June: The best tarpon fishing month

By RICK GRASSETT Posted 6.2.09

 Tarpon will take center stage during June as they migrate along our beaches. You might also find cobia, tripletail and little tunny in the coastal gulf this month. Reds and trout will feed on shallow flats, particularly early in the day when it is cool, while snook cruise the surf.

We are fortunate to have some of the best tarpon fishing to be found, right in our own backyard. When tarpon fishing is mentioned, world famous Boca Grande, is the first place that many people think of. However, we are getting shots at many of these migratory fish before they reach that area under much better fishing conditions (less crowded conditions and a steady flow of migrating fish). Tarpon schools will be migrating both north and south along our beaches, heading to areas in Charlotte Harbor and Tampa Bay where they will gather and rest before heading offshore to spawn.

They may “hold” and rest overnight in rocky areas, such as Whitney Beach off north Longboat Key, Point of Rocks off Siesta Key or Grassy Point off Casey Key. These areas hold bait and provide cover for tarpon schools to feed and rest before continuing their journey. You may find tarpon schools “laid up” and happy in these areas at dawn. These schools of tarpon will often bite if you are the first one to find them in the morning. However, if you spook them before you get a shot at them; they are much harder to catch. I like to travel well offshore as I head up or down the beach in the morning to my starting spot. Once I’ve reached that area, I will stop and get my fly line stripped out before I idle part way in to the beach and finally use a trolling motor to ease into my chosen spot. Give other anglers at least a few hundred yards north or south of you, so you’re not infringing on any tarpon schools they may have their sights on.

Fly anglers will do best with an intermediate fly line in deeper water and an intermediate sink tip line in shallow water. Popular tarpon patterns include Tarpon Toads, Tarpon Bunnies and Enrico Puglisi flies. The angle of your presentation is very important. Be sure that your cast is not too long or you may not be able to get your fly back in front of the fish before they swim by. If the fly comes up alongside a tarpon, approaching from its peripheral vision, they will spook just like you threw a rock at them

Snook season remains closed during June, so any snook caught must be immediately released. Also, since the water is warm now, use fly tackle heavy enough to land them quickly so they won’t be overly stressed. One of the best snook fishing opportunities will be sight-casting to snook in the surf. They will cruise in a “feeding zone” right where the water touches the sand feeding on baitfish and crustaceans being washed up in the surf. The easiest way to target them is to walk the beach with a fly rod and a box of flies.

You will also find snook in the dark around lighted docks and bridge fenders, especially close to passes, where they can be caught with many of the same flies that you might use in the surf. Presentations are important when fishing these areas, which is why a fly rod works so well. Grassett’s Snook Minnow, DT Specials, String Beans, Clousers, Deceivers and Enrico Puglisi flies will all work in the surf and at night.

If tangling with a 100-pound tarpon is not your thing, there is plenty to do this month on shallow flats. With higher tides this month, reds will spend more time feeding along mangrove shorelines and around oyster bars. Dawn is usually a good time to be on the flats at this time of the year, if you have a good tidal flow. When the water is cool, they will be most active. Grassett’s Flats Minnow and Clousers will work well for reds on shallow flats. A Gurgler can be very effective in low light conditions at dawn.

The best time to target “gator” trout is also at dawn. Cooler water, a good tide and low light are a good recipe for fast action. The largest trout I have ever seen taken on a fly, more than 7-pounds, was caught and released on a Gurgler fly with barely enough light to see. Mullet and baitfish were so active you could hear them all around us but as it got lighter the activity diminished. Gurglers and fly poppers are both good choices to target big trout with under these conditions. Later in the day, trout will drop into deeper water where you can catch them with Clousers. North Sarasota Bay is a great area for trout and reds this month.

You might also find cobia, tripletail or little tunny in the coastal gulf while targeting tarpon this month. I have found cobia swimming with schools of tarpon or following rays,

tripletail around buoys and crab trap floats and been “blitzed” by a school of little tunny while patiently awaiting a school of tarpon. I once found a 5-gallon bucket floating on the surface and when I got close to it, I could see a tripletail inside the bucket. We were able to pick up the bucket and “catch” the tripletail without making a cast. Be prepared with an 8 or 9-weight fly rod with a floating line for cobia and tripletail. A shrimp or bendback fly pattern, such as my Grassett’s Flats Minnow, will work well for tripletail. Your tarpon fly tackle will work well for cobia, which may be as large as 30-pounds or more. Most tarpon flies will work for cobia.

There is plenty to do this month. I focus on tarpon during May, June and July, but if you are prepared you may catch several other species while tarpon fishing. If fighting a big, powerful fish such as tarpon is not for you, you could fish snook before dawn and hit the flats for trout and reds at dawn or fish for trout and reds at dawn and walk the beach later in the morning for snook and be home for lunch.

Whatever you choose to do, remember to always limit your kill, don’t kill your limit!

Tight Lines,

Capt. Rick Grassett
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
FFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
(941) 923-7799
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
www.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com