Night fishing around lighted docks was the key to April success

Happy Susan Bostwick of California shows off her first snook. She caught it on a fly rod.

April was a good month, but a perplexing one.

Typically, April is a wonderful time to hit Sarasota Bay and catch a bunch of spotted seatrout. We caught some decent-sized trout during the month, but not a lot of them.

I'm still convinced the bay is still feeling the effects of  last fall's red tide. I could be wrong, but that's my hunch.

Snook often are plentiful in the dock lights.

We did slip out one day and catch some really nice fish. Starting a couple of hours before daylight, we caught a couple of snook and jack crevalle around dock lights in the Longboat Key rim canal. 

After the sun came up, we paddled out into the bay and found cooperative trout in several spots. But when we hit the "outer elbow" off Whale Key, we started getting trout from 2 1/2 to 4 pounds. Must have caught 15 before they quit hitting.

We caught all of the trout on MirrOlure MirrOdines, a suspending plug that is seemingly magical on a variety of species. Key to success with the MirrOdine is working it correctly.

I like to hold the rod horizontal to the water to my left. I twitch the lure a couple of times, then reel up the slack. I repeat this retrieve until I'm ready to make another cast. Most often, fish will hit as the lure is suspending.

Lee Soares of California battles a leaping seatrout.

It's important to work the lure slowly and allow it to perform its magic.

In addition to trout, I've also caught ladyfish, jack crevalle, snook, mangrove snapper, bluefish, Spanish mackerel and redfish on the MirrOdine. I don't think there's a fish out there that won't hit it!

Vinny Caruso of Bradenton and Capt. Bob Zola of Fort Lauderdale joined me to explore the waters off Vamo in Little Sarasota Bay. We caught 15 trout to 24 inches, several ladyfish, three snook and a flounder. We caught the fish on MirrOdines and MirrOlure Lil Johns on light jigs.

Howard Beemer of Fort Myers and his son in law, James Wies of Illinois fished Little Sarasota Bay and caught 10 trout to 23 inches, ladyfish, snook and flounder on MirrOdines and Lil Johns.

Mike Skalla holds a decent black drum.

Mark Skalla and Mike Skalla hit the water an hour before daylight and had a fair day. Mark caught a couple of nice snook on jigs while fishing dock lights around Longboat Key. They also caught three black drum to 10 pounds, two jack crevalle, mangrove snapper, spotted seatrout and flounder.

Vince O'Boyle of Venice caught flounder, redfish, mangrove snapper and a black drum on Lil Johns and light jigs in the rim canal at Longboat Key.

Ted Tolliver of Ohio had a fair day. He managed a dozen trout to 17 inches, Spanish mackerel, ladyfish and bluefish. We fished the Longboat Key rim canal and deep grass in Sarasota Bay off Whale Key. Most of the fish were taken on Lil Johns and MirrOdines.

Lee Soares and Susan Bostwick of Petaluma , Calif., fly fished on a tough day, but their persistence paid off. Each caught his/her first snook. Lee's 28-incher was the day's best. They fished lighted docks in Bowles Creek.

Mark Skalla's first snook.

After daylight, we moved out to deep grass patches in Sarasota Bay. They caught spotted seatrout to 23 inches.

The significance of their outing was that a day prior, 21 anglers fished the Fly Division of the Sarasota CCA's Photo All-Release tournament. Those 21 angler caught a total of four trout and one redfish.

Lee's best snook and trout would have made him grand champion of the Fly Division in that tournament.

Pat and Penny Martin of New York joined me for a four-hour outing. We launched at Buttonwood Harbor and fished the rim canal at Longboat Key. The morning was very slow. We caught flounder, jack crevalle, ladyfish and missed a couple of snook.  We estimated one of the snook at 20 pounds or more.

Everette Howell of Longboat Key hooked a pair of tarpon and a snook while fly fishing around lighted docks. After daylight, he switched to a MirrOlure Lil John on a light jig and landed a 25-inch snook.  We caught one other snook and a jack crevalle.

Greg Tango of New Jersey and Mike Tango of California caught four snook to 27 inches, mangrove snapper, jack crevalle, flounder, silver trout and 20 spotted seatrout to 21 inches fishing around dock and seawall at Stephens Point and deep grass patches in Sarasota Bay. They used MirrOlure Lil Johns on light jigs, MirrOdines and D.O.A. Deadly Combinations.

We fished Lake Manatee on a couple of occasions and did fair. Launching at the Verna-Bethany Bridge at the east end of the lake, we caught largemouth bass to 3 pounds and hand-sized bluegill on popping bugs. We moved up the river and caught bluegill, bass and stumpknocker on nymphs.

We launched at Lake Manatee Fish Camp on another occasion and caught six bass to 3 pounds on poppers. We also caught bass, bluegill and channel catfish on nymphs.

I drove down to Casey Key and spent a morning looking for snook in the surf. It's still a little early, but the snook population in the surf will increase daily. I saw about 10 snook, but didn't catch any.

MAY FORECAST: Snook and tarpon are the best bets on fly rod around lighted docks along the east and west sides of Sarasota Bay. Spotted seatrout, ladyfish, jack crevalle and a few bluefish should cooperate over deep grass on both sides of the bay. Snook numbers should increase in the surf for those who like to sight-fishing with fly rod or spin tackle. In fresh water, I anticipate good action on bluegill, largemouth bass and channel catfish.

May is a great time to fish Sarasota Bay and surrounding waters. In addition, I look for decent action on peacock bass, Mayan cichlid, bluegill and shellcracker in south Florida waters.

I anticipate vastly improved sight-fishing for snook in the surf.

Fishing from a kayak is one of the world's great activities. I've been doing it since 1986.

If you'd like to fish, please give me a call!

Steve Gibson

Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing

www.kayakfishingsarasota.com

941-284-3406

March resulted in great action for spotted seatrout

Drei Stroman of Fort Myers battles a feisty Palma Sola Bay pompano on fly rod.

How good has the fishing for spotted seatrout been?

Well, I set my goal for the year at 500 seatrout on fly. I've now totaled more than 500 trout (514 to be exact).  Guess I'll have to adjust that goal!

This fly-rod pompano put a big smile on Stroman's face.

But that illustrates just how good the seatrout fishing has been. We've done well on virtually every trip.

Palma Sola Bay has been the hot spot -- as it usually is this time of year. Fish drop into channels and sand holes during colder weather where they're easy targets for fly anglers and spin fishers alike.

During March, we averaged 42 trout per trip. And that included a 10-trout day in Sarasota Bay. On two occasions this year, I caught and released more than 100 trout in a day.

These fish have run the gamut of sizes. We caught plenty of them less than the minimum size limit (15 inches), but also have caught them up to 23 inches. Biggest trout of the month was a 25-incher that I caught in Little Sarasota Bay off Vamo. I found a bunch of trout over deep grass in that area.

John Weimer of Sarasota joined me for an outing on Palma Sola Bay and had a good time. We combined to catch and release 50 trout to 21 inches on Super Hair Clousers and Popovics Jiggy flies. In addition, we caught loads of ladyfish and a couple of sugar trout.

Jay Karol of New York struggles to subdue a pompano.

Drei Stroman and Katrina Hillard of Fort Myers joined me on Palma Sola Bay and had a good outing. We landed more than 50 trout, plus ladyfish, five sugar trout and a feisty pompano.

On a solo trip to Palma Sola, I caught 27 trout on Clousers and Jiggies, plus two sugar trout.

I fished Sarasota Bay for the first time since Nov. 6 and had a slow outing. I caught six trout and a few ladyfish out in the bay. I added another dozen trout from the basin near the launch. Largest fish was 16 inches.

We also did quite a bit of freshwater fishing at Lake Manatee during the month. Most trips were very good, but a couple were slow.

First outing resulted in 20 hand-sized copperheaded bluegill, six speckled perch and a half-dozen largemouth bass on No. 12 nymphs under a strike indicator.

The author with his largest tilapia on fly.

Denton Kent of Sarasota and I combined to land 15 bluegill, one bass and three specks on popers and nymphs. We fished hard on this outing, but found the going a little slow.

The next day saw improved action when John Weimer accompanied me. We caught 25 big bluegill, a bass, seven speckled perch and a 4-pound tilapia. It was the largest tilapia I've ever caught on fly rod. Most of the fish came on nymphs under a strike indicator.

On a solo outing a few days late, I caught 10 bluegill, seven speckled perch and four bass on nymphs. The specks were spawning in shallow water. if you caught one, you could expect more from that area.

John Kis and Jay Karol of New York had a good day in Palma Sola Bay. They totaled 50 trout to 19 inches, loads of ladyfish, a pompano, sugar trout, three Spanish mackerel to 5 pounds and a flounder. 

Most of the fish were caught on VuDu Shrimp. I also caught fish on a MirrOlure MirrOdine mini.

Majestic visitor on a Palma Sola Bay outing.

Ken Babineau, president of the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers, joined me for a trip to Lake Manatee. Despite low wind and overcast, we struggled to land only five bluegill and one bass. it was the slowed day I've experienced on Lake Manatee in years.

I fished Little Sarasota Bay around Vamo and caught 19 trout to 5 pounds, a 25-inch snook, flounder, jack crevalle and loads of big ladyfish on MirreOlure Lil Johns, topwater plugs and MirrOlure Mini MirrOdines.

The month was on the windy side. I'm hoping the wind calms down just a little for April!

APRIL FORECAST: I anticipate continue strong spotted seatrout action over deep grass. Night snook should come on strong around lighted docks. There also could be some decent tarpon action around docks, too!  Redfish are anyone's guess (as always). In fresh water, I look for bluegill, speckled perch, largemouth bass and channel catfish in Lake Manatee and the Manatee River.

Bookings are coming in for April, so available days are getting fewer. Give me a call (941-284-3406) or email me (steve@kayakfishingsarasota) to make sure you get the day(s) you want.

Steve Gibson

Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing

www.kayakfishingsarasota.com

941-284-3406

February produced the best trout action in years

Eric Porter of Colorado battles a Palma Sola Bay seatrout on fly rod.

It's  easy to sum up February's action here at Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing:

Trout.

No doubt February was the month of trout. In fact, the month proved to be the finest month of spotted seatrout action we've experienced in quite a while.

John Kis of New York brings another seatrout to the kayak.

The reason is fairly simple. Cooling water temperatures pushed the trout into deeper water which congregated them and made them easy to find -- and catch.

All of the success took place in Palma Sola Bay at a spot that I found several years ago during cold weather. It's a spot that you wouldn't normally associate with trout. In fact, in years past I might have paddled right by the location without giving it much of a thought.

However,  when I first started fishing there, I made a few casts and was surprised by some decent trout. It didn't take long for the proverbial light bulb to go on in my head. In the years since, my clients and I have caught several thousand trout there.

Repeat client John Kis of New York joined me on a beautiful day where the fishing matched the weather. We managed 40 trout to 22 inches and 10 flounder on VuDu Shrimp. Fish of the day was a 3-pound sheepshead that John caught. Sheepshead are common catches for those using artificial lures. They're most often caught on live bait.

I fished the area alone on a couple of occasions and did well on fly rod. Using Super Hair Clousers (chartreuse and white, olive and white) and Popovics' Jiggy, I caught a load of trout to 23 inches.

Veteran fly fisher John Garcia of California and I combined for 35 trout and a flounder on Clousers and Jiggys. The largest trout went 22 inches.

Another trip produced 85 trout to 21 inches and a load of ladyfish. Despite strong wind, another outing yielded 51 trout to 22 inches and a bunch of ladyfish.

Vinny Caruso and his grandson, Robbie Holland (both of Bradenton) had a great outing, combing for 140 trout to 22 inches, lots of ladyfish and a fine pompano. Robbie caught the pompano on a VuDu Shrimp. They also used MirrOlure Lil Johns on light jigs.

Repeat clients Eric Porter of Colorado and Jeff Porter of Oklahoma picked one of the windiest days of the year. We had to shorten the outing to 4 hours, but still landed 29 trout and a bunch of ladyfish on Clousers and Jiggys. The largest trout went 19 inches.

When fishing deep water, the trout bite has been extremely light. In fact, those waiting for an aggressive strike might not hook up often. I advise clients to "set" the hook if they sense anything different. It could feel like a slight drag on the line. The fly line might simply straighten out.

The hits have been very subtle and light when using fly rods.

For this action, we're using sinktip lines and 6-foot leaders. I have used a floating line, but because of the depth of water, I've lengthened my leader to 12 feet to get to the desired depth.

We've also been finding lots of trout and ladyfish in sand holes out on the flats of Palma Sola Bay. Because we usually encounter strong wind, we've been anchoring up  on grass patches in the holes and doing well. We remain anchored as long as we're catching fish. When the action slows, we move to another grass patch.

This strong trout action should continue through March.

MARCH FORECAST:  We expect excellent action on spotted seatrout throughout the upcoming month. The fish should stack up in channels and sand holes. They will be available for those fly fishing or using spinning rods. Redfish activity could crank up on the flats -- if the weather cooperates. We look for decent snook action around dock lights. Over deep grass, we look for spotted seatrout, ladyfish, jack crevalle, bluefish , Spanish mackerel and maybe a few pompano. In fresh water , Lake Manatee and the Manatee River should yield bluegill, speckled perch, channel catfish and largemouth bass.

I did a presentation on Freshwater Fly Fishing Opportunities in Florida at the February meeting of the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers. If you live in the area or are on an extended visit, you might want to check out this dedicated group of fly anglers. They meet on the fourth Wednesday of every month at the Sarasota  Garden Club, 1131 Boulevard of the Arts, Sarasota. Check out the MCFF website at www.mcff.club. 

March is typically a good month for fishing. Please book your trips early.

Steve Gibson

Southern Drawl Kayak Fishing

www.kayakfishingsarasota.com

941-284-3406

The wind blew, but the fly-fishing bite was stronger

The wind didn't prevent large spotted seatrout from taking a fly.

It was windy today.

Real windy.

Spotted seatrout are among salt water's prettiest fish.

So windy I was the only moron out fishing.

Most had sense enough to stay out of the wind.

To make things even worse, I was fly fishing. I took two fly rods out with me. I left the spinning gear at home.

Didn't make much sense since the wind was blowing out of the southeast at 22 miles per  hour, with gusts to 30.

But I launched my NuCanoe Pursuit and paddled almost directly into a stiff headwind. It took me a little longer than usual to reach my destination. Once there, I lowered the anchor, pulled it back to the stern and let the wind turn my kayak to the preferred direction.

First stop resulted in only one small ladyfish.

The Clouser Deep Minnow accounted for all fish.

I contemplated just calling it day, but decided to try one last spot before heading in. I paddled 100 yards south and anchored.

This time, I found spotted seatrout. I caught six in short order, and all were either in the slot (15 to 20 inches) or over. Largest trout of the outing was a plump 23-incher.

Not bad in such windy conditions.

I also added a small sugar trout before giving in to the conditions.

When it's windy, I find anchoring is the only way to go. You simply cannot present a fly and work it properly when you're on a wind-blown drift.

With my anchor trolley system, I can always face the desired direction simply by positioning my anchor properly.

It was tough working the fly even when anchored. The current was strong, and I was having to "mend" the line uptide in order to create a decent drift. That allowed me to work the fly slowly.

For this outing, I was using a 7-weight TFO TICRX fly rod with a sinktip line. Fly of choice was a chartreuse-and-white Clouser Deep Minnow, perhaps the best fly ever created for saltwater trout.

I landed six trout, but I'll bet I missed another half dozen. Plus, I had trout get off halfway back to the kayak.

Considering the conditions, I was quite pleased.

Quality ruled out over quantity on a day that simply was two windy except for mad dogs and me.

Fly fishing is simple and effective when you're in a kayak

Mick Coulas stands and casts from a NuCanoe Frontier.

Fly fishing from a kayak can be a frustrating and somewhat difficult endeavor. But it doesn't need to be.

In fact, once your understand the nuances, it's really quite simple.

I fish out of a NuCanoe Pursuit (http://www.nucanoe.com/pursuit-fishing-kayak/), a boat that I strongly feel is the best kayak for fly fishing available. It's very stable, so standing a casting is easy. It's cockpit is spacious and uncluttered, so line management is a breeze.

Fly rod storage is simple in the Pursuit.

I feel that pedal kayaks should be left to spin fishers who are convinced they need to cover large amounts of water. They're not great for fly fishing. The pedals are not only great for propelling the kayak, but even better at grabbing fly line.

I like to keep things as simple and uncluttered as possible.

With the Pursuit, I can carry up to three extra fly rods and stow them out of the way in the internal rod tubes. These rod tubes really do the job.

When it comes to fly fishing from a kayak, casting distance is the key. The longer you can cast, the more water you can cover and the greater your chances are of hooking fish.

Realize, however, that one of the main benefits of fishing from a kayak is that you don't have to be as far away from your target as you would be in a powerboat. Rather than having to make 80-foot casts, you can more to within 40 or 50 feet of your target.

Those distances, however, can be a chore for many anglers. And it gets a tad tougher when you're sitting in a kayak.

The author gets ready to land a snook.

There are ways to increase your casting distance.

The best way is to stand up. If you're fishing from a NuCanoe Pursuit or Frontier, that's no problem. Both kayaks are perhaps the most stable fishing vessels out there. The Pursuit is 35 inches wide; the Frontier is 41. You can stand with great confidence.

If you must sit, there are ways to increase your distance. First, take only the amount of line off the reel that you need to cast. If you're going to cast 50 feet, there's not need to take 60 feet of line off the reel.

Make sure your backcast is high. You don't need your fly line hitting the water on the backcast.

To increase distance, I like to do a "water haul" on my forward cast. I allow the fly to "tick" the water, then pick it up immediately, allow the line to unroll fully on a backcast, then shoot it forward.

Fly fishing from a kayak is simple and effective.

Works like a charm.

Gaining distance will be no problem for those who can double haul, a technique that allows you to shoot line on both the forward and back casts, and increase line speed.

When fly fishing, I prefer to anchor my kayak in many situations. I have and anchor trolley on all of my kayaks, so I can allows have the wind at my back or face the direction I need.

One of the biggest mistakes many folks make is keeping the tip of their fly rod too high off the water. This puts unneeded slack into the line. If your rod tip is 18 inches off the water's surface, the fish then has to pull 18 inches before you'll even know you have a hit.

Put that rod tip IN the water or on the water's surface. The rod should also be pointed directly down the fly line.

I have watched many clients reel up slack line to "get the fish on the reel" too often. In most cases, that's not only unnecessary, but also can result in slack line and a lost fish.

Let the fish tell you whether it needs to "be on the reel." If the fish is large enough and strong enough, it will take line and you'll be on the reel.

Most fish can be "hand-stripped"  in.

For most fish, the reel 's only purpose is to hold the line at the end of the trip!

I like to carry two or three rods so that I can "work" the water column. I'll take one rod with a full floating line, one with a sinktip line and another with a sinking line. That way, I can work the water column from top to bottom.

When fly fishing, you can travel fair light. In addition to your rods, all you'll need is a fly box with all the flies you'll need,  extra leaders and tippet material. You'll also want to carry pliers, nippers and a landing tool or net.

When you're fly fishing, you can catch most any fish that swims in salt or fresh water.

And when you're in the right kayak, your odds of success simply skyrocket!

Fishing was good when we could get out in January

Everette Howell of Longboat battles one of many large spotted seatrout he caught on his outing.

If it wasn't for the dad-gummed wind, we could have fished more. Oh, well, that's January in Florida.

When we were able to get out, we did pretty good. We fished from Bradenton to Fort Myers, testing a variety of conditions with a variety of techniques.

Everette Howell shows off one of his trout.

Vinny Caruso of Bradenton joined me for a day of fly fishing on the Manatee River. We launched at Ray's Canoe Hideaway off Manatee River Road and paddled upstream to a small lagoon that usually holds fish. Action was slow on this outing, but we managed several hand-sized bluegill and three channel catfish on nymphs under strike indicators.

A few days later, we hit the Myakka River out of Snook Haven. We did fairly well. We caught and released 12 snook to 25 inches and six largemouth bass to three pounds.  We caught our fish on Clouser Deep Minnows, baitfish imitation flies and MirrOlure Lil Johns on light jigs.

Next time out on the river, action wasn't quite as good. We caught two snook, a redfish, two bass and a spotted gar on flies and MirrOlure Lil Johns. I did lose what I am fairly sure was a large snook on a Clouser.

Fly-fishing newcomer Vinny Caruso had no problem with shad.

Ken Babineau, president of the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers in Sarasota, and Mick Coulas of Venice joined me for what turned out to be a slow day on the Myakka River. We fished hard, but caught only two small snook and a decent bass on Clouser Deep Minnows.

Vinny Caruso of Bradenton and I drove over to the Canaveral Marshes Conservation Area near Titusville to hook up with anglers from the Orlando Kayak Fishing Community. We didn't fish from kayaks, but hiked 1.7 miles to the St. Johns River to fly fish for shad.  The annual shad run takes place during January and February.

We fished hard and did fairly well. Vinny and I combined to catch 12 shad, 27 redbreast sunfish, seven  bluegill and a speckled perch.  The feisty American shad were as large as 19 inches.

We plan to drive over to the St. Johns to try our luck on shad at least once more.

Ken Babineau with a Myakka bass.

Our top flies were small baitfish imitations with bead-chain eyes and small silver spoon flies.

The best technique was to cast slightly upstream and allow the fly to swing downriver. Most hits took place as the line straightened out at about a 45-degree angle.

If you've never fished for shad, you owe it to yourself to do so at least once.

I drove down to Fort Myers to conduct a fly-fishing demonstration from a NuCanoe Frontier during the Florida Sportsman Show at the Lee County Fairgrounds. I talked with interested anglers and actuallly showed how to stand and fly cast.

During my demonstration, I caught and released six channel catfish and six large bluegill.

What a day!

Everette Howell, a retired neuro surgeon who has a home on Longboat, joined me for an instructional outing. Howell is an accomplished angler who wants to learn how to catch fish locally. We usually fish off Longboat Key, but switched it up because of the affects of red tide. There is no red tide in the area, but an outbreak last November  has slowed things way down in the Buttonwood Harbor area.

We drove to Perico Bayou in west Bradenton and launched. We fished a connector ditch between Palma Sola Bay and Perico Bayou that usually is filled with spotted seatrout this time of year.

It didn't let us down.

We conservatively caught and released 70 seatrout to 23 inches, eight flounder, eight ladyfish and a jack crevalle -- all in four hours.

"Best day of trout fishing I've ever had," Howell said.

All fish were caught on VuDu Shrimp.

FEBRUARY FORECAST:  I'm hoping the wind cooperates. I have quite a few trips booked and I'm looking forward to good fishing. Spotted seatrout should be the best bet around the deep grass areas. Pompano should show up, but that largely depends on the red tide. Redfish should be fair on the flats of Little Sarasota Bay.  I anticipate fair snook action in the Myakka River. In fresh water, bluegill, shellcracker, speckled perch, bass and channel catfish are the best bets in Lake Manatee. The Manatee River should produce decent catches of bluegill and channel catfish.

If you're contemplating a kayak fishing trip, please book early. It's that time of year!

Steve Gibson

Southern Drawl  Kayak Fishing

www.kayakfishingsarasota.com

941-284-3406

Year's first river trip yields decent action and lots of optimism

Author Steve Gibson battles a Myakka River snook on fly. (Photo by Vinny Caruso)

I have a hunch fishing on the Myakka River will be better this year than the past two years.

I really can't get much worse.

Vinny Caruso nears the battle's end.

In years past, I usually began fishing the Myakka in mid December. I'd often fish the stream exclusively until the middle of February.

There were some glory days.

Big snook were common. We've taken snook up to 44 inches during winter on the Myakka. We've had trips where a 28-inch snook would be the smallest. On one outing three years ago, Dave Robinson and I totaled 12 snook, ranging from 35 to 42 inches. Dave caught the big girl. I had a 39 1/2-inch beauty.

We also caught two or three small tarpon on that trip.

There were days where we caught a Myakka River Slam: snook, redfish, tarpon and gar. Only a bass kept us from the prestigious Myakka Super Slam. We've come within one fish of the Super Slam on at least three occasions.

Typcal snook from three seasons ago.

The last two years have been difficult. Last year, my best day was nine small snook. The largest snook maybe went 23 inches.

I'm hoping this year will be different.

Vinny Caruso and I headed to the river last week and did decently. We didn't catch any large snook, but we did combine to land 12. In addition, we landed  decent largemouth bass.

Vinny caught all of his fish on a MirrOlure Lil John and light jig. I used Clouser Deep Minnows and baitfish imitations on my 8-weight fly rod.

I managed to land eight snook and three bass.

It was a fly-fishing epiphany for me. Typically, I use spinning tackle on the river. I've guided many fly anglers, but none have had much success. Even during the great years. fly anglers struggled to produce.

I don't know if it was them or what? The fly rod out produced spinning tackle on the latest outing.

Myakka River tarpon.

I'm hoping it's a fly-rod year.

One thing I did was add the Rexfly Casting System to my 8-weight TFO  BVK outfit. With the Rexfly System, your fly reel is attached to a chest mount and not on your rod. You're actually casting the line and fly with the rod only. Makes a lot of sense and lightens the rig up noticeably. Casting all day is no big deal. And if you hook a large fish that takes line, you can attached the rod to the reel in less than a second.

The Rexfly Casting System sells for $85 plus shipping. You can check it out and watch video at www.rexfly.com.

Yes, the Myakka has some hefty alligators.

I did notice that all of the snook we landed were dark. That means they're resident fish. Fresh fish are light and silvery. It's cold water that pushes snook from the bays and estuaries up the river in search of warmer water. We're due for some cold weather this week which should drop the water temperature and jump start the river migration.

Fishing the river is not easy. It's not for those who simply want to go through the motions. It's a game for veteran, savvy anglers who actually enjoy working for their fish. You have to be as focused on your 500th cast of the days as you are on the first.

Many anglers think they're up for the task, but I can tell after an hour whether they're into it or not. 

Most aren't.

The rewards, however, are great. There's a decent chance you'll be rewarded with the largest snook of your life.

Just remember, you're always within one cast of a 30-pound snook.

That's a fact.

The river is picturesque. It meanders through Sarasota County and empties into Charlotte Harbor at El Jobean. Its banks are line with cabbage palms, live oaks, pine trees and palmettos. Typically, anglers will float the river, targeting the banks and any fallen trees or other structure.

Certainly, that strategy will produce. But the big fish like to hang out in the deeper water of the outside bends. So, that's where we focus most of our attention.

When spin fishing, I like to use a MirrOlure Lil John on a 1/8-ounce Norton Jig. I allow the rig to sink to the bottom and jig it slowly. Most of the time, snook and other fish will hit it on the fall. So, most hits are subtle; nothing more than a slight tap or twitch of the line. It doesn't hurt if you're a line watcher.

We lose a few lures every trip. The bottom is line with rocks and trees.

For river fishing, we use medium spinning rod, 3000 Shimano Stradic reel, 15-pound Power Pro line and 20- or 25-pound fluorocarbon leader.

When fly fishing, we like an 8-weight rod, floating or sinktip line, 20-pound leader with 25-pound fluorocarbon shock.

The Myakka is a tidal river. With that in mind, we prefer to fish the outgoing tide. We have found that you can catch fish on an incoming tide, too. But outgoing seems to be the best.

We don't like chamber of commerce days: blue skies and bright sun. We would rather fish on a foggy, overcast morning. That's perfect snook weather.

While it's snook that we target, we also catch redfish, largemouth bass, gar, tarpon and ladyfish. We have also caught spotted seatrout, black drum and channel catfish.

You just never know what's going to hit your lure.

I offer six-hour and full-day charters on the river. We use NuCanoe Frontier kayaks (www.nucanoe.com) which are great for fishing, easy to paddle and maybe the most comfortable on the market.

On a typical day, we'll paddle a mile downriver from our launch at Snook Haven. During the day, we might cover two or three miles. It's a pretty easy paddle. While the tide moves, it's really not very strong or noticeable.

Our day usually begins at dawn or just before.

On all-day trips, I provide lunch and drinks. I supply bottle water on all trips.

I also provide all tackles, rods, reels, lures and flies.

If you're a hardcore angler, this is the trip for you.

You can contact me at (941) 284-3406 or email steve@kayakfishingsarasota.com.