3/7/2010
I got the chance to get the new Emotion Grand Slam on the water today. I was very impressed with the new kayak. It was very stable, tracked perfectly and was much faster than the kayaks I had previously been using. I would suggest this kayak to anyone looking for a serious fishing kayak.
Today I fished the IFA Kayak Fishing Tour held in Punta Gorda. My plan for Redfish didn’t work out for me at all, but I did manage to find the Trout bite in Sarasota Bay. I caught & released roughly 40-50 nice Trout on the MirrOlure MirrOdine (green back). Most of the Trout were between 17 and 19 inches with the largest being 22 ½. I also learned a good lesson today. Make sure you don’t forget to put your tournament token in the pictures so they will count when you submit your photos. It was a great turnout & I’m looking forward to the next one in Sarasota.
Crystal River 2/26
Kelli and I went to Crysal River to the Three Sisters Springs to swim with the manatees.This is a great one day trip and low cost if you own your own kayak and don't have to rent.
The springs are amazingly clear and with the water at a constant 72 degrees it was warm compared to the 50 degree air,but that didn't stop us from jumping in as soon as the manatees came up to us.
As far as I know they are around through the winter and into the end of march and I highly reccomend this to anyone and plan on another trip in the next couple weeks with some familly and friends.
1/23
Had a couple hrs to kill this morning so Rick and I decided to do a quick trip to a well known Sarasota Bay area. We launched at sunrise in the morning fog and stated hitting the potholes for some Trout. We ended up with 4 on fly and 7 on Spin tackle.We also hit up some near by docks where we found some rat Reds. The wind got a little crazy so we called it a day @ 10 AM. Not a bad morning for a 3 hr trip.
12/23 Night Ops
Decided last minute to go out and do some night fishing on the 23rd with Doug F. . We left the house at dark and launched about 20 min later at the Siesta Bridge.The weather was great ,not to windy and not to cold. We fished for a couple of hrs picking up some smaller Snook,Trout and some Lady's then the wind picked up and the temp dropped. Hypothermia was starting to kick in so we called it a night.
11/23/09
My little man (Jacob) asked to go fishing. So Jacob and I launched the kayak in the pond behind the house.It wasn't long before the first hookup. Jacob suprised me by grabbing the net and landing the fish.He thought that was the greatest thing ever. We ended up catching around 10 large Mouth Bass,and missing alot more. They were all very small. I know we will get the big one some day. I have been using my saltwater tackle and suprisingly those little Bass love the smaller Skitter Walk and the Exude Dart.Hopefully I can post a pic of some monsters in the future. If Jacob has it his way we would just catch the little ones. For some reason he likes the little fish.
Steve
Nov. 21, 2009
Attended a MCFF outing today at Simmons Park. Fished the area for a little while and then decided to make a move. We relocated to CRB where we caught and released many Trout fishing the inside bar on the incoming tide. This was my first experience fishing an MCFF outing. It was great meeting some new people. For those of you interested in joining a Fly fishing club, this is the one.Looking forward to the next outing. http://mangrovecoastflyfishers.com/
Steve
Nov. 13 2009
I went to simmons park with Evan (snookn8er) in the kayaks and found the west wind was out of control, Being our first time there we just decide to scout it out and didnt really make a lot of casts but still had a good time checkn out the area. When I got home my cousin called wanting to do a little snook light fishn so we headed over to grandmas house where i keep my boat and the snook were thick on her new underwater light. We made casts from land and i hooked up right away on my 6wt that i usaully use for bass and blue gill and landed a nice 29 incher,After that they split so we loaded up the boat and hit the lights. The fish were really feeding and the hook ups were non stop but after being broken off many times and our flys chewed up we were running low on flies so we decided to head back.On our way back to the dock we hit one more light where we got a double to finish off the night.total- 16 snook to 29"average being 24" a trout and a few ladyfish.
Brent
10/21/09
Justin Hamblet and I went out last minute on Wed the 21st at around noon and had a blast with the Bonito. We caught about 10 total and they were everywhere and really liked white clousers.The unfortunate part was when Justin put a little too much heat on one and broke his nine weight "ooops" besides that it was a good couple of hours.
Brent
October 11, 2009
Got a chance to get out and with Brent & Justin today and try some new waters. The three of us headed up to Cockroach Bay. We found some good trout action on the flats using Gurglers & Clousers. After we had enough of the Trout we headed off to find some new areas. We found some great looking backwater locations. The fishing wasn’t very productive; probably do to the water temperature being so hot. I think we will return to fish those backwater locations when the water temperature gets a little cooler. Just another great day on the water.
Steve
Sept 21,2009
Dan and Ryan from New Hampshire fished with Justin an Brent on Monday. They had plenty luck wtih the Trout and a few snook, and some how managed to lose a couple Redfish at there feet. They both almost had their slam.Maybe next time.
Justin
August 29, 2009
I had a chance to fish with a couple of good guys from Texas today. John and Jim wanted to target some Redfish. The morning didn’t start off well for us, about 30 minutes into our paddle the sky unleashed on us. They were some troopers though, as we sat in some of the heaviest rain I have seen in a long time. When the sky cleared the bite turned on. They had some luck with a couple nice Reds and a few Trout. As the day heated up and the tide ran out the fishing slowed down. They had a great time on the water.
Steve
August 8, 2009
Our goal was to catch some beach Snook on fly. We first started at the Point Of Rocks at the southern tip of Siesta Key. With the weather not cooperating and the swimmers/ snorkelers present, we had to make a move. We headed north up the beach where we found many Snook schooled up in the surf. The Snook really didn’t cooperate that well for us. We caught a few along with some Jack and Pompano. The average size of the Snook we were sight fishing were around 20”, but there were plenty of them . I think live bait is definitely the answer to catching multiple fish. Target these fish early in the morning or before the sun goes down. Get out there and give them a shot.
Steveo
