Sarasota, Capt Rick Grassett

Anglers fishing with me, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released snook, blues and jacks in the ICW at night on flies, trout in Sarasota Bay and snook and trout in the Terra Ceia Bay area on CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Shrimp during the past week. The best action was with snook and bluefish at night on flies.

Jerry Poslusny, from Rochester, NY, and Rich Hunter from Longboat Key, FL, snook fished with me on Sunday evening. We fished dock lights in the ICW near Venice and they had good action catching and releasing snook on my Grassett Snook Minnow fly. Martin Marlowe, from NY, and Tim Hearon from Siesta Key, FL, fished the same area with me on Monday evening. They also had good action catching and releasing snook and some hefty bluefish on the same fly.

Tom Lamb, from Geneva, Switzerland, and Diane Muhlfeld and Roy Glah, from Sarasota, fished Sarasota Bay with me on Wednesday. We worked deep grass flats on both sides of the bay and they had steady action with trout, including several in the slot, on CAL jigs with shad tails and DOA Shrimp. One of the most productive techniques was drifting a DOA Shrimp behind the boat.

Keith McClintock, from Lake Forest, IL fished the Terra Ceia Bay area with me on Thursday. With a front approaching, we found snook aggressive and plentiful on shallow flats and he had good action catching and releasing them on CAL jigs with shad tails.

The following day I had a very good fly angler on board. We fished the same area but behind the front with a 15 to 20-mph north wind and a bluebird sky, the snook shut down. I gave a presentation on “Fly Fishing the West Coast of Florida”, which covered fly fishing options and techniques required for successful fly fishing, at the News Channel 8 Outdoor Expo & Boat Show on Saturday afternoon.

Trout should be a good option on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay. You should also find larger trout in shallow water along with snook and reds when conditions are good. Fishing lighted docks and bridges in the ICW for snook with flies and DOA Lures continues to be a good option.

Tight Lines,