, by Friday when Marshall Dinerman, his son Michael Dinerman and son-in-law, Alex Medeiros, from Atlanta, GA, fished Sarasota Bay with me, it was sunny and had warmed into the mid 60’s. We fished the west side of the bay and despite water in the high 50’s, we were pleasantly surprised to find Spanish mackerel feeding on the surface. They caught and released numerous Spanish mackerel to 4-pounds, blues to 2-pounds and a couple of trout on DOA Deadly Combos and top water plugs.
I was the instructor for a CB’s Saltwater Outfitters Orvis-Endorsed Fly Fishing School on Saturday. Students learned the basic fly cast, shooting line and roll casting. Topics covered also included leader construction, knots and saltwater fly fishing techniques. The next school will be on Feb 15. Cost for the one day school, which runs from 8:30 AM to 3:00 PM, is $150 and includes the use of premium Orvis fly tackle, a textbook and lunch. Contact CB’s Saltwater Outfitters at (941) 349-4400 to sign up.
Fishing deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay for trout, Spanish mackerel, blues and more should continue to be a good option. Catch and released night snook action in the ICW should also be good option during warm ups as long as water temperatures don’t dip below 60 degrees.
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
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Fishing Forecast
Westerly flow will persist behind a weak surface boundary. With a weak area of high pressure establishing over the area, winds and seas will subside for the beginning of the week. The next cold front is forecast to shift through the area by Tuesday night with stronger northwest winds and building seas developing behind the front.
Monday
Northwest winds around 5 knots becoming west around 10 knots in the afternoon. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Monday night will bring west winds around 10 knots. Bay and inland waters a light chop.
2014/01/20Mon02:07 AM1.61H
2014/01/20Mon09:28 AM-0.15L
2014/01/20Mon03:19 PM1.45H
2014/01/20Mon09:42 PM0.39L
Tuesday
West winds 5 to 10 knots increasing to around 15 knots in the afternoon. Bay and inland waters a moderate chop. A slight chance of rain in the morning, then a chance of rain in the afternoon. Tuesday night will bring north winds 15 to 20 knots. Bay and inland waters choppy.
2014/01/21Tue02:55 AM1.43H
2014/01/21Tue09:58 AM0.0L
2014/01/21Tue03:51 PM1.55H
2014/01/21Tue10:43 PM0.3L
Wednesday
North winds 10 to 15 knots diminishing to 5 to 10 knots in the afternoon. Bay and inland waters a moderate chop. Wednesday night will bring northeast winds around 10 knots. Bay and inland waters a light chop.
2014/01/22Wed03:53 AM1.22H
2014/01/22Wed10:31 AM0.18L
2014/01/22Wed04:28 PM1.64H
2014/01/22Wed11:54 PM0.2L
Thursday
Northeast winds around 10 knots. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Thursday night will bring north winds 10 to 15 knots. Bay and inland waters a moderate chop.
2014/01/23Thu05:08 AM1.01H
2014/01/23Thu11:07 AM0.37L
2014/01/23Thu05:11 PM1.73H
Friday
North winds 10 to 15 knots. Bay and inland waters a moderate chop.
2014/01/24Fri01:14 AM0.05L
2014/01/24Fri06:53 AM0.86H
2014/01/24Fri11:47 AM0.56L
2014/01/24Fri06:01 PM1.81H
Solunar Forecast