water life march 2012

Charlotte Harbor and Lemon BayCharlotte Harbor and Lemon Bay

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Big Bass at Big OBig Bass at Big OPage 9Page 9

Spring RedfishSpring Redfishwith artificialswith artificialsPage 6Page 6

The official publication of the Charlotte Harbor Reef AssociationLIFE

Keeping Boaters & Fishermen Informed Since 1997Keeping Boaters & Fishermen Informed Since 1997

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P a g e 2 Wa t e r L I F E @ c o m c a s t . n e t M a r c h 2 0 1 2

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Not affiliated with any other publicationVol XI No 3 © 2012

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copied or reproduced without specific written permission fromthe publisher.

Contributing Editors:Photography: ASA1000.com

Senior Editor: Capt. Ron BlagoCharter Fishing: Capt. Bart MarxPort Charlotte: Capt. Billy Barton

Punta Gorda: Capt. Chuck EichnerCommercial Fishing: Kelly Beall

Sea Grant: Betty StauglerReal Estate: Dave Hofer

Inshore: Fishinʼ FrankOffshore: Capt Jim OʼBrien

Diving: Tommy DavisKayaks: David Allen

Sailing: Bill DixonOffice Dog: Molly Brown

on the COVER: Capt. Dave Stephens gave us thisnice red to go with his story about

spring fishing for redfish with arti-ficials. See page 6

Letters to [email protected]

Charlotte Harbor Reef Association

Mark Nichols, owner & inventor of D.O.A. lures will be at theMark Nichols, owner & inventor of D.O.A. lures will be at thestore on March 19 to answer questions and provide advicestore on March 19 to answer questions and provide advice

Dear Water LIFEHere it is! Itʼs official, spearing in inland waters is no longer off limits.

Print this out and keep it with you as this new law is NOT in the new lawbooks with officers yet. I found this through a lengthy conversation withFWC. The copy of the new law can also be found at flrules.org 57-1218was the law regarding spearfishing. 57-1219 was the law regarding under-water lights.

Adam Wilson

TURN THE PAGESEVERY MONTH: Back IssuesKids ChartersFishing ClassesTidesWeatherSailingKayakingDiving

Direct Linksfrom the web addressin your ad, right to your website

“Likea

goodday

on thewater”

Gotta Know How to Hold ʻEmYou have to hold the fish right. This works.

Lighting and composition are important in photos,especially if the image might appear as a covershot. Color and proper exposure are also critical andso far, this picture submitted by Capt Billy Barton hadall the right stuff going. But look closely, this anglerwas fishing with his fly at half-mast! Nicesheepshead though!

Right: Derrick Knapp wrote: “We were able to closegrouper season with our limit on red grouper andreleased some nice gags.” OK Nice gag, but what happened to the rest of it inthe picture? Itʼs all you, Derrick! But thanks!

WWWWeeeebbbb RRRReeeeDDDDeeeessssiiii ggggnnnn ––––EEEEaaaassss iiiieeeerrrr ttttoooo nnnnaaaavvvv iiiiggggaaaatttteeee

A Message toFlatsmasters

We are going to continue to cover allfishing tournaments in our area.

Just do your job and let us do ours.

What happens next is up to you.

Mi chael Hel l er – Water LIFE

68B-3.001 Repeal of Chapters 57-1218 and 57-1219, CharlotteCounty Special Acts.The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has determined

that the repeal of Charlotte County Special Acts, Chapter 57-1218and Chapter 57-1219, Laws of Florida (1957), will not adverselyaffect the marine resources of Charlotte County or of the State ofFlorida, therefore Charlotte County Special Acts Chapter 57-1218 andChapter 57-1219, Laws of Florida (1957) are hereby repealed.Rulemaking Authority Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. Law

Implemented Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. History–New 1-1-12.

By Michael Hel lerWater LIFE editorLocal fishermen say the appearance of

little white butterflies coincides with thearrival of tarpon in the Spring. I haveseen a few little yellow butterflies already,but no white ones yet. And I’ve seensome small tarpon, but no big ones.Tarpon talk is in the air. Last week I

ran into Capt. Bart at Fishin’ Franks.‘Have you been running offshore?’ I askedhim and Bart said ‘yes’. ‘What are you seeing in the Pass,’ I

asked, ‘are you seeing any?” Bart gaveme a sheepish grin and said somethinglike ‘you didn’t hear anything from me.’It wasn’t a yes, but it was a confirmation,like what I’ve heard from several otherguides. There are tarpon around. Capt.Billy Barton writes about a hook-up inhis column this month, but I haven’tseen any tarpon pictures yet.

Guides like to keep the early seasonfish for their clients and I don’t blamethem since a lot of anglers pressuring afew early fish scatters them. One local trend of thought is that at

this time of year, with the water tempera-ture around 72 degrees, the tarpon that areyear-round residents in the Peace andMyakka rivers begin to make their wayout into the harbor. Some of these fish

are big. And also happening right now isthe appearance of smaller tarpon in someof the canal lakes. Edgewater Lake and theSpring Lake area are spots I’m hearingmentioned a lot.In the next few months, as the water

to the south warms up, the bigger migra-tory tarpon will traditionally move north.Whether those bigger fish come fromCuba, Belize, the Loop Current, Mexicoor some place else is still not clear tome, but big tarpon head for Boca Grandeand the other area passes in spring to feedon the estuary’s baitfish and crabs and tocongregate and spawn. That’s the theory.But tarpon are just one of our many

fishy attractions.We are fortunate to livealong such a live estuary as is CharlotteHarbor. Ours is the second largest estuaryin North America, and it is ringed withpurposefully undeveloped public land. Ourestuary is a nursery for numerous differentspecies.

I have never met anyone who is unin-terested when they learn about one of thecool facets of life in our estuary. We seethe reaction in the guests people bringhere every day. You see it too. Visitorsare all amazed by the wildlife we have butto date we have done a poor job of pro-moting it. Now that has to change.The estuary is our biggest drawing

card. Baseball didn’t work, a waterparkhasn’t found a builder, the Grand Ol Opryisn’t singing? No mega hotel and now aMini Mote Marine? I don’t think any ofthose things will be the answer forCharlotte County. Face it, CharlotteCounty just isn’t that kind of a county. What we do have that no other county

has is our outdoors and all the specieshere. When the rest of the world discoversthis we will prosper. Unfortunately the county has no

money to promote itself. Tourism has

moved into smaller offices with a smallerstaff. So we need to do something costeffective.My idea is to get celebrities to come

here for fishing or to learn to fish. Ourguides can put them on some incrediblefish. Invite them and keep it quiet untilthey leave so there is an incentive forthem to come here and relax and enjoybeing on the water. Then use storiesabout their visits to promote the estuary.We just need people to know about whatwe have.


White Butterflies, GreatFishing and Celebrities

Great picture! People are amazed at scenes like this, but the fact of the matter is this iscommon. Capt. Billy Barton snapped it yesterday. If you are out on the water you see thingslike dolphins, manatees and eagles. Fishing and wildlife are what Charlotte County has.


By Capt. David S tephensWaterLIFE InshoreSpring on Charlotte Harbor can be a very

exciting time of the year. There are a lot ofchanges occurring and some of the best fishingis in our own backyard. March is very high onmy list for targeting redfish with artificial lures.On countless occasions I have been asked whattype of lure or lures should I be using to catchredfish, my response is simple; whatever youthink looks good for them to bite. If I had to leave the boat ramp with just one

lure to take fishing it would be a gold JohnsonSprite. More reds have probably been caught onthis lure than any other two combined. You cancover a lot of water with a spoon and some-times that is very important to locate fish. Idon’t use a fancy retrieve just simply cast andreel it back in, although I will change the speedof my retrieve to see what triggers a strike. When me and my tournament partner are out

fishing we rig with different baits to see what isworking that day. The normal selections consistof a top water plug, soft jerk bait and a goldspoon. Soft jerk baits are a great lure for reds, the

colors and selections are endless. Jerk baits canbe rigged several different ways, on a jig head,weedless and with no weight. There are alsonumerous hooks specially designed just forthese types of baits. Water depth and the type of structure plays a

big part in what type of hook to use. In deeperwater with little or no structure on the bottom Iwill use a jig head, but when I’m fishing overgrass or oysters I prefer the weedless approach.Water depth also determines if I use a weightedjerk bait hook or non weighted one. Generallythe shallower the water the lighter the weight. With a little practice and some time on the

water I am sure you will get to bend a rod onsome of Charlotte Harbor’s great redfish.Capt David can be reached at backbayx-

tremes.com

Redfish on Artificials

The cover picture on this monthʼs Water LIFE is ofCapt. Dave with a red taken on a Highroller topwaterbait (above)Left – Grant Cane from the U.K. with his first red onan artificial. Note the weighted hook.


By Betty S tauglerWater LIFE / Sea GrantLast month I received a

call from VEMCO, themaker of acoustic tags andtracking equipment, saying anotherresearcher had detected one of my tags.My guess was Tampa Bay or SarasotaBay, but to my surprise the detectionoccurred at the Stoney Point Reef located60 miles offshore of Ft. Myers in 135foot of water!Now some of you may recall the red-

fish tracking project which ran for fouryears (2007-2010) in conjunction withthe Water LIFE magazine Kids CupRedfish Tournament. During those years,redfish caught and weighed in (atFishermen's Village in Punta Gorda) byanglers aged 10-16 were fitted with tagsand released. All of the fish (over 200)received an externally anchored dart tagand some fish (80) received a surgicallyimplanted VEMCO acoustic tag. Thesefish were tracked using their underwatertracking equipment. The acoustic tagswork by transmitting a unique signal intothe water which is decoded and recordedby the tracking equipment. The trackingequipment is periodically downloaded to acomputer to see which fish passed closeenough to the receiver to be recorded andon what date and time. Based on the data logs sent to me by

the researcher the redfish first appeared inNovember 2011. It was recorded again inDecember 2011 and then several times inFebruary 2012.The fish that showed up at the Stoney

Point Reef was originally caught byJeppe Bennetson during the May 15th,2010 Kids Cup tournament (21 monthsago). It weighed in at 4.80 pounds andmeasured 24.63 inches total length. Itwas tracked twice right after the event.Today based on average growth rates thatfish is well over 30 inches, indicating ithas reached the age when redfish leave theestuary to spawn. Redfish spawn inshore close to tidal

inlets through which the young are trans-ported into estuaries. Spawning occurs inlate summer and fall. Redfish have anelaborate courtship ritual. Males, some-times many, follow females for hours at a

time, drumming loudly and butting them.Male color intensifies during courtshipand climaxes just after dark when eggsand sperm are released. Females may sheda million eggs at a time. Growth rate for redfish varies through-

out their life cycle. During the first yearthey grow at a rate of one inch or more amonth, after which time growth rateslows to ½ - ¾ ” per month. Redfishcontinue to increase length throughouttheir lives. However, after 3-feet-longthey add little length and lots of girth asthey age. Redfish mature around 2 to 4years in age and live for 25 to 35 years.Adult redfish are known to form large

aggregations offshore on wrecks. Manystudies have evaluated redfish aggregateson wrecks at one hundred foot or more soalthough our finding was very surprisingit was certainly a realistic observation.Perhaps it was most shocking because itwas only by chance that anotherresearcher had acoustic equipment offshoreto make this detection. The equipmentwas placed at the reef by a researcher fromFlorida State University who is studyinggrouper. More about that next month. Once we get past the “how cool is

that” phase as researchers we have to askall of the “what if” questions and the bigone here was could our redfish have beeneaten? If so, would we be tracking thepredator? The truth is predator/prey trans-fer of tags has not been well evaluated infishes, so yes it is a possibility but inthis case we don’t think it is likely. Thereason being is, just like in humans ifyou swallow a foreign object (withoutsharp edges), at some point you are goingto give it back. The same holds true forfish. This is because there is nothingalong the digestive track for a foreignobject (in our case the tag) to adhere to.So while it may sit in the gut for a shortperiod of time, at some point it will beexpelled and our fish was recorded over afour month period which is far longerthan a tag would likely remain in the gutof a predator fish. We feel confident thatthe fish on the recordings is our 2010tournament redfish. How Cool is That!!!

Betty Staugler, Florida Sea Grant AgentUniversity of Florida IFAS ExtensionCharlotte County (941) 764-4346

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By Fishin’ FrankWater LIFE Baitshop Stargazer: A

dreamy eyed personlooking into a cloud-less sky, possibly a scientist looking forasteroids, or how about a shocking fish –a fish found along the shores of the Gulfof Mexico, a fish with up to 50 volts ofelectricity – if you handle them wrong.The shock comes from a point betweentheir eyes. They use it for self defense. An electric fish? come-on, you’re kid-

ding me. Nope, it is for real, and yes theyare here. Not too much in the Harbor, butmore so in the near Gulf, Stargazers like the real sand bottom of

the Gulf of Mexico much better than thesand and mud mix of the Harbor. To behonest the stargazer is a fish I had almostforgotten about. Stargazers were a more frequent catch

15 years ago or before, not an uncommoncatch when fishing the Gulf beaches forwhiting. There are several different speciesof them found along the Gulf coast all theway up to the Northeast and down toSouth America. They are sometimes alsoknown as monkfish.The stargazers are a bottom dweller

similar to a flounder in their habits andhabitats. Like a flounder their eyes are on the

top of their head. Unlike a flounder youfillet them like a normal fish and the tailis very meaty. Stargazers are still a common by-catch

of shrimp trawlers today. Even though

you never really hear about them they’requite common. There is no size or baglimit on stargazer, just use good sense andmake sure the fish is big enough to getsome meat and do not take small ones.Use whiting as a good comparison foredible sizing. To fish for them is easier when you

understand how they live and eat. Theybury themselves in the sand and wait for abait to go by. This mean jigging, so let’sthink Carolina rig. A small bait fish or afish shaped plastic like a paddle tail min-now on a 2/0 hook, not a jig headbecause you want the bait to float up offthe bottom. Connect the hook with about 24 inch-

es of leader, 20 pound fluorocarbon willdo nicely, to a swivel. On the rod side of

the swivel first put a sliding bulletweight and then a couple of beads. Thiswill get you a little noise when you jigthe rod tip. Cast out and wait before you start to

retrieve. Give your bait time to get to thebottom then give the rod a sharp lift tohop the bait and make the bullet weightand beads clack together. Wait a few sec-onds and repeat. By-catch of this techniquewill be flounder or whiting. Stargazer’s live by ambush feeding

wiggling down into the sandy bottom ofthe gulf until only its eyes are stickingout. What is really weird is that they canextend their eyes out away from their headso they can see what is going on aroundthem or watch for when food shows up. Some of the stargazers have an

appendage which they extend from theirheads that acts like a lure to attract bait tothem. Not the stargazer type we have herethough, ours is more plain. Just the eyesprotrude out. Another thing which the southern star

gazer does not have is the venomousspines which some other species do.After you catch one it is important tokeep the meat on ice, this will keep theflavor. Do not be put off when you arefilleting a stargazer as it does have astronger fishy/ocean smell to it. The goodnews is that cooking takes that smellaway. The meat is very white and firm,but not flakey. The texture of the fillet iswhy I am going to recommend boiling orsteaming. That is something I have alsodone with mullet. When you fillet a stargazer watch for

small pin bones, rub your fingers up anddown the fillets to check for them do notrely on looking... feel for them. T he taste of a stargazer is similar to a

lobster. Try this. Add thyme, bay leavesinto the pot, then squeeze a lemon intothe water. If you like lemon put the rindinto the water for more flavor. Bring thepot up to a rolling boil this gives thespices time to blend. When poaching fishI give it at least 2 minutes per 1/2 inchof fillet thickness. If you are going tosteam them at least 3 minutes per 1/2inch. The meat is done when it turns anopaque color rather than the white. Frank can be reached at 625-3888 or at

[email protected]

SSttaarrggaazzeerrSSttaarrggaazzeerr


By Capt. Chuck EichnerWater LIFE Punta GordaLargemouth bass fishing was an

obsession with me starting at age 12when I decided I would become a profes-sional fisherman and join the B.A.S.Stournament trail when I reached the age of18. That was some 45 years ago whentournament fishing was just getting start-ed. Since then I fished semi-professionaltournaments and guided largemouth tripsfor 15 years prior to moving to theCharlotte Harbor area. Not knowing quite what to expect, I

figured I would give saltwater fishing aspin. Line burning fish like the snook,redfish and tarpon changed all that and Ibecame obsessed with Charlotte Harbor.Now 10 years later, reports of bass on the“Big O” have stimulated my old interestso I dusted off my St Croix bass rods,refreshed my lure selection and towed myflats boat to the lake. Lake Okeechobee is quite comparable

to Charlotte Harbor in many ways.Wildlife abounds in every direction withenormous backwater areas that are myste-rious and fishy. Miles of tall bullrushescreate habitat for millions of ducks andbirds and you will also see lots of alliga-tors. The amount of submerged aquaticvegetation is beyond description withhydrilla, milfoil and perhaps another 30varieties of weeds and lily pads. Where tofish is the hard part on this lake becauseeverything looks fishy. My good friend Lyn Bevis and I have

both got the largemouth bass “bug”.

Somewhat hard todescribe, bass fishing isaddictive. Lure fishingfor an aggressive fishthat hits hard is part ofthe magic, but in theend I think it is themental focus and delib-eration in analyzinghow to locate them andmake them bite that isthe big piece.The Big O is a com-

plicated fishery. Itseems every time yougo to the lake the con-

ditions change. Fluctuating water levelswill take an area of vegetation that haslots of fish one week and the next week itwill be weed clogged and unfishable witha foot less water. Another variable is theweed spraying program. On a recent tripwe discovered a sweet patch of hydrillathat had a large deep trough right offsome bullrush and water hyacinths. Werecognized its potential and a few castslater a monster bass swirled on Lyn’s baitand a beautiful 8 pounder was landed! Thefollowing week we ran to this spot onlyto find the area had been sprayed and theweeds were dead and the water was brown.That is an unusual condition to deal withthat is unique to this lake. Another condi-tion that varies is water depth that mayincrease or decrease depending on winddirection. An easterly wind will pushmore water to the west side which maychange the fishing patterns. Weather,moon phase, water clarity and fronts arealways part of the equation and on differ-ent days the fish will utilize differenttypes of vegetation. But the challengemakes sport. The lake boasts many interesting loca-

tions such as Horse Island, Monkey Box,Moonshine Bay, Kings Bar and manymore. When looking at a chart they areclear as day but on the water everythinglooks the same with a confusing horizonof tall weeds and trails through them ifyou dare to venture in. This is a shallowwater lake and attention to water depth isimportant because it has a rocky bottomin many places.

When it comes to the actualfishing most of the time youwill be fishing something weed-less. Weedless rigged swimbaits,worms and frogs are often tied onwith offset worm hooks holdingthem in place. Sometimes youcan fish the outside edges of theweeds with rattle traps and spin-nerbaits. Nothing of course beats a top-

water bite and recently we hadtwo 8 pounders mow down alarge swimbait fished on top.Both Lyn and I caught one ofthese big fish and when it hits itis truly a spectator sport with abig mash and water swirling andthen an “Oh Son” Roland Martin

type of hookset to follow. Fishing in the heavy salad requires a

heavy duty baitcaster and heavy line tocontrol the fish. No long drawn outfights in thick vegetation.In the tranquility of an early morning

fishing trip you will hear a crescendo ofbirds and ducks cackling like nothing youhave ever heard. Bull frogs and otherfrogs and lizards add to the swayingsounds of the bullrush. Add to that amonster alligator of 12-14 feet and youknow you are in God’s country. Capt. Chuck Eichner, Action Flats

Backcountry Charters, 941-628-8040 orwww.backcountry-charters.com

Impressive Bass at Lake O

P a g e 1 0 Wa t e r L I F E @ c o m c a s t . n e t M a r c h 2 0 1 2

By Capt. Larry KochSpecial to Water LIFE This is a snook

caught off the dock inthe back yard. I felt badkeeping him out of thewater for the picture,but the fish was fineand swam off, no prob-lems. When I fish,they all go back. It’stoo bad more peoplearen’t worried about theecosystem. I've seen people

catching snook in theircast nets off the illegalside of the Jo-Beanpier. I told the localbait store and askedwhat to do? I was toldI was "a jerk trying tocause problems"? No,I’m a concerned envi-ronmentalist seeing laws broken, fish going to waste andpeople to whom closed seasons, slot limits and rules ingeneral mean nothing. I was a licensed guide up north andwe had the same issues, but much worse. Its hard to catch a red drum over 10lb around here. In

Miami they catch 20s+ on the regular. They won’t forlong! If we had to supply the world’s meat consumptionby finding meat in the woods (hunting), there would benothing left in the forest. So we have to farm-raise cow,pigs, chicken ect. There are too many problems with farm raised fish at

the moment. This needs to be fixed. We fished out thestocked trout in New England a month after they weredumped in. Sadly most of these fish wind up freezer-burnedand thrown away. Who wants a freezer full of 10'' trout inlieu of a lake filled with 3-5 year old fish? I would charge$160 to fly-fish for 8- to 10-inch fish. Crazy!Acid rain is changing the water PH, but the fisherman

do the most damage up there. The ecosystem is so out ofwhack that its just accepted that it will never be the same.

You hav e one of the last natural ly operat ingfishery 's on the cont inent . Don't ruin such anamazing thing! It’s too late for red fish (they are allheavily stocked throughout the gulf), I see a day when thereds are just like the trout in the north (a put-and-take fish-ery). I don't want to take my son out for a bucket of ratreds when he grows up! Nature makes it tough on these backwater sport-fish,

let’s not make it harder (see the internet videos of all thefish kills in the last few years. It was not just the one bigone). Protect what is so valuable in so many differentways. Keep a fish, it’s no big deal, just don't fill the boatwith fish. This fishery is amazing! World class! Let’s keepit that way.

I caught a nice snook, it had a hook with 50lb braidattached, still in its mouth when I caught it. I would nothave caught him if that line was not severed in his gillplate. I’m sure that fish would have been dinner for some-one – yes even out of season. Now I know someone elsewill have another shot at that fish. Not preaching... justhope people read, think and make up their own minds. Tight lines to my piers,Any comments, I would love to hear,[email protected].

PS: Anyone who understands center-pin float fi shing , I would love to talk to you, e-mail me!

Local Observations

I catch all my fish on 10# braid,attached to 10# fluorocarbon witha short shock leader. I save myspin and fly rods for when Iʼmout in my boat.

It’s soooo easy!Read Water LIFE up north this summerWe’re online FREE every month

www.waterlifemagazine.com


By Capt. Bi l ly BartonWater LIFE / Charlotte Harbor

It's almost like we've been in springtime all winterlong this year, but how is that affecting the fishing?Well, for now, it's in a positive way. Everything is onthe move. I have some guide friends who are alreadyrunning shark trips. The Spanish mackerel are right out-side the passes and are just beginning to show up here inthe harbor. I had a customer last month hook up to a 50pound tarpon while fishing a shrimp under a poppingcork for trout! We chased the fish around for 20 minutesbefore he eventually spit the hook in the middle of oneheck of a jump! The snook fishing has just been amazing! I've had

some trips lately where we've brought 30 or 40 snook tothe boat just for some great catch and release fishing.These fish all need warm water to thrive and these are allsigns of what is yet to come.Well, enough about warm water, and enough about

snook, mackerel, tarpon, and sharks. If there was a prizefor the most popular shallow water, light-tackle fishdown here; without a doubt, redfish would win. Reds arethe fish I chase more than any other. They fight great,they taste great, and when you're on em, you're really onem! I hear so many people from up north come downand say "I've never caught a red fish, and I just want tocatch one!" Well let me start off by saying it's not

rocket science and when we're out to catch some reds, it'snot just one we're gonna try and catch! Nine times outof 10 if there's a fish sitting under a bush and he's hun-gry, he's not alone and his buddies are hungry too! I’ve got my theory, it works for me. It's the way I tar-

get these fish all winter long, and into the spring.Seven years ago hurricane Charley ripped right up the

gut of Charlotte Harbor. Charley wreaked havoc on thisplace, lemme tell you! It was a horrible time down here,but we've re-cooped and now most everything is back tonormal, at least fishing wise. If you ask me, Charley hada positive affect on the fishing here. What it did was itcreated a whole bunch of new structure to fish. Redfishand a lot of other fish love structure. At high tide theylove to swim along the mangrove bushes in search offood, and in safety from boat traffic and predators. If yougo out and look at most of the shorelines in this harborthey are now covered with dead mangrove limbs. I liketo go out and look for the large clumps of overhangingbushes that protrude furthest off the shoreline. The fur-ther out the bush hangs into the water the more I wantto fish it.From the months of November through about the end

of March, the bait of choice for reds would be a nicechoice or select sized live shrimp. I like to use a 1/8 or1/4 ounce jig head – color doesn't really matter. Takeyour shrimp and pinch the fan off his tail, then tail-hook

the shrimp by running the hook through the bottom andcoming out his back. My reasoning behind this is youare exposing the meat of the shrimp, which in turn putsmore scent in the water, and also; the fan of the tailcatches wind, which shortens up your cast. You aregoing to want to always stay as distant as you can fromthe fish, so you want to make as long of a cast as possi-ble. If you have a trolling motor sneak in with it. If you

don't, let the wind coast you in, or hop in the water andpush the boat in yourself. This is a very important partof catching a big red. Stay stealthy and avoid makingloud noises or you will spook the larger, smarter fish. All you wanna do now is make your cast to those

large clumps of dead sticks in the water. If you landwithin five or ten feet you are in the strike zone. I willtypically give it about five minutes or so, and if I don'tget any hits I will try another cast. If we don't pick up afish in about 10 or 15 minutes, it’s on to the nextclump of bushes! I like to catch the last two hours ofthe incoming tide, and the first two hours of the outgo-ing. The higher the tide, almost always the better.Eventually we're gonna find some fish. Are you puttingtwo and two together? I hope so and if you want to gocatch some big redfish with me, just give me a call.Capt. Billy Barton runs Scales N Tails Charters, he can bereached at 979-6140 or at: [email protected]

Capt. Billy Barton

Beatin ̓the Bushes for Reds


By Michael Hel lerWater LIFE SailingThe air wasn’t particularly cold, high 70s, but the water was still in the

60s, cold enough to make a sailor shiver and there would be shivering.Actually the first day (Friday) of the Charlotte Harbor Regatta the weather

wasn’t too bad, and Sunday (the last day) it was pretty nice too, but Saturday,when the wind was blowing a steady 25 with gusts to 30, the water seemedvery cold and a lot of sailors got to feel it, some of them often.The sailing on Saturday was spectacular, especially for the bigger boats and

multi-hulls that were tearing up the courses out past Mkr No. 2. The smallerboats sailed closer to the US 41 bridges, but they had their problems as well.Most were serious sailors, most were prepared with wet suits and foul

weather gear. Everyone got their equipment tested on Saturday. “This is what it’s all about,” one sailor shouted to me, hiked out on the

windward hull of his cat, hanging from a little canvas seat suspended from themast. In heavy wind like they had on Saturday every little bit of leverage onthe lightweight boats was critical.“I can’t do it, I can’t do it,” one of the young Sunfish contenders yelled as

he tugged on his overturned keel, trying to get his mast unstuck from the

There will be WETCharlotte Harbor Regatta

M a r c h 2 0 1 2 w w w. Wa t e r L I F E m a g a z i n e . c o m P a g e 1 3

CHARLOTTE HARBOR REGATTARESULTSAnnie Gardner and Eric Witte F16 John Casey took the F18 Wally Myers won the Hobie 16 class. John Sherry Hobie Wave class Mark Taylor and Nikki Holland Flying ScotJim Richter Sunfish

Next yearʼs event will be held, Jan. 31-Feb. 3

muddy bottom below. (see photo at right) Then finally he got his boat uprightand a ‘can do’ smile came over his whole face. That’s what it’s about for kids.Sailing in conditions like those make sailors take on an acrobatic persona,

moving out and up to try and counter the wind which wants to push everythingover and down. Fancy footwork was the norm on this Saturday.Problems came mostly at the marks when the boat tried to turn and the wind

resisted or helped too much. There were numerous upendings on the straightcourse line too when a rogue wave or a shifting gust overpowered even themost agile crews. But when it was all over there were only rave reviews for ourlocal venue and promises from the sailors to be back again next year.

Right: Bottom Mud


SALT CREEK

On the LineBy Capt. Ron Blago Water LIFE Senior StaffNot many people have heard about,

let alone been to Salt Creek in NorthPort. This two mile long shallow waterditch which is just 10 feet wide in spotsand which connects the Myakka Rivernear US 41 and Warm Mineral Springshas become the newest celebrity winterwatering hole for the Florida manatee. I first became interested in Salt Creek

about 10 years ago when I read that theFWC was releasing recovered injuredmanatees into Salt Creek. I wonderedwhy they wouldn't put the recoveredmanatee back in their home habitatwhere they came from.The answer is that for years now the

State has been moving manatees intoSalt Creek in an attempt to increase themating population of manatees in thearea and it looks like their efforts havebeen successful. The first aerial popula-tion survey that I know about was donein 1979 and reported no manatees in SaltCreek. Today the state reports that therehave been 60 manatee sightings in thearea, but it is really hard to get a handleon how accurate that number is since wedon't know the time period; was that 60manatees there on one day? Or one man-atee seen 60 days in a row?In 2002 the State made Salt Creek a

“No Entry Zone” from 15 Nov to 15March. You cannot even swim in thecreek during that period. Salt Creek isnow called the only natural winter habi-

tat left for man-atees south ofTampa Bay. In 2006 a

report submittedto the U.S.Marine Mammal Commission by thenon-profit organization Wildlife Trustrecommended that land be purchasedalong the creek and that the creek bedredged to allow more manatees to win-ter over.Let’s look at what has happened since

then. In 2010, Sarasota County pur-chased Warm Mineral Springs the sourceof the warm water discharge and boughtseveral lots along the creek under theirEnvironmentally Sensitive LandsProgram. Remember that Sarasota is oneof the original 13 counties required tohave a Manatee Protection Plan. There isalso talk about removing several weirsand dredging Salt Creek to make it easierfor manatees to move up stream. Thiswould not be allowed for land develop-ment, but I guess is perfectly alright formanatee protection.The question I have is why the large

increase in manatees in the creek recent-ly? Is it because they were always therebut no one bothered to count them? Is itbecause the State has been stocking thecreek with recovered manatees, or is itbecause we now have too many mana-tees and the natural habitat can no longersupport them?

You can Reach Capt Ron Blago at:[email protected]

The all natural, man made, manatee refuge

Are manatees breeding here? – Salt Creek, off the Northport Warm Mineral Springs

salt creek


By Bobby Vital is JrSpecial to Water LIFESPANISH MACKEREL are awesome

to catch – they give a good fight. I havecaught mackerel up to 26 inches inlength. The best time to catch thesemackerel is right before sunrise, from6:30 a.m. to about 11:00 a.m. The bestplace I have been to catch these mackerelare at Sharky’s pier in Venice. There are many ways to catch macker-

el, but the best way is to go spinningfor them because you need a fasterretrieve to move a lure at a pace that willinterest the mackerel. There are many lures you can use.

The best lure I find is the GOT-CHAlures. The color is chartreuse head withsilver body with red treble hooks andweight is 1oz. Some people use SEASTRIKER, CLARK SPOONS, SABIKIrigs and TSUNAMI PRO ZIG ZAG

lures. The presentation using these luresis at a fast speed. As your reeling it ingive it fast jerks every so often. Before the sun comes up, I use 6

inches of 26-pound test surflon microsupreme knottable leader wire becausethe fish cannot see the wire in the water.When the sun comes up, I use anywherefrom 80-pound to 100-pound testSeaguar fluorocarbon leader line about 3feet in length, which is invisible in thewater. Note: the reason I’m using heavyline is because mackerel have very sharpteeth. For my main line, I use 30-poundtest SUFIX 832 ADVANCED SUPER-LINE. When tying your main line to your

leader, I suggest you use the double UNIKNOT which works good up to 80lb testfluorocarbon leader line. Anything more,then use double sleeves. So if you wantto catch Mackerel try this method.

MACKEREL: Pier Anglerʼs Approach


By David Al lenWater LIFE KayakingHave you ever paddled through a

“Mangrove Tunnel?’ If you are a memberof the Port Charlotte Kayakers (PCK)you have. Many paddlers think that thetunnels are one of the often-unrecognizedcharms of paddling in Southwest Florida.And we have some of the best tunnelsright here in Charlotte County.So just what are ‘Mangrove Tunnels”?

The tunnels are, for the most part, manmade; narrow channels cut through themangroves that line our bays and estuar-ies. They were originally conceived as away to control mosquitoes in the shore-line areas. Later it was found that in addi-tion to mosquito control, the channelsimproved the flow of water through themangroves, augmenting their growth,while providing a safe breeding groundfor many smaller species of fish. I’vebeen told that some were cut through asearly as 1950 to 1960, but others later. These narrow, shallow, paths through

the mangroves are completely enclosed,both overhead and on both sides, by thethick mangrove growth. Many channels

are so narrow that a kayak paddle oftenhits the branches on both sides whenpassing through. Shaded from the sun,they are a refuge for birds and otherwildlife, and often lead to small pondswhere roseate spoonbills and other seldomseen birds feed.Paddling the mangrove tunnels is a

unique experience, far different than pad-dling in the local creeks, rivers or theGulf. When you enter a tunnel, singlefile, from the open water, you are in ashaded, quiet, green world. There isalmost no current, no wind, and just a lit-tle sun speckling the water. Often thewater is so shallow that the kayaksalmost touch the bottom, and you couldeasily get out and wade through the chan-nel. The channels twist and turn, somefor a mile or more, with many false leadsthat go nowhere. The sharp turns areoften a challenge for long kayaks tonegotiate, and the file of paddlers back upand wait their turn. After hurricanes or even strong winds,

fallen trees and largebranches often block themangrove channels. Sometimes you can paddle overthese obstructions, butmore often the channelmust be cleared by hand.Bill Mango and othersfrom the PCK regularlyclear out the channels, atleast several times a year,and always after a majorstorm. Two of the best local

mangrove tunnels are offCatfish Creek in Placida, and east ofPonce de Leon in Punta Gorda. The tun-nels off Catfish Creek have been namedthe Ed Woolverton Trail and have official-ly been added to the Charlotte CountyBlueways Map. Ed, now 90+, has gainedthat honor by his long time efforts tokeep the trail open and mark the mainpaths through the area. The Woolverton Trail is easily acces-

sible from Grande Tours in Placida.Captain Marion Schneider, owner andoperator of Grande Tours, offers guidedtours through the area.The mangrove tunnels out of Punta

Gorda are reached from the boat ramp atPonce de Leon Park on the west end ofMarion Avenue. After launching at thepark, you must paddle about 1 milesouth and west up the boat channelbefore entering the mangroves through asmall lake off the right side of the chan-nel. Once inside, the tunnel continues

to lead southeast for about a mile atwhich point you enter either AlligatorCreek or the Bay. An interesting side tripis to Spoonbill Lake in the heart of adens e cluster of mangroves. The “lake”,just off the main trail, is actually a smallpond, about 60-70 feet across, where, ifyou’re lucky, you may spot a spoonbill.Spoonbills have become very scarce sinceCharley.Our club paddles the Woolverton sever-

al times a year. And once, we were luckyenough to see Ed Woolverton himself, ina small powerboat, clearing branchesfrom the main channel. I recommend atrip through the Woolverton, or any ofthe mangrove tunnels, to any paddlerlooking for a pleasant change of pace. The Port Charlotte Kayakers meet each

Wednesday evening at 5:30 PM at PortCharlotte Beach Park . All are welcome. For more information contact Dave Allen

at 941-235-2588

KAYAKSEd

Woolvertonʼs Wonderful

Trail


With Capt. Jim O'BrienWater LIFE Englewood

Hey ya-all can you believe the windwere having? I know I've lost quite a fewcharters. But we have gotten out and thefish'n has been excellent. We’re still fish'n28 to 32 miles out. On last week’s charterwe brought back 78 fish and that’s notcounting the grouper and scamp we had tothrow back. Now I’m a tell'n ya that’s alot of good eat'n. Well lets see what’sgoing on in the fish'n world.SHEEPSHEAD are bitting good off the

Tom Adams bridge, Boca Grande trestle,M13 and Mary’s reef. The sheepshead arerunning from 2- to 6-pounds and takinglive shrimp and fiddler crabs. Don't forgetthe mighty sand flea is also a good bet forbait. When I fish for these guys I like totake fresh sand fleas, get an old pot fill itup with water and boil them till they turnpink then pour the water off let them cooldown vacuum pack them or put them in azip lock bag and freeze them. This makesa dandy sheepshead bait.

BONITA AND SPANISH MACKER-EL are out from 1 to 4 miles off the beachSpanish mackerel are in Charlotte Harborand just out of Boca Grande Pass just lookfor bait fish on the surface and birds.

TRIPLE TAIL are still being caught onthe crab trap buoys out of Stump Passbetween the buoy lines from 2 to 6 milesout and from Stump Pass south to LittleGasparilla pass. Don't get discouraged ifyou don't see or hook up on the first fewbuoys give each buoy 10 to 15 min, thengo to the next buoy, have patience and youwill catch them.COBIA are chewing real good out on

the deeper wrecks right now the Bayrontois producing cobia in the 60 plus poundrange now. I’m tell'n ya thats a lot ofyummy for the tummy. HA! Use a lot ofchum and they will come right up to yourboat in the chum slick. They are a verycurious fish. Have a big pin fish or ablack and silver gulp eel ready to throw atthem.AJ'S if you want to test your strength

get out to the deeper wrecks stop on theway out and catch some nice blue runnersan some big pinfish get out to one ofthese spots and hang on, you will breakout in a sweat.MANGROVE SNAPPER, GRUNTS,

TRIGGER FISH, AND MARGATES havebeen chewing the hooks off the line at 28to 30 miles out. We are using a chickenrig with live shrimp on the top hook and a

piece of squid on the bottom hook I use anumber 2 circle hook and were tearingthem up. The trigger fish are running realbig like the’re on steroids. The mangs arestill running from 20 to 25 inchs long,margates are running from 2 to 4 poundsand the jolt head porgies, and the regularporgies are chewing good also. DON'TFORGET All grouper species andAmerican red snapper will re-open APRIL1ST. The photo is from one of my last char-

ters out (from the bottom are: Ken

Lathrope, 2nd row left to right GaryKirkham, Eric Von Muller, back row RudyAskew, Jim Thomson, and ChuckEdminston. These guys has fished with mea lot. Well its time to get out of here . If you have any questions or if you have a

good ol' fishin’ story or a recipe for cook ingfish that I can share with our readers give mea call. To book an offshore charter with us -aboard the Predator II call (941) 473-2150 AND BE SURE TO SNORT SOME OF THAT SALT AIR CUZ IT’S GOOD FER YA!

OFFSHORE REPORT The Olʼ Fishʼn Hole

By Capt. Bart MarxWater LIFE FishingJeff and his Dr. friend met me at Ponce

Park. We traveled down the Harbor toTurtle Bay where we saw some manateesand did some trout fishing. We also hadsome redfish encounters.We were fishingalong the shore and the Dr. hooked into apit-bull redfish as Capt. Mark Sosinnamed the big Charlotte Harbor reds. The fish had a healthy dose of the pit

bull attitude and gave the doc a great bat-tle for about 10 minutes. That red had him around the boat back

and forth and then took a long run outpast the anchor. The Dr. was gaining onthe fish when the line broke at the hookwhere you could see the abrasion from theteeth had taken its toll. Sometime that isthe price you pay when the big one getshooked ....he drags your junk all over thehood and then just swims away to playsomewhere else. Next Jeff hooked a nice red and had a

good fight. We landed that fish and hewent in the box for the ride home. It was time to try something else so

we left the bay and started on the West

Wall drifting across the grass and sandholes in search of some trout. At first things were a little slow ...

until we found the trout that were hungryand willing to tighten up the line for atest. We let some go and put a couple ofthem into the box for the ride home. We were coming close to the end of

our fishing adventure, the Dr. was work-ing his shrimp, when his drag startedsinging like it hooked a passing boat. Itburned off 20 or 30 yards of line and westill had no visual contact to even guesswhat was on. My first thought was a cobia had slid

in on us and bagged the shrimp. It keptfighting as it got closer so my next guesswas a jack cravelle, but in the end itturned out to be a permit. It didn’t matter.Singing drags and tight lines make mesmile, and Jeff and hs Dr friend weresmiling too.Contact Capt. Bart to schedule a fishing

adventure of your own, may it be shark , reds,snook , tarpon, or trout, give me a call at941-979-6517 or go towww.alphaomegacharters.com


TIPS from CAPT BARTTo me fishing is a lot like

hunting for animals on dryground; you have to stalk themand get in position to take anaccurate shot.

It helps when you scuba dive

some of the spots that you fish tounderstand how the structure isshaped. This helps with tacticsyou will use.

Sometimes it is the smallestdetails that make the huge differ-ence between fishing or catching.

Downsize your equipment, usesmaller leader and smaller linesto help you get more bites.

Use as little terminal tackle aspossible to get the job done andlearn a loop knot for your artifi-cials and even your live baits

Two barbs in front of the anal finmean no pompano,

itʼs a permit!

FISHING: Jeff and His Doctor Friend


PROVIDED to Water LIFE BY: Dave Ho fer RE/MAX Harbor Realty(941) 575-3777 [email protected] Recent area news i tems:1. The Parkside CommunityRedevelopment Area covers the residentialarea surrounding Peace River and FawcettHospitals in Port Charlotte. This CRA was created to improve thequality of life for residents of the areathrough the addition of amenities and aes-thetic enhancements to a neighborhoodthat many consider to be "blighted".Charlotte County has approved an outlayof $9 million as Phase One of a $35 mil-lion budget. More than half of the fundswill be spent for walkways, bridges andstreet improvements along Harbor Blvdfrom Rt 41 to Olean. The balance of thefunds will be expended for a bridge overthe Elkcam waterway, walkwaysalong Aaron from Gertrude to Elkcam, anevents park on Aaron behind thePromenades Shopping Center andimprovements to existing and addition ofvarious "pocket" parks in the area.Funding for the project is to initiallycome from County taxpayers and repaidfrom property tax increases generatedwithin the benefitted area. I can't say forcertain if the commissioners that supportthis investment calculated how much theproperty values of local residents wouldhave to increase to pay for this invest-ment, but I did. Property values would

have to soar $45 mil from the currentlevel of about $98 mil to be self sustain-ing. Residents of all of Charlotte Countyshould expect to be asked for sales taxincreases to make up the expected short-fall.

2. The Cheney Brothers plant has beencleared for development. Constructionshould begin within the next 12 monthsfor this new food distribution center.More than 300 new jobs are expectedwhen opened.

3. Charlotte County has decided not toconvert Placida Road into a four laneartery. Instead, it will spend that $16 milon widening Burnt Store Road fromNotre Dame to Zemel.

4. The proposed privitization of ourlocal state prison has been killed. Thenumbers didn't represent any taxpayersavings after hard core inmates were relo-cated out of the county.

5. Realtor.com rated Punta Gordaamong the top 10 turnaround cities in thecountry. Hopefully, that pronouncementwill help stimulate interest in our mar-ket.

6. Charlotte County Commissionersmust have heard a great sales pitch at therecent Miami boat show. They voted tospend $163,000 on a new 27' "fire" boat.Although they already have one parked inEnglewood, they felt the need to backupthe Sheriff’s boat and tne one Fish andWildlife has that are already providingservice to Charlotte County.

In other news: Air traffic at the PuntaGorda airport is up 15% vs. last year.The control tower is now o perational.

Sales S tatistics: Lower end homeprices in North Port and Port Charlottecontinue to rise as the inventory of shortsales decline. The much publicized "robosigning" scandal that was supposed toflood the market with hundreds of newforeclosures has not yet materialized.Foreclosure auctions scheduled for Marchhave declined to pre housing-bust levels.

RealEstateNews

Work on a special manatee protection sys-tem, at the Moore Haven lock, that wouldkeep manatees from being squished in thecanal gates is scheduled to begin April 2when water levels are low. The project willtake up to two months to complete. No boating traffic will be allowed to use thelock during the installation.

Don Ball School of FishingCape Coral guide Capt. Sam OʼBriant talks tides to a group of 6th and 7th graders atCaloosa Middle School in Cape Coral. The 8 week program, put on by The CharlotteHarbor Reef Association and this publication has graduated over 1200 area middle school-ers. This month The Reef Association received an anonomyous $250 donation from theMilwaukee Foundation. We thank them, and the donar, for that.


Cooks Sportland

4419 So. Tamiami TrailS. Venice493-0025

Water LIFE Distributorʼs ClubWater LIFE Distributorʼs ClubYou can always get a free copy of Water LIFE at these locationsYou can always get a free copy of Water LIFE at these locations

Water LIFE Distributorʼs ClubWater LIFE Distributorʼs ClubYou can always get a free copy of Water LIFE at these locationsYou can always get a free copy of Water LIFE at these locations

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BOAT BUILDING EVENTat the spring BOAT SHOW

– The South West Florida MarineTrades group has been telling us aboutplans to hold their first Boat BuildingFestival, produced by the Shipwright Shopat the upcoming Fort Myers Spring BoatShow. Several South West Florida MarineTrades members have now jumped aboardand there will be at least five teams of stu-dents each building a boat. Not only is thisa great community support event, but itwill be a great addition to the boat showthis month.

FROM THE FWCOfficer investigated a boating accident in Bull Bay

involving a licensed captain who had three paying customersonboard. The vessel was enroute to a fishing area when itstruck a sand bar and came to an abrupt stop, ejecting oneoccupant. Two occupants were later admitted to the hospital.The officer cited the operator for a navigational rule violation.

Early last year, a charter vessel entered into the designat-ed swim area at the shoreline of the Ritz Carlton Hotel andstruck a swimmer. The swimmer was critically injured and wasairlifted to a local hospital. The case was recently prosecutedand closed with the vessel captain pleading guilty to all acci-dent-related charges. The captain received the maximumpenalties and fines and was taken into custody to serve oneyear in jail with probation to follow. Additionally, his captain'slicense was permanently revoked.

Officers received a call from an individual claiming tohave seen with his side scan sonar what appeared to be atruck in Indian Prairie Canal. The officers took a large magnetand a drag with treble hooks and dragged the area, but couldnot find anything. The officers expanded their search andhooked to a large metal object about 1/4 mile from the boatramp. A dive team was dispatched from Okeechobee SheriffʼsOffice and a tow truck was called. The dive team hooked to theobject and the tow truck pulled out a van, stolen nearly 10years ago. The van was turned over to the Sheriffʼs Office.

Officers received a complaint that a subject was spearingfish in a freshwater canal. Upon arrival, the officers identifiedthemselves and the suspect released his speargun and astringer of fish and began swimming away. The officers even-tually apprehended the suspect and recovered the evidencewhich included 12 peacock bass, 10 blue tilapia, three large-mouth bass, and three sunfish. The subject was arrested forinterference with a police officer, possession of numerousspeared freshwater fish, and failure to possess a fishinglicense. Apparently even invasive species are protected.

Sugarcane is harvested from late-October through mid-April.With no damaging effects from freezes sugar yields are typicallyhighest after December. Shown here is part of the harvest nearLake Okeechobee.


Recreational sportfishing and billfish conservation have made a hugeimpact on Costa Rica’s tourism and economy. In a groundbreakingmove and through a joint effort between The Billfish Foundation andthe Presidential Challenge Charitable Foundation, commercial longlin-ing will be closed in a 40-mile area during the weekend's Presidential

Challenge tournament, March 1-4

In Miami: Yamaha introduces a 4-stroke with a hole shot.

WHATʼS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE? Bayshore Park inCharlotte Harbor: Running water, a cozy fireplace and and free elec-tricity for a laptop attracts area hobos who especially like the regu-lations allowing beer in the park, as does the convenience storedown the block. No wonder familys with children shy away from thisotherwise nice waterfront venue.

Only In Florida Cute little 1,800 pound pig ... killed inKing's Point, Sun City Center, FL. They call them Piney WoodRooter's. Evidently they're all over Georgia , Alabama ,Arkansas , Missouri , and Florida. This guy was told to standstill because their eye sight is poor. That by standing still theyprobably would not see you and walk right on by. And NO youcan't outrun them. He didnʼt take any chances.

Charlotte Harbor: Frank at Fishin' FranksPort Charlotte: 625-3888Cobia is the big visitor at this point. We’re

seeing them along beaches 3- to 5-miles out. Itseems like they are going reef to reef, fromPower Pole to Mary’s to Trembly to Novak...which means they will swing through the passand some will wind up in the middle of theHarbor where we have a lot of greenies andthreads. Watch for big stingrays to find thecobia. We should see good cobia in the middle ofthe Harbor soon and in two weeks or sooner I’dlook for them on the sand bars along the side. Pompano is still pretty steady along the

Gulf passes from down around Punta Rasa toVenice on the north. If they are not at one passthey are at one of the other ones. The places I’veheard of Pompano in the Harbor are all aroundthe bottom end; around Burnt Store, Bokeeliaand at Bull Bay.

The water temps are coming up, we havebaitfish moving back into the Harbor right nowand the snook are starting to look at them. It’sabout 50-50 whether they are they going to hita shrimp or a whitebait, Snook fishing is greatalong the East (side) Keys. There are also stillsnook in the PGI and Port Charlotte canals. Up river the fish are in the deeper holes. I’d

work the bends in the river. I’ve been trolling a

shad wrap that dives 6-8feet (the SSR-7 is betterthan the 8 because theygo deeper than they arerated and if you usebraided line you getanother 4 feet out ofthem due to the lowerresistance of the line inthe water). You have towatch the depth finderclose, idle over, tossyour bait and when thebottom comes up to 6feet bring your lureback. At the I-75 bridgethe snook are laying around the bumpers downlow. Fish a paddle-tail shad on a 3/8 or 1/2 ozjig head to get it down. Snook may be the sameway at the 41 Bridge, but I don’t know anybodyfishing the bottom there.More and more it will be mostly whitebait

for snook. A big shrimp after dark is the bomb,but in the day snook need the oil from the bait-fish for spawning so they key in on the oilybaitfish.If you are looking for redfish I’d head down

towards Cape Haze: Muddy Bay and the exten-sions, or Big Jake Lake, they are all holding nicefish. You can work the trough along the side.The first 1/2 mile of the West Wall has some

nice fish in it too. On the east side, in the

keys north of PirateHarbor, there are separateschools of reds heading to Two Pine and thencoming back up. From Cormorant to BurntStore the reds are working the flat pretty goodbut you have to be there at the same time.Right now the reds are hitting shrimp one dayand whitebait the next, kinda like the snook.On the Peace or Myakka and from El-Jo

through Hog Island there are lots of undersizeto moderate keeper reds. The Peace and theMyakka have a big shrimp migration goingon.

Fishing Report continued on facing page


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M a r c h M a r c h F i s h i n g F o r e c a s t F i s h i n g F o r e c a s t

Still plenty of jacks in the PGI canals where the wateris moving well.

This mullet took a shrimp on a jig head. Youdonʼt see that every day! Go figure!!The giant sailcat took whatever it could get.

Photos Capt. Billy Barton

Captainʼs Corner Got a Story? send us your pictures: [email protected]

continued from facing page

With lights at night, atLittle Gasparilla Pass, guysare doing pretty good dippingon the shrimp. The onlyproblem is you need a strongoutgoing tide. You want toget there at the high so youcan work the whole fallingtide and that’s been happen-ing pretty late at night.

There have beenscattered reports oftarpon, but I’mthinking they aremostly residentfish. When themigrators come in

there are usually are reports first from the south,down at Everglades City, Naples etc, but I’monly hearing reports from here and there. I thinkif we have any travelling fish yet it would bepretty small numbers. I think it will be earlythis year, like maybe the end of March. Rightnow Spring Lake and the Peace River have somesmaller tarpon, but it’s good to leave those littleones alone because I believe the tarpon that growup here come back here later to spawn. Freshwater bass is getting more and more

popular. The area of South Gulf Cove is the spotto throw your favorite crank bait or a Rapala

Maverick. Bass are starting to maketheir beds so now we switch to creaturebaits. Creature baits are the ticket forbass on Cocoplum, Shell Creek,Prairie Creek and in most of the pondsright now. Shel l cracker andbluegi l l are doing pretty good too.

Lemon Bay:Jim at Fishermens Edge,Englewood: 697-7595Some paku in Rotonda and some

bass . The guys were saying freshwaterwas doing pretty well.In saltwater I’ve had a lot of reports of

sheepshead on the Tom Adams pier and theinshore and near shore reefs like Mary, TremblyHelen and Novak. They all have sheepshead. The Pompano bite has really started to hap-

pen. On the Tom Adams Bridge one guy said itwas the most fish he has seen all winter. Theywere catching them at Placida on fiddler crabsand sand fleas. There is also a lot of whitingaround at the moment. The flounder bite has been really good.

You’ve got to weed through the smaller ones andyou got to fish a little slower.Spanish are in Boca Grande and near shore.

A lot of baitfish are showing up. Guys anchoredon the reef-stuff said the mackerel were bustingeverywhere. Snook are on the beach, 22- to 24-inch fish.

Outside of Boca Grande, guys are catching snookstanding on the shore, throwing lead-headed jigwith a minnow tail – something clear withsparkles. Reds, snook and trout are all mixed in, in

Gasparilla SAound. I’ve seen nice picks of over-the-slot redfish. Whidden is where I am gettingthe most back country reports from right now.Some tarpon are around , it’s ready to let

loose in Boca Grande, I had guys seeing themaround and hooking and jumping a few. If itstays in the 80s they will be here quick.I had some cobia stories offshore on the

Bayronto and on some of the way out wrecks, but not any reports of them in shallow water.There is a big variety of stuff being caught;black drum in Englewood on the beach and anumber of big sharks are now around. Someguys are running shark trips already.

The BIG-4 The BIG-4 Fish to expect in Fish to expect in MarchMarch

SPANISH MACKEREL In thepasses and in the Harbor

COBIA Moving around thenear shore reefs

CREVALLE JACKS are inthe PGI and Port C. Canals

POMPANO in the passesand south in the Harbor


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Fishing Fishingright now:right now:

Very Good!Very Good!

Gary Corbett in Lemon Bay with a significant sea trout

This camefrom the IGFAalong withtheir monthlyupdate: Thismonth’s HotCatches areattached, alongwith photos ofEric Haataja’s brown trout, caught in MilwaukeeHarbour, Wisconsin and Martin Larsson’s giant trevally,caught off the coast of Tanzania.

John K Gonsalves with a big Charlotte Harborredfish.

water life march 2012

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