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Southwest Florida Fishing Report

Southwest Florida

Anglers fishing with me on the Snook Fin-Addict, out of CB’s Saltwater Outfitters on Siesta Key, had good action during the past couple of weeks with trout and reds. The best action was in Charlotte Harbor. Fly anglers, John Freeman and his son, John, president of the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers, fished Charlotte Harbor with me on Monday, Jan. 15th. We had good action with trout to 20″ on Clouser flies. We also had a few shots at tailing reds early in the day and hooked a snook along a mangrove shoreline in Turtle Bay late in the day. The best trout action was in Gasparilla Sound near Sandfly and Devilfish Keys. Keith McClintock, from Lake Forest, IL and Victor Feldman, from Champagne, IL, fished the same area with me the next day. They had a great day catching 5 reds to 32″ and numerous trout, including several in the slot, with CAL jigs and shad tails. The reds were caught in Turtle Bay and the trout were caught just about every place we fished, including Gasparilla Sound and Turtle Bay. Brad Cox, from Sarasota, FL and Dan Rutishauser, from St. Pete, FL, fished Little Sarasota Bay with me on Wednesday, Jan. 17. A couple of their colleagues fished with Capt. Kelly Stilwell. We had good action with lots of large ladyfish, a redfish and several nice trout caught and released with CAL jigs and shad tails from Stickney Point to near Blackburn Point. Fly angler Tom Gould, from Longboat Key, FL, fished Terra Ceia Bay with me on Tuesday, Jan. 23rd. Tom caught and released about a dozen trout with Clouser flies and had a few shots at reds. The following day Sarasota winter resident, Harry Beaty, and his friend, Paul Rotz from St. Catherines, Ontario, fished Charlotte Harbor with me. They caught more than 25 trout, including 6 slot-sized fish and a pair of reds with CAL jigs and shad tails in Bull and Turtle Bays. On Friday, Sarasota Herald-Tribune outdoors editor, Steve Gibson, and I fished our way across the Tamiami Trail south of Naples toward the east coast. We found low water in many places and not a lot of fish, but we did catch and release about 10 Mayan cichlids and 6 stumpknockers with poppers and Myakka Minnow flies on 4 and 5-weight fly rods.  We both participated in the first Federation of Fly Fishers-Florida Council Conclave in Dania Beach on Saturday. Steve was a featured fly tier and I was a seminar presenter at the event, which had about 300 people in attendance. Some of the best fly tiers, casting instructors and guides in the state were in attendance. A front pushed through on Saturday evening dropping temperatures with a blast of wind. Next week’s tides are favorable for tailing reds in Charlotte Harbor and trout on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay as we head toward a full moon next Friday. Tight Lines,Capt. Rick GrassettSnook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.(941) 923-7799E-mail snookfin@aol.comwww.flyfishingflorida.net and www.snookfin-addict.com

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