David Andrews and Pineland Marina Capt. Greg Hood combined for 28 snook, including two in the slot, casting Bone Super Spook Jr. plugs in the Useppa Island area of Pine Island Sound on Wednesday.
Hi gang, Rick here from Used Pontoon Boats. A cold front due this weekend will likely put a damper on some of the good fishing action that has produced grouper and other nice bottom fish for offshore anglers, trout and snook on bay flats, and bass and crappie for Big O anglers. On the up side, sheepshead should keep right on biting through the wind and cold.
TROUT: George Pasti of Massachusetts and daughters Caroline, 6, and Kathryn, 9, caught 14 nice trout to 18 inches and too many mangrove snapper for SoulMate Charters Capt. Rob Modys to count. They were fishing shrimp under corks on grass flats and under mangroves in Matlacha Pass on Tuesday before catching two blacktip and two bonnethead sharks on cut ladyfish at Bunche Beach.
On Saturday, New Yorker Pete Atwater used all-white Clouser Minnow flies to catch five bluefish to 3 pounds off the Sanibel Light, before he and Capt. Modys moved up Pine Island Sound to the McKeever Keys to catch 24 trout to 18 inches on dark green Clousers.
The Bait Box on Sanibel reports trout biting from the Sanibel Causeway.
Cape Tool & Tackle owners have been catching some nice trout. Wayne Dutton caught specks to 26 inches Tuesday around oyster bars near Demere Key in Pine Island Sound, and Miles Meredith reported a catch of six to 24 inches from inside the bar off Two Pines, at the northeast corner of Matlacha Pass. The also heard of some nice trout being caught near Captiva Rocks in the sound.
King Fisher bay boats have been sticking to trout fishing, which has been good in Punta Gorda area canals and creeks, fishing with shrimp on jig heads or under popping corks.
SHEEPSHEAD: Bait Box customers have been catching sheepshead and Spanish mackerel at the Sanibel Pier, and sheepshead and ladyfish around the culverts on Wildlife Drive, in Sanibel’s J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge.
Lehr’s Economy Tackle in North Fort Myers got a report from Springfield, Va., angler Bobby Gore of sheepshead to 5 pounds and a few nice snapper biting at the old phosphate dock at Boca Grande Pass, where a few apparently were being picked off by big goliath grouper before they could be wrested from the pilings. Other customers of Lehr’s report seeing plenty of sheepshead around oyster bars and mangroves in the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River, although the sheepies haven’t been acting very hungry.
SNOOK: St. James City Capt. George Grosselfinger reported coming in from California and running out at 4 p.m. on Tuesday to catch 10 small snook and one of slot size. The next morning Robert Gammon of Pine Island fished with Grosselfinger and caught 13 snook to 31 inches, one 24-inch red, one 23-inch trout and two jacks while New Penney Exude baits on 1/4-ounce jig heads, topwater plugs and a spinnerbait in cuts along the west side of Pine Island.
Pineland Marina Capt. Greg Hood and friend Dave Andrews cast Zara Super Spook Jr. plugs in the wind around Cabbage Key Wednesday afternoon to release 28 snook, including two in the slot.
REDFISH: San Carlos Bay has been the hot spot for redfish. Lehr’s is getting reports from waders and kayakers who have been catching slot-size fish along the northern shore between Bunche Beach and the Sanibel Causeway toll booths. And the Bait Box is hearing of reds biting for anglers fishing from the causeway’s restroom island.
King Fisher bay boat Capt. Robin Leach’s Wednesday party caught only one red above I-75 in the Peace River, in about two hours of prospecting, which is unusually slow for this time of year.
MIXED BAGS: Carole and Kenny Mathis caught three keeper mangrove snapper and a pair of 16-inch whiting, and released some small sheepshead and a 22-inch snook fishing lower Ester Bay between Barefoot Beach and Wigging Pass on a Fishbuster Charter with Bonita Beach Capt. Dave Hanson Monday morning.
The Bait Box reports a few bonnethead sharks and whiting biting on the beaches of Sanibel, and some pompano being caught off the causeway.
North Fort Myers angler Pete Phillips reports jumping about four tarpon per trip to the Orange River area, and Lehr’s also reports plenty of big “nap” jacks also in the power plant effluent. Those are jacks so big, they make you want to go home and take a nap.
OFFSHORE: Tom Batchellor, Lee Larsen, Steve Sidlik and Bud Glanzer caught five mangrove snapper to 16 inches and some whitebone porgies fishing with shrimp in 40 feet of water out of New Pass Wednesday on a Fishbuster Charter. On Tuesday in 45 feet of water, Ron Musick, Dick Arnett, Jim Novak and Bob Mayer caught two 16-inch hogfish, eight snapper to 16 inches, a mess of porgies and three sheepshead to 20 inches. They also caught and released many bluefish and short grouper.
Capt. Hanson’s Saturday trip with Jim Madsen, Brian Distesano, Frank Troy, Carl McDonald and Matt Keenan produced 15 keeper sheepshead to 19 inches, seven short sheepies, lots of short grouper and a release of a six-foot goliath grouper on inshore reefs off Bonita Beach. Friday was good for a catch of about 30 sheepshead caught by Peder Engebretson, Mike Higgins, Sr. and Mike Higgins, Jr. And last Thursday John Bileau caught eight keeper mangrove snapper and a mess of porgies in 42 feet of water out of New Pass.
Cape Tool reports big bonita really biting in the vicinity of marker No. 1 out of Fort Myers Beach.
King Fisher offshore boats out of Fishermen’s Village in Punta Gorda have been boxing gag grouper every day — usually two or three, and sometimes as many as five — plus some nice shots of mangrove snapper and triggerfish. The best grouper fishing has been in depths of 60 to 70 feet off Boca Grande, but there have been some keeper gags on the ledges in the 40- to 50-foot zone, where sheepshead have been biting by the dozen.
Fresh water
LAKE TRAFFORD: Enthusiasm waned this week at the Immokalee lake, where no anglers mustered the gumption to shove their boats through the mud to go crappie fishing.
LAKE OKEECHOBEE:
Jim Wells at Roland and Mary Ann Martin’s Marina in Clewiston reports anglers are going back to basics and scoring with good numbers of big bass. The effects of 30 mph winds on Wednesday remained to be seen at the time of this report, but fishing had been very good in the Rim Canal, where worms from 4 to 10 inches were catching lots of fish when retrieved with excruciating patience.
“Just jiggle it, move it a foot, and let it lay,” said Wells. You’ve got to go slow.”
One pontoon boat owner from Illinois started every day last week with two dozen wild shiners that he converted into eight bass from 5 to 7 pounds, plus one 12 pound, 2 ounce hawg in five days of fishing.
Clewiston Capt. Terry Garrels also reports good success with crankbaits in the Rim Canal between Moore Haven and Belle Glade. Customer Norm Gum of Asheville, N.C. released a 7-5 bass taken on a junebug Zoom Trick Worm on a 3/16-ounce Shaky Head Jig.
Crappie fishing also is reported very good in the Rim Canal around pads, stickups and other structure, and along the dropoff in the “ship channel” out of Clewiston.
Fish tip
The classic rig for sheepshead is the “fishfinder” — a hook on a relatively short leader of about 20-pound monofilament, a black barrel swivel, and a relatively heavy egg sinker on the line above the swivel. The sinker is allowed to rest on the bottom, but the line is kept tight so bites are telegraphed up the line. No-stretch braided line adds to the sensitivity. Carlisle style hooks with their slightly longer shank make unhooking fish easier. Crustaceans including shrimp, crabs and sandfleas all make great baits.
Used Pontoon Boats, By Rick Ostler
Used Pontoon Boats-North American Waterway
If you found this interesting, please tell others by clicking on the bookmark icon in top left corner of page and insert a brief remark to let others know were here.
Also we value your comments, if you can add more info in regards to this article please do so. Thanks............Rick
Used Pontoon Boats, By Rick Ostler
Used Pontoon Boats-North American Waterway
If you found this interesting, please tell others by clicking on the bookmark icon in top left corner of page and insert a brief remark to let others know were here.
Also we value your comments, if you can add more info in regards to this article please do so. Thanks............Rick
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