Catch of the Week |
|
|
|
Bill Nesbitt, from the Rochester, NY area, caught and released this sheepshead on a Grassett Flats Minnow fly while fishing shallow water in Sarasota Bay with Capt. Rick Grassett. |
|
BRADENTON – Capt. Rick Grassett says that tarpon are thinning out in the coastal gulf so it may require a lot of waiting for a few fish, but they are aggressive now so it should be worth the wait. Tarpon are also a good option around bridges at night and juveniles in creeks, canals and basins. Beat the heat by catch and release snook fishing before daylight in the ICW and then look for trout, blues, Spanish mackerel, tripletail and more in Sarasota Bay.
![]() |
Kirk Grassett, from Middletown, DE, holds an injured osprey on the deck of Capt. Rick Grassett's boat. The bird was found struggling on the surface in the coastal gulf and transported to the beach where it was picked up by Save Our Seabirds. |
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 a variety of species including snook, trout, bluefish, mangrove snapper, sheepshead and tripletail on flies and CAL jigs with shad tails in Sarasota Bay during the past week.
Steve Retzlaff, from Switzerland, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Wednesday. He caught and released a few trout and a mangrove snapper on an Ultra Hair Clouser fly fished on a sink tip fly line over deep grass near Buttonwood Harbor. He also had several shots at tripletail and hooked one on my Grassett Flats Minnow fly.
Jerry Poslusny and Bill Nesbitt, both from the Rochester, N.Y. area, fished with meon Thursday and Friday. With a stiff west wind, tarpon fishing in the coastal gulf wasn’t an option so we fished Sarasota Bay. We fished shallow and deep grass flats on both sides of the bay both days where they caught and released trout and a nice bluefish on an Ultra Hair Clouser fly and a CAL jig with a shad tail. Bill also caught and released a sheepshead on a shallow flat on my Grassett Flats Minnow fly.
Tom Files, from McIntosh, FL, snook fished with me before dawn on Saturdaymorning. We fished Siesta Key docks and he had good action catching and releasing more than 6 snook to 4-pounds on my Grassett Snook Minnow fly. We moved to Sarasota Bay and with good conditions decided to hunt for tripletail. Tom hooked a couple and landed a four-pounder on my Grassett Flats Minnow fly. He finished the morning catching and releasing a few trout over deep grass near Buttonwood Harbor on an Ultra Hair Clouser fly.
There should still be some tarpon fishing in the coastal gulf when sea conditions improve. Tarpon are thinning out in the coastal gulf so it may require a lot of waiting for a few fish, but they are aggressive now so it should be worth the wait. Tarpon are also a good option around bridges at night and juveniles in creeks, canals and basins. Beat the heat by catch and release snook fishing before daylight in the ICW and then look for trout, blues, Spanish mackerel, tripletail and more in Sarasota Bay.
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
![]() |
To create a forecast specific to
your zip code visit |
Fishing Forecast
The subtropical ridge will lift northward across the waters tonight and Monday...and will remain the dominant weather feature through the remainder of the work week. Winds and seas are expected to remain below headline thresholds.
Monday
Southeast winds around 5 knots then becoming west around 10 knots in the afternoon. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Isolated thunderstorms in the morning then scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon. Monday night
will northeast winds around 5 knots then becoming east 5 to 10 knots after midnight. Bay and inland waters smooth. Isolated thunderstorms in the evening.
2013/07/29Mon12:02 a.m.0.92L
2013/07/29Mon06:01 a.m.2.16H
2013/07/29Mon01:55 p.m.0.63L
2013/07/29Mon07:43 p.m.1.42H
Tuesday
Southeast winds 5 to 10 knots then becoming west around 10 knots in the afternoon. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Isolated thunderstorms in the morning then scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon. Tuesday night will bring east winds 5 to 10 knots. Bay and inland waters smooth. Isolated thunderstorms in the evening.
2013/07/30Tue12:38 a.m.1.09L
2013/07/30Tue06:51 a.m.2.21H
2013/07/30Tue03:16 p.m.0.53L
2013/07/30Tue09:41 p.m.1.37H
Wednesday
Southeast winds 5 to 10 knots then becoming west in the afternoon. Bay and inland waters smooth. Isolated thunderstorms in the morning then scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon. Wednesday night will bring east winds around 10 knots becoming southeast after midnight. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Isolated thunderstorms in the evening.
2013/07/31Wed01:21 a.m.1.23L
2013/07/31Wed07:48 a.m.2.25H
2013/07/31Wed04:28 p.m.0.41L
2013/07/31Wed11:23 p.m.1.42H
Thursday
Southeast winds around 10 knots. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Isolated thunderstorms in the morning...then scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon. Thursday night will bring southeast winds around 10 knots. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Isolated thunderstorms in the evening.
2013/08/01Thu02:20 a.m.1.33L
2013/08/01Thu08:50 a.m.2.29H
2013/08/01Thu05:29 p.m.0.29L
Friday
Southeast winds around 10 knots. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Isolated thunderstorms in the morning then scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon.
2013/08/02Fri12:25 a.m.1.48H
2013/08/02Fri03:30 a.m.1.38L
2013/08/02Fri09:50 a.m.2.35H
2013/08/02Fri06:18 p.m.0.2L
Solunar Forecast