Fitzy
11-15-2005, 12:13 PM
Well, I spent a week down in Beautiful SW Florida and had a blast. I tried to get outa t every chance and I managed 5 trips in the 7 days I was down there. This is how it went:
The first day out was on Tuesday 11/8. I went to Bonita Beach with the family and heard rumors of Spanish Macs from the beach. The water looked real dirty so I didn't put in a lot of time. I spent about 1/2 an hour spin fishing with a small crippled herrin without an bumps. I did see on real big swirl only 15' from shore and a few free jumping tarpon a ways out, but no fish for me.
Wednesday I got up at 5:00 and was out the door by 5:05 without waking up the family. Got to New Pass and fished near the bridge until it was light enough to wade across the mud flats to a small mangrove island. Just as it started getting light the tide started moving faster and the wind picked up. I fished small blue and white synthetic clousers and picked up a BIG lady fish (~30") and 2 small reds to 18" before 8:00 and it was time to go.
Thursday I did the same routine as Wednesday but when I got there, the water looked slick and there were some large fish pushing water. I reluctantly waded out into the dark water and didn't get a thing. I started fishing the small mangrove Island where I picked up the 2 reds and the ladyfish the day before, but I just wasn't feeling it. I ended up picking up a catfish on the clouser, then packed it in for the day.
Friday I went out with my father inlaw and fished Big Carlos Pass. We parked at the south side of the pass and walked out towards the ocean. We spooked a loarge snook on the way out and he stopped the fish the sticks with shrimp, while I went out to fish the rip near the end. He didn't end up getting anything where he was and I landed 15-20 lady fish mostly small with one nice 27-28" Lady fish. This spot looked so good and held so many fish that I new it would fish great eventually. Plus a few of the people I talked to had gotten quite a few snook out of the pass during the day. When my fater inlaw came up to see how I was doing, he dunked some shrimp on the bottom and picked up a small fish that looked like a red but was a little different. sandy collored with black tips on it's fin. He also got a juvinile hammerhead ~3' long. While I was there I saw 3 tarpon role one of which would have been in casting range with my 8.5' rod.
Satruday we had a wedding to go to. So I drank too much and couldn't fisn on sunday morning. As the hangover wore off, I decided I should make my last trip of the year to the end of Big Carlos and do some night time flyfishing. I started out fishing that rip for a while and didn't get anything. then I moved 10' up the beach and swung the fly through it and it was like magic. BANG my first nice snook on a fly. The fish was about 28" and full of fight. then I made another cast into the rip without checking my leader and POP ther goes my only black e.p. fly. I changed to an Olive and white e.p. flay and picked up a few big lady fish and one more snook. Then I looked farther out and saw fish crashing bait just out of fly range under the moonlight. I picked up my spinning rod and a red headed long A bomber and continued to beat up on a good mix of nice lady fish with the occasional snook. Keep in mind these were all nice fish taking a 7" plug. Through out the night, I switched back and forth with the fly rod and big black snake fly to the bombers. The flys consistantly caught more snook, but the plugs got bigger fish. The big one of the night was about 33". The fishing was good on the incoming tide only. As it slacked out I moved and found a fish here or there but they were hard to get to eat. I ended up finishing the night with a dirty catfish near the bridge.
Now I'm up in cold Massachusettes thinking about my next trip down. --124-3
Later,
Matt
The first day out was on Tuesday 11/8. I went to Bonita Beach with the family and heard rumors of Spanish Macs from the beach. The water looked real dirty so I didn't put in a lot of time. I spent about 1/2 an hour spin fishing with a small crippled herrin without an bumps. I did see on real big swirl only 15' from shore and a few free jumping tarpon a ways out, but no fish for me.
Wednesday I got up at 5:00 and was out the door by 5:05 without waking up the family. Got to New Pass and fished near the bridge until it was light enough to wade across the mud flats to a small mangrove island. Just as it started getting light the tide started moving faster and the wind picked up. I fished small blue and white synthetic clousers and picked up a BIG lady fish (~30") and 2 small reds to 18" before 8:00 and it was time to go.
Thursday I did the same routine as Wednesday but when I got there, the water looked slick and there were some large fish pushing water. I reluctantly waded out into the dark water and didn't get a thing. I started fishing the small mangrove Island where I picked up the 2 reds and the ladyfish the day before, but I just wasn't feeling it. I ended up picking up a catfish on the clouser, then packed it in for the day.
Friday I went out with my father inlaw and fished Big Carlos Pass. We parked at the south side of the pass and walked out towards the ocean. We spooked a loarge snook on the way out and he stopped the fish the sticks with shrimp, while I went out to fish the rip near the end. He didn't end up getting anything where he was and I landed 15-20 lady fish mostly small with one nice 27-28" Lady fish. This spot looked so good and held so many fish that I new it would fish great eventually. Plus a few of the people I talked to had gotten quite a few snook out of the pass during the day. When my fater inlaw came up to see how I was doing, he dunked some shrimp on the bottom and picked up a small fish that looked like a red but was a little different. sandy collored with black tips on it's fin. He also got a juvinile hammerhead ~3' long. While I was there I saw 3 tarpon role one of which would have been in casting range with my 8.5' rod.
Satruday we had a wedding to go to. So I drank too much and couldn't fisn on sunday morning. As the hangover wore off, I decided I should make my last trip of the year to the end of Big Carlos and do some night time flyfishing. I started out fishing that rip for a while and didn't get anything. then I moved 10' up the beach and swung the fly through it and it was like magic. BANG my first nice snook on a fly. The fish was about 28" and full of fight. then I made another cast into the rip without checking my leader and POP ther goes my only black e.p. fly. I changed to an Olive and white e.p. flay and picked up a few big lady fish and one more snook. Then I looked farther out and saw fish crashing bait just out of fly range under the moonlight. I picked up my spinning rod and a red headed long A bomber and continued to beat up on a good mix of nice lady fish with the occasional snook. Keep in mind these were all nice fish taking a 7" plug. Through out the night, I switched back and forth with the fly rod and big black snake fly to the bombers. The flys consistantly caught more snook, but the plugs got bigger fish. The big one of the night was about 33". The fishing was good on the incoming tide only. As it slacked out I moved and found a fish here or there but they were hard to get to eat. I ended up finishing the night with a dirty catfish near the bridge.
Now I'm up in cold Massachusettes thinking about my next trip down. --124-3
Later,
Matt