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Venice - Snook Alley - January 22nd, 2012
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED: 
72 °
FISHING: Excellent
Jim McGowan fished Little Sarasota Bay with me recently, and had a good time with trout and ladyfish in the 3-pound class.
We were up near Spanish Point, working grass flats and some oyster bars that were getting dimpled by redfish cruising around looking for fiddler crabs.
It was pretty chilly that morning, though, and the water temps were still just a bit over 61 degrees. Finally, when the water got to 63, the fishing turned on. So, I guess we'll be concentrating more on the afternoon warmth than the morning tides during the next week.
Offshore anglers have been doing well on porgies, grunts, red snapper and some amberjack that are running more than 30 pounds. Running for three hours and then anchoring over a reef isn't my cup of coffee, but at least they're getting bent rods out of the deal.
I've got a quail trip with Bill and Kevin Delaney Tuesday (I haven't told Heart and Tug yet!!), then it's time to look for some tarpon in my "secret" honey-hole that holds them year-round. I also just got a tip that I need to check out--another juvie tarpon hangout.
I'll keep you posted. Til then...
Tight Loops,
Capt. Tony
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Venice - Snook Alley - December 6th, 2011
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED:
77 °
FISHING: Excellent
It had been an extremely frustrating summer for Ron DeLuca. Most of his favorite trout streams in Connecticut and New York had been blown out by last spring's hurrican aftermath, and he desperately needed a Fish Fix.
So, when I got his email last week saying he and Carol were down for the winter and he "really needs to fish", I mentioned that snook fishing around lighted docks in the Venice/Nokomis area was pretty darn good.
"Now that's something I've never done," Ron replied.
So, last night promptly at 6pm he stepped aboard my Hewes Redfisher and we toddled a few hundred yards north in the Intracoastal Waterway (locally simply called the ICW).
A couple of my favorite lights were dark, though. In fact, at one house the owners apparently have packed up and moved. Both boats--normally on HiDri lifts--were gone and the house looked deserted.
Ah, well. Onward, Ardent Angler!
After setting up near the Albee Road Bridge it took Ron three casts to hook his first-ever night-time snook. And, as I had predicted, it was simply the first of many, many more to follow.
Five hours later, after boating number who-knows-what, Ron unhooked the snook and grinned. "Any time you're ready, Cap, we can head for the dock."
Ten minutes later we were back at the Higel Park ramp on Venice Island.
Just another beautiful day in paradise.
C'mon down and find out for yourself!
Tight Loops, Capt. Tony
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Venice - Snook Alley - October 25th, 2011
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED: 
40 °
FISHING: Excellent
Heart, the four-year-old, is a "circle of setter" at my feet, snoring softly. Tug, the puppy, is curled up in one corner of the "dog-sofa" but with one eye open, checking out each new sound. Every dog who’s ever owned us has gratefully snoozed upon it during the past forty years, and we simply can’t bear to part with that long leather couch.
We Three were supposed to go looking for grouse and woodcock again today. But it’s pouring rain, logs are crackling in the fireplace, and Kate’s baking her world famous chocolate chip cookies.
Is THAT a no-brainer, or what?
Too bad, though. Tug’s still euphoric over the three woodcock she pointed last Saturday. Yeah, I put them in the bag—her first wild birds!
And Heart, God Bless him, has been staying with me and hunting perfectly the last two times I had him out. He got his birds, too, and is all smiles!
My Au Sable Longboat—which will start its sixtieth season on the river next summer—is snug in the garage. The trout rods and dry flies are put away, and I even reluctantly stored my salmon vest and the nine-weights yesterday.
I had thought we might scoot up to the Boyne for one more try at the Chinook, but this weather’s too foul and the run’s tapering off anyway.
Besides, I got a couple of bright mid-sized males a couple weeks ago. They’ll eat just fine with a dill stuffing at next week’s Wild Game Dinner.
That’s our yearly gathering of nearly a score of friends and hunting pals. The eight-course feast starts with woodcock pate, smoked pheasant and French bread, moves through soup, fish, fowl, meat (with various side-dishes) and ends—after several of Kate’s desserts—with a sip of my home-brewed Hunter’s Hearth Liquor.
Then we’re off to Florida. Gosh, it seems like we just got back. And now we’re running out of woodcock and the grouse are clustering in the cedar thickets because this November-like weather has them all confused.
Oh, well. The Spanish mackerel and bonito have been absolutely assaulting the beaches off Venice and Sarasota for a month, and I guess I should pay proper respect.
Redfish and spotted sea trout have been particularly plentiful lately, too. Plus, there are all those resident tarpon stacked up in my “secret spot.”
Yeah, getting salt in my eyes and sand between my toes is starting to sound pretty good.
I talked with Rick Pope yesterday. He said Temple Fork Outfitters is chugging right along with its popular mix of fly rods and conventional casting sticks, and told me he’d be happy to send down some TFO ballcaps for me to give away at the “Saltwater Rookie Schools” I’m cranking up this winter. The first one’s November 26, at Cook’s Sportland. Noon to 4pm.
Perhaps when Rick gets down to Tampa for the Florida Sportsman’s Show he and Lefty, and maybe Flip, will have a day to spend on my Hewes Redfisher.
Seems like forever since we’ve each had the time to actually go fishing, let alone together!
By the way, it appears the snook are rebounding nicely from the fierce cold-weather die-off that happened two years ago. If you’ve never experienced “Snooking Under The Lights” it’s something you ought to try.
Thirty or forty 18-t0-24-inch fish-on in three hours is a real hoot. If you can dig up a copy of Fly Fisherman magazine from March 2007 I had a big spread in there about the whole deal, including fly patterns you can tie.
Or, you can go to the dropdowns on the Tight Loops website and read all about it. Patterns and pictures, too!
Dang, it’s still pouring out there. Well, at least it’s not solid and white.
Hmmm. The delicious aroma of fresh cookies is wafting upstairs from the kitchen. Maybe I’ll go sneak a couple.
Tight Loops,
Capt. Tony
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Venice - Snook Alley - May 28th, 2011
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED:
0 °
FISHING: Excellent
Tough Tarpon Fishing
Amid a Foul Gene Pool
By Capt. Tony Petrella
May 27, 2011
It already had been a frustrating morning.
We'd been awake since four, and had skimmed the wave tops under a mix of winking stars and building cumulous before shutting down the motor and settling in patiently in the hope of getting that "one clean shot."
Tarpon had popped up sporadically in the gloam of sunrise. Some waved their tails gaily in the distance as they swam off to perhaps attend someone else's after-dinner party. Others nearly scratched their backs on the side of my boat, maddening painted smiles on their fat faces mocking us as they pirouetted on past, heading south to Someplace Else, Florida.
Finally, the sun was directly overhead. Dozens--probably hundreds--of tarpon had come and gone. Dan Grittith's cloth facemask was stained with sweat. I reached for another water bottle and idly examined a silly-looking boat that was slowly plowing toward us.
"Look at that thing," I said to Dan, pointing north. "It's like, heck, I don't know what to call it. Something from the Redneck Yacht Club?"
The "skiff"--to be charitable--appreared to be a platform with gunnels rising barely above the waterline and a stubby bow that resembled the front end of a Carolina Skiff. You know, the ones that look like the tips of a ski, or the toe of a Dutch boy's wooden shoe.
It had coolers for seats. The cowling on its 40hp motor was scratched and scarred. A tiny trolling motor was resolutely chugging it toward us, trying to stay between us and a school of tarpon that clearly had no intention of ever slowing down.
Two fellows holding spinning rods looked anxious. A fat guy in the middle--obviously their "guide"--was yelling at them. Then at the tarpon. Then--when it quit working--the trolling motor.
About that time the wind shifted around to the southwest and the Rube Goldberg contraption started nosing over to where I'd been anchored for more than an hour, waiting out all those persnickity tarpon in the fervent hope that at least one of them finally would decide to chew on one of the many fly patterns Dan had been pitching at them.
The guy in the "Redneck's" bow, wearing a stained white Grateful Dead T-shirt, smiled at me. Nervously, I thought. The guy in the back studiously inspected the far northern horizon. Hoping, I suppose, that he'd somehow be able to reach out and touch a tarpon. Or a mermaid. Or maybe just a different guide.
Meanwhile, Fat Guy fiddled around and cursed his trolling motor.
The "boat" edged closer to the bow of my Hewes Redfisher.
"Gee," I finally said, "if I'm in your way here I'll just pull up my anchor and move so you have more room."
As Posiedon is my judge, Fat Guy never even blinked as he immediately replied, "Nah, that's okay. These fish are bein' real fussy today and won't eat nothin'. You're okay where y'are."
The wind mercifuly blew his pitiful excuse for a boat past my stern, and I stared at Dan.
"Um, I don't believe he fully understood my point," I said.
Dan pulled the Buff mask down from his face and shrugged. "You can't cure stupid."
"Maybe not," I replied. "But I do know a quick way to help clean up the gene pool."
Fat Guy had been blown north, finally out of our way. Off to the west, a large pod of tarpon blackened the surface of the Gulf of Mexico like the BP Blowout.
"Way out of range," Dan said, whistfully.
Well. Dan had been aboard when Bob Cole hooked his 200-pound tarpon last season, and ever since then Mr. Griffith has been writhing in the clutches of "Tarpon Fever." We agreed that at least the cops don't slam you into jail for this form of addiction. Nevertheless, it eats away at your soul. He's become a classic Tarpon Junkie.
"One more shot!" I thought I heard him whisper.
"Futile," I said to myself, even as I hauled up the anchor and heeled over to starboard in a wide ring-around-the-rosy flanking maneuver Patton himself would have admired. "Futile." I must have said it out loud that time, because Dan grunted.
"Of course it is! I know it and you certainly know it," he said. "But it's hot and the day's over and we're not bothering anybody else so what the heck. Go for it!"
We caught up with those tarpon. Several times.
They were a playful bunch, frolicking in the 82-degree water and splashing each other as if they were in the Kiddie Pool back at Waddell Park in Niles, where I grew up. We didn't have tarpon in northeatern Ohio. Heck, all we had were carp. And bullheads. Which, folks who've known me a while, claim is the reason I can on occassion beome a "bullhead" of sorts.
Finally, Dan resulutely started slowly reeling as he stepped off the casting deck. I sighed.
Another Tarpon Day had ended.
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Venice - Snook Alley - May 15th, 2011
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED: 
88 °
FISHING: Excellent
It’s the middle of May. Water temps have been hovering at the 80-degree mark for weeks. It’s daylight at 6:15., and by 9am it’s nearly 90 and sunblock is flowing. What else is there to say, except that it’s TARPON TIME!
The Spawn Is On, and both fly and spin anglers have been getting an eyeful of big, beautiful tarpon nearly every day.
Several, such as Jill Garber—who landed her first tarpon, a 58-pounder when she was just 13 years old—had tremendous shots and were rewarded with spectacular jumps.
Other anglers, such as Tom Spence, used a strangely-tied (“I bought this from a guy in Orlando”) bunny-leech creation to land an 80-pounder and get busted off (“this huge tarpon vaulted backward and broke my 60-pound butt section when it landed”) to bring their dreams to fruition.
Dreams that longtime-regular Ron Boehm is yet to experience. He hooked two tarpon early last week but they simply wouldn’t stay pinned. The expression on his face—particularly after the second—was painful.
It was, however, especially rewarding to watch the expressions that Graham Garber, Jill’s twenty-one-year-old son, registered when he jumped his two tarpon last week. Since it was his first time ever fishing!
The first hookup caused mostly panic—especially since Jill had simultaneously stung HER second tarpon at the same instant. And, I have to admit, there probably was a similar look of panic on MY face when my brain registered the fact that we had two very large tarpon hooked at the same time (“Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray…”). One jump each, however, and the problem resolved itself.
That meant the expression on Graham’s face (Jill’s, too) was frustration. With a bit of self-recrimination. The plaintive wail “what did I do wrong?” is an all-too-common phrase when it comes to tarpon fishing.
Finally, Graham’s face was the picture of puzzlement followed by bafflement when his second attempt at hooking a hungry tarpon was thwarted because he had inconveniently forgotten to close the bail on the spinning reel he was using. Ooooops!
As I untangled the freespooled line, Graham verbally abused himself “for being an idiot” until I shrugged and simply said, “That’s why God created tomorrows.”
Speaking of “tomorrows” the following day, Fred Antone, his brother Bill, Bill’s son Brad, and Brad’s brother-in-law, Wayne Kaester, got in on the chase for “Silver Kings.”
Capt. John and I agreed that a two-boat trip was the best way to try and get all four of them into decent shots at tarpon. And, since the forecast was for blowing wind and rising seas, we headed for our “Secret Hole.”
After a flurry of banter about the advisability of bringing bananas “aboard ship,” everyone got loaded and off we sailed. Anchors were dropped, and it wasn’t long before Wayne felt a tug on his line and set the hook.
“I didn’t know what to expect,” he explained later. “I figured this wasn’t going to be much different from hooking a big bass. But when I started reeling and felt the weight of that fish I knew something was going on that maybe I wasn’t prepared for.
“Sort of like thinking, ‘yeah, I could probably take a punch from Evander Holyfield. Lemme see what he’s got’ (ed. note: Wayne’s a BIG guy). And then finding out it was WAY more than I EVER expected.”
About ten minutes into the struggle, Wayne asked Brad—a Navy Chief who’s between patrols on missile subs—if he wanted to “feel what this guy fights like.” Suffice to say, Wayne never got the rod back until an hour later, when that tarpon—estimated to be at least 135 pounds—snapped the line.
The good news is that “Uncle Fred” captured nearly the entire “fight” on video!
Dan Griffith, who was party to Bob Cole’s encounter with a tarpon we honestly estimated at 200 pounds last season (lost after two hours of stress and strain on all involved), wasn’t quite as fortunate last Friday.
He had plenty of shots, mind you, but either the fish weren’t eating or the fly just didn’t land in “The Sweet Spot.” He and Bob are giving it another “Go”—as Bob would have said in his native Britain—on the 23rd, and again on the 27th.
In between, I’ve got Charlie Place down from Maryland again for three days, and my long-time pal Patrick Hager from Wausau here for three tries just before my Memorial Day break. Charlie’s an old hand, but this will be John Patrick’s first try at tarpon.
“Beg, borrow, or steal a twelve-weight,” I told him two months ago.
“Yaaaaw,” he said, “except there’s two feet of snow on the ground here in Wisconsin. Where am I going to practice?”
Well. I guess we’ll just see how well his four-weight-flinging arm deals with the naval cannon on my Hewes Redfisher!
I already told him he’d “walk the plank” if he didn’t get the job done.
Capt. John’s pretty well booked before he heads back to West Yellowstone, but I have a few days open in early June if the thought of joining the fun is becoming an overwhelmingly captivating part of your “Bucket List.”
If you simply can’t cut loose for tarpon, get with us for some brown trout fishing in Montana or Michigan. You always can email either of us through tightloops@peoplepc.com.
You also can check out my new web site www.MichiganFishingandHunting.com or see what’s happening out west by going to www.jacklins.
Runoff always is an issue in the Rockies, and this year it apparently is in Michigan, too. Lots of heavy and constant rain have left the Manistee and Au Sable river systems swollen.
Hendrickson mayflies and small black caddis are popping between rain squalls. Just be careful wading if you decide to go now. Better yet--check the MFH “Latest Reports” before you go!
BUY KATE’S BOOK
Royal Wisdom—the Most Daft, Cheeky, and Brilliant Quotes from BRITAIN’S ROYAL FAMILY—continues to rank high in Amazon’s list of best-sellers for both print and Kindle.
You can help KEEP it that way by purchasing several copies (for a measly eight bucks each) for yourself, family and friends. Hey, Tug’s a growing puppy and she eats like a horse!
Speaking of which…
ENGLISH SETTER UPDATE
Tug’s eight months old and turning into a real dog. She’s been on a search-and-destroy mission for a while now when it comes to furry-tailed rodents, but only recently has begun paying attention to birds in the back yard. She stares at them through the office window, and trembles with excitement.
It appears she’s going to be one of those short, sturdy brawlers rather than a long-legged range-rover like Heart. Which, truth be told, won’t break MY heart one darned bit.
Loyal readers of this space might remember some escapades involving THAT Big Boy during the past couple of bird seasons!
If you don’t recall those incidents, check out the Articles dropdown at the top of the Home Page. I promise you’ll be shaking your head in gratitude if “thank goodness that’s not my dog,” or nodding in resignation if “I remember that when (your dog’s name) ran off!”
Speaking of which, it definitely is not too early to book your upland bird days for this fall. I’ve already promised several prime days, so don’t delay.
Tight Loops,
Capt. Tony
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Venice - Snook Alley - April 24th, 2011
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED:
85 °
FISHING: Excellent
TARPON! TARPON! TARPON! Yes, it’s that time of year again. Those beautiful brutes have come back to southwest Florida and it’s time to lose sleep, ingest painkillers for sore casting arms, and fervently pray for Divine Intervention. Capt. John’s been hanging out around Goodland, south of Marco Island, and reports good numbers of fish filtering up through Florida Bay toward our Happy Hunting Ground around Venice and Englewood. “We caught some,” he said two days ago, when he stopped by to grab a couple of backup rods, “and had a LOT of good shots.” The poons have been moving into Pine Island Sound through North Captiva Pass, and are milling around off Englewood Beach, Manasota Key, and Casey Key. Joe Fauci went after juvies with me one day last week (“My arm and back won’t let me wrestle with those really big ones,” he had told me). We saw fish in “The Hole” but didn’t get any really good shots at them. Yesterday, Jim Rhorbacher and his pal, Jim McDonald, got into sea trout bingo-bango but the wind kicked up and we never could run out of Stump Pass to look for tarpon. I’m fishing Jim R again at dawn, and we’ll either hit “The Hole” if it’s blowing, or run out the Venice Jetty. He wants a tarpon, and we don’t have much time to fool around on this trip because he’s heading back to Maryland Tuesday. If you’re not into tarpon, the trout, redfish, and snook are feeding very well right now. So, the bottom line is that if you are thoroughly disgusted with cold weather and absolutely NEED to catch rays and fish—now’s the time! BUY KATE’S BOOK!!!! “Royal Wisdom—the Most Daft, Cheeky, Brilliant Quotes From Britain’s Royal Family” is selling very well through Amazon (she’s ranked THIRD in her category!!). But, now you can FINALLY get a copy at your local bookstore. In fact, she’s doing signings at Books A Million in Venice and Sarasota on Saturday. Also, look for her on Yahoo! Contributor Network. A freelancer named Emily Tan interviewed Kate a couple of days ago, so the piece should show up soon since the Royal Wedding is Friday. ENGLISH SETTER UPDATE Tug is starting to prowl the back yard the way Ghost used to look when she’d spot “game.” Unfortunately, she still jumps on Heart’s back, growling and nipping at him when he’s pointing mourning doves on the power lines. She’ll learn. Soon, I hope! Well, better get more tarpon flies tied so they’ll be ready for YOUR attack! See you soon. Tight Loops, Capt. Tony
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Venice - Snook Alley - April 15th, 2011
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED:
83 °
FISHING: Excellent
As Fred Flintstone would say, “YABBA-DABBA-DO!!!!!!”
Tarpon have started showing up here and there off the barrier islands around Venice! In addition to that, Capt. John poked a couple of them in our “secret” backwater honeyhole this week.
He said one was a juvie in the 40-pound class, but the other was a Big Mamma like the one I nailed last Memorial Day Monday—a fat old girl of more than 150 pounds!
I hope they stay happy, because I’m taking Joe Fauci and John Quimby—two guys from the Charlotte Harbor Fly Fishers—in there next Wednesday.
Water temps are 80 degrees, and just about everything is in Happening Mode. Except bonito. Nobody knows where our bonito are.
And that REALLY ticks me off, because bonito, or little tunny, or false albacore—no matter what you want to call them—are absolutely my second-favorite fish to catch behind tarpon.
The fact that we haven’t had bonito around here for TWO YEARS is very disturbing.
Thank GOD it does not appear our tarpon have been similarly effected. Because THAT would be a tragedy of epic proportions.
I was worried about my No. 3 Favorite fish—jack crevalle—but a couple excursions into Sarasota Bay last week with Sarah Stanton and Eric Mahlmeister, and John Rutledge and his son, Trey, took care of that.
We (they) hooked a bunch of jacks in the 6-to-8 pound class, and John even boated one that went 9 pounds on the Boga Grip. Jacks had been scarce, so I was very happy when we ambushed them.
There are a lot of large trout and redfish swimming around near the sandy potholes in Lemon Bay, and on deeper grass flats in Sarasota. Clousers in white, pearl, or silver should be your go-to flies.
I’ve heard that some of the female snook are starting to mill around the passes preparatory to the spawning (s)urge, so that will be yet another species to look for on days when the tarpon bite is slow. Small sand flea (crab) patterns on a size 6 hook—fished right in the curl of the breaking surf—would be your fly-of-choice.
Ed Irons, at the North Jetty Fish Camp in Nokomis, says the sheepshead are starting to wane, but that some pompano are filtering into the area around the rocks there at the Venice Jetty. Just in case you thought about taking the kids out to drown a few shrimp.
Kingfish numbers were pretty good for last week’s tournament, but it’s really hard to tell exactly where they’re laid up. One guy who fished the SKA event told me “we were 40 miles closer to Havana than we were to Sarasota.”
KATE’S BOOK Was third in its category on Amazon’s Top Ten List today, and No. 5 on the Kindle list. GO Kate!!!!
If you haven’t bought “Royal Wisdom” yet, shame on you! Kate will even autograph it for you. (And I’ll include some great shots of Kate in her sexiest—waders!)
ENGLISH SETTER UPDATE Poor Heart—who will be four years old in June—continues to suffer through the nonstop antics of that precocious not-so-little handful “Tugboat Annie.”
Tug got spayed last week, and Dr. Dean Ebert said she’s d36.6 pounds of spunk and muscle. She constantly jumps all over Heart. Which is why we frequently refer to her as “Thug.”
He adores her, though. Except when she interferes with him when he’s looking for mourning doves on the backyard power lines. Ah, well. She’s beginning—I think—to understand that birds are more important in the scheme of her life than are squirrels.
MICHIGAN Don’t forget to check out www.MichiganFishingandHunting.com for the latest reports and photos. In a nutshell, it’s still pretty cold up there, according to Magoo (Bill Ross).
The site looks great, so tell ALL of your fishing and hunting pals to give it a regular look-see!
Steelhead aren’t even on the redds in huge numbers yet. Don’t look for an early Hendrickson hatch unless some kind of REALLY unusual weather event happens soon.
Tight Loops,
Capt. Tony
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Venice - Snook Alley - March 29th, 2011
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED:
82 °
FISHING: Excellent
March Madness doesn’t only refer to the NCAA basketball playoffs, let me assure you of THAT right now! The past three weeks have been an absolute whirlwind of guide trips, thank goodness. Jeremy Smith, who designed the new MichiganFishingandHunting.com web site—and his wife, Meagan, fished Lemon Bay with me on the 14th, and in my “secret spot” for resident tarpon this morning. They caught big sea trout and ladyfish in LB, and were absolutely surrounded by tarpon today. No ‘poon hookups, unfortunately, but Jeremy did land an alligator gar in the 10-12-pound class. Migratory tarpon already have moved into the area because of above-normal water temps in the high 70s, so maybe their next trip with me will be on “The Outside” off Casey Key. Several of my “regulars” like Ron DeLuca (“Egrets, we’ve caught a few…”), Carol and Dick Rizzo, and Tony Newman hit Lemon Bay with me during the past two weeks. Tony, son-in-law Tony and future son-in-law Bellamino Tony, had a real bang-up evening. (Keeping all of the Tonys straight was a real chore for all of us!) Bellamino, whose fishing experience in his native Dominican Republic was mostly limited to hand-lining for foodfish, caught the first trout, the biggest trout, and a BUNCH of sheepshead. Tony Senior was all smiles as he watched “the boys” boat fish after fish after fish. Muriel and Glen Carlson, who hail from the Traverse City area—about 40 miles from my Deward stomping grounds—also got into the big-fish, many-fish act. In fact, the sheepshead were absolutely attacking my Hewes Redfisher for three straight days. I even checked for tooth marks. Night snooking around lighted docks has been wonderful, too. Emil Haller and his son, Greg, were absolutely astounded by the number of fish that congregated over an underwater light in “Snook Alley,” not far from Venice. It was their first such experience, and they had a blast! Chub Bortz, who has been coming to the fly tying classes I do at Cook’s Sportland every Friday evening, wanted his nephew, Jeff Wagner, to try night snooking. They, too, were overwhelmed by the number of fish seen—and boated—along with the strength and power these snook have. The Bachey Brothers (John, one of my regulars, and sibs Ken, Marty, and Jeff—plus brother-in-law Bob Gottschlich) also had a bang-up day in Lemon Bay. They caught a lot of nearly everything except Spanish mackerel—and we even motored out into the Gulf to look for them. I had arranged for another guide to carry the “spillover” of bodies, so John and Jeff went with Shane. I got to “entertain” Marty, Ken, and Bob (“I’m married to the one sister, and believe it when I tell you she RUNS the family”) with plenty of new jokes between fish. They went home happy, and even invited me to go walleye fishing on Lake Erie later this summer. You never know—I just might take them up on THAT one! Steve Sherman finally escaped the frigid confines of Syracuse for his annual pilgrimage to Osprey/Venice. We chased tarpon with minimal (read ZERO) success this Monday, but we’re assaulting the snook tomorrow night. It’ll be FINE! Gospo rolled into town late last week and promptly started fiddling with trolling motors. I am blessed that I made the switch to the new Rhodan GPS+ that’s made here in Sarasota. I’ve been using it for a year now, and it hasn’t failed even ONCE. Unlike the brand I will never use again (John took the two I had stashed in the garage to cannibalize in order to get his operational), this Rhodan motor is saltwater tough! Well, I’d better get a few more flies tied for Steve’s snook trip tomorrow night—the fish have been keying in on verrrry small glass minnow—and my daylong excursion with Mike Kanzler and his British “mates” on Thursday. Tight Loops,Capt. Tony
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Venice - Snook Alley - December 5th, 2010
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED:
63 °
FISHING: Excellent
Redfish are tailing everywhere in the early morning skinny water from Spanish Point to Charlotte Harbor. Snook are back prowling around lighted docks at night. Spotted sea trout—some pushing the 30-inch mark—have been caught in greater numbers than ever before around the Venice/Sarasota area.
Flounder are plentiful, Spanish mackerel are still greedily destroying bait pods, and those marvelously prehistoric tripletail are nosing around crab trap buoy lines.
So, I guess describing southwest Florida’s fishing opportunities right now (except for a possible cold front during the next few days because the jetstream took a big south-bound dip) can be summed up in one word.
Excellent.
However, before I get into more detail, I must tell you that postings by me were sparse this fall for two reasons. The first was that October was an extremely busy time for me guiding grouse and woodcock gunners in northern Michigan.
We had excellent numbers of grouse, and thankfully the woodcock once again were in good supply after two sparse years. Most everyone had a good time (I did have one clunker who I’ll never guide again) and saw lots of outstanding dog work along with plenty of shooting opportunities.
The second was that November was a momentous month for us. We lost Ghost on the 17th. Our vet, Paul Mesack, was pretty sure cancer took her from us at the age of 13 years, six months and two days.
The incredible part is that she hunted extremely hard—as she always has—the entire month of October. Her last point/retrieve on a wild bird was with Sam Nouhan, who hunted with us for the first time on the 30th and 31st. But the next day she was very wobbly and her back legs simply wouldn’t support her.
Eric Sharp, outdoors editor for the Detroit Free Press, wrote a beautiful eulogy you might want to read. Go to:
http://www.freep.com/article/20101118/BLOG33/101118053/1385/blog33#pluckcomments They say “The Lord works in mysterious ways.” I guess that’s true. Because the day after I lost Ghost, a seven-week-old girl—also out of the Ghost Train lineage—came into our house. JP Voss, the breeder (whom I had met after the Ruffed Grouse Society banquet in September), had named her Tugboat Annie. We call her Tug. She’s got an awful lot of Ghost in her. In some respects, it’s almost as if Ghost never left us. Tug is feisty and tenacious and gives our three-year-old male, Heart, all the roughhousing he wants. He, in turn, adores her. So, the cycle begins again!Now, as to the fishing:SARASOTA BAY Spanish mackerel to 4 pounds, and schools of bluefish, are busting the surface near New Pass on the incoming tide. Gold Cotee jigs, Rapala X-Raps, and live shrimp or pilchards were the baits of choice.
Look for spotted sea trout, flounder, and some pompano on the edge of grass flats around Bird Key.
Bill Stephens and son Andrew, from Dennis, MA, caught trout to 17 inches, flounder to 13 inches, redfish, bluefish and pompano on CAL jigs and Gulp! Shrimp at New Pass, Marina Jack Flats, and Roberts Bay.
Allen Rodriguez, of Economy Tackle, says flounder, redfish and large trout are prevalent in the Bay at Bishop’s Point, the Middlegrounds, and on the east side near Ringling Flat. Spanish mackerel, bluefish and pompano are scattered throughout the Bay.
Dr. Mark Johnson, of Osprey, (our ophthalmologist) caught trout, redfish, blues and ladyfish on Puglisi flies near Long Bar.
Linda and Don Tase, of NH, caught little tunny off Siesta and Casey keys on flies and CAL jigs. Pete Walocko, of MI, and Everette Howell, of Nashville, also caught little tunny to 10 pounds. Norm Worthington and his son, Addison, of Siesta Key, caught trout and ladyfish on CAL jigs at Stephens Point.
NOKOMIS/VENICE Dewey Brannon, out of Nokomis, caught a cobia trolling a gold Bomber CD25, along with gag grouper and mangrove snapper off the ledges about 8 miles off the Venice Jetty.
LEMON BAY/GASPARILLA Blurp baits with shad tails on 1/8-ounce jigs, and Heddon Spook Jr. lures worked in the potholes on the west side of Lemon Bay have produced trout to 26 inches and redfish to 32 inches, for John Donohue.
Try the skinny water on the west side of the ICW channel south of the Adams Bridge. Gold spoons have been effective on redfish.
Capt. Norm Dick, of the Katy One, and Capt. Jack Pearson, of the Reef Raider out of Englewood Bait House, have used cut bait over structure about 14 miles off Stump Pass to produce exceptional catches of mangrove snapper, and red grouper to 16 pounds.
Gag grouper harvest has been closed in federal water from January 1 through June 1, with the possibility of an additional six-month extension. They claim the numbers are down.
At this point, anglers still can fish for grouper (mostly under he slot-limit size) within nine miles of the coastline. No word yet on whether the Florida Conservation Commission will also shut down the gag harvest.
MICHIGAN Hardy souls who don’t mind braving the cold and snow can still chase steelhead in the lower Manistee River below Tippy Dam, and in the Pere Marquette River near Baldwin.
The fly-only water also is open to trout fishing (no harvest allowed) on a year-round basis, so if the weather turns unseasonably balmy (which is highly unlikely) you can pitch a blue wing olive or little black stonefly.
I wouldn’t venture out on the ice just yet, though. Give Higgins Lake another couple of weeks before thinking about bluegill, whitefish and lake trout!
Tight Loops,
Capt. Tony
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Venice - Snook Alley - November 2nd, 2010
supplied by: Tight Loops Flyfishing
RECORDED:
77 °
FISHING: Excellent
It’s really hard to believe that in just three weeks Kate and I will be back in Venice. The dogs will be grumping because the grouse/woodcock season will be over, but Kate will be ecstatic to be back in 75-degree temperatures.Me? I’ll be happy to get my Hewes Redfisher on the water. Fishing in the Venice/Sarasota area has been excellent judging from all the reports I compile each week for my fishing page in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune! Spanish mackerel, little tunny and king mackerel have been thick. Tarpon also have been feeding aggressively in the early-morning hours. More on that, along with the updated fishing report, in a moment.Just wanted to mention that I have worked out a special arrangement with the Best Western Ambassador Suites at I-75 and Jacaranda Boulevard in Venice—guests get a phenomenal 460-square-foot bedroom and lounge area replete with fridge, microwave, wet bar and two queen beds for just $75 per night, including all the taxes! It’s a great place to park all of your unexpected family members and “old pals” who pop in to soak in some sun and spend some time fishing. Speaking of which, I’ve got several other guides at my disposal if you want to put together “group getaways” during the Thanksgiving or Christmas holidays.FLORIDATAMPA BAY/BRADENTONCAL jigs with shad tails, and DOA shrimp have been producing flounder to 22 inches along the edges of channels and passes from Cockroach Bay to upper Sarasota Bay. Trout to 23 inches also are taking Mirr-O-Dine Mini, and DOA Deadly Combo lures.Jim Eliason, of Discount Tackle in Bradenton, says gag grouper are plentiful on reefs and wrecks in water as shallow as 50 feet. Red snapper are at 100 feet, and cobia are being reported on reefs from 30 to 80 feet deep. Try gold spoons for redfish in Terra Ceia Bay.SARASOTA BAYLittle tunny (a.k.a. false albacore) to 10 pounds are taking Snook Minnow flies in the Gulf off Siesta Key, and trout were taking Ultra Hair Clouser flies near Stephens Point. A few redfish got “suckered” by spoon flies.Excellent catches of Spanish mackerel, spotted sea trout, gag grouper, mangrove snapper, bluefish, and flounder have been taken on live pilchards around Marker 5 and Bird Key. Also try Rapala X-Raps near the mouth of Phillipi Creek in the morning on an outgoing tide. Clouser-style flies in silver, or olive-over-white are outstanding at this time of year.NOKOMIS/VENICEWork dock pilings and around oyster bars north of Blackburn point for redfish, or wade the shallows and bars off Vamo Rd. for trout and ladyfish. Some snook, Spanish mackerel, and the usual cast of characters are chewing on live shrimp at the Venice Jetty. Look for redfish around oyster bars in Lyons Bay.LEMON BAY/GASPARILLATom Brown, of Washington, DC, and Venice, used gold and silver spoons off Manasota Beach in the first two hours of daylight to hook Spanish mackerel to 4 pounds, along with blue runners and ladyfish. Redfish from 22 to 25 inches were eating 5-inch Blurp jerkbaits in Drunk Monkey color on the flats in Lemon Bay. Also be on the lookout for spotted sea trout to 24 inches along the west side of the bay. Brownish gobi and blenny minnow patterns worked slowly on the bottom are the best bet for fly anglers.MICHIGANThe Chinook salmon spawning run is mostly finished, but there still are some steelhead finning in the Pere Marquette, and the lower Manistee River below Tippy Dam. Brown trout continue to actively feed on minnow imitations.All of the fly-only stretches, along with rivers designated as steelhead fisheries, are open but everything else closed September 30. So, be careful where you wet your waders. UPLAND GUNNINGGrouse numbers were very good—at least as strong as last year. The really good news is that woodcock numbers were dramatically better than last season. The only negative to the season was a large influx of out-of-state hunters (mostly from Ohio and West Virginia) during the middle of the month.We had a very good season, though. Ghost and Heart had a wonderful time (I think I’ve finally got the “Little Guy” whipped into shape), my hunters went through a lot of terrific coverts and saw a lot of birds, and with just a few exceptions—like the record-setting wind last week—the weather was superb. Kate and I are hosting our annual wild game dinner for friends and hunting pals this Saturday. There will be 21 of us feasting on woodcock pate, smoked pheasant, crabmeat hushpuppies with remoulade sauce, cream of asparagus soup, whitefish stuffed with wild rice and topped with a white sauce, grouse/pheasant/chukkar Oscar (with crab, asparagus and béarnaise sauce), grilled venison steaks with a bacon/mushroom sauce, and several of Kate’s special deserts.And, of course, a taste of my “home brew” End Of The Hunt Liquor. It’s always a great time with great friends. Plus, there’s still one more week to walk in the woods looking for grouse. Talk about Heaven!Tight Loops,Capt. Tony
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