ishing Captain Favorite's Fishing Forum: Jan 5, 2015_copy

CATCH OF THE WEEK

Steve McClintock, from Pennsylvania, had good action catching and releasing bluefish, jack crevalle and a cobia on CAL jigs with shad tails while fishing Sarasota Bay deep grass flats with Capt. Rick Grassett.

BRADENTON – NOAA is predicting cold and windy weather as the week progresses. Tired of making resolutions you can't keep? FWC officials have come up with some neat angler themed resolutions that are sure to get you out on the water this year. Blue crab closures begin today. Look for albies feeding near the surface and tripletail around crab trap buoys.

• Try these easy-to-keep New Year's fishing resolutions
  It’s time to implement your resolutions for 2015. I bet you considered some tried-and-true, or tried-but-failed resolutions that top most peoples' lists. So how do you combine your fishing passion with feeling good about achieving your resolutions? To read on, follow the link.

• Blue crab trap closure in northwest Florida starts Jan. 5
  Recreational and commercial blue crab traps must be removed from some northwest Florida waters before Jan. 5, the first day of a 10-day trap closure.
  Blue crab traps may not be in state waters (shore to 9 nautical miles, including intracoastal waterways) from the Florida/Alabama state line through the Franklin/Wakulla county line from Jan. 5 through 14. Waters of the Ochlockonee River and Ochlockonee Bay are not included in this closure.
  These closures will give groups authorized by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) the opportunity to identify and retrieve lost and abandoned blue crab traps from the water.

• Buy your next FWC license on your phone using new app
  Ready to hunt or fish but still need your license? Buying a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) license has never been easier with the new Fish-Hunt-FL application for Android, Apple and Windows smartphone devices.
  This interactive app gives you easy access to purchasing any recreational fishing or hunting license offered by the FWC, and you can also store a copy of your license on your phone, check out recent FWC news, look at the current sunrise/sunset time for your area, check the coastal waters forecasts and look up hunting and fishing regulations.
  Download the free app today by searching FWC in the App Store or Google Play.

• Seasonal grouper closure starts Jan. 1 in Atlantic, Monroe County waters
  Several species of grouper will close to recreational and commercial harvest starting Jan. 1 in Florida state waters of the Atlantic, including Monroe County. This seasonal closure includes gag, black, red, yellowmouth, yellowfin and tiger grouper; scamp; red hind; rock hind; coney; and graysby. State waters in the Atlantic are from shore out to 3 nautical miles.
  The harvest of these species of grouper in Atlantic state waters will remain closed through April 30, reopening May 1. The harvest closure was established to ensure the long-term sustainability of Atlantic grouper species.

WEEKLY FISHING REPORT BY CAPT. RICK GRASSETT

 

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, Spanish mackerel, bluefish and cobia on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay on CAL jigs with shad tails during the past week. With water temperatures around 70 degrees, cobia have been showing up in areas of Sarasota Bay and the coastal gulf.

Keith McClintock, from IL, and his son Steve McClintock, from Pa., fished deep grass flats on the west side of Sarasota Bay with me on Monday. They caught and released trout, bluefish, Spanish mackerel, jack crevalle, ladyfish and a cobia on CAL jigs with shad tails.

Denis Clohisy and his son, Deny, from Wis., fished the coastal gulf with me on Tuesday. Our plan was to sight fish for tripletail but with sea fog, cloud cover and a chop, conditions weren’t great. With not much happening on the surface, we went to an area of structure where we spotted a “push†on the surface which was a school of 6 or more big cobia. Deny connected with a nice cobia on a CAL jig with a shad tail and they also had some shots at tripletail with DOA Shrimp, CAL shad tails and flies.

Joe Brinkmeyer and Jim Brady, from Cincinnati, Ohio, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Friday and Buddy Hammond, from NJ, fished with me on Saturday. We fished deep grass flats on both sides of the bay and action was similar each day, catching and releasing trout, ladyfish and scattered blues and Spanish mackerel on CAL jigs with shad tails.

Trout, blues, Spanish mackerel, pompano and more should be good options on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay. Look for reds and big trout mixed with mullet schools on shallow flats and edges of bars. Tripletail and false albacore should be good options in the coastal gulf depending on conditions. Look for albies feeding near the surface and tripletail around crab trap buoys. Catch and release night snook fishing in the ICW is also a good option now. Fish peak tidal flows for the best action.

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

 

Fishing Forecast

A cold front moved into the area last night, spurring winds offshore winds which are expected to increase to cautionary or advisory level. Once the front passes through, winds and seas will slacken until Wednesday night when strong north winds and high seas will again move into the bay area bringing temperatures down into the forties on Thursday and Friday.

Monday
North winds around 20 knots diminishing to 10 to 15 knots in the afternoon. Seas 2 to 4 feet. Bay and inland waters choppy. A slight chance of showers in the morning. Monday night will bring northeast winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Bay and inland waters a moderate chop.
2015/01/05 Mon 07:36 AM -0.57 L
2015/01/05 Mon 02:11 PM 1.15 H
2015/01/05 Mon 06:18 PM 0.86 L
2015/01/05 Mon 11:57 PM 2.03 H

Tuesday


Northeast winds around 10 knots then becoming northwest in the afternoon. Seas 2 feet. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Tuesday night will bring north winds around 10 knots. Seas 2 feet. Bay and inland waters a light chop.
2015/01/06 Tue 08:07 AM -0.52 L
2015/01/06 Tue 02:32 PM 1.16 H
2015/01/06 Tue 07:00 PM 0.81 L

Wednesday


North winds 5 to 10 knots increasing to around 15 knots in the afternoon. Seas 2 feet. Bay and inland waters a moderate chop. Wednesday night will bring north winds 20 to 25 knots. Seas 5 to 7 feet. Bay and inland waters rough.
2015/01/07 Wed 12:33 AM 1.96 H
2015/01/07 Wed 08:37 AM -0.44 L
2015/01/07 Wed 02:53 PM 1.2 H
2015/01/07 Wed 07:46 PM 0.75 L

Thursday


Northeast winds 20 to 25 knots diminishing to around 20 knots in the afternoon. Seas 4 to 6 feet. Bay and inland waters rough. Thursday night 
will bring northeast winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Bay and inland waters a moderate chop.
2015/01/08 Thu 01:12 AM 1.85 H
2015/01/08 Thu 09:07 AM -0.35 L
2015/01/08 Thu 03:16 PM 1.26 H
2015/01/08 Thu 08:35 PM 0.68 L

Friday


North winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 feet or less. Bay and inland waters a moderate chop.
2015/01/09 Fri 01:54 AM 1.71 H
2015/01/09 Fri 09:38 AM -0.23 L
2015/01/09 Fri 03:42 PM 1.33 H
2015/01/09 Fri 09:31 PM 0.62 L

2015/01/02 Fri 04:11 PM 0.92 L
2015/01/02 Fri 10:05 PM 2.1 H

Solunar Forecast