One of the many reasons I love Sarasota is not only the beautiful, clear water, and the great weather, but also the fishing. Having been here for such a long time, you might think that I have been doing it for as long as I have lived in Sarasota. Not true! My love for fishing has only truly evolved into a passion over the last three years or so. I never had time and it always took so much time to get ready and get out on the water. Heck, even with a boat, I hardly ever made it out to experience some of the great fishing that Sarasota has to offer.
That all changed when my dear friend, Jay Crouse, asked me if I wanted to go down to Boca Grande for the day to fish with Captain Eddie, a guide who is familiar with the waters around Pine Island, Boca Grande, and the mouth of Charlotte Harbor. I was all in. I had been tarpon fishing many years ago with John Schaub, but it was at night and there wasn't much to see in the Boca Grande Pass.
We left the dock at 7:30a.m. and for the next 30 minutes I saw some jaw-dropping views of the water around Boca Grande, Gasparilla Island and some of the smaller islands in the harbour. Our first stop was on a grass flat where the trout were on our hooks nearly every cast. From there, Captain Eddie took us to the mouth of the pass where the snook are up near the shoreline where the trees line the water. We caught lots of snook over the next two hours and took our limit as we pulled anchor and moved to the very eastern portion of the harbour.
On the Pine Island side of the bay, we cut through water about 8 inches deep to reach our destination. It was there that my excitement reached a fevered pitch as we were about to embark on some real fishing. Eddie wanted to introduce me to red fish. For the next 3 hours we got into a mess of red fish. I had never seen so many fish. I was having a blast!!!!
After that day, I promised myself that I would make it down to fish with Eddie at least 2 times a year and I would also get out on my own boat to do some fishing. I have failed to live up to the promise on my own boat, but you can beat I have been out at least twice-a-year with Captain Eddie.
If you are interested in fishing with Eddie, he can be reached @ 941.815.0009. You won't be disappointed.
Next week I will talk about places to fish in Sarasota.
No comments:
Post a Comment