Capt. Rick Grassett’s Sarasota, FL Fishing Report for 10/30/2016
Anglers fishing Sarasota Bay and the ICW near Venice with me during the past week, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, caught and released snook and trout on flies. Shallow water fishing for snook, trout and reds is improving as the water cools down.
John and Deb Lamanna, from Bradenton, FL, celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary with a night snook trip in the ICW near Venice on Tuesday evening with me. They had good action catching and releasing a few snook on my Grassett Snook Minnow fly. Congratulations!
Lynn Skipper, from Apollo Beach, FL, fished the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers/CCA “Fall Fly Fishing Challenge”, a catch, photo and release fly fishing only tournament for snook, reds, trout and more, with me on Saturday. We had decent action catching and releasing snook on flies before daylight in Sarasota Bay. We waded a shallow flat after dawn where Lynn caught and released a couple of over slot trout, including a 3 and a 4-pound fish, on an EP style fly. Conditions were tough, with wind gusting above 20-mph by early afternoon. We hit a trout spot on the way in and caught and released a few more trout and Lynn narrowly missed winning the Trout category of the Open division. A good day!
Congratulations to MCFF members Mick Coulas, from Venice, who won the Fly Angler division with 281.25 points, Capt. Chris Hargiss, from Sarasota, was the Open division winner with a 64.5”slam (snook, red and trout) and Brian Boehn, from Sarasota, won 2nd place with a 49.75” slam. A huge thank you to donors Orvis, CB’s Saltwater Outfitters, Economy Tackle, Andy Thornal Company, Chouinard Outdoors/Simms & Umpqua, Fishing Bandit, The Compound, West Wall, New Pass Grill and Bait, Doug Forde, Temple Fork Outfitters (TFO) and all the tournament anglers. Full results and info on next year’s tournament will be available within a few days at www.fallflyfishingchallenge.com .
Night snook fishing around lighted docks and bridges in the ICW with flies and DOA Lures should be a good option. You should also find snook and trout in skinny water. I look for action in the coastal gulf with false albacore (little tunny) and Spanish mackerel to take off as the water cools down and baitfish become more plentiful. Tripletail will also become a good option since stone crab traps are now in the coastal gulf, increasing the amount of available structure for them.
Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
IFFF Certified Fly Casting Instructor
Orvis-Endorsed Fly Fishing Guide at CB’s Saltwater Outfitters
Orvis Outfitter of the Year-2011
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
www.snookfin-addict.com, www.snookfinaddict.com and www.flyfishingflorida.us
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
(941) 923-7799
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