40-inch Snook Boated in Old Midnight Pass

Capt. Andy Cappar of Reel Native Fishing Charters guided Don Stewart, from Ken., to a whopping 40-inch snook last Monday night in Little Sarasota Bay's Old Midnight Pass

Name: Don Stewart from Ken. Fish: Snook Length: 40 ¼ inches Where: Old Midnight Pass in Little Sarasota Bay When: Monday night, June 13 Conditions: Toward the end of incoming tide -- just enough current to be moving bait through as the snook was busting mullet; two nights before full moon Tackle/bait: 15-pound braided line, 40-pound fluorocarbon with a live mullet Quotable: Capt. Andy Cappar: “It was a matter of him cranking it away from some structure – we got her along a mangrove edge near a lighted dock. He's been fishing with me six years and had been going after snook for three or four. This was his first really big fish. You know how snook-fishing is. And he finally got it right. Between me maneuvering the boat and him leaning into (…

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Fish Sarasota

Rolland Wrecks Red Snapper on Opening Day

Capt. Ryan Rolland of Outriggers Sportfishing Charters out of Marina Jacks reported great action on red snapper Wednesday offshore of the Sarasota beaches

Capt. Ryan Rolland of Outriggers Sportfishing Charters out of Marina Jacks in Sarasota guided a charter to some red snapper on Wednesday, the opening day of red snapper season. Of course, Rolland said with the tight regulations on red snapper, the fishing was on fire with tons of snapper primarily beyond 30 miles offshore over natural ledges, rock ledges and man-made wrecks He has been using mostly live bait and dead baits, including Rolland's favorite – sardine-squid combinations. He said along with snapper, his anglers caught mangrove and yellowtail snapper as well as grouper in the same spots. One of the secrets to red snapper season, according to Rolland, is using small baits and small hooks to match the snapper's mouths, which are …

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Catch of the week: Four-Pound Pompano Crushes Live Shrimp

Andrew Reding last week landed a four-pound pompano with Capt. Jonnie Walker of Bay Walker Charters. The secret? A circle hook.

Name: Andrew Reding of New York Fish: Pompano Weight: Four pounds Where: Sarasota Bay on a sand bar next to a grass flat Bait: Live shrimp Conditions: Afternoon, outgoing tide Quotable: “When it first got on we thought it was a real large trout. Pompano, for them to be able to eat shrimp, they’ve got to work at it. You’ve got to let them play with it for awhile. They hit it and hit it and hit it. They have such a small mouth they have a hard time swallowing the shrimp. The main thing is when the come up after it you can’t strike right away. That’s why I put (the bait) on a circle hook. I’ve been using circle hooks a lot because I don’t want the angler to strike it. Let them play with it.” Guide: Capt. Jonnie Walker of Bay Walker Charters …

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Catch of the week: Wading, Fly Fishing, Produces Big Red

Sarasota resident Mike Perez landed what Capt. Rick Grassett called the "ultimate" catch this week - a 27-28-inch redfish on a fly while wade-fishing.

Angler: Mike Perez, Sarasota winter resident Fish: Redfish Length: Estimated 27-28 inches Where: Caught wade-fishing a shallow flat in Gasparilla Sound Bait: Olive-colored Enrico Puglisi crab pattern fly Conditions: High incoming tide; mid-afternoon. Quotable: Capt. Rick Grassett, on catching a redfish on a fly: “That's the ultimate. (Redfish) are hard to get on the fly. They're the hardest fish … they're real spooky in shallow water. He had a little advantage in that it was a high tide so they weren't as spooky. It was still hard to see (through the water) though.” Guide: Capt. Rick Grassett of the Snook Fin-Addict can be reached at 941-923-7799 or e-mail snookfin@aol.com

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