Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2017 i Florida Sportsman

If miracles really happen, let’s have a big one, please. Right now. Let the Florida Legislature, in its waning weeks of confusion and endless politicizing, pass a statute calling for a reservoir in Big Sugar country that could capture excess Lake Okeechobee water and, finally, stop the horrid discharges to the coasts. Then, in the best tradition of miracles, see Governor Scott sign such a statute and lead the way for funding of these crucial projects. It’s a longshot, as miracles tend to be. These reforms have been advocated for decades but have been blocked by status quo forces that put subsidized profits way ahead of clean and productive waters. Now, however, there seems to be powerful momentum for real change. The Florida Senate, at the committee level, has approved…

Tigress Kite Fishing Products Tigress Outriggers and Gear has introduced new kite products to cover a wide range of conditions. The Specialty Lite Wind Kite is designed to fly steady in 5-10 mph winds, or be coupled with a Tigress helium balloon to keep baits up on calm days. The new All Purpose Kite is intended to fly in 10-20 mph winds. Both kites have lightweight carbon graphite spars and come with an additional fifth, extra spar. The Lite Wind kite is now $129.99 and the All Purpose is now $109.99. Also new from Tigress is a waterproof, lightweight Kite Storage Bag for assembled kits. A new Specialty High Wind Kite is coming soon. See www.tigressoutriggers.com . Star brite Vinyl Care Solutions Star brite has two new products specifically designed…

BIG BEND Capt. William Toney Homosassa Inshore Fishing (352) 422-4141 On the Nature Coast, we usually get two shots at tripletail, in the spring in April through June, and again late August through October. Though I have caught them during other times of the year. I never run past a crab buoy without looking at it. Other good structure is the older channel markers with heavy grass and growth on them. This spring should be good around some of the trees and mangrove debris that hurricane Hermine pushed offshore. When I spot a triple on structure when my boat is on a plane, I stay at the same speed until about a hundred yards before I come off a plane. Sometimes immediately shutting down next to them will send them…

A statewide spotted seatrout slot limit of 15 inches minimum, 20 inches maximum applies to recreational anglers. Also, one fish over 20 inches may be retained per angler. Bag limit depends on where you are fishing. The waters described in this article, falling south of the Volusia/Flagler County line on Florida’s east coast, are covered by a 4-fish bag limit. Season is year-round. For bag limits elsewhere in Florida, see myfwc.com . Commercial fishers who possess a Restricted Species endorsement enjoy far more liberal size and bag limits. They may keep up to 75 seatrout per person, no more than 150 per boat, of between 15 and 24 inches. This fishery takes place during a multi-month season which, for waters from Volusia County south on Florida’s east…

Reel Time Florida Sportsman ‘17 “For the 2017 season, we’ll be fishing in new places, with new people, for new species,” says Reel Time Florida Sportsman host Capt. George Gozdz. “We take the RTFS Triton from one end of the state to the other and explore areas that are accessible to all of the FS community. We’ll travel to new areas I haven’t been to in 6 seasons of filming, including Pine Island and the Apalachicola River system. “We have a great diversity of targeted species as well this year. Everything from snook and trout inshore, to sailfish and mahi offshore, to clown knife and peacocks in sweet water...even catfish in northwest Florida. “This year all the episodes are filmed out of the 260 Triton LTS powered by a 350…

Silver kings, the mighty Megalops Atlanticus, just might offer the pinnacle of angling pursuits in the region, and April is generally the month the action becomes heightened. With the region’s countless backwater bays and points that serve as resting and feeding grounds being relatively close to the nearshore migratory routes, the area is a logical stop off point for tarpon migrating through the area. In the northern part of the region tarpon are generally referred to as beach fish in that they generally migrate the beach in schools in 10 to 25 feet of water, depending on time of day, tides and wind. Once they come up from the Florida Keys or down from Naples, they will start to work the contours of the outside islands starting around Round Key…

Twenty-one years ago I headed out of Miguel Bay on a search-and-catch mission. On that warm spring day I turned my flats skiff toward the opposite side of Tampa Bay heading toward Pinellas Point. My mission was to explore, find and catch as many species as I could that day. That turned out to be one memorable day. I fished from the Clam Bar to Mullet Key at Fort Desoto, out to the flats near the lighthouse on Egmont Key and then ran down to Big Sarasota Pass. From there I turned north, hitting the waters around Bird Key, New Pass, Long Bar, Sister’s and Jewfish Keys in Sarasota Bay. I fished the Kitchen just south of Cortez, Longboat Key, Palma Sola Bay, Anna Maria Sound, Bean Point, the mouth…

Let’s start deep and work our way back home. The wahoo are still here, but the monsters have mostly moved on north. They’ve been replaced with packs of solid 20-to 50-pound fish. Even more importantly there are more dolphin and billfish around, and tuna are still hanging on the Ledge. You can also bet more boats will encounter blue marlin in April, probably just because there’s more food to keep them here. It’s a funny sight to see 50 boats at the Ledge, with 25 of them doing 8 knots, and 25 boats weaving in and out doing 20 knots. The wahoo fishermen love their speed, while the bait fishermen are targeting mahi, sails and tuna. Bottom fishing could only be better if we could keep a red snapper or…

When there’s a hot sailfish bite, Bonnie Powell is often the first to bring the news. Powell is the voice behind the committee VHF for a number of prestigious billfish tournaments—including the Palm Beach Gold Cup, which saw an epic bite in January 2017. She’s a leader in the International Women’s Fishing Association; runs a unique global event, the International Light Tackle Tournament Association; and there’s more on her agenda. Powell’s service was brought to the attention of Florida Sportsman by The Billfish Foundation, which awarded her—along with two other angling luminaries—a 2016 John Rybovich Lifetime Achievement Award. We caught up with Powell en route to the Reef Cup in Key Largo, for insights into a fishing life. As Bonnie tells it, when she married Tampa Bay-area angler Billy Powell,…

Important safety and strategy considerations for the free diver. There is a time and place for each of these main two rigs for freedive spearfishing and a good argument for both in different situations. For everyone, I suggest using a float-line and buoy as your go-to, almost every time. The number one reason is safety. You can shoot almost any fish and have no qualms about letting go of your gun and returning to the surface to get a breath of air. When you are freediving, there are no bubbles and no trace of the diver once he leaves the surface. A typical freedive is 45 seconds to 2 minutes, during which time the boat can drift, the diver can swim off, and it is easy to lose track of…

Bill and Bob Fisher are renowned for catching spotted seatrout on East Central Florida’s Mosquito Lagoon and Indian River. The brothers are former rod and reel commercial fishermen who worked the area from the 1960s until 1990, before moving into guiding anglers. Their hunting grounds run from New Smyrna Beach south to Oak Hill and beyond. But of course today’s “hunt” is nearly entirely catch-and-release. The Fishers, you see, specialize in gators—those long, fat-bodied, dark-backed seatrout with the toothy grins. “Bob and I decided to share our fishing experience with close friends,” Bill said, about getting out of the commercial fishing. “As things go, we evolved into guiding. Many people had never caught big trout and fished Florida for many years. I get a thrill when others catch a big…

1. The Scottsmoor Ramp lies at the north end of the Indian River south of Oak Hill. The area is affected by rain water coming out of the canals which turns the water more of a tannic acid color. Trout generally don’t like low salinity so they will move south to avoid that water, according to Capt. Bill Fisher. The better areas there are in the far northern end of it behind the large island. The area south of that is what is often called the Golf Ball Bay due to the presence of a large Space Shuttle tracking dome. Fisher points out that trout have a tendancy to congregate throughout that area at various times. Further south of there is the west end of Haulover Canal (which runs between…

The following figures represent seasonal counts of manatees in West Florida (Wakulla through Everglades) and East Florida (Jacksonville through the Keys). The interagency surveys are undertaken during optimal periods for observing manatees congregating in warmwater refuge areas around these parts of the state. Counts are made by aerial and ground teams. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is currently studying ways to include estimates of manatees not seen by the surveyors—for instance, animals residing in the Florida Panhandle or deep waters of Tampa Bay.…

April has arrived and with it comes the most complete lineup of sought-after species on offer in the Keys. All of the usual suspects will be here, from the sailfish in the deep blue, to the silver king in the skinny water and everything in between. Many species are gathering in large numbers for their annual mating rituals. Some of that happens here in the Keys, like the permit spawn on our reefs and wrecks. Some species will migrate through the Keys on their way to spawn, like the sailfish on their way to Mexico. This mass gathering of fish species creates a unique environment. In the blue water, expect the sailfish bite to be the hottest all year. Wolf packs (school of sailfish) will be pushing through on their…

April offers variety when it comes to offshore fishing throughout the southeast region. Being prepared for anything at any moment is key. Captain Greg Bogdan of Permitted Charters (permittedcharters.compermitted-charters.com) says he likes to fish a multiple-rod spread in areas such as the Ledge, straight out of Jupiter Inlet, down to the condos south of the inlet in 120 to 140 feet of water. When fishing this area, Bogdan will be targeting mutton snapper on the bottom, using ballyhoo plugs for bait. “These baits are usually a little bit harder for the triggerfish to pick off, and the big muttons will eat them whole,” he said. A 20-foot or so leader is essential when targeting the larger muttons in deeper water. This allows the bait to suspend in the water column,…

Many years ago, when I was first introduced to the waters south of Cedar Key, my friend Capt. Matt Fleming gave me a couple of very important GPS numbers. The first was called “hit rock” and the other was called “bad rock.” Later, as I moved my fishing interest north (all the way to Steinhatchee), I discovered rocks again, but of a different structure. Steinhatchee’s close-to-shore rocks are, for the most part, shelves of flat limestone. The coastal rocks south of Cedar Key, stretching all the way to Bayport, are different. They’re big limestone boulders and often reach the Gulf’s surface on mean low water in 8 to 15 feet. Those big rocks in Citrus and Hernando counties are obviously a hazard to navigation. Local legends have it that they…

Anglers who have access to St. Joe Bay shouldn’t miss out on the fishing opportunities that kickoff in April. The bay is famous for its trophy speckled trout as well as redfish, Spanish mackerel, flounder and pompano. One of the best ways get in on this fishing is to simply jump in. The clear shallow grass flats in St. Joe Bay are perfect for wade fishing and its simplicity makes it easy to do. Forget about loading, fueling and launching a boat; just grab some tackle and go to the bayside of the peninsula. Of course tennis shoes or waders are useful, and so is a cooler in an inner tube for keeping fish, drinks and tackle. Most of this stuff easily fits into most vehicles. Along most of the…

The flight from Miami to Medellin takes a little over three hours. If you shop well, a roundtrip ticket runs less than $500. I spent the night at Medellin’s Hotel Poblado Plaza, then took the one-hour turboprop flight to Bahia Solano the next morning. A driver from the lodge picked me up at the airport and transported me to a panga that transported me to the lodge. Time elapsed from airport to lodge was about 30 minutes, plenty of time to soak up the local flavor. You can make all these arrangements yourself, but it’s way easier to have Isabel Palacio do it for you. A driver picks you up at the airport in Medellin. You just go on cruise control until it’s time to leave. The lodge was established…

There’s a reason Florida-strain largemouth bass have been stocked in several states, as well as Mexico — these fish are genetically superior in growth potential. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is mighty proud of that fact; so much so that the agency recognizes and rewards anglers that land lunkers through its TrophyCatch program. Created under the state’s Black Bass Management Plan, TrophyCatch recognizes big-bass catches at three levels: The Lunker Club (8.0-9.9 pounds), Trophy Club (10.0-12.9) and Hall-of-Fame Club (13 pounds and greater). Anglers providing photographic evidence of their catch and documenting the weight on certified scales are eligible for various prizes during seasons running October 1-September 30. Last season’s top anglers, recognized at December’s Hall-of-Fame banquet, were Paul Des-rosier of Dade City, 14 pounds, 10 ounces; Joshua…

Q What’s the worst and the best smell in a day’s fishing? Rick Ryals, FS Projects Editor, Jacksonville The worst smell is the whiting you left in a bucket a month ago and then put another bucket inside of that on top of it. The best smell is, the smell of a clean, deodorized fish box at dawn when you show up on your boat. Dave East, President Eastward Boats, Pt. St. Lucie Worst smell? Your burning thumb after you forget to take it off the spool as a big kingfish takes off. One of the best is the smell of coconut from sunscreen. Mike Battistoni, Maui Jim Fishing and Marine Specialist, Palm Beach Gardens When you turn on the wash down for the first time in a long time—that’s…

Reluctant to part ways with tried-and-true lures? Why not find—or tie your own—fly pattern that retains the essential shape, color and action? Spoon flies came on the scene some years ago, and new lightweight materials produce a few that cast surprisingly well. The Dupre Spoonfly is a favorite, and latest versions available in fly catalogs have three holes in the body to increase the sink rate. Others include rattle chambers. Most have weed guards of light wire or heavy mono-filament. The deep, concave shape of most spoon flies affords some weed protection as well. Most are made of sheet Mylar, or size large Mylar tubing in gold or copper, cut to shape, or are made from 5-minute epoxy set inside a wire or mono “frame.” I just discovered a unique…

The Fishers aren’t strictly live bait anglers, and by no means are the Mosquito Lagoon gators untouchable with lures. Here are six of Bill Fisher’s favorite artificials: 1) Heddon Zara Spook Pup – Trout like the Green Frog back with the yellow orange belly. 2) Bass Assassin Shrimp – Houdini color on a 1/8- ounce jighead (green). 3) Gulp! Shad jerkbait with a 1/8-ounce Owner weighted 4/0 hook. 4) Exude Green Mosquito jerkbait – same hook as above. 5) Rapala Skitter Walk in the Redfish color or White. 6) Gulp! Shrimp with the tail cut off and hooked backwards with same Owner hook, above.…

For more information on Fisher’s Lagoon Charters on Mosquito Lagoon and the Indian River, contact Capt. Bill Fisher at 386-212-3009 ( delfish@bellsouth.net ) or Bob Fisher at 386-290-0786 ( anfisher@ bell-south.net ) or visit www.fisherslagooncharters.com . For general information on the area, see the New Smyrna Beach Area Visitors Bureau at www.NSBFLA.com . For convenient, comfortable accomodations right on the beach, check out the Atlantic Plaza by phoning 386-427-4636 or visit www.atlanticplaza.net , and don’t miss out on the great fried seafood at the nearby Dolphin View Restaurant.…

We have all heard the old rhyme, “April showers bring May flowers.” I have a saying, too: April showers bring big spawning king mackerel, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, cobia, dolphin and sailfish. April also will have some of the best largemouth bass fishing as far as numbers go for South Florida freshwater anglers. For surf fishers baited up with live and dead shrimp, sand fleas and clams as well as Doc’s Goofy jigs, the targeted species will be pompano and snook. This action will take place from the outer trough right to the beach. Live pilchards, threadfin herring, Spanish sardines, mullet, ballyhoo and a host of artificial lures like the Rapala X Rap, silver Crocodile spoons, jigs and bucktail jigs will be used for the kingfish, mackerel, bluefish, jack, ladyfish, snook…

So it begins. Tarpon season 2017 is underway. Some fish will be caught in the passes this month including Boca Grande Pass, the biggest of southwest Florida’s tarpon-producing passes, but don’t overlook Captiva Pass and Redfish Pass. Sometimes these smaller passes hold more early-season tarpon. Other fish will be taken in the river mouths and we can find people who will adamantly claim that each of the three (Peace, Myakka and Caloosahatchee) is the best. Much of the river fishing is done at night around the bridges where finger mullet and ladyfish make very good live baits. Speaking of the rivers, a lot of snook and redfish head upriver for the winter, and they’re headed back out now. As these fish move out of the rivers they travel the shorelines,…

Usually in late March or early April it doesn’t take long for the word to spread that the yellowfin tuna have arrived on the “other side” of the Gulf Stream. Smart big-game anglers out of Ponce Inlet, Port Canaveral and Sebastian Inlet already have their boats ready to go. The so-called “other side” is beyond the eastern edge of the stream calling for 100-plus mile runs, meaning this generally is a big boat fishery. Late frontal systems can change sea conditions in short order and larger 40-to 50-foot sportfishers are recommended. Yet, a good number of smaller craft in the 30-foot range make the run when their captains and owners feel assured that good weather will hold. For the next three months parties will be making regular runs out of…

The pompano are running the beach, sheepshead are biting around the passes and jetties, and cobia are all some people can think about. If the idea of sight fishing giant, hard-fighting fish excites you, cobia fishing is for you. The pursuit of cobia can be made from a boat, pier, kayak, paddle board or the beach. Sighting cobia from a tower in a boat or from the rail of pier are the local favorites. Look for the majority of the action to come from the outer sandbar to three miles or so from the beach. Shallow wrecks and reefs can also hold fish and anchoring up, chumming, and flat lining live baits can be productive, too. A heavy spinning rod with a 6500-level reel will work and 50- to 60-pound…