Hot Sarasota snook action

(also posted on saltwater forum)

Two facts:
The weather is hot.
The fishing might be hotter.
I’ve been fishing for snook in the surf for 25 years and I’ve never seen it better. In four trips, I’ve taken 80 snook on fly. And that might be conservative.
The snook are typically 20 to 24 inches. But they’re running a little larger than that this year. I’ve taken snook to 32 inches and many of more than 26.
I’ve been using a 6-weight TFO TiCr four-piece fly rod, sinktip line, 10-pound fluorocarbon leader and 20-pound fluorocarbon bite tippet.
My fly of choice has been the reliable D.T. Special on a No. 4 hook.
After reading about beach snook flies on the Internet, I found out that a Crystal Schminnow has been touted as the best beach snook fly going. I thought the Schminnow looked pretty good and was easy to tie. So, I tied up a half dozen. Nothing wrong with a new pattern!
I began my last outing with a Schminnow. During the first hour, I had eight rejections. Jack Hartman, a first time beach snook fly angler, had several fish on the D.T. When I switched back to the D.T., I started catching snook.
Hartman and I combined for 50 snook on the morning.
I offer beach snook trips for $150 per four-hour session. It’s sight-fishing at its best. On most occasions, we don’t make a cast unless we see a fish.
All you’ll need is a cap, pair of wading boots/flats boots, polarized sunglasses and the desire to catch snook.
I took Bob Parker, president of the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers, and Tony Saviano, also a member of the club, out on a recent beach trip. We fished terrible conditions: wind, turbid water, heavy surf. Still, we caught 10 snook to 32 inches.
I had the pleasure of spending a day in the Everglades with Ward Bean of Warmwater Fly Tyer, Council Bluffs, Iowa - Warmwater Fly Tyer - by Ward Bean. Bean is a noted fly tyer who is known for his deerhair bugs. They’re works of art.
Al White, Bean and myself fished the L-67 canal out of Everglades Holiday Park. That’s a spot where I caught largemouth bass to 6 pounds, peacock bass, speckled perch, bluegill, shellcracker and stumpknocker in late May.
The fishing has slowed down now and we had to work for our fish. I managed about 40 fish, including peacock bass, largemouth bass and some of the largest bluegill I’ve ever caught in this state. A majority of my fish came on a copper Myakka Minnow.
The Myakka Minnow is a small minnow imitation. It works best when fish very slowly and deep. It’s amazing how this fly works so well on so many fish.
Saltwater fishing hasn’t been bad. I recently took Eric Killmeier and his buddy, Marshall, out on a four-hour trip. We really had to work for the fish during a slow, slow tide. Still, we managed a dozen trout, several ladyfish, whiting, mangrove snapper and a 30-inch redfish. We used jigs.
I took a group from Muskegon out and we landed spotted seatrout, mangrove snapper, black seabass, whiting, sailcats and a 5-pound pompano. Action was steady. All fish were caught on jigs.
I expect decent action over the next month in salt water and fresh water.
One of my favorite things to do is target big channel cats in Lake Manatee. They’re the best fighters in the lake and usually aren’t too shy about hitting.

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