What Frank wrote,
Fishin Franks , Fishing Report and general useless information page.

this is articles and other fishin things,

2020 older stories as you scroll down the page 

04/2020

Sharks have become one of the most popular fish to catch in Florida. Sharks have not gotten this much attention since Jaws.
And catch and release shark fishing is pushing Tarpon as the number one past time, Tarpon are beautiful and seeing a 150 pound fish jump 6 feet out of the water, is awesome but outside of a busted finger or nose, Yes tarpon break a lot of noses when people are trying to release them a quick lunge and pow Tarpon head butt to human face, Tarpon wins, But if you want to talk primal and scary we talk Sharks, not only is it unreal to catch a 300 maybe 600 pound critter it is an adrenaline rush, And then you try to get the hook out and now remember the head butt thing? Well think about getting head butted or French kissed by an 8 foot bull shark.
But how to get to that point, well the new laws require circle hooks which is stupid, in my opinion.
But lets get into it.

The first mistake most people make is they use too big of hooks and bait, Yes for many of the black tips and sharp nose sharks a 4/0 hook is more then good. I am talking about sharks less then 5 foot long. And the rods and reels they use are way too big, First the mouth of an average black tip is about with out really extending about 3 inches high and 4 inches wide as an opening. So lets say you are using a 6 inch chunk of bait you would get lots of hits but few if any hook-ups. So if you are getting hits but no sharks make your hook, leader and bait much smaller, lets say closer to a golf ball size rather than a Tennis ball size. And a 10 to 20 pound class spinning reel with a 3 or 4000 size reel 20 pound braided line or 12 pound mono is more then good. And for leader, I use 40ish pound steel. Remember this is for Sharks less than 5 foot.

Now I always have one line my first line out with a float or bobber and the bait about 3 ½ feet below the float so I can cast it. That is my back right rood holder, and cover near the surface. My second line is a free line no weight or float the weight of the leader, hook and bait is enough to take the bait close to the bottom, the reason a free line works is the tide. With normal tide flow the bait goes to the bottom and then the water/tide pressure against the line will lift the bait off the bottom and then allow it to settle again picture a Bull whip as the whip is lifted it curls up like a wave which will lift the tip of the whip and the water will do the same thing to your line and bait so it is not just sitting on the bottom.
If the tide is very slow I will put that bait under a float about 1 foot off the bottom, So in 14 foot of water I set the float at 12 foot. Now of course you can not cast this just set it off the side of the boat and feed the line out to get it 80 feet away from the boat. Now both of these lines are smaller rigs with light duty spinning tackle, If I want to put out another line I up size a bit 12/0 or larger hooks and 100 pound test steel leader or more and big chunks of bait. The size of two fist or more and on the line here which is 50 pound test or more and heavy rods , I place a heavy sinker as I will cast them out at a 45 degree angle to the side and back of the boat so they stay away from my other lines. You will most times get hit on the smaller lines with smaller baits first, but after the smaller lines quit getting hit wait as in about 20 minutes, those big lines are going to start screaming out. The main predator of small sharks is Big Sharks. Once the smaller sharks start feeding and fighting on your line, the gets the attention of the big sharks and when they show up the small ones haul they soon to be eaten butts out of there and oh yeah there’s your bait,
SO enjoy the Smaller sharks on the light Snook/ red fish rods that is when they are fun but have your big rods with big baits waiting for the mack daddy, monster kick your butt, oh my stomach hurts sharks to show up.
Have Fun Fishin Frank

03/ 2020

So as I sit here typing, my mind keeps switching between, Spanish Mackerel and Black drum and are they going to close my store down. Hmm just a lot to think about there is so many mackerel and so many people having a great time trolling spoons and storm twitch stiks around marker two and markers five. Then I get a call there are tanks being moved around here in Florida. Are the people with all the toilet paper planning an armed or should I sayed rolled around the hand revolt? OR should I be thinking how cool it is to get a mackerel to hit while I am trolling and stop the boat and start casting out shrimp under popping corks, and bam, bam Fish on, Fish on. Or do I think about making pay roll for days or weeks while the store is closed?

Could be I should just keep my mind focused on the amazing snapper fishing on the near shore reefs, with squid and live shrimp, Shrimp is really the better option right now as every night thousands of Shrimp are migrating out of the passes on the out going tides and the reef fish are gorging themselves .
So if you drop a live shrimp on a reef with about 2 ounces of lead a 2/0 or3/o hook 30 pound floro leader you will have dinner for many more than two. But them again report of this stupid virus which was not really that bad and is now bad enough to close states. Really what the heck, I hope by the time you read this we have more answers than as it is like now when all we have are questions.

Why the heck would the National guard be in Port Charlotte. Do they think it is a Grey beard/silver revolt, armed with walkers and electric wheel chairs we intend on mounting 30 caliber Gatling guns. We will show you ya whipper snappers. Why yes that is a 45 caliber cane.

All in all I think I will just head around the bridges. Black drum have just started to move around the bridge pilings, All it takes it a chunk of blue crab and a lot of hang the heck on to have fun catching them, use a chunk of Crab meat with a sinker casting next to the piling and hope someone has a hold of you.

Or I could head down in front of Turtle bay or by the cap e haze reef, with a chunk of mullet or lady fish on a big rod with a big steel leader and get railed by a 6 to 9 foot Shark. No sinker just free lining the bait. Anchored or drifting either will work. The same is true is in the gulf tons of stories and pictures of Sharks, More Sharks than I have ever seen at this time of Year.

Well we have been spraying everyone's hands with Lysol after they handle money or touch the credit card machine. Life for the last two years was kind of like it was in the fifties, everyone looking forward to the future. Now the Zombie Apocalypse is back.
Oh well I am going sneak out and go fishing.

Fishin Frank

01-2020

Howdy fish rangers, time to fight another fish,
which fish well take your pick there are more types of fish around than you can shake a stick at I guess it is the crazy weather patterns, We have more sharks than I have ever seen on the beaches and reefs in the gulf, Not as many as I would think in the Harbor, I wonder why that is,. But if you wish a catch a shark head out to any beach on the gulf of Mexico and toss out a chunk of fish. Big Rod small rod just adjust the size of your bait to your rod like a two finger cut of mullet or lady fish for a normal Spinning rod 10 to 20 pound class with a 3 or 4000 reel and if you are using a 6000 or so 6 fingers up to 10 inch chunk of bait and just cast it out you will need a steel leader for the lighter set up 40 pound or more and for the heavier one start at 100 up to 250. And what ever hook you are using flatten or bend the barb of the hook down so if you lose it the hook can fall out. Try not to crush the barb but leave a little bump there. Now Sheep head are the big food fish fight right now and so many people are hitting the docks in lemon bay and on the back side of Boca, quite a few of the sheep head and mostly the larger ones over 15 inches are under the mangroves, Yes if you know a place with 3 foot of water under the mangroves there is a very good chance that spot ids full of larger sheep head , Now around Bull bay the of course would like the area around the clam leases and on the east side of the Harbor about 4 islands north of Pirate Harbor back behind the first row of Islands there is a big oyster bed and the Sheep head like both of these places or I should say like to be near them. So deeper holes close to these beds are your best bet. Now the sheep head are not eating the oyster or clams like you would think but these places hold a tremendous amount of Tinny Crabs, which they do love to eat so think about fiddler crabs for bait maybe under a tiny float set where the crab will just touch about touch the top edge of the oysters.

Now as to the blue fish, lady fish and Spanish mackerel and Pompano and holy fish, fish man there is so much to choose from, So I will drop back to the flats and say a ton of Red fish in the harbor right now, Smaller ones can be found in the creeks on the West wall or back two or three sets of islands on the east side, look ofr cuts between two islands which have a bit deeper water and good flow. Pieces of Shrimp is the bait of choice for these “Rat” Reds. Now for the larger Reds out in front of Turtle bay just on the out side edge of the sand bar you can find big Reds. Snook well they are just all over the place.

For some of the schooling fish it is time for trolling. What I would suggest is you get out side the sand bar edge or right next to the I.C.W. Where ever shallow meets deep water and trolling on one side a Storm Twitch stik and on the other side of the boat a double ended trolling rig take 4 feet of 40 pound leader on one end tie a Smaller buck tail like a Hot skirt on the other end tie a 0 Clark squid spoon. Now Holding up the rig by the line let the jig drop until the spoon is 2/3 longer than the jig side, tie a loop in the line to keep them there and tie your line to that loop you made, If you have questions stop by the store I will show you and between the two lures you should be able to catch any of them,
The last thing iis that when I hook a fish trolling I just shut down the boat and start casting either jigs or spoon and hey I hit a fish trolling so I know they are close by.
 

01-2020

Beginnings and endings,
Here we are on the end of a decade and starting off just as weird as the last decade.
Weather politics and the environmental issues are all over the place social media and urban legends are way more excepted than truth or facts.

Yes we have Red Tide more often than we don't have Red Tide and Red Fish don't live in Charlotte Harbor but do grow up and go on to travel the seas.

In fact all most all of the fish in Charlotte Harbor are just here to attend school so to speak pun intended. Before the head to to parts unknown.

One of the few Fish that is a home body is the Snook. A Snook will find a place and not stray very far from there except to spawn then return to it's home base area.

The weather is in a constant state of change and maybe people change the weather as we did here in Charlotte county. By building buildings we changed the local rain patternes and the is no rainy season anymore. Yes this is true we have a rainier season, but during a real rainy season it rains every day at almost the same time and that rain storms are very viloent and extreme, It does rain more in the summer but not every day like it used to. So could people be changing the weather across the world a truthful answer is yes, maybe? We don't know as people have not recorded the weather long enough to know,

We guess at a lot of things, and some things I know but don't think about like that a pompano prefers to eat off the bottom, as it is a schooling fish, I would tend to think that Pompano
 

November 2019

I like big tails and I can not lie, but a little tail can be fun too.
When do you want a big tail and when is a small tail better you might ask?
Well when it comes to paddle tail lures it is all about the water temp.
 

When the water is in the 70's that is when the fish are most active, and a smaller lure like a D.O.A. Cal shad or a 3” storm swim bait is the best you can throw. But as the temperature fall below 70 or above 80 degrees it is time to start thinking big tail. And not only big tail but a floppy big paddle tail like a Strike king Rage swimmer or a Gambler big EZ, even a Mirror o lure Marsh minnow. These all have big floppy paddle tail that are held onto the body of the lure by thin or softer plastic. You want the tail to be ale to move when the lure is barley moving and don't go small go larger like 5 or 6 inch lure it is all about calories for effort, When it is nice and warm not hot not cold fish will chase after smaller lures, maybe just for fun I think sometimes, But when it is too hot or too cold, a meal for the least energy expended is the primary mission. So going big and slow, another trick is to use a very light weight jig head, the heavier the jig head the faster you have to reel to keep it off the bottom,

So by using a 1/8 or 1/16 oz jig head you can reel slower giving the fish time to see the lure and decide, if it wants to eat it.

So a bit larger lure moving really slow with a loose paddle tail to make noise, to get the fishes attention

while it is hiding trying to keep warm is a great cold weather/water, trick

.
Now where would you go to cast this lure I would suggest an open flat near a sand bar. Flats with white sand bottoms and patches of dark grass are the easiest places to find Snook or Red Fish during cold water months. The shallow water allows the suns rays to penetrate and the dark grass acts as a solar collector, giving the fish a warmer place to lay up. And think if you were 6 inches tall and laying in a small depression 6 inches deep you would be hidden from predators looking across the flats and with the grass to warm you up, life is good and now it has to do is just wait for food to swim by. {hint}
so stay back ;ight line like 10 pound test or less on the longest rod you have, By staying back you do not get the fish nervous and your chances of hooking up are way better.
knock em dead lure for south west Florida.
Good luck & have fun


 

November 2019

You just don't think about it, Well at least I don't.
What brought this to mind is a woman came in to get bait and one of the male customers mentioned what is she dong betting bait for her husband? No she is going fishing, I replied and he was not shocked but not far from it. Properly surprised. I am so used to it being the woman/girl who is the one in the family who is really into fishing, that I just don't notice it. So many woman have a cool boat chauffeur they happen to call their husband, who takes care of the boat so they can fish.
 

I don't think much about Red tide, nowadays people are so OMG about red tide any more and the truth is it is more common for there to be Red tide here in S.W. Fl. Than for there not to be Red tide. The Red Tide is here in background to low concentrations much more often than no red tide, but we notice it, when it gets to Medium or high concentrations and fish start to die. Been here for ever and will be here after we are gone.

I don't think much about climate change as portrayed on T.V. or social media. We have had ice ages and the warming period which allowed the Vikings to conquered England, Greenland, ice land, Canada, and most likely the northeast united states. Sea levels were at least 80 feet lower during the ice age. So is there climate change? Of course you bunch of goof balls. Is it the end of the planet absolutely not! The earth is a chunk of dirt and rock floating in space. Could climate change end us. Of course it could. So could getting hit by a meteor.

I don’t think much about where did the fish go they were hitting right here and now they are gone, how far could they have gone? Well lets think about that. If a fish traveled 2 miles an hour for a half an hour why guess what that fish is a mile away. So how far could a fish have gone if it was in a hurry swimming at 20 m.p.h. You get a calculator.

I guess I just don't think much but what I have thunk is that the truth is never to the far left or right of the subject but almost always in the middle. And what is strange and scary for one person another would not think twice about it. So calm yourself and know that if a charity says Save that or for this, they want your money, for nothing. I wish I could come up with a cool name save the, or I'm for the,
Nope I got nothing so I guess I will not be rich anytime soon. So I should get back to work.
Bye

I wrote this for my dad
 

Frank W. Hommema Sr. of Port Charlotte, Fla., passed on Monday, Oct. 21, at the age of 82. Frank was a loving husband and father and is survived by his wife of 64 years, Carol; daughters Relinda and Pam; his son Fishin' Frank Jr.; and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren who all loved “Grumpy.”

Frank was born in Chicago, Ill., Oct. 19, 1937, to Herman and Mona Hommema. For much of his adult life, he operated cranes and heavy equipment, but he was also an avid hunter and fisherman. He loved catching snook and enjoyed participating in shark and catfish tournaments.

He was best known as the original Fishin' Frank Sr., who started the tackle shop Fishin' Frank's with his wife Catchin' Carol. The shop has become an institution in Charlotte County and is now operated by his son.

To honor Frank Sr.'s legacy, Catchin' Carol and family will host a farewell gathering at Fishin' Franks (4425 Tamiami Trail, Port Charlotte) Wednesday, Oct. 30, from 4 to 8 p.m. Anyone who would like to attend is invited to come tell fishin' stories and say farewell as Frank Sr. moves on to go fishin' forever.

Arrangements have been entrusted to Ponger-Kays-Grady Funeral Home in Arcadia, Fla. Online condolences may be made at PongerKaysGrady.com.

09/27/19

Fishin is like a bag of rocks, what you think I should say chocolate? I just thinks rocks are more fun to reel in than chocolate. Anyway You cast and cast and is it a Snook a Red Fish or a Cat fish, Fun thing is you never know. But you can improve your odds. If you are going fishing you have a lets say a 25% of catch for instance a Snook. Boy o boy how you want to catch a Snook, But just going fishing is not really going to get you that dream fish. You need to go Snook fishing! going where a Snook is likely to be and using a bait the a Snook likes and fishing a style that is proven to entice Snook to bite improves your odds of catching one many times over. Snook is a heavy cover fish and is not normally found in open water, while Snook are in the gulf of Mexico in huge numbers they will be found hanging out at one of the reefs. Snook in the gulf tend to like high relief or structure that comes up off the bottom a few feet and if it has an over hang to get them a roof that is Snook heaven.

While on the flats Snook will most often be found up by the mangrove shore lines, They like to lay up and wait for their food to come to them and in the tangle of mangrove roots they have much better protection from larger predators. And Snook do not really like being in the open with a clear sky above them as ever since they were babies birds have been trying to eat them and birds attack from above.

Even after a Snook is larger Dolphins “ Flipper” loves to eat Snook. Now this is a guide line for where Snook like to be and during parts of the year they will be in schools out on the open flats, but when they are there it is almost always in an open area with pot holes. Pot hole which to you or me would be nothing how can a six inch depression be called a pot hole well think of it this way. If you were 6 inches tall and laying in a 6 inch hole you would be invisible to predators looking across the flat and if there is dark grass in the bottom of that pot hole your black back would blend right in making it hard for birds to see you. Ya gotta admit a 6 inch deep pot hole is a great place for a Snook to hide.

Snook like to eat Shrimp, Bait fish and crabs and often dead bait is better than live as Snook is a really a rather lazy fish laying in wait as an ambush predator. As far as lures I don’t know one that will not catch a Snook but size is important keep in mind a Big fish will eat a little tiny snack but a Smaller fish can not eat a big bait. So rule of thumb is smaller lures are for activity and Big bait, Big fish is because the smaller fish just can't do it. So with a big bait you wait a lot more between fish, But when you hit you hit biog, But with a smaller lure or bait you will get more activity and every once in a while that monster.

07/2019

If you are talking about freshwater fishing there is one thing you have to talk about and that is Beetle Spins. OK what is a beetle spin it is a small lure for Crappie or Pan fish which really works great on almost any fish up to mid size Bass, A Beetle Spin consists of a small Plastic grub on a Jig head connected to a sideways “V” shaped wire by a clip and at the top of this bent wire there is a spoon or blade, I guess would be the correct phrase. Beetle spins are easy to use. As they work best with a slow steady retrieve.
But that is why many people can not figure out how to catch fish with one. It takes a very specific retrieve. First thing is the rod should not be floppy at the tip. Not heavy but tight action is better. Next thing is cast out and hold your rod tip 90 degrees to the side, The trick with a beetle spin is to feel the slight bump, bump, bump, of the spinner blade, that is why the blade on a beetle spin is round in shape. These blades or spinners are normally a Colorado blade or maybe an Indiana blade. The Colorado blade is rounder slightly oval in shape and produces the most thumping when pulled through the water and Indiana blade is much more oval in shape and while great in it's own right makes a milder bumping, thumping when pulled. So it is about the feel when using a Beetle spin the wire is bent in a V shape with a ring centered between the blade on the top and the grub on the bottom. This is where you tie your line on. And most Beetle spins do not come “rigged” as in you have to put on the grub. The Jig head has an eye you must put onto the wire release the clip and slid it on. The Hook Must be on the top If the hook ends up underneath the grub. Do it again.

When it is a brighter sunny day I like to slow roll, “which means slow retrieve or reeling” the Beetle spin just under the surface of the water letting the blade catch a bit of sun light, I believe that flash of light form the blade will bring on strikes. But quite often the fish are down farther and the noise from the blade spinning will call them to dinner.

Now I understand Beetle spins are for freshwater, But no one ever told the fish that I have caught many types of Flats fish on them including sea trout and Spade fish. Sand Bream seem to like them as well but you have to reel very slowly just barley making the blade spin.
But all in all I find Beetle spins to be a must have for my tackle box, and considering they come in many weights and sizes I would start with an 1/8 once Yellow or black with yellow.
Good luck, have fun.

07/2019

Lure and hooks, I have to say they go together, What good would a lure be with out the hooks?
So what happens when the hooks on a lure go bad or become bent, rusty, or broken.
OK you replace them, right “easy peasy”. Really it is as simple as changing a key on a key ring. If you have the right tools, or very tiny fingers. I first start with a trip to the tackle store, make sure you take the lure with you. Ahh I think it is about that big. Anit gonna cut it. TAKE THE LURE! Hooks come in many sizes and a little bit makes the difference at least take the hook. Keep it simple.

Now changing hooks can be easy or easier with the correct tools hooks are attached to the lure with a split ring and small version of a key chain ring. I guess a circle of steel with three layers. You remove a hook the same way you remove a key. A split ring pliers the tool and it is basically a pliers with a tooth or barb on the end of one of the jaws. For tiny rings the A.F.W. Split ring pliers is the ticket with the tiniest end barb which allows you to split the ring open. I like to have a very small needle nose pliers, so once I use the split ring pliers to open the ring and get the hook eye into the split opening I can then move the ring around allowing the hook to come off. Now if you are really tricky you will pace the hook you wish to remove up against the one you are removing so the same motion that takes one hook off places the new hook on the ring.

Now single hooks are replacing treble hooks on many peoples lures as you can get a better hook set and it is less dangerous for you and the fish. The problem is that you can not remove the front treble hook only the rear one. If the lure has three treble hooks get rid of the middle one and replace the rear with a single hook on line from V.M.C. or Owner they both make hooks for lures to replace the trebles. The reason you can not often replace the front treble is not a weight issue it is a rudder issue. The front treble hook on a lure keeps it balanced in the water. So often when you replace it the lure swims off balance and it ruins the action. Now the rear treble on any lure may be replaced, with out any bad effects.
How do you pick the correct size in-line single hook? Well the in-line tells you the eye of the hook is 90 degrees different than the hook you use for bait. A regular single hook when put on a lure the point of the hook sticks out the side no good.
With the in-line single you need only to make sure the opining or point is pointed up to get a hook set, never down. Now as to the size it is a formula I came up with which really seems to work, lay the treble hook on a table and then make sure the single hook is the same gap as between the two barbed points of the treble hook. If you are replacing treble for treble make sure they are the same size as well.

Check out the label on the hook package lures come with a single X strength hook, which can bend or break, most tackle shops should have 4 X which as you would guess are 4 times stronger. But that also makes them heavier which can mess up the action. So try different things and if you need help stop by.

 

06/2019

I was just sitting here thinking, and about thoughts which make me smile.
A few years ago I had a guy com in and he made signs and advertisement stuff, we worked out a deal for some things and then he bought a rod and a dual drag reel for fishing Big Snook out at the Placida trestle. So with about 4 of his friend they went to the pier for a night of Big Fish Fishing, Did I mention he had only been in Florida for a couple weeks, So had no Idea of the power of the fish. So after about an hour he set his rod down and went off to get a drink the fishing had been a bit slow. He made it about 4 steps and ka-bump screech Plop Splash! His Rod flew off the pier and into the water. Well he was cussing up a storm and he had just got it never even landed a fish and gone. Well his buddies were laughing and saying we tried to tell you, flip the switch, that's why you bought a dual drag reel. So the fish can not take it. Well they continued to fish and one of the guys had a very light hit. And started to reel in. I think it; s a crab and sure enough there is a crab and it has the hook in it's claw gripping it with a this is mine and you can't have it grip. Now the weird thing is in it's other cla3w is what looks like more of the guys line, then my buddy says hey that is my line, sure enough they guy who hooked the crab had clear mono line and the rod that was lost had bright green solar colored line. So carefully they got the landing net under the crab and it was up on the pier. They really did not have to be as careful that crab was not letting go of either line or hook as it was over 9 inches across the shell point to point he was a bad ass of the deep. But no match for a couple red necks wanting their stuff back. So my friend started pulling line, and pulling line the reel he had bought was a 6000 series and held about 325 yards of line. What we think happened was when the fish jerked the rod from the pier the bail was knocked open and so with a massive pile of line at his feet the rod finally came up and he got it back. As he started pulling the rest of the line in. well I guess that mad the fish mad. When the bail opened and the tension was gone the fish must have thought it was safe and just went back and laid up. But when he started pulling in the line the fight was on again after some sore fingers and even more cussing he landed a Snook about 30 inches and let it go. The story was good he got the rod and reel back and landed the fish. Story told and I almost believe every word of it.

06/2019

Writing for magazines can be though each month I wonder, did I just write about that, is that fish here now, what is the weather doing or gonna do, every once in a while I consult the magic “8” Ball on the counter and guess what I am still correct more often than the weather guys with all of those computers.

So this month I decided to talk about the random catches, There is still Triple tail in the Harbor and near gulf, not lots and lots like in the winter months =, but the cool thing is they are big, often reaching close to 30 inches, even though the are larger fish I still use the small lures or bait like I would if they were 14 inch fish, kind of strange when I write it, But yes that does seem to work.
the strike king “Rage Menace” is a smaller twin tail grub and when paired with a pink rock port rattler jig head is a treat Triple tail really like and it is just a slow steady retrive, just a foot or so under the water, Color depends but white is your best bet. For bait regular size shrimp or choice but not select or hand picks. White Bait I choose the smallest ones in my live well with a 20 pound fool or leader and a #2 hook.

Next on the random catch is Cobia, a Felmlee Ell lure is my top choice the company went out of business and has been bought and back, I just use a 4/0 “J” hook through the front of the ell letting it float or drift along reeling and twitching slowly, as far as color, they only come in one color and it works. So make the decision easier, choice of one. And the other thing I use is gold spoons like a ¾ once Johnson sprite gold color slow cranking so the spoon wobbles but does not spin or rotate.
As far as bait a crab 3 feet below a small float is good or free lined, white bait or thread fins or excellent bait for Cobia just free lined.

 

Both of these are fish here to catch but they are not in what I would call fish-able numbers just take an old rod you don’t use much and rig it for the possibility of coming across one of these tasty fighting fish. With the bright sun light now both of these fish are shade lovers and if you are anchored up or drifting what is the biggest amount of shade around, the shade under your boat. So if you see on, stay calm “right like that will happen but do the best you can, keep arm movement to a minimum, the more you wave your arms or make big casting movement or more likely you are to spook them off, they were coming to the shade, so take your time cast beyond the fish and a bit in front so the lure as you reel in so the fish and the lure intersect and hopefully FISH ON.

05/2019

To be or not to be, a catching person or a fishing person. Well it take change and that is one thing most people don't like. Change your bait and change where you fish. Right now there is little difference between an in-coming or and out-going tide. The water is pretty much the same temperature both ways and the salt content is the same. Now once the rains start the in-coming tide will be the best. Not high tide as that is when the out-going tide starts but get out at low tide and take advantage of the cooler, saltier water coming in from the gulf, And right now most of the fish will eat any time of the day, but the sun is already starting to cook the water and it will be from day light to noon when the fish will bite as after that the sun will be just too hot for the fish on the flats even on the surface waters. So right now you can go early or late and you should catch fish but soon it will be an early morning bite. I want to be off the water before 1:pm and will stay in until 6 o'clock then go out again as the sun goes down.

And at this time white bait is the fish catching king but in the next coupe weeks it is be time to switch to dead bait and dead sticking, Dead bait really will not move around as much as live bait will, and it is easier for the fish to catch, Yes it is that simple. And there is a new product out which seems to be working really well to increase the number of hits you get on dead bait. Be that Shrimp, squid or cut up fish. Boca Coast came out with a dead bait rub, You use it like shake and bake and it will help. place the bait in the bag and shake it up until the piece of bait is cover with it and cast it out, let it sit until wham,

Now I like to do things the same way, change can be hard. I fish up in the top of the Harbor all of the cooler/cold months but now I am going to have to head out to the ICE or Gasparilla flats or Pine Island sound. Maybe even bull or Turtle bay. But lets stop n the east side of the Harbor for a minute. The east side is very good fishing if you are there about an hour after low tide. Most of the water that comes in from Boca Grande Pass goes right to the east side and that water is cooler so it perks up the bait. And gets the bait moving around I doubt that if really effects the Snook or Red Fish but it will and does effect the food they prey on. That burst of cool water gets them going and feeding which makes bigger things start to eat and so on.

Shrimp is still working OK, and will be an OK choice all year, but as the rains pick up and the water browns, start thinking stinky dead bait.
Oh and for you tarpon guys, tarpon eat dead bait. Well they eat it at first light, evening, and all night, be it lady fish , mullet or Silver Trout Tarpon do and always have eaten dead bait. They may call it the Silver King, but it is still a stinky old dead bait eater, Which anit so bad, I like my steak kinda dead as well.
Have fun
Fishin frank

04/2019

Top water lures, Not just for breakfast anymore.
Yes for years when growing up and learning to fish, I was told to use lures which stay on the surface only 2 ours before dark, until 2 hours after dark. The only exception would be cloudy days, taking that into account the cloudy day stuff, I thought about it and can to the conclusion that yes fish do not have eye lids. Why is that important? They can not squint into the sun light and looking up at the surface from underneath to see a lure on a bright sun shinny day would be almost impossible for a fish to see much less strike at a top water lure.

So why then can I use top water lures any time of the day on the flats to catch fish?
top water lures seemed to work anytime day or night on the flats. Well I believe it is a line of sight issue.

And that the cut off depth is about 6 foot of water give or take. When a fish is in deep water or close to the bottom in deep water it looks almost straight up to see a top water lure. Now that same fish on the flats in 2 or 3 feet of water would be looking in front of its self to see the lure, not up much at all.

Yes it is a different angle of view, in shallow water the lure is really in front of the fish not over its head. And another thing why is the back of a top water lure important? By that I mean the color of the top of the lure. Top water lures are sold with a white belly and blue back or white belly and green back, if the belly of the lure is all that is in the water why change the color on the top which is not in the water at all? Because of the water it is laying on. Water has many weird properties and not the least is waters can act like a mirror. When a lure lays on the surface and you look at it from underneath you see the belly white in this case and on both sides of the belly you see a reflection of the sides and the back or the lure So you would see black white black. The belly is only seen in the center.
Now I really enjoy using top water lures, it sort of completes the whole fishing thing, You see the fish strike the lure, then feel the hit and finally fight the fish. Sight, sounds, feel, maybe even Smell, but I don't want to catch the fish you can smell.
Why top water stuff, Well Tarpon, Jacks, Cobia, Even Sharks can be caught while using Top water lures and right now there is a bunch of Sharks, and Tarpon in the harbor. I am using the same size Top water I would for Amber Jacks, 5 to 8 inch lures for these fish/Sharks
To catch the Sharks on Top water, watch for schools of bait fish on the surface, Pick a lure with those colors or I choose really bright colors, to stand out from the other bait fish, Cast past the school and work the top water violently through the school, Sharks and several other major predators tend to hang out below the schools of bait fish, and if you work that lure through the school it can start a feeding frenzy. I can tell you nothing prepares you for a black tip hitting a top water lure and then doing a back flip two and a half gainer across the water. Now that is fun, and jacks on the bar near Burnt store
there is crazy fun to be had with top waters.
Head out and enjoy Charlotte Harbor is there and it has a bunch of big fish.
Fishin Frank

 

 don't remember when I wrote this

un-known author 2019

03/2019

Well the seas were not angry, So why did I sink my boat?

Well if you have been in business you start out doing just business with companies then you make friends and Shawn From A.F.W. Has become one of my best friends. Shawn decided to come down to Florida from Penn. Hard choice as it was snowing like crazy there and he brought his wife, So we decided a day of Fishing, sightseeing, and Islands restaurants would be a good escape for all of us. So the Four of us my wife and his headed out for the day. We started up on Shell creek trying for Tarpon and Shawn hooked up and lost one right away then they were gone we caught a couple cat fish and said OK lets move. The Fog which was thick as we started the day was slowly clearing and so we followed the fading fog all the way out to Boca Grande Pass and we fish the Phosphate docks for a while and No bites or hits. Which was not surprising as there was a big ole full moon the night before and most of the fish will feed all night and not really bite again until afternoon, So we headed out the pass into Gulf and down along the shore line of Cayo Costa to do some shelling. We found a stretch of beach with no one on it and even with a rollers coming in from the gulf they were not that big as to worry me about dropping them off on shore. “My first mistake” The correct way to drop someone on the beach is to put out a large anchor and run your anchor line through the pull ring on the front of the boat and ease the boat backwards to the shore with the Bow facing open water. The anchor line being at the pull ring allow the boat to ride any waves which might come in from wind or passing vessels. 10 years ago I worked out how to nose the boat up on the beach drop off the people and back out timing the surf. And have done this 100's of times.

This time as the bow of the boat touched the beach I felt the back of the boat drop about 10 inches as the wave approached the shore. OH Damn this is gonna suck! I hit reverse to try and get the back of the boat away from where the wave would break, But forgot about the full moon, The full moon makes the tide/currant twice as strong as normal “ my second mistake” the pull from the wave dropped the stern far enough down so the prop caught in the sand and stalled the motor.
I restarted the motor but too late, The first wave came over the stern only 2 inches above the gunnels putting 3 inches of water in the boat. Making her just too heavy for the out board to pull it back of the sand just as the boat full throttle started to back off the beach two more waves broke over the stern and my boat was sunk!
So now I am standing in a boat full of water, the waves crashed over the stem and washing everything in the boat out onto the beach. You have seconds to come up with a plan before the waves start destroying the boat. I watch a boat which had the thing happen but it turned sideways along the beach, I arrived on there about 40 minutes after it happen and the boat was already torn into pieces. So yes this could be bad. So we all jumped off the boat and I got Shawn to help me turn the bow back towards open water where she could face the waves, once the boat was turned around I took a quick check and no problems so far the out board had not gone under water but the batteries were under water, When the batteries go under water the start discharging like they were being used. If is not often they will just lose power you have a few minutes to get the post back up so the water is not sorting them out. And So far this has been about 5 minutes since the first wave came over the back of the boat.

The next step is to get the nose of the boat above the water so the waves can not keep filling the boat.
So both our wives grabbed buckets and started bailing. A couple minute break in the waves gave them time to get enough water out so Shawn and I could lift the bow and now she was riding the waves and only a bit of water was coming in over the sides of the boat.
This is where I got lucky. The boat was just too heavy with all of the water in it for us to drag her big butt off the beach. If we had two more people we could have done it but lucky, lucky me a Guy in a boat came up. I guess he noticed we were all in the water and boat was I guess you could say sunk.
He offered to pull us out so I held the bow up while Shawn swam out and got the rope from the guy, and I tied a bow line loop on my end as I know never ever hard tie my boat to another boat. So the guy started to tighten the line and guess he was a bit excited he forgot to ties the rope to his boat. So Shawn swam back out and got the rope to the guy. Who by the way, was an awesome person, and just really nice guy. So with the rope fixed to both boats, I held up my hand telling him to just tighten the line but not to pull until I waved. What I was waiting for was a larger wave, The Terry and Kathleen had been bailing like Crazy and had a lot of water out, But it needed just a bit more, a wave came up I yelled go Shawn and I lifted and the wave pushed the nose of the boat up water dumped out the back and off she floated. Now looking out at the boat pulling us. He had drifted off to the side with the pull and was going to pull my boat which still had a lot of water in it sideways to the surf, it would have rolled over and we would have been done. Remember I said never tie to another boat. I was bale to get the rope in my hands and my knees against the boat one big pull and I had the slack enough to get the loop off my cleat and we were free floating. I asked Shawn to push the boat out as I scrambled over the side and turned to key that Yamaha fired right up and when everyone was clear of the prop I idled out and then it was bailing enough water out of the boat the get the wire connections to the bilge pumps out from under water so I could hit the switch. Too risky with the wires under water. A few minutes of bailing and re-tighten a wire and both bilge pumps started pumping.
About then I looked back at the beach, Shawn and our wives had picked up the stuff and were walking along shelling and they did find some cool shells to take home along home with the story.
So 40 minutes from the first wave OMG to all of us back on board and heading to lunch and the Bar at Cabbage Key. This just seemed like the perfect Captain Morgan time. We were not even late for lunch.
After eating and a couple cocktails, thinking about what to do, None of us thought to save the ice. So with no cold drinks we decided not to stop and fish some more. So all in all a great story, and no one hurt and the boat well There is quite a bit of sand in the bilge but all of the Oak leaves and old grease and stuff is gone and out side of me vowing to never get lazy about how I get people off the boat at the beach. The boat is cleaner than when I started the day. I am wiser, and just a bit embarrassed. But all in all quite the adventure.
I wish we had caught more fish. That is really a let down, and plain embarrassing.

When fish are in schools, they sometimes take debate.

 

02/04/19

Fishing in The ICW or Inter coastal waterway has been great and continues to be good, But How can this be? The fish were all poisoned and everything was dead as Red tide and Blue green algae covered everything, everywhere. Well maybe while there was no Red Tide in Charlotte harbor proper there was bad out breaks in ht ICW or A.K.A. The Inter-coastal waterway. And Then right after it filled up with fish. Why, how, Well it could be several reasons,

Lets start with some maybes, Red tide can clean water of many algae and bacteria so the water can be cleaner after a Red Tide, But I do not think that’s the reason.

We did have some rain so maybe the fish liked the saltier waters, No as summer time the Harbor is very, very fresh and the fish are still there. By the way that is the reason we had no red tide in Charlotte Harbor the water was too fresh for Red Tide to live in it. Red tide only lives in real salt water.

So maybe the temperature and now this might be a real thing, The water this year is at least 10 degrees colder than average and the water down 6 feet or more stays a more constant temp warmer in the winter cooler in the summer months, So with the deep water of the ICW and the shallow flats with dark green grass right next to the deep water, in the morning the fish will be laying up in the deeper warmer water and as the sun beats down the fish will move into the shallows to warm up and feed. Yes the water warmed by the sun gets all of the tiny little bait things moving about to feed, and that gets the fish feeding.

But I would have to say that the reason I believe the fish are so thick along the ICW areas is that the shrimp are migrating out the harbor and into the gulf. Thousands upon thousands of shrimp a day are leaving the Harbor. A shrimp is not a strong swimmer and when they wish to leave they want move under the cover of darkness as every single thing on the planet wants to eat them, hiding in the dark is a smart thing to do. But not being strong swimmers they dig into the bottom on in-coming tides and swim up into the water on the out going tides hitching a ride with the tide as it leaves, smart idea for a creature that is only slightly smarter than a rock, So any way the ICW and the flats close by are full of shrimp and that is why I think there is so many fish there.

And of course saying that, what would be the best bait to use? Why yes indeed match the hatch theory use Shrimp, and this would be my best advice for the near shore reefs as the shrimp are trying to get to 60+ feet of water and are traveling past all of the near shore reefs.

You can also say hi to the hundreds of shrimp boats out there from almost every state on he gulf But Florida. Yes they come here as the shrimping in their states are closed and only Florida does not close commercial shrimping. More on that on another day.
Have fun

Fishin Frank

01/24/19

Here what I can't figure out, the best fishing we have had over the last couple months has been where the Red tide had hit the hardest. All along the in-side of Gasparilla Island and Cayo Costa and Islands to the north and south.

The Docks on the in side of these Islands have had Big Snook and some smaller ones, a lot of over size Red fish. Sheep head, black drum and a few other fish, Now why would they all be at this place over the Harbor?

Well water temp could be a factor as we have had some of the coldest waters on several years and it is possible that the short distance between deep water over 6 foot deep and shallow water under two foot deep might be the deciding factor, When a fish is trying to stay warmer at night they will drop down in to waters more than 6 foot as it takes a lot longer for the cold to get that deep, shallow water can change temperature very quickly over night with just a little breeze. And That would account for why the fish like the shallows as the sun warms the water very fast by afternoon they can sun bathe warming up in the shallows for the up coming colder night.

Another thing it might be is salinity, Fresh water coming into the Harbor can move fish out but we have not had that much rain so I doubt that the salt content of the water is why they are here.

Red tide yes red Tide is the most likely suspect to have brought so many types of fish to the Inter-coastal at this time. OK I know if you watch the news at night this might not make sense, But In my opinion the new broadcasts don’t make sense either, So here is my side of the argument. Red tide kill not only fish but many types of algae and bacteria which can make the water cleaner, maybe fresher? But it does not kill Shrimp, Oyster, clams, Crab and things like that. So after a red tide the shrimp which are a simple creature at best multiply and grow fast and breed. The more they eat the faster they grow and with out predators, Another thing the red tide would kill most of the things that eat these little creatures and then they feed on the dead fish and things on the bottom and the fish on the bottom put nitrates and things into the sand which help Coquinas or small tiny clams and shell fish to grow.
even Barnacles can multiply faster. All of these things could be whats driving fish to hang out here in the inter-coastal

But I would suspect the reason there are so many fish in the inter-coastal water way and the docks n the in side of the Islands is that the Shrimp are migrating out of Charlotte Harbor in huge numbers and there just seems to be a lot of them. Which could be because of the dead from the red tide or it could be just a cycle year where a ton of shrimp were hatced and there is just naturally millions of them. What ever the reason is there is huge bunches of Shrimp leaving the Harbor each day and the fish are liking it.

I would say the most apparent thing is that all of the fish are hitting Live Shrimp or dead shrimp but they are eating shrimp and like they say match the hatch. So my thinking is Red tide maybe brought on more shrimp or food, or maybe it just is.
But whatever the reason there is a lot of shrimp moving out and the fish are eating. And by the bye the same thing holds true on any of the near shore reefs with in 10 miles of the beach. Drop a shrimp down and hang on.

This should go on, through the month of February with a great possibility for you to catch a tasty shrimp dinner any night you can get to the passes during an out going tide.

 

12/22/18

Hey Boys and Girls I am back sort of, All of a sudden the store next to us moved and we took over an extra 1780 Sq feet bringing us to almost 4000 sq feet of fishing tackle and then we found an old storage area out side with a covered roof so we built a seminar area, with benches and tables so you have a place for your drink, writing notes and just makes it all the more comfortable.

With all the extra space part of which I used to have and a down turn in money made me give it up, But now we have a Rod and reel room with 14 feet of wonderful ceiling height after 34 years of 8'3” ceiling this is a god send wonderful thing, I bought a couple 12 and 13 foot surf rods just because I could stand them up. Tackle boxes and Cast net have a room. And I guess the embarrassing yet true we have built a Boutique room with shirt and hats and stuff. Ouch that one hurt. In the main room there are big racks full of Rod and reel combos from $19.99 and up to what ever you want to spend.

The hard part was coming to terms with I am a store clerk and no longer a construction worker, and my body feels this. I hope you will stop by and just check out the new toys, The reason this was possible was great friends and the people who work here, After a couple of weeks going every day 7 days a week month after month, I have not been the easiest person to be around and thank you to everyone for putting up with it all.

Just a say a bit about the fishing it has and continues to be a pretty darn good year for fishing, Now it is true most days it is better to be lucky than good, But in the gulf some of the best Snapper, Grunt fishing in years if you are not having that kind of luck try live shrimp on a 3/0 circle hook, lighten up your rod to a 12 to 20 pound class and 30 pound braid, and a 2 once sinker.

In the Harbor and sounds there is a ton of Trout and true to this time of year there is a lot of smaller ones, switch to a TT-18 mirror lure cast it out and let it sink for 3 seconds then slow twitch it back in. The slow twitch and being a bit deeper will attract the larger Trout. The other lure which I use for larger Trout is the Rapala sub-walk in the OG color this lure you walk the dog under water not fast a steady pace, Bam big Trout.

There is also a bunch of Large Mouth Bass fishing going on, I guess with a Red Tide scares a lot of people have rediscovered Bass fishing weather above the Franklin locks or the North Port Canals systems the bite is on. White Lizards, Top water Frogs, or Green Pumpkin worms are rockin the Bass.

Well I hope to see you on the water if not stop by Fishin Franks and say Hi.
Fishin Frank

12/18/18

Sometimes you run your life sometimes life runs you, kind of like being in a boat going fishing often we are so consumed with getting where we want to go. We don't see what's right there in front of us.
I have often been running my boat to go to a spot I was pretty darn sure the fish were biting and then see or smell something which will make me turn stop and start fishing.

Robert is sniffing for what smells like water-melon rind or a WD-40 sent in the air. Often when bait is bunched up or fish are feeding on bait fish you can actually smell it. Now if I am cruising along I like to get the boat on plane then back off the throttle so the motor slows but the boat remains on plane, then I can scan the shore line for fish pushing the surface, By that I mean, think of when you were in a swimming pool and you push your hand just under the surface of the water and you can see the surface swell just a little and it produces waves like a tiny boat wake. So see fish blow up. That is when a fish gulps down a bait fish which is right at the surface and the fishes head will breach out of the water creating a pow or pop swirling sound and that is absolutely a fish feeding. If you see the whole fish jump out of the water and belly flop back down, that is a mullet, a great eating fish but will not bite your bait, they are just there to sell real estate or make you crazy.

Once you see or smell something, it starts to get tricky. First thing is to stop. And it is better not to go from full run to boom shut down, often that will spook fish. So I try to ease the throttle back so I slow down gradually. And I try to keep my eye on what I saw. One other thing if you smelled watermelon-rind look carefully at the water you should see a slight oil slick. That is where the smell comes from.

I would often be running across the flats with people on the boat and turn in sharply to a shore line and they would say, What did you see, I would reply, I smelled fish farts, hard to find out who's eating.

If it is an open water area local knowledge is helpful as I know where the pot holes or depressions are under the water so I can motor to the edge of where the pot holes are and cast into that group of holes.
If you are new to that area. Watch the slick and try to get up wind and as far back from it as you can cast.

Have you ever thought about chumming with fish oil on the flats? Well me too, I found out that was one of my dumber ideas. I thought I often find fish looking for the slight surface slicks from bait fish or other schooling fish, and with all of that fish smell in the water it has to work! ALL the Fish in the world are mine now ha, ha, ha I thought with a maniacal laugh. And what really happens is that the oil makes the surface of the water like glass. The fish look up and bam, there you are and boom off the go.
Once that oil went across the surface those fish hauled butt and I think are still running.

Which brings me to the last thought, the calmer and clearer the water the farther back away from the fish you have to stay. I can tell you many fish like Snook will not run when they see you, But they darn sure wont bite.

This is a random thought piece as 2018 was a random thought year. We at Fishin Franks and Fishin franks II hope your 2019 will be awesome and you get time to fish and enjoy the wondrous place called S.W. Fla. Than you for a really amazing 2018 and watch out 2019 here comes Fishin Franks bigger than ever.

11/25/18

Oh yeah lets jump in the boat and go fishin.
So you go to back up the boat, it has been awhile so to make the boat go left I turn well give me a minute. Now I took off the hook and straps and the ramp is not that steep I will just back up fast down the ramp so the boat will not fall off no problem, what is that crunching scarping noise?

Some of the best entertainment you can have is to take a lawn chair and cooler and sit by a boat ramp on a busy weekend. Why would a guy who will not let his wife drive the boat and trailer on the road, make her back the boat down the ramp? And then you have the guys who sit impatiently waiting to get to the ramp, and once on the ramp use that time to take off all of the straps and load all of their gear on the boat and put the plugs in. why not do all of that while you are waiting before you get on the ramp?

 

OK now we are going out lets get the motor trimmed way out from the boat so the front end will do a real cool wheelie, like we are launching for outer space. Or you cou8ld tuck the motor as close to the boat as possible and make the boat go on plane safely, but whee is the fun in that? Lets say you start with the motor close to the boat and once you reach cruising speed you trim the motor up away from the boat to get the perfect ride ans you should save a lot of fuel as you can reduce the throttle as the bottom is lifting clear of the water by reducing the drag or friction from the water. Ne tip if you are going against the wind try and keep the nose of the boat as low as possible or you will ride up the wave and slam down, I watch a lot of people pounding their way across the Harbor against the wind. All they have to do to smooth the ride is lower the front. Now running with the wind is different. You need to have the front of the boat up a bit or when you cross over a wave you will stick the nose of your boat into the next wave. It is doubtful you will sink but having a wall of water going through your boat will make you pucker and rethink life in general. And get a chart if you run from one marker to the next staying as close as you can, not a great idea. Watch the chart if the water is the same depth or greater a ¼ mile away from the marker why would you run so close to THE most dangerous object in the Harbor the big wood thing.

So we finally make it to where we are going to fish, and darn it there is a boat in MY spot. Really we if you are from an area where there is a lot of people on the water t is OK to fish very close to other boats. But you are in Charlotte Harbor and we like 100 yards between us if possible. Or 3 good casts. And NEVER anchor in some ones chum line. If you see a boat anchored in the Harbor anchor off to the side far enough way so you can not see the nose on their face. Not behind or in front off to the side. As you would like them to do. NO they do not own the water, But neither do YOU.

Now I like to cast net for bait fish, which can be awesome for the other people on the boat of you wear jewelry or watches of button shirts so when you throw that cast net as hard as you can and it snags on something pulling you off the boat, well most of the time they will pull you back on-board once they stop laughing. Oh and take the bait you need not what you want it is OK to use bait not OK to waste it. Every two you kill is 500 not there the next year.
Now a common practise’s is to chum with live bait fish. It is NOT OK to crush or mutilate the bait you are using as chum put them in a bat and toss them out. A great idea is to lift your forward foot as you rear back to throw the bat full of bait letting your foot fall just off the side of the boat so you can topple into the water, Now as you sit there under water watching the bait swim calmly out of our chum bat, think you still have to get back to the surface and take the ribbing and laughing you start to wonder how long can I really hold my breath?

So you chummed and the fish are blowing up on the bait or freebies as we call them, but they will not touch a bait with a leash. “one with a hook and line” the trick is to hold the rod with the bait ready to cast and throw your bait fish right where the fish just blew up. And it really does look like some one dropped a cherry bomb in the water and it blew up when the fish hit a freebie. How ever we are starting to think the fish may be catching on to that chumming trick so try putting your bait out first maybe one free-lined no weight or float and one maybe 3 feet under a float, See if the fish will hit if not then chum maybe 4 to 6 pieces the more you chum the more will hit but will they hit your line, less likely with fewer chummers you are more likely to hook up.

Now with salt water fish you might not want to set the hook like you are Bass fishing, most of the time you will see the hook fly out of the water wrapping around and around you head until the hook comes to a nice stop hopefully just in your ear or scalp. Not your nose, altho I was at the mall and that is the new “IN” look hook through the nose and if it seem like it would be too painful, just sett the hook really hard on a Snook and that nose ring is no problem.

Oh and just for fun don't look in the mouth of a fish be fore you grab it by the mouth or lip it. This is amazing fun for the other people as you scream and dance around with a fishes teeth stuck in your hand or it is trying to swallow a finger or two. Me I always look before I grip,touch, or put my fingers anywhere.

Some of the fish here in Florida have very sharp fin's which if they get stuck into your hand can cause infection like Red Fish, Snook, Sea Trout or even Cat Fish. I like to use a fish gripper tool which would hold the fish or even just hold the jaw of a fish, Be cautious as to the weight of a fish, if it has a big belly you can dislodge the jaw of a fish with a holder/gripper so support the belly smaller or more trim fish it is unlikely you will cause problem with a gripper.

OK and if you like salmonella and a lot of trips to the bath room, which of course every one does, lets put your fish on a stringer in 90 degree water while you continue to fish. The trots are really fun and where would be the fun of placing your fish on ice in a chest so it stays fresh and wonderful in the Florida heat. Why that is just plain boring.

When I fish bait I should just put a sinker on and cast it out far as I can. Well it is salt water fishing. But what does that have to do with anything? If you are fishing from a pier you go out as far as you can and cast out. If you are in a baot you cast as close to shore as possible or as far under the pier as you can. Hummm what? Well I think it is pier boat envy If you are on a pier you wish you were way out on a boat, And The people in the boat know that most fish like heavy structure and want the fish hiding under the pier. And maybe they think I spent all this money on a boat but I wish I was still just walking out the pier and just relaxing instead of paying boat payments a simpler life and time. Grass always greener or water always bluer.

Lure fishing is a passion of mine, But I have changed a couple things over the years. With time ou learn how things work better or worse, I would have never guessed a single hook instead of a treble hook would get more fish to the boat. And That by flatting the barbs on the front treble hook I could make the lure safer for me and the fish and acually land more fish. VMC hook have a sungle hook replacement for lures to get rid of the back treble hook and it works great. Why not replace both front and rear treble hooks, The truth is most lures will not wrok or run properly with out the fornt treble hook not only is it the weight it is that the treble hook acts like a rudder to help control the lure as it swims through the water. And So I crush the barbs on the front ones and single hook the back keeping the great action of lures like the Rapala X-rap which has that realalistic swimming motion balenced and tested by Rapala but with out the front treble it is just not right.

All of these thing are really fun to watch but not so cool to do, I hope you have a Merry Christmas or Hanukah and Happy New Year



 

10/28/18

Changes we all kind of hate them or dread them in some ways, But change things do. Like S.O.S. Marine closing, I went to the last day and bought some stuff, Jerry who is one of the best mechanics and friends I have ever known retired. And I understand that is a good thing he has worked hard and deserves a rest. But I was still standing there trying not to tear up.

Changed like Red tide is every where and then it is gone and the places where “all “ of the fish were dead now have fish again. Do people think God is that dumb not to have a plan “B” fish move off and when it's over they move back in. Same as humans. The Pan handle got slammed with a major Hurricane People left and people come back.

Changes Red Fish is one of the biggest changes I have ever seen in the fishing of Charlotte, About 5 years ago I started taking about where did the Red Fish go? About December the Reds would all but disappear. Then in July the Red Fish would magically reappear. I looked up some old articles and listened to some old Pod Cast from fishinfranks.com and sure enough there it was me and Robert talking about the hole in the space time continuum. A funny way of saying they disappeared and everyone was going around crying there is no Red Fish, then by august the Red fish were every where again. I was talking to a marine biologist and he asked me if I thought it was increasing pressure on the Reds that would be causing this, I said wrong word continuous pressure was the more likely suspect. What I mean is that when the weather cools down the locals start to fish more, and then add the snow birds and tourist and the Charter boats and the flats get a bit full of boats. It would be hard for a fish to find a place to relax. So in my opinion they are moving to quieter areas as the normal or historic fishing spot fill up with boats. Then move back when it is slower.

Changes even at Fishin Franks we are now just about twice the size we were a month ago. And yes there is even a boutique. Ouch, But hey changes customers come in and say where is this or that and as Robert says it is one giant Easter egg hunt right now. Now the question is with a room full of shoes, shirts, sunglasses, gifts and apparel do I need to change my slogan This Anit no boutique? After all it aint the whole store just a room. Well you decide.

Changes Snook and Red fish were put as catch and release only until at least May. No one knows why as F.W.C. Will not let the stock assessments out for public viewing, are they playing politics? or watching out for the fish? Me I think they are not doing things in our best interest just for some politician to say look at me I’m a good person. Just like the F.B.I. And others the working people are great and the management is screwed up.

Changes well the weather changed and it is cool and the fish are moving in, Cobia, Pompano, and Spanish mackerel are all in the Harbor and the Sheep head have moved back to the Placida Trestle, So some changes are good other are like changing a diaper, not bad once your done but you have to live through some crappy smelly times to get there.
One thing that has not changed we are all still here and there are fish to catch.

09-27-18

El-Diablo lives in Charlotte.
Yes we ran into or I should say hooked up el-Diablo on a Fishing trip with Capt. Karl. My son Frank with two of his friends Schmidt and Dunn can to visit and catch big fish.
 

So Friday they flew in and we went fishing we had to catch live lady fish for bait and what is strange the neither the Shark or Tarpon would hit dead bait, they would slam live bait, maybe the dead fish from the Red tide on the coast has made them wary of dead fish? Any We hooked some tarpon and sharks Friday but did not get any to the boat, So that night as we were loading the boat at Ponce Frank cast a lady fish up against the piling of the docks and bam Nice Snook I would guess in the lower slot size. Saturday we were out bright and early and first thing is catch8ing bait live lady fish was the target and there would huge schools of lady fish right off Mangrove point, thousands of them, The trick was getting them in the boat, I think it was 10 on and 1 in. The VmC Hot Skirt jig was the ticket, They would hit it and live, so in he live well they went.

We headed down off Cape Haze First off a shark I would guess to be about 6 to 8 foot slammed a lady fish and Dunn took the Rod and just as it came next to the boat pop goes the leader.

El-Diablo shows up. And came out of the water with a vengeance. Schmidt is on the Rod.. Down and dirty the Tarpon dives, wait heads up it is coming out. It leaps from the water, WOW fat fish. Schmitt bows to the king. One more time it surfaces with a quick head and shoulders out of the water throwing water 6 foot in every direction. Now the Tarpon shows it's true colors and starts pulling us east. I am on the helm and Karl is helping. About 20 minutes in the bobber show at the surface and Schmidt pulls and the Tarpon turns towards the boat. Hey this is gonna be a quick fight, so Karl gets ready and I move the boat forward and the Tarpon screams off another 150 yards of line, 40 minutes later the float comes back to the surface, Schmidt is steady pulling, Karl checks the drag, tightens a couple clicks, we get ready and off El-Diablo goes again. OK 40 minutes is not bad then again at an hour, and hour and 15 minutes on and on it goes. I put the boat in reverse and try to pull the Tarpon with the boat, Karl is checking the drag, I use the boat to try and pull to the left and then to the right, we use neutral so the Tarpon is dragging the boat. Nothing seems to work 2 ours and 15 minutes in and are you kidding me? Now we are thinking maybe the Tarpon is foul hooked. Sometimes the hook will pull from the mouth and get caught in it's tail. Nope the next surface time it is hooked right in the button, this is just a Devil of a fish. Mean and nasty. Now it is time one way or the other this is going to end. So Karl locks down on the drag and I moved the boat so Karl can reach the line, and the Tarpon is still pulling drag! I checked after the fight I could not pull it with my hands. So again I try to place the boat so Karl can reach the line he gets it and the fish plunges away Karl is pulling hand over hand Schmidt is pumping the Rod and Karl refuses to let go of the line So I watch and grab Karl by the back of his pants and his shirt, This Tarpon pulled Karl's head under water twice as he tried to land it after a 2 ½ our battle an hour and a half with close to 30 pounds of drag. By the by most Tarpon are fought with 8 to 13 pounds of drag. Once the fish was next to the boat
it was not that long and at first glance you would have thought 100 pounds then you look close at the girth, That Short tarpon was an easy 160 Short maybe 6 foot long but built like a bull dog and we were only able to hang onto it for five minutes, That fish should have been laying up resting for 20 minutes but it was trying to jump away from Karl it was lively and wanted away from us. The whole fight not only lasted 2.5 hours it was 4.8 miles from where we started

We also had a 4 foot Gar at Cape haze and small Bull Shark, Frank caught as well as A tarpon hooked on a Rapala on the east side sand bar, so not bad fishing. But if you are tarpon fishing in Charlotte harbor eat your Wheaties before you go and maybe pump some Iron, because Tarpon El-Diablo is alive and mad swimming in Charlotte Harbor.

09/2018

The big Purple elephant, or a problem we have never talked about.
This is not meant to make people mad, only make them think.
Think about what or who is to blame for a lack of fish. First thing is too many people, Too many Tournaments, Shrinking Habitat, Pollution, Commercial Fishing, Red Tide.

These are the factors people talk about when asked. I think there is one more. Another hidden in plain sight and is a biggie. Charter boats! In-shore charter fishing. Why after all of these years I never thought of this, I guess it was just a part of daily things going on and if I thought about in-shore charters it was who caught fish the most fish. Most fish is the interesting part. Many of in-shore Captains catch 30 Red Fish in a four hour trip and with customers on board that could be two fish or more in the cooler. Then later that day the Captain will book an afternoon trip and bada bing another two or more Red fish go into the cooler. Always staying within the rules, I would hope. But were the rules meant to allow a single boat to take Dozens of fish each week. Where as the average recreational angler might keep a couple fish a week.

In-shore Charter fishing boats are responsible for some of the highest amounts of kept fish, and no one is talking about that. There are a lot more people fishing true, But there is a huge number of Charter boat Captains getting their license each year. In Florida the Captains number in the tens of thousands.

Each day on the West Coast of Florida Dozens of fishing Charters are run in the in-shore waters.
Why am I talking about the in-shore boats? Well there is limited space for the fish to live or hide and most places can be found as Charter Captains are on the water many days a week following the Fish.
Where as the vast amount of places in the Atlantic or Gulf of Mexico gives the fish more places to hide and more chances of not being caught again and again. And to another point many of the gulf fish grow up in the in in land back waters.

I guess I started thinking about this as more and more Captains started talking about catch and release fishing. And I thought about how good many of them are at finding and catching fish. Then calculator math set in. 50 Captains a day taking two red fish is 100 Red fish and that per year is 36,000 Red fish and Then think about Snook is open about 150 days a year so 50 times 150 = 7500 Snook a year for a conservative total of 43,500 Red fish and Snook taken a year by in-shore charter fishing Captain. I should think the number is more than three times that amount.

I guess I wonder a couple things, These are the people telling us we should Catch and release? And If we find that what I am thinking is true or worse my numbers are really low. Maybe it is time we re-think the fishing laws for The In-shore charter boat captains and their customers. Is it time in-shore Charters are put on a catch and release basis only, Or a monthly or yearly quota of fish taken like a normal commercial fishing vessel which is what they are. Charter boats with a 6 pack license are just commercial fishing boat. Each week they take much higher number of fish, due to the amount of people they take and the skills they have.

I think that it is time top regulate this industry. OK I only spoke of Snook and Red fish, think of how many Trout, Sheep head, Snappers, Cobia, Pompano, and every other fish. The numbers are staggering.

 

Now I could be wrong about all of this, and I have asked several Charter Boat Captain to point out mistakes in my logic or numbers, which I did low to be safe. So for the Captains who will hate me for writing this, please take a moment to think about this and write me frank@fishinfranks.com and I will add that to my column and I hope I am wrong about this. As I am a charter Captain.
Frank

08/27/2018

Deja-vu to Deja-what?
It all started when Mike asked me to write an article about fishing in Horse creek, Hey cool I love fishing Horse Creek but I just don't get there often. And my days have been a bit, well they have been a bit. So I wake up and feeling great look in the mirror and Who's the old guy? Some strange looking old man is looking back at me. The back story is that we had Pestgurad from Sarasota Tent our house for Termites, So I call SWFL RV rental to get a place to stay while they tented the house and it was great a nice Trailer with all the comforts and we could stay at the house while they tented, Awesome! However sitting there on our concrete blocks and having a night cap & nicotine the feeling of deja-vu 14 years ago we were sitting right there looking at the house from an R.V. After Charlie, So once again looking at a house we can't use. At least this time it was only for 3 days.

So I had an article to finish so we got back in the house and after hauling and carrying everything I was ready for a boat ride. And, Bam! Once again Deja-vu. I headed up river and as soon as I cross the Desoto line The was People everywhere. Desoto County on the Peace River is full of what we call Red Neck Campgrounds wonderful little Islands with beaches on them and People swimming and Drinking, talking while standing in the water swing from ropes into the water boats and Barbeque grilles. What A difference from the gloom and doom of the Salt water. This was the story all the way to Horse Creek.

New comers and Slat water people do not realize that right where Horse Creek meets the Peace Rive is an amazing beach and has been a favorite hang out of Locals for decades. Now If you are going to run up there you need to know a couple of rules. Do not go fast around a corner there could be 50 people in the water around that bend. And if you leave trash you will not find your welcome back. Boats can get little round holes in them up in the back woods. These are the nicest people I have ever met and very welcoming, But this is their back yard and you are welcome but Treat it and the folks and their kids with respect. Lazy, stupid, reckless need not show up.

As to my fishing adventure well I make my way up to the creek and looking north it was beautiful Horse creek is a pretty a spot as you will ever see. But when I looked south east, dang thunder boomers building big time so I tied on my Rapala Rip stop and let my boat drift cast the left side just behind the concrete wall. Yes there is some old ruins up there from the glory days of River travel, Massive old metal tubes sticking up. I think where they would tie up the phosphate barges and there might have been a bridge there at some point in time. But any way I thought with all of the water coming d up of the creek the Bass or Snook would be hanging out in an eddy, so 3 casts and I got my first hit and the rain drops started, 3 more casts no hits and the rain was coming so I started the boat and headed back down river. On the way up I know there was over 150 boats lined up on sand bars, Islands and coves. But Red Necks anit stupid so Mother nature was getting ready to rain havoc and they were hauling butt.

I was Proud to see them slowing to an idle for people loading their camp/picnic stuff in their boats to tell the truth I was not sure if I should write about the wonderful world of Up-River Red necks. It is their world and maybe I should keep their secret. But seeing it alive and well and so many happy people getting along. I am smiling as I type. No I did not catch fish that trip, But what I did catch was a bit of pride and wonderment from awesome people and a life style which is still going strong.

Thank God for Red necks they give me hope,
Enjoy be good to each other and the places we love to go. Like Horse creek and the Peace River
Fishin Frank

08/2018

This one is a bit bitchy, sorry I never sent it in to be published as it was kind of mean. But I wrote it so I thought you should see
I am not as nice as I might be, I have those moments.

Life and death and the other unimportant matters of Red Tide.
Well I got to tell ya Boys and girls I have heard a lot of scared and angry people over the last few months. And why? Social media, Yes this was the first social media Red tide event in our history, and the more it popped on Social media the more the TV media picked it up. For the record. FACT this was no where near the worst Red Tide we have had, Please understand that just because the water has a Brown or red tint, that does not mean it is Red Tide. Most often during a Red Tide the water will not appear Red. The Tanic acid in the leaves of Oak Tress and many other plants dies the water a brownish red color, Just like in many rivers and creeks in Canada.

To hear people talk this spring and watching the news we are all dead and dieing, and all of the fish and wild life are gone. Give me break! And If I hear about how the Caloosahatchee is causing Red tides in Venice or Englewood that is just plain B.S.

The currant in the Gulf flows from the north to the south, along the west coast of Florida So I don't think Red Tide can swim against the currant. Did it grow little froggy legs and swims? No the problem with people making up things with out looking for facts is we do not find out what is really causing the problem. And I want to know the real cause of the problems.

While I am writing, Lake Okeechobee is not poisoned, In fact it is still some of the best Bass Fishing in the world! So what did happen to cause this Blue Green Algae, Well the best explanation I can find is three weather patterns and human error of sorts, We had an overly rainy January which caused an extreme run off into The Big O then it got dry and still so all that run off into Okeechobee just sort of settled to the bottom. Then BAM Hurricane Irene hits and with the massive winds and waves stirred up the Big O and all of the excess fertilizer and muck mixed up in the water and Then the Human part.

They were working on the Dike so instead of as they had since 1939 pulse the water releases letting some out then stopping, to give it time to disperse. The Government just opened the locks and let er run, There was no way the salt water/brackish water bays could take this much nasty gunk all at once and continuously, it over whelmed the Bays on the East coast and west coast of Florida. Causing the blue/green algae to flourish, making toxic amount of this muck.

Now people can blame Farmers for every thing but think about it, This release has been going on since 1939. So why now, why this bad, I understand it is easy to get mad and call names and make people feel better if they can say that bad farmer bad, bad, bad. But will that fix any thing No. Will it cause more problem YES. We need food. 330,000.000 million people in the U.S. Now I think so that’s 900,000,000, think of it 900 million meals a day, and there is less sugar cane by half than there was in the 1990's most sugar is from South America and the Islands where they can use D.D.T. After all it is only Illegal in the U.S. So the rice and other crops they grow far out weigh the sugar, Not defending them, but I understand how important food is. And to be truthful you should too.

So lets help get the farmers a reservoir they can pump water from and excess water from the farm land into. Why build a drinking water reservoir, when we all ready have Lake O and others. Lets solve the problems, Make the dumb feds change the water restriction going into the ever glades. Right now if you poured a bottle of drinking water into the glades you could be fined for polluting the water, Yes bottle water in not pure enough. So turn the everglades back into the filter it once was. Dig big deep lakes and then have very shallow weedy areas so the water can settle and be filtered, and make ditches wide enough to plant Duck grass which is an excellent filter with high profit when harvested for oils and animal food. This is enough complaining with out understanding.

I had a person come in and Tell me the Myakka River was all Red tide just because of the water color. Not knowing is not bad, But making stuff up should be saved for inter-net social media comment, If you don't understand or don't know that is ok. But going around stating that this is what's going on when you don't have a clue is just, Well Clueless and that sort of thing is what's the internet is for.
A good rule of thumb if you don't know. Ask.
Fishin Frank

08/2018

Hidi ho neighbors, with all of the gloom and doom out there in the media social and interweb I am here to tell you the truth, Red Tide has NOT been in the upper Harbor at all this year and the fishing is not bad. Is it wonderful well maybe, is you are the lucky one who gets on one of the schools of monster Black drum or one of the schools of Tarpon. Capt. Karl went 9 for 13 in other words landed 9 out of ten hook ups on Tarpon. Schools of Spanish mackerel and lady fish are in the Harbor and the Red fish on the north end of the west Wall and Myakka Cut off are in good numbers, The Reds by the skating rink are mostly over size. OK yes there are plenty of Snook but the larger ones are way up the Peace or Myakka Rivers. With a lot of smaller ones on the flats.

This was by no means the worst Red Tide we have had, 2006 and 2009 were way worse. Maybe because there was no social Media back then and this was our first Social media Red Tide event that it seems so catastrophic.

The Red tide comes and it goes as it always has. As I wite this today I have had several reports of bait fish along the beaches. Schools of pompano are going through Boca Pass and have been running the sand bars on the West side of the Harbor and from Pirate Harbor to two Pines just out side the bars.


For everything being dead in the Harbor there is an awful lot of fish being caught, And if you can get on them Jacks in the 5 pound range off Turtle bay and up towards the Mouth of the Myakka river will test your rod and the drag on your reel,

To be truthful this is a fairly normal September Fishing. I guess a young anglers thought turn to Snook at this time of year so,

Snook Fishing. What I love about Snook fishing is that a boat could make Snook fishing harder, as Snook like the piers and dams and more live in he Canals and or under bridges than anywhere.

A great way to catch your Snook is to take a Shrimp for a walk, Now remember to keep your Shrimp on a lease. I would use a Med heavy 7' Spinning rod with a 4000 size reel and 30 pound braided line with 40 pound floro leader and a Boxing glove Jig head at least 3/8 once, and I like pink, Hey it's Pretty and I catch a lot of snook with pink, So there! Ok place the point of the hook on the under side of the shrimps mouth when you are ready it should look like the shrimp is following the Jig Head.
Let the shrimp jig go to the bottom right off the side of the pier and then very slowly and quietly walk out the pier. Trying to keep the Shrimp 1 foot off the bottom. And Hang on. When you get hit, the whole fight is right thee at your feet, If the snook goes 5 feet to the left or right it will warp the pilling and break off, So tight drag set to hate, and hang on.

Lots of fishing and fun to be had in South west Florida and I am doubling the size of my store in Port Charlotte. Which would be not smart if the fishing was not good, and I am weird but not qiuite stupid.
Enjoy
Fishin Frank

Who would have thought, Fishing is getting great again, The upper Harbor is alive with giant schools of black drum, Pods apon pods of tarpon and big schools of Thread fins, reports of nice schools of lady fish and Pompano. How can this be?
Don't know don't care sometimes just is, is a wonderful thing. And by the way there has not been any Red tide north of Cape Haze this Year,

Now OK the Fishing being good is a strange thing but here is the really weird thing, There are hundreds of Big Red fish In the Harbor. With quite a bit of Slot Size red fish, But I will say the vast reports of what I am hearing and By the BY I have caught is over slot Red fish. Yes these big old bull reds are each year starting to stay around more or they could be left overs from the old stocking programs. It is a thought that Red Fish which were not Native to hear and just released as young adults possibly do not migrate out of the Harbor they way Native born fish do. Why not well Salmon released into a lake will not go to a River to spawn, So it is possible that could be why Red fish which are way too big to still be here, are here. Or They could be just lazy and prefer living in Mom and Dads Garage.

How do you catch them. Today I was reminded of an old trick, Put the shrimp, large or small in a white bucket or cooler and provide bright light, Just do not have the bulb close or you will cook your shrimp. Shrimp will try to match the color of their surroundings and turn very clear, sort of white in color make them stand out like a sore thumb, and bam/pow fish on. How ever the best way to get fish right now is dead bait, Blue crab cut in half or top off, Cut Mullet is a very good bait right now. I think I for get how may fish love mullet. Yes indeed dead sticking is the way to go, In other words cast your bait out and let it sit until the fish stats moving away. Unless there is a lot of currant where you are the less weight you can use the better. If you feel a bite do not move the bait, often when I think I have a bite, I will pull the bait a little to try and make the fish think it's food is getting away. If you do that trick now the fish is likely to just let it get away, too much effort. Hot water has very low oxygen levels and the fish are sleepy.

 

If you are a person who uses lures, Lets say a Paddle tail with a jig head, find a paddle tail with a large tail and is very soft and then use a 1/8 or lighter jig head, this allows you to slowly very slowly reel the shad in so it is barely moving but the tail is still going. A heavier jig head you have to reel too fast to keep it off the bottom. Another old trick is to use jointed lures, You know the ones slit in the middle jointed lures can be reeled in very slowly while still having great action.

Now there are huge schools of 60 pound black drum in the Harbor and how do you catch them, first you have to find them. Just watch the surface of the water and look for water out of place, somethinig different a different color, waves that are going side ways to other waves. You are ot looking for fish jumping out of the water, You are looking for fish displacing the water or churning up the bottom.
What should you use for them, Crabs, shirmp, or cut bait. But rigging is key a bait under a bobber or float is better than a sinker, Think if of it this way, you can see the the fish so a sinker would take you down past them too fast. Try a small Split shot just enough to help you cast, and get your bait to sink a little but not too fast. Free line is the best way with no sinkers or floats. These Black drum will often be schooling from the surface all the way to the bottom.
Funny very few people are going fishing compared to noraml years and we have some great fishing, This kind of makes it even better as there is not many folks out there, So head out Enjoy the quiet time.
The Harbor will fill with boats before long enjoy while you can.

Fishin Frank

 

This is a article from C. Krauthammer
warning not that someone is opposing Trump, heck who wouldn't at some point.
But this is more about an evil and sinister plan. They are subverting our laws and rules of government
for their own purpose.   watch out, the water is getting pretty warm Mr. Froggy.

The Enemy Amongst Us!
By Charles Krauthammer, New York Post
— March 6, 2018

I do not understand how living in a
country with its democracy established more than 200 years
ago, and now, for the first time in history, suddenly we
have one of our former presidents set up a group called
“Organizing for Action” (OFA).

OFA is 30,000+ strong and working to
disrupt everything that our current president’s
administration is trying to do. This organization goes
against our Democracy, and it is an operation that will
destroy our way of governing. It goes against our
Constitution, our laws, and the processes established over
200 years ago. If it is allowed to proceed then we will be
living in chaos very much like third world countries are
run.

What good is it to have an established
government if it is not going to be respected and allowed to
follow our laws? If you had an army some 30,000 strong and a
court system stacked over the decades with judges who would
allow you to break the laws, how much damage could you do to
a country? We are about to find out in America!

Our ex-president said he was going to
stay involved through community organizing and speak out on
the issues and that appears to be one post-administration
promise he intends to keep. He has moved many of his
administration’s top dogs over to Organizing for Action.
OFA is behind the strategic and tactical implementation of
the resistance to the Trump Administration that we are
seeing across America, and politically active courts are
providing the leverage for this revolution.

OFA is dedicated to organizing
communities for “progressive” change.
Its issues are gun control, socialist
healthcare, abortion, sexual equality, climate change, and
of course, immigration reform. OFA members were propped up
by the ex-president’s message from the
shadows: “

Organizing is the building block of
everything great we have accomplished Organizers around the
country are fighting for change in their communities and OFA
is one of the groups on the front lines.
Commit to this work in 2017 and
beyond.” OFA’s website says it obtained its
“digital” assets from the ex-president’s re-election
effort and that he inspired the movement. In short, it is
the shadow government organization aimed at resisting and
tearing down the Constitutional Republic we know as
America.

Paul Sperry, writing for the New York
Post, says, “The OFA will fight President Donald Trump at
every turn of his presidency and the ex-president will
command them from a bunker less than two miles from the
White House.”  Sperry writes that, “The
ex-president is setting up a shadow government to sabotage
the Trump administration through a network of non-profits
led by OFA, which is growing its war chest (more than $40
million) and has some 250 offices nationwide.

The OFA IRS filings, according to
Sperry, indicate that the OFA has
32,525 (and growing) volunteers
nationwide. The ex-president and his ‘wife’ will oversee
the operation from their home/office in Washington DC.

Think about how this works. For
example: Trump issues an immigration executive order; the
OFA signals for protests and statements from pro-immigrant
groups; the ACLU lawyers file lawsuits in jurisdictions
where activist judges obstruct the laws; volunteers are
called to protest at airports and Congressional town hall
meetings; the leftist media springs to action in support of
these activities; the twitter sphere lights up with social
media; and violence follows. All of this happens from the
ex-president’s signal that he is heartened by the
protests.

If Barack Obama did not do enough to
destroy this country in the 8 years he was in office, it
appears his future plans are to destroy the foundation on
which this country has operated on for the last 241 years.

If this does not scare you, then we are
in worse trouble than you know.  So, do your part. You
have read it, so at least pass this on so others will know
what we are up against. We are losing our country and we are
so compliant. We are becoming a “PERFECT TARGET” for our
enemy!

Editor’s comments: Krauthammer is
about the best and brightest journalist and political
analyst we have. His words of warning should be taken
seriously and spread throughout the country so as many of
our citizens as possible are made aware of what is happening
right under our noses.  Every American needs to take
this to Heart and start spreading the word.
 

06/20/18

Old School Trout some times going back to the basics is the key to catching fish, But often new tackle or gear makes it hard. I like the old school poppin corks, But they don't work with braided line very well at all. The Single peg which is pushed into the cork to hold the line against the foam body just ins not made for the very thin braided line, the cork will not stay in place like it did when I was using Mono line which is thicker and compresses so the line is pushed in to the foam and held good, not like the braid. so I have switched from the 25WR3 to the 27W3 which has a swivel on the top and bottom to tie your line to. Side note here this cork comes with a snap on the bottom get rid of it , if you get more than an 18 inch red fish that snap will straighten right out and your fish, leader, hook are gone. It is kind of easy to take off I hold the cork and put my thumb nail against the brass part of the snap and push forward and it will fall right off. I told you it was no good. OK it is good if you are fishing for blue gills. But I would not trust it on a bass, Much less a decent Red fish. Another thing I like is that the 25WR3 has ½ once of lead weight in it so you can cast it far enough to catch fish. But the best part of this poppin cork is the price. $1.29 each give or take a few cents.

Now the D.O.A. Clackers are Another one which has a ½ once of led easy to cast and you tie your line to the top and leader to the bottom, and there is no dumb little snap thing on it. The difference is two fold the Clacker is set on a wire with a bead at the bottom to give it some extra noise, which can be good, and it is definitely different than the standard poppin cork. And the price $5.60 for a 2 pack, or $2.80 a piece which is much less than most. The D.O.A. Clacker come in 3 different shapes for even more types of noise, the standard poppin cork or Oval and cigar shapes. When I go out I take the 25WR3 Comal brand float and the D.O.A. Oval floats The less money one and the oval is my favorite sounding cork, But the last time I was out they were hitting the old standard cylinder shaped with the concave end, So while I still like the oval I learned better to stitch corks and catch fish or use the one I like and not catch fish. Here's a thought why do I or should I care what I like? When it comes down to it, It is all about what the fish want.

After that long explanation I should get to that it was a shrimp about 30 inches below the poppin cork that the Trout were hitting on, And over the shallow water of the sand bars, a Torpedo top water lure that got the hits, The Darn Trout would not look at my curl tail Grubs, not eve the Tandem rig, which was real strange. So all bets are off and you won't catch much if you are a one trick pony. Change it up.

Pompano is a by catch while Trout fishing the same rig poppin cork with a shrimp seems to be working well on the east side of the Harbor and near shore on the gulf. Of course the Crazy jigs slow reeled and jigged just a little bit is hooking a lot of Pompano as well, But the shrimp popped is what quite a few of the Pompano are hitting and you do not have to know how to work a jig. I like that part easy. Just back off on how much you pop the cork about half of normal from what you would pop for Trout will get the pompano hitting.

be Lucky and Good

Fishin Frank
 

06/11/18

Maybe fish where they ain’t? And then change it up

Yes I have had a few fishing trips lately and I think that is my best advice, as for some reason this year, Every time I go where the fish should be they ain’t. So I started looking for places I had given up on, where I had found no fish for the last couple years, and you guessed it fish.

It does stand to reason, that spots where the fish did gather and went bad would again start to hold fish. Cycles and fish find hiding or feeding places and then pressure from fisher people or possibly the food source was depleted or maybe they just wanted a change of scenery. Anyway the fish left that spot and now they seem to be leaving the places they have hung out in for the last couple of years. So when you are out looking for fish, think 4 years ago or more, where did you used to find fish. For you new comers, go to places you have never seen a boat at or where you have never fished at.
Why places you have never seen a boat at? Well so many people are not having great days, why try where the fish are already getting pressure? I understand your first instinct is to go where you see other fishing. I believe that is in-grained into the being of people. But to be catching and not fishing we need to change not only where we fish, But the way we think.

Another thing I have changed is the color of my leaders and hooks. Yes my go to is the Hi-seas Fluoro-Carbon Clear leader, which for me seems to be the best option, But I have now started taking the Yo-Zuir Pink leader and the brown color, sorry ran out so no picture. The color leader materiel is not to me real fluorocarbon as the main benefit of fluorocarbon is that it bends light the way water does, so if you add color it does not bend light so colored mono would be as good except hey this is easier to find now a days.

The other thing I am changing is my hook color.

Hook color I only use this hook!! is what I hear from people all the time,
OK now wait that same person will come in,
 and they want a Red Jig head with yellow eyes and a white under side,
 because that is the ONLY jig head that will catch fish.
So why not your hooks?

Right now if 10 people go out,
 2 will have the trip of a life time,
 3 will have a good day,
 3 will do OK,
 and the last 2, well the day will suck on a stick,
 In other words bad day.

 So to increase my odds,
If I have two rods out each has a different color hook
and different color line and a couple different leader colors.

This last week end my Dad and I were not catching much,
 and In the dark waters of the upper harbor I switched to bronze Mustad hook
 and I got a couple smaller Trout.

We left and were fishing out in front of Pirate Harbor,
 on the in-coming tide the water was much clearer here.
So I tried the green Chartreuse hooks and I caught more fish than the Black hooks.
 Now I do not think it will make a difference most of the time what color hook you use.
 But when it makes a difference. It can be the difference between catchin and Fishin.

So change it up and change your luck.

 Be lucky and good.

Fishin Frank
 

06/01/18

Snook to the left and Red fish to the right here I was stuck in the middle with Dad,
The other day my Dad says, hey can I use your boat? What? Huh? Excuse me. OK it is my dad and all but my boat? So I said hey Dad you want to go fishing? So he decided on Sunday 7:am Sunday morning came and it was raining, I called Dad and told him it was raining, Not at my house, OK But dad the boat is here where it is raining How about 8:o'clock OK. So the rain stopped and we headed out, Let's go Trout fishing with lures Dad said, OK so as we were going under the 41 bridge Do you have a cast net on the boat he asked. Sure let's stop and get bait. OK plan “B” we stopped at marker “2” and I threw on the down currant side of the marker and got about 3 dozen Thread fins. You can tell them from the Green backs as they have a brighter color green back with black spots and of course the thread extended fin on the dorsal. And they do not live in a live well very good, So I made another cast next to the marker and landed maybe 5 dozen hard scale sardines or green backs. OK Dad where do we go. Your the Captain you choose. OK? Well the Myakka cut off was close so we headed into there, stopped just inside on the left, Bam Hard head cat-fish, moving on. We stopped in the middle just past the narrows and nothing. So I ran all the way to the north end, bow Bam boink, boink went the rod Sail kitty in the boat, Grrrr. OK Lets try for some Trout in Tippy Canoe bay. We drifted across the Nothing, we cast a Johnson Sprite and a Shrimp under a float. So we headed over to a point on the South side and Dad fishing the right side and me on the left and Bam. I had a red fish and Bam Dad had a Snook we double up. Ok now this is better both fish caught free lining a white bait. We fished for another 20 minutes and nada. So I picked a point between two Islands and Four more Snook, They all hit and were caught within 20 minutes and then the bite stopped. Now I have a rule No chumming with live bait fish until I have a bait in the water. Or the Snook will only hit the chummers, And will not touch a bait with a lease on it. I caught the first Snook right off and when the next one did not hit right away, By that I mean 5 minutes, I put about 5 Thread fins in my chum bat and tossed them where I had caught the first one. Dads line was in the water I was holding my cast to see if one would blow up chasing a freebee bait and pow, A Snook hit one of my chummers and I tosses my bait right on the blow up spot and pow as soon as it hit the water Snook on. This was how I caught The other three, toss four or five baits as chum No squeezing and a Snook would blow up and I cast and Fish on.
After the Snook quit we decide to head back as a big storm was coming up from the south. And it was getting choppy. So back through the cut-off which is a pretty a ride as you can make all through the keys and Islands. Out the south end and the wind stopped. The water had that flat lumpy look, You know what I mean if you have been on the water just minutes before a good storm. I pushed the throttle right to the fiberglass raised the bow and hauled butt back up the Peace to get home and we made it, As we put the rods under the house, the skies opened.

The moral of the story, would be, fish a spot see whats there and if it's not good move. I had not fished that point in Tippy Canoe in over 15 years, as I had been doing well in the cut off, When the fish are not where you think they should be, Go where you think they ain’t.
Good luck

Fishing Frank

05/10/18
 

Sharks and Cat-fish they go together so often, This was a lesson I had to relearn. Often to catch sharks you have to go through a bunch of cat fish.

My mom and Dad wanted to go shark fishing, So we loaded the boat and were going to head down into the Harbor to west side of marker #2. But we only got on to the river and the motor started coughing, So we went back to the dock and changed the fuel filter, tried again, but it ran good at idle, but no way would it run at more than that so, hey we were on the water and the peace river usually has sharks this time of year so what the heck Let's fish.

 

So we put out the chum bag and started casting rods out, two rods with Sardines and the A.F.W. Bleeding steel leaders on them and a rod with a mono leader with a shrimp. The first rod bend before we had all of the lines out and the fish is pulling and the rod starts boomp, boomp, boomp, the world famous signal for cat fish on. And that was the story, for the next 40 minutes, cat fish, after cat fish, well my Sister had brought her grandson, Ouch think about that not her son, her grandson who is 18 years old, OK I am starting to get used to the whole I am an old guy thing,

so it was, here kitty, kitty, and it is kind fun, although it is like riding a moped. Fun to do but embarrassing to be seen enjoying it. all of a sudden the cat fish stop biting, this is the time to bring in the smaller rods. Because something big has made the cat fish move off. Almost 15 minutes we sat there waiting and I was just asking my dad if we should find another spot, starting to doubt my theory about big fish moving in, and WHAM that was no Cat-Fish. The line started peeling off the reel and the drag was singing. Then I looked out and saw every ting Jess pulled back on the rod a crab trap buoy would bob with the pull so I brought in the anchor and we got to the crab trap UN-wraped the line, and Jess stated to reel and another crab trap buoy started bouncing, So we got that UN-tangled and the fight was back on, 30 pound braid and a 10 to 20 pound class rod, and he had his hands full, the shark pulled us about a ½ mile and then finally came to the boat and Bull shark about 5 foot long. We got the hook out and got a couple pictures of it next to the boat and back into the briny deep it went to fight another day. We headed in that was a great way to end what started of as kind of a bad trip. So if you can't go to where you want to go, Fish where you are. Hey we had a great time.

04/23/18

Shark fishing is a challenge and to make even more challenging try from land,

It is a misconception that you need bigger, larger reels in a boat, when the truth is I use much smaller reels and rods fishing from a boat than I do from land based fishing. Why how could that be? Well, it is simple my boat can travel at 50+ M.P.H. I can follow that fish where ever it want to run to. OK most of the time the boat is at Idle, But one day I hope to have that 20 M.P.H. Chase out though the gulf. Now lets see a pier match that. So in other words I can use the boat to follow the fish, So I do not need as much line on my reel. And try and look as I might I have never found the starter for the pier it just stays put right there I can't even get it in gear. So in order to land a big fish from shore you need to have 2 to 3 times as much power and line in order to slow down and stop a big fish,

One of the biggest mistakes people make fishing from land or pier is to use very heavy line on a small reel. A smaller reel does not have the drag pressure to stop a big fish quickly so all you do is run out of line quickly. Once you are out of line the fish either jerks the rod from your hand or breaks off.

For most pier/land based fishing, I would like to have about 300 hundred yards of line, for fish up to 4 feet long add 100 yards for each extra foot of fish. The line will help you tire out the fish, the friction of the line being pulled through the water is tremendous, Line friction is what people used before reels had so much drag pressure. Even a 14/0 Penn reel as big as paint can only had maybe 25 pounds of drag pressure, this is back when drag washers were made from leather. There is a secret bit of information which most people don't know and that is that when using a conventional reel and fish fish takes out half of the line, the smaller diameter of line on the spool increases the drag pressure to about double so a 14/0 half full has around 50 pounds of drag. And that get increased the more line if pulled from the reel. So today with reels which can have 40 pound or more of drag pressure, once the line is half out that could be 80+ pounds of drag and so you wonder why the hooks pull out or breaks so often on big fish. I think you get it now.
We all want that once in a life time fight with a monster fish or shark where we almost get dragged off the beach and into the water. Which that part is not bad and really will not hurt the fish, causing damage to the fish is about how long the fight last.

So how long should you fight a fish lets say a shark. You can fight a Bull sharks almost twice as long as a hammerhead before you risk killing the shark a Hammer head 45 minutes is the longest you can fight or the mortality rate will reach as high as 75% of Hammers caught die after an hour fight, They just put too much into it.

The true definition of catch and release is to use heavy enough tackle to land the fish in a reasonable amount of time. But what is reasonable? That be the question.
Tune in same fish time same fish place for more on how to catch big fish from land hook rigs and tackle next month,

04/10/18

Why is fishing different? That difference makes it good for mental health.
Humans that be us, people type folks, have some weird things about us. Take for instance memories, if you think about it the bad memories are right there for you to remember. Yes every bad thing or embarrassing thing pop into your mind readily. Now that dose make sense if you think 500,000 years ago when people were just getting started if something bad happened if you survived that making that same mistake could kill you and end the human race. So bad plants, animals or not jumping off a cliff were very important things to remember, which seems to make good things less important back then and good things that much harder to remember.

Except fishing for some wonderful reason we tend to remember the good days when we caught tons of fish or that big ole monster fish, or the days when the wind and tide and fish all were excellent. It is very difficult to remember the day when we caught no fish or sunk the boat or well you get the idea. We remember the wonderful or amazing, smell of the water in the morning making us long for another day to do it again, and it does not seem to matter if the amazing trips are a bit farther apart than we say, we still have them.
And how cool is that! Fishing is good mental heath and just makes you feel better about the world. Take for instance this year when fishing has been a bit harder. There still has been that trip or two where the big ones were biting and another day where there was dozens of fish caught. So how will May be? Excellent at least as far as I remember the fishing in May.

 

So to be fair and not reley on my wonderful fishing memories alone I looked up may on fishinfranks.com fishing history reports, Tarpon, Sharks, Cobia, Big Snook, all here and biting. May is one of the best fishing months of the year, the rains don't really come with full force until June and the water is still cool enough to hold a lot of oxygen.
May is the Month of Big fish, Huge Hammer heads at Boca Pass, Thousands of Tarpon in the pass and on the Hill or in the deep holes, For the Shark catching folks start in the deep holes chumming and use smaller Rods like you would for Red Fish, small leader with a 4/0 to 6/0 hook I like the bleeding ones from A.F.W. And you will catch a bunch of smaller sharks remember to bend the barb over on the hook so it comes out nice and easy. Once the small ones stop biting that means a monster Shark has moved in Big Sharks eat little Sharks. So when the small ones stop switch to big Rods and hang on.
Hopefully May will bring you lots of great fish memories to be forefront in your mind.
And not the coffee you just spilled on your lap going into the meeting.
Fishin Frank
 

03/28/18

Rule about fishing don't really go together. Everything we know all of the books we read, and the videos we watch I am not sure the fish have read those articles or seen the Video.
Maybe the thing to do is if you are a Good fisherman rig the way you know how and do the things you are good with. You never know that might be the best technique that has ever been done here.
For you newbies well Shrimp is still working good as bait but you might want to try something besides a sinker on the bottom. I know you are slat water fishing and that is what you are supposed to do. But maybe lets try a float or bobber if you are fishing a canal say for Snook. The Snook are going to be from the out side edge of your dock back to the sea wall. Most Snook are caught within two feet of the sea wall. So if you have a sinker and a shrimp and cast it into the middle of the canal and catch Cat-fish well you should not be surprised as you are technically fishing for cat fish, canals get a bit deeper in the middle so all of the dead things would drift to the center of the canal on the bottom so where would the cat fish be? Rhetorical.

Back to the Snook fishing a bobber or float With a shrimp about 3 feet below it hooked through the head, I will cast it out across the canal there could be a trout or lady fish out there that would be happy for a snack. If I do not get a hit I let the tide take the float and bait toward the sea wall then as it gets close to the edge I start letting out line. Open the bait and let out enough line to get your float and bait up under the neighbors dock or against a boat tied up there, That is where the Snook would be hiding out waiting for food to come to them. They like to ambush food and not really run around much looking for food. So the lazy Snook will lay up behind a piling and as the bait come past dart out and swallow it. That is what makes Snook catching harder than Snook fishing. When the Snook darts up from behind the piling that Snook wants to get right back behind the piling again, if it gets there you are warped up on the barnacles of that piling and you line is cut and the Snook is free.

So you have to be ready and use a rod that has a good back bone, not really big or heavy just stiff if the rod tip flexes or bends easy that makes it easier for the Snook to get back around the piling and cut you off. So a Med heavy rod look for Mono line class written on the rod of 8 to 17 or 10 to 20 pound class.
While not the same on all rods it is a place to start. If the line class is 6 to 12 or 8 to 15 the rod will most likely bend to easy for good Snook catching control.

And you do not need a Big Shrimp I often will use a jig head in place of a hook and by running the hook up through the bottom of the shrimps head and having the point of the hook come out the to and the point should be right above the horn on the shrimps head. This gives it a good “look” and can make a smaller shrimp appear larger.

Another trick is to free line that Bait casting it very close to the sea wall and just let it sit there, not reeling it in. You should cast with the tide currant, as the shrimp is out there, the tide can lift the shrimp up and then it will settle back towards the bottom. What lifts the shrimp is the tide pressure against the line as the water flows it tries to lift up the line and that is what will lift your bait making it look as natural as possible. I tail hook the shrimp so it looks like it is swimming away from the hook like it is pulling it.

I hope these tricks help you get that Snook dinner, or just the thrill or a catch and release.

03/14/2018

What is the perfect bait? Are there any rules about about bait? which stay constant or true? Not really,
but Possibly Like whats the best bait for fishing the flats? We need to look at water temps to answer that, Why?

Well everything effects every thing, Say for instance the weather this year is a lot like last year there is no no El-nino or La-nina in the Pacific ocean, why is that important? We are vulnerable to Hurricanes, yes when ever there is either of those in play all the way over in the Pacific ocean, we might get 1 or 2 Hurricanes that hit the U.S. With out the effects of El nino or La nina we get a lot of storms. So watch

the weather, this year could be weird again. Weather effects us and bait and fish. It also effects what fish will eat.

So everything effects everything and the water temps effects the choice of bait, much of it is by how the fish react to the temperature changes. A good rule of thumb is when water under 70 degrees Shrimp
and Pin fish are good. Under 65 degrees, Shrimp is King of baits. When the water is colder the fish and are cold blooded they can not digest food properly, once swallows the bait/food the food can rot in the fishes stomach before they can digest it. It takes warmth to digest. Shrimp seem to be easier for the fish to digest, and it is about how many calories a fish uses versus the calories of chasing down the meal. And the fish are moving slowly, Florida fish are temperate zone fish and like us in the fall they slow down, Just like we do as it gets cold.

Water from 70 to 75 white bait or Shrimp. Both will catch a lot of fish equally well.Red fish will make you crazy with that as it starts to warm up again, they will for some reason just want pin fish or blue crabs. And once the water gets back to 80 things change again.

Over 75 degrees to 82 white bait is the king. White bait is fast and shiny so combine the warm water and oily food the fish are in the mood for fun.

Over 85 degrees dead bait, dead shrimp cut pieces of Fish are the best king of baits. When the water gets too hot, the problem is low oxygen and when it is hard to breath like a room that is over 100 degrees you have a hard time breathing even gasping for air. Same thing for fish so dead bait sitting sit on the bottom is easier for a fish to find as it stinks more So they seem it and easy to eat as it is just sitting there.

So the best bait for fishing the flats is the best bait for the water and weather conditions. And you will find people who say, you have to this for bait well they will have some good days and a lot of slower days, the People who change the bait they are using to fit the weather and temperatures will have many more good days.
Good Luck and Have Fun
Fishin frank

02/2018

Get the most from your fishing magazines.
Magazines like coastal Angler can give you insights into what and when the next hot bite will be. When you read a report from north of you and the fish are really hitting along the gulf and the water temp starts to drop it is most likely that the fish will start to move south, and just the opposite cold weather getting warmer will start the fish moving from the south back north so don't just read your area check out other areas to see what is coming your way. And I also suggest that you want to know the next big flats lure, read some fresh water fishing articles. Why fresh water? Because almost everything crosses over. As I was traveling Europe selling fishing tackle I found myself trying to fish many places I had never seen or even heard of, some fresh and some saltwater. With no time to learn the water and the different fish and new lures and styles. I decided to just do what I knew how to do. I would get to the water, Lake, river, coastal shore line and look to see water color and movement, temperature currents eddies, weather conditions helped me pick the lures, I thought would be good for that. As no one ever told the fish they were a fresh water or slat water fish, all the fish knew is they were hungry fish, So I did very well. When I did not catch fish and had the time I would find out what the locals used and how they used it. But to be truthful in a humble brag, I often out fish, out caught the locals. And they were asking me what I was using and doing. So use what you know and are good with before you try the local way. You might have the best lure or style ever used there.
Many times a “new” lure which those fish have not seen before is very likely to be very interesting maybe the fish strike it to kill a new species or hey like a new candy bar in the store just would like to try something different. Cross over lures and rigs from fresh to slat is nothing new but we tend to give rigs different names a Knocker rig for grouper fishing is the same as a Texas rig for bass fishing. And a Carolina rig as a salt water slip sinker rig. I can name two lures that go from fresh to salt easily Number 1 the Storm twitch stick. Which was invented for the Canadian Bass fishing market but catches every thing in Salt water from Snook to King mackerel, We have sold thousands upon thousands of twitch sticks and is the #1 Snook catching lure in the History of our store, That was an accidental find. Then take one of the best best known Top water lure is the Hula Popper there is no better top water popper ever made than for fresh water, slat water flats or open Gulf fish love them.

So once you under stand that good lures are good lures no matter where you use them, you start to get the idea that if a lure is hot on the Bass tournaments it will find it's way to the flats. And many flats lures find their way to the fresh water market. I guess my point is that you never know where the next great thing will come from, and often it is a mistake or some one using a lure or style because they did not know it was wrong for that area which turns out to be incredible for catching fish.
So good luck and try doing what you do best, if that does not work check with your local tackle store for help. If what you are using really works great, let me know. I would like to stock them. After all I do own a tackle store.
Fishin frank

12/26/17

Lewis and Clark exploration, While yes they did map almost the whole of the western U.S. You can take a page from them and map the flats. Yes during this time of year the water can get really low, and add to that east or north east winds and the water levels on the flats can get so low it is mostly sand, while that may not be great for fishing, it is great for learning. OK when you go out fishing on higher tides all you see is water. On the very lowest of tides you see the holes, instead of guessing where the deep spots or pot holes are you can see them, with your own eyes, and that is very cool.

 

On the days when I go out for a Lewis and Clark I take a Rod with a Paddle tail shad on it and maybe have a top water Zara Spook with me. It is too much to ask not to have a rod with you. Now I do not take bait, that is too much temptation and I can resist anything but temptation. The other thing I have is binoculars, why? Often I can not get onto to the flats I wish to explore so I have to get as close as I can and look out with the binoculars. Now that I have where the deep spots are and have them mapped out in my head. How do I know where the deep spots are you might ask, well it is pretty simple. The shallow spots are sand and where you do see water that is a hole,

Charlotte Harbor has sand bars that run up both the east and west sides of the Harbor. Separating the open Harbor fro the flats. And you read stories about fishing the pot holes on the flats, and how many fish are caught doing this. But how do you find them. This is the best way I know of. And pick land marks. Like a tall tree on an island or a marker. Do not use land marks which will be under water when the tide comes up like a cut in the sand bar. Often when fishing the east side. I will count how many islands north of the entrance into pirate Harbor the spot is and then how far out to the sand bar.
So that the next time I come back when the tide is up, I know where to anchor the boat so I am not sitting on top of the fish I want to catch.

 

Another hint is you can get your bat much shallower than you think, by how you load your things, First off take everything out of the storage lockers and cubby holes, with no bait keep the live well of and no water in it. Now take as much as possible from the back of the boat and move it to the front. The back of the boat with the motor is already heavier than the front. And do not try to run. Very slow idle speed is what it takes to learn the bottom and balancing the load in the boat to get every inch of floatation, is a good trick to get you back there.

This is a trick I have used for years to get me one step ahead with my fishing and more important my catching. Knowing the bottom features and the fish will get you more consistent hook ups.

Good luck
Fishin Frank

12/25/17

Mullet are and have been important to life in Florida, they have inspired hair styles, fashion dresses, and have been a food staple since about 8000 B.C. Mullet were important part of the life of the Paleo-Indians, and then later the Caloosahatchee Indians came around 500 B.C. Both of which dependent on Mullet for food. Then The Muspa Indian were here as Jose Caldez of Cuba began using Charlotte Harbor as a base for seasonal fishing, and it was the Mullet run season they came for. Mullet is the reason People first started to live here. This began about 1705 which lead to more year round camp it has been said that others believe that the Jose did not get here until 1784 but it was a seasonal fishing camp with the mullet as the basis for the season. Many other types of fish were caught but as they rowed out or sailed out to find fish it was the vast schools of Mullet that shook the surface of the water and that is what a school of Mullet is called today a Shake of Mullet as they shake theirs heads slightly out of the water causing a huge ripple as thousands of Mullet move forward towards the Gulf to spawn. One of the big reasons, that this was profitable is that they could get the fish to Europe by the time of Lent. Fish was not considered meat so could be eaten during lent. And even now they still effect the economy as the number one real estate salesmen, for canal property. Jumping out of the water, it is thought they jump to get rid of parasites, or to digest food, or to escape predators. OK maybe I think they jump because they can. Although some one should teach them to land. Every jump a Mullet takes ends in a belly flop. How ever they learned to jump they skipped the last part of the class. Splash/flop/plop.

Mullet have been caught pretty much the same way all through time using throw, Seine, or gill nets. Throw or cast nets were common just as they are in use today by fisherman, The boats have changed more than the nets. First canoes rafts, then skiff type boats with oars/rowing then sails. Some of the first net boats were called Skip jacks, Sail power fishing boats able to get in shallow waters and still hold a load of fish.
Then motor boats with coal or wood fired steam engines, Now things were really moving you could maintain 2 maybe even 3 miles per hour. Then gas or diesel inboard engines and the single biggest change the out board engine was invented and the boats began to get fast, it was the speed of the boats that ended the use of the ice houses, and Mullet fisherman began using gill nets. These nets were stacked in the back of the boat and the fisherman found that by putting the out board in the front of the boat it off set the weight and it was not getting tangled in the nets. One end of the net had an anchor tied to it and when you saw fish, You tossed over the anchor and then used the boat to encircle the school of fish, trapping them inside. You may see Mullet fishing boats carrying or pulling a tiny little boat along with them this is to increase the amount of nets they can use as it is measured by the boat. And you are allow two boats worth of netting. Most are small made of ply wood and 6 to 8 foot long but hey it is another boat.

Once the fish were caught in the beginning like the 1700's the fish were scaled and slabbed or to say the skin left on and lead weights were placed on top of them to press out the juices and dry the meat, this also kept down the maggot damage. The fish dried and or smoked were then sent to markets in Cuba and Europe. This practice of processing fish did not change a lot until they invented making ice in 1805 but was not until around 1900 that ice factories were becoming more common and you could not eat the ice until 1929 but many ice machines made their way around the country and Ice boxes were the I-phone of the day, ice was made in large blocks and then taken to peoples houses and placed in the ice box to keep their food cold. Same thing for the fishing industry, Ice was made at a factory like the one in Punta Gorda, then taken around the Harbor to the boats by Truck, then flat barged out to the Fish houses were the fish they had caught were put on the barge and trucked back and ice loaded onto the boats, If you were catching a lot of fish south in the Harbor or near the gulf at a speedy 2 miles an hour it would take a day to get to Punta Gorda were the fish house was. So to save time the boats could fish more if the fish was transported by truck. That is why the fish or ice houses are scatter up and down the east side.

Mullet has never gotten the credit for being a tasty fish, which I think they taste great, but Smoked mullet and the row from the mullet or eggs of the mullet is a medium priced caviar and sought after in China Asia and Russia. But now being thought of as a tasty fish the meat it's self has very little commercial value. Once before Viagra white row or Mullet sperm was thought to be a very effective aphrodisiac, But hey Mullet sperm or a blue pill? Well it is safe to say The white row of the, male Mullet no longer has any commercial value. This bring of to why you see so many dead mullet in the water.
The female mullet will fetch from.75 cents a pound to $2.75 a pound where as the males have a market value of. .05 cents. And the only way to tell if they are male or female is to squeeze them and see what color the row is. Orange or Red = female, white row = Male as it is Very ill-legal or waste or to throw over board half your haul of fish, people do it and hundreds or thousands of Dead male mullet are tossed over board each year. I wonder if old time Mullet Fisherman knew they were in the porn industry, well kind of any way.

All right now in the fall or early winter Mullet get the urge to gather into great schools and head out into the gulf, the thought is that they swim down in schools and the water pressure squeezes the row out of the fish and it mixes as the row floats to the surface. It is the urge to school up into the shakes of Mullet which makes them a target for commercial fishermen. They can be caught thousands of pounds at a time.
Mullet fishing because of the prices is on it's way out. People still go out and catch Mullet but less each year. As the price falls. One problem is that when the smaller boats who use cast nets and or small seine net stop mullet fishing, that could be very bad for Mullet. As the large Purse seine boat who travel the off shore waters, will not strike a small school of 3000 pounds of Mullet But the larger schools they will strike and nothing escapes a purse seine boat. The entire school is wiped out. They are history.
So thee is the devil in the detail. With the smaller boats breaking up the big schools and catching some of the mullet may be a bad thing, But a worse thing may be if they do not go and the entire spawning schools of Mullet are wiped out by the purse seine boats out off in the gulf where you never see it.
Me I don't know the correct answer.
So food for thought from me Fishin Frank which is not as good as a mullet fillet.

11/25/17

Mullet the jumping real estate salesman, Yes Mullet have sold more homes in S.W. Florida than anything else in history, I mean think about it. You are looking at a house on the water look out back and see fish literary jumping out of the water, Like WOW I want this house. Then you buy and find out the truth. But what is the truth about mullet. Here is the real answer.

Mullet are not vegetarians they eat almost anything, provided it is soft. Why soft the reason is that Mullet have a gizzard just like a chicken, yes when I first came to Florida I was a Bass player in bands and every party we played at the food was wild Hog, Cabbage Palm, Mullet fillets and Mullet gizzards. Bowls full of fried mullet gizzards were a staple at parties. While not my favorite food they are better tasting than Chicken gizzards. OK why is the gizzards important? Well Chickens and birds in general gather pebbles in their gizzards to grind up food, Mullet can only get very find sand from the bottom here in Charlotte Harbor and the Canals watch next time you see a school of mullet, they dive down and come back towards the surface streaming mud out of their gills, they are cleaning the mud from the sand. The sand is held in the gizzard and used to grind up food. Because the sand is so fine anything hard like the shell of a shrimp or the scales of a fish would get stuck in in effect plug up the gizzard causing the mullet to stave to death. So Mullet will eat worms, Bugs, Algae, meat, anything in front of them. Now Mullet do not kill for a living, and will not seek and destroy. So they swim along and if there is something in front of them they will take it in their mouth and if it is hard they spit it out and is it is soft they will swallow it.
 

So how do you catch Mullet? Well think sabiki rig. We use 4 or more hooks My favorite one is the Mustad 92671 #4 gold hook Tie them about 10 inches apart on the line and put a small sinker like a #2 slit shot at the bottom and a Bobber at the top. Now for the bait I use a piece of soft white plastic or corn, worms, I have used a piece of white gulp one the hook. Keep in mind soft and you have to let the point of the hook stick out just a tiny bit. Now I cast that out standard rod and reel. You do not need or want a long cast for this as there is chum involved. The chum or Mullet is rolled Oats, and laying mash.
You can get them at any feed store. The proper way is to mix a tiny dash of water until you get a dough ball just hard enough to stay together so you can throw it at your bobber. The smell of the laying mash is what will make the mullet circle near the bobber and the bits of rolled oats slowly sinking by it get the mullet to open and close their mouths and hopefully mistake the bit of white plastic of another piece of oat meal and if the bobber twitches set the hook. Mullet are great fighter on the line and will jump and give you one heck of a fight.

How to cook, well I can't stand smoked mullet personal choice but I love Fried, baked, Boiled, Yes boiled or steamed mullet is poor mans lobster, I like it way better than lobster myself. Boil a a minute or two then finish by steaming, serve at the table with butter and lemon, Yum-mm.

Last thought you will set all of this up and throw your chum at the mullet and the mullet scatter and run instead of feeding on it. Yes that is possible. Some times mullet have to be trained to like the laying mash oats. So if you live on a canal get the chum and leave it dry, take a ¼ Dixie cup full and every morning toss it into the canal dry so it will float as long as possible. As you start to see fish get interested increase the amount, Soon in a matter of days or a few weeks you will have a whole herd of fish waiting for you to toss the chum. I mix the chum wet when I am fishing, but dry for pre-chumming
The only bad thing it is hard to eat pets. I grew up on a farm in part so I can do it, But for many people it can be well, Don't name the fish or you will never get to enjoy poor mans Lobster Ala Mullet.

Fishin Frank

09/15/17

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10/20/17

Fish on. Dad starts reeling in a fish,

 I go to reel in the other lines before the fish gets tangled up in them.
          too late,    
  I notice the wind not the fish blown the line from one rod across
 the other rod and the one in the next one and cluster,
           get out the line cutter and re-rig.
      

    Dad is fighting the fish one of the tangled lines is tangles with the one with the fish,

      So I get his line cut loose and he lands the trout,

         Just a bit too short.

 I will blame the 15 mph winds on that tangle.

 So we moved closer to an island to get out of the wind a bit, good idea right? Stopping just a couple islands north of Pirate Harbor and anchored the boat and then cast up close to the Island with one rod using a sinker on the leader with a live shrimp, The sinker was to keep it from moving away from the island.

 2^Nd rod we put a float on
  and cast it in front of the island about 20 feet.

 where we knew it was just a bit deeper a slight trough.

The float would let the live shrimp move around the trough.

 Dad and I each free lined a shrimp out toward the open flat hoping to find Reds in the Pot holes.

Then Fish on Dad got a hit weird thing is the fish had not pulled the instead swam a little towards the boat then off to the side. Wrapping that line with the other two we had out. So he did not know the fish was hooked up. Until it was a tangled mess. I saw where the fish was headed and tried to get the lines in and what I should have done was reel in my line from the front of the boat, as while I started reeling in the last one the fish saw it's chance to make life really miserable and shot straight to the front of the boat and tangled that line as well. So here we are holding rods that are tied together with a huge knot in the middle and 4 lines going every where. Still a fish on. And yes it was a cat fish a 2 ½ pound Hard head cat-fish who decided to get even for any bad things I have said about them and we let it go after cutting the lines and hauling it in hand over hand. This trip was about tangles and busted lines the only two big fish on we had one wrapped around a crab trap and the other wrapped around another line and both broke off.
OK the fish won the first two round, so we switched up and only one rod for each of us we started drifting. And Dad with a shrimp and a split shot, me with a shrimp under a float. Fish on. Yes it was steady fishing and catching easy as you please.

My lesson of the day, One rod, one line when the wind or tide is really going fast. Two rods don't make a catch. I went back to Mark Twain saying “Put all of your eggs in one basket and Watch that basket”
So when you are out there keep in mind it happens to every body, We all lose fish our rods tangle and things can just go bad. We did catch quite a few Trout and a Shark even a couple smaller Snappers. And of course the Cat-fish but it was a day of what the heck, really?

Fishin Frank

 10/10/17

Fresh water, slat water mix it up you got brackish and that is what we are still dealing with but the good news is there is clear water on the horizon and the fishing is getting good, Yes the flats on the east side and the west side are both looking good with schools of Red fish and Snook up under the mangroves, now do not be surprised if you hook into a nice size sheep head back under the mangroves on the flats.
Where ever the mangroves have a depression/hole/pocket under them the sheep head are making it their house. They have set up camp and it may be a bit unheard of 5 years ago but over the last few years this has become more common, and I think it is a matter of food, the mangroves leaves fall into the water and as they break down, there is a mold which grows on the decaying mangrove leaves that the tiny crabs love to feed on, and the sheep head which may be having trouble finding food where they would normally hang out have found the mangrove crabs. Funny how one thing effects each other thing.

So fish are fairly simple eat, sleep, reproduce, nope don’t see a problem with that life style, but there is another thing to consider about fish and it is something that Snow Birds know well. Temperature, if it is too hot the fish are uncomfortable and the hot water holds much less oxygen, and if the water is too cold they are not happy, So fish travel from warmer waters to cooler waters and back during the course of the year, Summer time is when most fish will work their way out towards the gulf of Mexico as the clear water is cooler than the brown solar collector which is the harbor, and each year about October or November the water starts to cool down and the fish start to head up into the Harbor, where the temperature is nicer, the may some people go from Florida to Up north and back following the weather

White bait is still what many people would like to use and for Snook fishing is would be great, But I think you might wish to give pin fish, a try for the Red fish. Red fish have been hitting Shrimp and Pin fish better this year. And then there is blue crab cut or whole which have been accounting for a bunch of hooked Red fish, With the Pin fish try a float or poppin cork and get the pin fish about 6 inches off the bottom, and Hook the Pin fish side ways across the body just rear of center under the dorsal fin.
The shrimp under a float is again a great way but I would use a poppin cork and slam that pop, don’t be shy about the pop.
Another Big thing over the last year has been lures under poppin corks, the Drunk Baits , DOA shrimp, and even a Rat-L-trap have been very effective, when used under the poppin cork, and you work them just like you would a Shrimp, I even like to put a bit of Smell/scent on them I use the Strike King Coffee flavor scent. Hey for years by boat smelled like dead fish/Crabs/ what veer scent like Pro-cure Blue crab scent. And maybe it does will a tiny bit better, But my boat now smells Like Coffee with Cream and sugar, One of my favorite things and I catch fish.
So Win-win best thing ever.
Any way the fishing is very good but you have to look around and best part of that, thee is not many people fishing and lots of room to look around, in may places all by yourself. So good fishing, less people and what are you waiting for. OK if we all go it will be crowded again, So disregard what I wrote No fish and it is nasty out there.
Fishin Frank


 

09/28/17

OK whats up. Tarpon Yes the tarpon fishing right now is really going Crazy. How ever just like the rest of these strange days it is not the normal Tarpon fishing we think of, where these Monster fish are hanging out in the deep holes and you would drift a lady fish through them and hang on for dear life, for the next hour. OK that is possible but the real Tarpon story is on the flats. And 1/3 that size.

Tarpon are in unreal numbers on the east side, and maybe more on the west side. They have found new feeding grounds back on the flats. Tarpon have always been year round here in the canals and up the Peace river and Shell creek. But this year for some reason the Tarpon are still in those places but even more have moved onto the flats.

Now the Snook and Red Fish are mostly under the mangrove branches I would think finding a cooler place to hang out during the heat of the day, The Tarpon are out in front maybe 20 feet away from the shore line and you will see them rolling. Now is where the fun part starts. How do you get one to bite?

Good question I am going with a Top water lure. I threw a lot of sub surface lures at them with no luck I did catch a Little Snook on the new Rapala Rip-Stop. I had been casting it at the tarpon rolling and just for grins and giggles I threw it right along the edge of the mangroves, within a foot of the drip edge and Pow this that Little fellow had to have it. My Dad decided to try his hand with a Top water, A Mirro-l-lure Top Pup. Which is just like a Zara Spook or Skitter walk, We were on the front side or west side of an outer Island Just north of the Carmine Key about two islands. We could see fish rolling just off the point while the tide was coming in. This was around 8:am. With the tide moving in they seemed to stay just between the islands in a cut and as the tide slowed they came more out in front of the islands. Dad hooked the first one while they were in the cut between the islands and wow did they like that top water just a couple pops and Slam. The fun was on. We had been casting Shrimp up to the islands looking for Red fish. And even had tossed a couple by where we saw the fish rolling,

Once we had hooked one I started to try different lures and see what they would eat, Dad worked top water and I worked sub surface, Dad won.
 

Now on the west side of the Harbor the Tarpon can be found right off the mangroves just like the east side, only they are just as likely to be out on or just inside the sand bar. Now why the difference? We did not see any Tarpon on the east side out by the bar. It could be as simple as the Sand bar on the west side is much closer to the shoreline. The distance is less than half of that on the east side.
 

Now Once again this is a catch and release fish, So here is my recommendations. The Tarpon want to hit Top water lures so here is what you do Try the new D.O.A. PT-7 I would get a dark color and a light er brighter one. With this lure it has a single weedless hook, and comes pre-rigged so you can see how to properly place the hook. But I would not stick the point of the hook back into the plastic let it ride just off the top, this will give you a surer hook set. To use a walk the dog style top water like a Zara,Skitter walk, or top pup, remove and back Treble hook and replace it with a single hook. VMC and Owner hooks have the single hook replacement for treble hooks, VMC #7237CB and the Owner are 4101- You should leave the front treble hook but take the time to flatten the barbs on that treble flat, removing the front treble can cause the lure to lose some of it's fish catching action. And take the lure with you to the store and hold it up to the package of hooks. Try to find one that is just slightly larger than the treble hook you are replacing.

You do not have to work the lures hard just give your rod tip a twitch and then pause then another twitch or jerk of the rod tip. This is a really Fun way to get into top water lure fishin.
Enjoy I hope everyone is OK back to the new normal as much as possible

Fishin Frank

90/??/17

OK here is another rant from me. which I should not publish as it just sounds bad. I know there are many great young people and people in general, but the other part make me a little nuts. and are just plain educated beyond their intelligence.
 So here is part of Bad Frank writing.

But, there are those who are just plain educated beyond their intelligence.
The Oceans are rising. a college student called me about a doing survey, Ok I had a few minutes. Ok They had to take classes on how to be stupid. You would have to have special training, in how to turn off your brain and just repeat what you are told, to ask the questions they asked me.
One of the ones that stood out was would I change my habit's, if the sea water would over come the Everglades in the next 100, 50 or 25 years.
I said no. oh what a sorry human I am. I should be tied to a stake and whipped. So I thought well maybe they were not liberal, idiots and maybe I was wrong. NOPE they are taught to be stupid on college now. I believe the term is group think.

Here is what I found.   
First I needed an old place with recorded history that could be proven. OK Venice Italy is very old and there are records
Here is what a group found, the water had risen and the building had sunk a combined total of 27.5 inches since 1772 to 2010


 

so the water has been rising about the same each year since 1772, before the industrial revolution and cars and all of the bad things like air planes were invented. I believe you could take that water level rise each year all the way back to the end of the last ice age. But & however part of that was oceans water rising and part the building sinking so I had to look further.

here I found the waters had been rising since 1870 to 2010 and they had OMG come up almost 200 M.M. millimeters or
 just about 8 inches. 



 

So yes the water is rising, less than an inch a year and some years are less some are more, here is the problem I have, when I consider what hey are trying to sell me on this sea level issue

.
There were glaciers all across the U.S. Wisconsin and Illinois, have glacier cut lakes, and the glaciers were maybe miles high, and they have been melting for the last 10,000 years, there are underwater cities off Cuba, the Bahamas and a big city under the water off the coast of Japan. India has cities under water some they figure are 60,000 years old. and the water came over them. is man making the planet warmer, Well I did pass quite a bit of gas this morning, gee I hope that wasn't the tipping point. Yes , no, maybe, all are correct answers, The Viking's settle in Canada and Ice Land while the was a warming trend in the climate. Then what they call the mini Ice age came and they froze out, If the climate had not changed the Vikings would still hold England. It would be a very different planet. So is this just what the earth does? are we helping? all could be true. No one knows if you believe, ok you believe, But what you believe may or may not be true, So keep an eye out if the water double its current rate in 100 years it will be 8 inches higher. OMG

In the case of cities getting flooded more and more often you should ask has the city sunk? In the case of Huston it is 8 feet lower than when they started building the city, Venice Italy has sunk. some of it is we have pumped out the ground water for drinking and coffee and what not, So the ground has sunk to make up for the void in the ground which the water used to fill. Places in California have sunk more than 25 feet.

So to blame all of this on rising sea levels is just plain dumb and lazy thinking, which I believe is a class you can take at any major college today, Extra credits if you skip class.

Now all I am saying is read look at a history book, I look at old paintings from before camera's and then try to find modern pictures and see what the differences are. You may also read diaries from people who families have printed them for historic value. Above all else don't believe an Idea consider it.
Fishin Frank
here are the pages I used for this

08/24/2017

Brackish water what can you catch?
Why over 50 types/species of Fish and Sharks and a few of them are Rays, there could be closer to 100 types, I really don’t know all that can be caught here. Heck you can even catch a dinosaur here like a saw fish.

 I don't care what they say this fish could not have changed much since the days of the dinosaurs, the long snot which from what I understand they use to sweep bait out of the grass like a rake. When I look at that nose sticking out in front lined on both side with teeth, I think of an attack weapon, Which I am sure they might use for offense or defense with other fish, But it is more of a tool to slash through a school of bait fish stunning them or sweeping through the grass to make pin fish or shrimp jump up where they can eat them as I said before. You are not allowed to keep these but they are fun to fight and will eat chunks of fish or shrimp, they even have been caught on pieces of crab. Funny thing is you catch them between the 41 bridge and I-75 or that area, and then they kind of skip the mid section of the Harbor and can be found in front of Turtle Bay or Bull Bay. Saw Fish are most often caught while bottom fishing for other Sharks.

but Now there is even more we think of Charlotte Harbor fishing we think Snook, Red fish, and thing s like that but there is new fish as well like Mayan Chichlid, Tilapia, Invasive fish, which I think have made a great contribution to the area, Like Oscars in the Everglades the Chichlid are great eating and live well in brackish or fresh waters and already we are finding the Snook and Tarpon eat them as a food source. So one thing brackish water is salt water diluted with rain water/river run-off. You can not really have brackish water in the gulf, it would take too much fresh water, But in a Harbor like Charlotte Harbor it is easy to get to the brackish point. Charlotte Harbor is topped by two river the Peace River and The Mayaka River.

These two river form the top of Charlotte Harbor and Then add in the Caloosahatchee at the southern rend of the Harbor lots of fresh water get poured in to Charlotte Harbor every summer. And as the rain slow and the river levels drop, the Harbor becomes Salt water again These two river form the top of Charlotte Harbor and Then add in the Caloosahatchee at the southern rend of the Harbor lots of fresh water get poured in to Charlotte Harbor every summer. And as the rain slow and the river levels drop, the Harbor becomes Salt water again.

Fishing Here in the Harbor has been at it's slowest ebb during July, September is the month when it all starts Snook season is open and the weather will start to cool off and there is plenty of Tarpon to play with and did I mention Dinosaurs?
Have fun out there Fishin Frank
 

08/0?/2017

Snook season is open, and whether it is to help that Snook keep a good aerobic workout program or
to take it home for a dinner date, now is the time to go and catch a few.
But if you're going snook fishing, you'll want to have a dependable reel, because these fish can be tackle busters.
 

Here are Reels which are at the $100ish mark, Why pick reels at the 100 price range, or up?
In my experience this is where you get better materials,
The steel in the bearings is a much better grade of metal, it is about the quality of the materials,
 and this is the middle price in today's world where reels last a lot longer,
Lets start with the one that started the $100 revolution,
  The Penn Battle. Every other company is trying to catch up,
  the Battle reels are the bench-mark standard for what a $100 reel should be.
  Penn puts an additional stainless steel bearing for the drag to spin on. HT-100 drag washers,
  many reels even at this level come with felt drag washer, sad but true.
 

What size reel you choose should be by what size line you wish to use. In the old days reels were designed by line capacity more than strength. Well plastic mono filament line is similar to a coil spring and if the spool was too small the line would just uncoil off, and if the reel was larger, the smaller line would catch in the cracks and the drag would in many cases break the lighter line before slipping.
Now today’s reels are made much stronger as line has gotten so small, the reels are made for that and here are the top reels for the money,
   #1 Penn Battle the drag washers and ball bearing for the drag still best dollar value,

   #2 Fin-nor Lethal they just don't go bad, reliable.

  #3 Okuma Azore again strong, I think with this one do you want a dark color or a silver reel, Yes it is that close.

  #4 Daiwa BG it got here for casting distance, it seems to cast a bit farther.

  # 5 Shield reels, I really like the design and “feel and they seem to hold up so far. I think they could go up in the ranking.

# 6 the Shimano NASCI nice weight and feel better than average casting distance but random problems with returns, bail issues and the reel stem is a little short if you have larger hands.

Choosing Reels is kind of a how does it feel? thing, if it feels good in your hand, or is it the right color? The Daiwa and the Shield are newer and I can not tell you how they will hold up long term yet. The Battle, Lethal and Azores great strong and time tested, And one thing about the Shield is that I like it better with the shield Rod, a solid graphite rod, not a hollow core, I tried the reel on one of my rods and it was OK, but on the shield rod, a very cool experience.
Hope this helps, for in depth question stop by the store and we will help and Just F.Y.I. We are not under sold on Penn reels by any one on the Net or in a store. 

07/2017

Red fish are stating to reappear Even up on the Peace river, and they are eating shrimp.

There is a picture of my sister holding a barley Legal red fish if we were going to throw it back she would be holding the belly. But lets face it it did not survive, we ate it so too much pressure on the Jaw, least of it's problems. Not as to how we caught it we were up river. The picture shows where we were and the thing that is hard to see the the tiny deep cut right along the shore line. On this point of Long island the sand bar comes way out a couple hundred feet, But right next to the shore is this little deep place where the Red Fish cross from the main channel to the Open area of Harbor Heights.
 

I had a ½ once sinker in front of a swivel, Slip style with a 2/0 octopus hook and 30 inches of 25 pound fluorocarbon leader. I was using a live shrimp about 3 inches long and had cast about 2 feet from the mangrove trees. Now I would have liked to get a bit closer to the trees but with the sinker and the shrimp it helicopters and it is very easy to get snagged in the branches, So I was trying to stay out a bit.

The Shrimp I had hook sideways across the head. What that means is you can set the hook right as you feel the bite. If you tail hook a shrimp you need to count 1, 2, before setting the hook, Reds like most fish eat a Shrimp head first, they are easiest for the fish to swallow that way, when a shrimp is tail hooked the Red fish will take a second to spin it around in it's mouth before swallowing and set the hook too soon and you Red swims away to bite another day.

The half once sinker was not to hold it in place but to give me casting distance, I needed the weight to get in close enough to where the Red Fish were. And right now you need to be back 50 plus feet from where you are fishing as a rule, the water has gotten quite a bite darker and you can catch Red much closer Now But they are still very spooky, so even with the darker water I am staying back. Hence the weight/sinker.

Now what I am looking for it that bit of deeper water next to the mangroves, this holds true right now weather you are on the east side or out on Gasprilla Sound, which by the way is getting loaded up with Red Fish, People have been talking all this year about where are the Reds? Well I can tell you I am heading to the tailing flats for my next article. There are reports of hundreds of Red fish there and I am excited about the chances to really have a 20 Red fish trip, Yeah OK it has been a while, I will let you know where and how.
In the mean time stop by and see us, and Good luck

Fishin Frank

 

06/2017

Well good news and some OK news for the waters of Charlotte Harbor. This year we have seen a tremendous number of Saw Fish, Nurse Sharks and Flounder. The drought we had experienced over the winter did just what it should have done and that is allow much more grass to grow, The Grass has expanded on the flats and out side the sand bars on the edges of the Harbor. This is just what was needed to create habitat for bait fish, Shrimp, and of course small crabs and a for gotten bait here is worms and small eels. Yes we have a few species of salt water worms and they are loving the new grass beds. To under this you have to go back to I believe the spring of 1995 we a 18 inches of rain in a couple hours and then the rain kept coming, 1995 destroyed much of the grass habitat we had on the flats and almost all of the grass beds in water over 5 feet deep. Then in around 2010 we had a two year drought I could be off a year or two but the drought lasted for two years and many fresh water canals only had a foot or so water in them and the Harbor with no rain was clear you could see bottom in the 20 foot hole, The second year of the drought we spent a lot of time looking at the bottom features of the harbor, rocky/stone bottom, where the mud bottom and where the grass beds had returned. After the two year drought things went back to normal with dark water n the summer and clear water in the winter, I have never again seen the bottom in the 20 foot hole. OK long time in getting to the point the Flounder and the sharks like the same habitat sand bottom mixed with grass patches so the Harbor is getting healthier and the many fish we did not see for years are coming back.
Snook populations are growing steady and this had little or nothing in my option to do with the closed season, It had all to do with the rain, The rain was timed perfectly for the Snook to get a bit of fresh water just before they spawned which pushed them out to the gulf, before the eggs were released from Mom and that ensured they would float, Snook spawn in fresh or salt water but in fresh water most of the eggs sink to the bottom and never hatch, the salt water being more buoyant allow them to float and then hatch, The perfect timing of the rain has given the Snook a huge boost in numbers.

 

Red Fish are coming back in to the Harbor after a year of very poor number, the number of Red fish
on the flats of the east side and Pine island on Gasprilla sound, Now the OK news is that the Reds have come out of hiding but over all number of Red Fish are down and I believe that it is due to the Red Tide we have been getting at least every two year right during the red fish spawn, People see some adult reds dead from Red tide and think that is bad, well yes but not nearly as bad as the millions of tiny baby Red fish which are too small to be noticed so, judging by what I can see is that we are having maybe 25% of the red fish which should be hatched actuality hatch. And then with predators very few reds are making it to slot size, compared with non-Red tide years, If we can get through this fall with out a Major Red tide, we will see a huge jump in the numbers of Red fish with in two years, Yes it could take a couple years for the reds to make it to slot sizes, although I have found out fish grow at vastly different rates just like people, some kids get huge quick and some stay smaller and get a growth spurt later, So the good news is don’t freak out about the numbers of Red Fish, we have the same amount of even less some time people fishing and the number of tournaments are way down from what they were and all it will take to get bunches of Red Fish back herein the harbor is a little less run off so there is no Red tide this fall.
Hey happy thoughts.
Frank

??/??/??

06/10/17

A beautiful day, well yes I found one and took my Sister Pam and My Cousin Tracy out for a bit of Shark fishing. I had not checked the Tide so if I had known what the tide would be for an out-going tide I like to fish in the north end of the harbor around the 20 foot hole or Marker #1 if the tide is in-coming I like to fish south in the Harbor like the Pirate Harbor hole or by Cape haze, But I had not a clue so I went in the middle of it all between marker #5 and Marker #6 in line between Cape Haze and Burnt store, I figured if the tide was going out I would be chumming towards Boca Pass. If the tide was coming in I would be chumming the Harbor.

So we get to the Spot you should be east of the line between Marker #1 off Ponce Deleon park to Marker #5 off Cape haze as this is the line all of the big boats travel in and out of the Harbor lots of wake and when or if they would slow down it makes it even taller wake waves, So picture the line in your head, and stay a ¼ mile or so east of that, much safer. Once I am there I put out the Anchor and then the Chum Bag keeping the bag about ¾ the way into the water and then first line out is a med to med heavy Spinning rod an 8-15 or maybe 10 -20 pound class rod, With a bobber and a short AFW bleeding leader with a 5/0 hook 4 feet below a float, Now the float line or bobber line goes out first. The reason is I like to check the direction of the currant, looking at the water will not tell you really which direction the water is really going, but that float will, and I do not fall in love with the spot I anchor at first, highly likely I will move the boat at least once, after seeing which way the bobber is going. I want my chum to flow when I am here at the south end of the Harbor over the gravel bottom, I know the general direction the gravel bottom takes and that gravel bottom unlike the mud bottom in most of the Harbor holds a lot of bait. Small crabs, tiny bait fish, shrimp and other types of bait often the chum will get them excited enough about the food that they will come out and that really brings on the larger predators.
So After I cast out the bobber line I open the bait and pull another 30 or more feet of line from the reel and close the bait again, Now once the line drifts off with the tide I cast out a rod free line no sinkers or floats. This free line with just the leader and the bait will on a slow tide be right at the bottom, and when the tide picks up a little faster it will lift the bait off a bottom some, higher off the bottom as the tide moves faster, just like the way a piece of dead bait would drift along naturally.

Now I have not caught anything on my rod that have a sinker on them, So I decided to up those to larger rods with a larger bait 9/0 or 12/0 hooks with 250 pound steel leader and a half of mullet or big chunk of Bonita. I think the smaller sharks are staying more off the bottom and it is the larger sharks that are feeding deep during the day while I am out. You can tell when the larger Sharks show up if you have been catching smaller sharks and the bite just stops. Well that is a very good indicator that the big ones have showed up. One of the few predators small sharks have is big sharks.

I like to eat sharks hay it is only fair they would eat me given a chance so, when I catch one I judge how big a shark I will keep my my cooler, Yes if it will not fit on the ice chest I let it go. Now you should understand I was raised on wonder bread and my food is refrigerated or frozen and meat left out in the sun or worse yet letting the fish hang on a stringer will just make it a bacteria factory and while I enjoy the shower curtain in our bathroom which has a map of the world on it, Very cool, I do not feel the need to be running in there ever 10 minutes because I let my fish spoil in the heat. Ice it down.

For hooks I always use J hooks for shark fishing with the barb bent over as to leave as much of a bump there as possible.
Circle hooks are too difficult to get out of the sharks mouth and if I happen to break off, a J hook with a bent down barb has the best chance of just falling out of the sharks mouth. And there is no blood all over the boat. Be kind bend it over. For some reason that don’t sound right, any way.
For bait and chum I have been just using the frozen stuff, I don’t get much time to go fishing and it has been working. So frozen sardines and or thread fins cut in half or if they are smaller size I put the hook through the head into the body threading the hook from front towards the rear and then cut up the bait just a bit so more smell is released. These are the tricks I used to get my Cousin Tracy her first sharks
this is where we went, and I will tell you the first hit will be 35 minutes after your chum is out and the first real bite should be 5 to 10 minutes after that. If you are there or any where Shark fishing I give it an hour no bites I am out of there. And always start with the 3 basic rigs, flaot line , free line and sinker rig. I always think I dont care how I fish. I care how I catch.
And try smaller rods with 15 or 20 pound test, leave the drag a ¼ turn looser then when I Snook fish, it is open water and out in the open it is better to have more line than heavier line with less yards, let that Shark run take your time bringing it to the boat. Who wants to grab a green Shark or I should say a shark that is not tired out. And last tip always control the head of a shark holding a shark by the tail will get you bit. A shark can pretty much bit it's own tail. Control the head.
Enjoy

Fishin Frank

06/09/17

Cobia fishin at Marker #2 my Mom and Dad asked me to help find my nephews a big fish to fight and I right away started thinking about the mouth of the Myakka river, one of my favorite places for big fish now funny thing is there I average about 4 to 5-foot fish not quite as larger as farther down in the Harbor but just right for younger people with little or no experience fighting big fish, But the weather gods had other plans and there just was not time to go that far. So, looking at the building weather we stopped at marker #2 out in front of Alligator bay.

The tide was coming in so we anchored up on the west side about 200 yards away from the marker and as always, I cast out a bobber line and my luck was good the bobber was pointing right at the marker. I mean I tested the wind and used my ancient sea lore to perfectly position the boat so the chum would flow right at the marker.

Now there are two or three reasons not to be closer to the marker # 1 boat traffic just when the fish Shark or Cobia would be interested in the bait a boat would chase them off and the second reason is that people cast net there for bait all day on and off, so with the nets crashing down on the water again spooking my lager fish. And #3 it is nor fair to others to take up room that close to where they want to get bait so they can go fishing. And to be truthful that is what the chum is for. It takes about 30 minutes or so for the chum to start working on the bait fish by the marker and my regular frozen chum which come already in the bag or a box whatever you like will pull the bait at least some of it from the marker over towards my boat. Combine the chum smell in the water and a school of bait fish feeding on the chum line that is the recipe for Big fish on.  

So not knowing if it would be sharks or Cobia or what I went back to my steel leader the blood ones from AFW and put out a set bobber line, free line and a sinker rig, Now I had a larger rod spinning with 50 pound braid on it so I took a chance and free lined a Sardine out on that line and the other rods I put on the bobber a half of a pilchard on the free line I placed a whole pilchard but cut slice from the back of the bait under the tail up into the belly cavity to release a bit more smell.




The My two nephews flipped a coin for fist hit. We put out the rods each of the boys had one and the other “extra rods we put in rod holder and then flip a coin to see who gets first hit on them. If you are holding the rods of course that is your hit, but it eliminates questions/problem if you know who gets first hit   The first rod to go was one in the holder I took the rod Jesse was holding as he won first hit with the coin toss. Now I reeled that rod in as fast as possible and had Ethan reel in his rod, the rod Jesse had was peeling line and right before I could get to the last rod and start reeling in it went off, I got Ethan’s rod from him and he settle in for the fight< By now Jesse had his fish coming at the boat and last minute it did an end run around towards the back of the boat. At that moment I could have told him to get down on his knees and put the rod tip as far under water as he could, but the fish was deep and I decided to have Jesse start going to the back of the boat, Now this is a boat I got for my parents a 23 foot fiberglass pontoon boat with two Bimini tops and a lot of straps to hold them in place and Jesse was working

 the rod towards the back holding it in one hand and grabbing it with the other to get around all of those straps. The Biminis which keep the sun off so mom is comfortable are great until you have a big fish heading to the back of the boat, then pain in the pa-toot time. Just before he made it to the back the fish came up and I watched the line hit the prop and bink it was gone. Leaving Jesse panting trying to catch his breath and wondering how that could have happened.

For me no time as Ethan still had a big fish on at the front of the boat. So, I started coaching slowly lift the tip of the rod up and start reeling and lower the rod as you reel. Stop reeling lift the rod up, more pull ok 12 o’clock stop and start reeling while you slowly lower the rod, now a big problem people have is they get anxious to let the rod down after the big pull, and if they drop the tip of the rod too fast the line will wrap around the tip of the rod tying the fish hard to the pole and bang fish gone. But that did not happen and Ethan did great slow up and slow down while reeling. Once it came close to the boat the first time we could see it was a Cobia about 40 inches to the tail. Yummy, Now Cobia have a thing like many of have our things and the thing about a Cobia is they play mind games with you. It will stay right out of reach, I mean just out of reach of your net and if you hate your landing net Cobia are wonderful as they will go right through the mesh of a landing net like it was made of butter. So, once it is close and if you are going to eat it grab a gaff. I had the gaff ready and Ethan was pulling up and reeling down, but as he pulled up the drag just let out line after another 15 minutes of this and I had to stay right him as if you get impatient you will lose that Cobia that is its mind game right there just out of reach waiting for you to make a mistake. He made no mistakes so the pressure was on me now with the gaff, 4 times I tried but I was going to go through the gills so not to mess up the fillets. Steel leader good hook set, we had time, Finally I got the gaff through its gills and into the head and on to the boat it came.

Which after it went straight into the ice chest letting Ethan have a break and letting the fish expire on the ice. Have you ever landed a big fish and went to take pictures and it thrashed it was out of your grip and back into the water? Me well I don’t want to talk about it. So now the fish stays on ice until I know it is calm. After the pictures, we put the lines out again and got just railed by a fish we could not stop on the rod with the 50-pound test on it. Big, huge it must have been. We got the anchor up and flowed the fish then a big lunge and pow the line broke. Yes, Poor Jesse no luck that day.

   With the storms building
we decided to head back to the dock. Great day batted 250 hooked 3 lost 2 landed 1
Enjoy your selves out there
Fishin Frank

??/??/??

Picking the line to fish with,

This is a big question now, should I use braided line or Mono, Mono Filament line is a solid plastic line getting it's name from a single or {mono} filament invented in 1938, but was stiff and kinky and not until the mid 1960's was it really usable to fish with. Braided line is a type of cloth and from Kevlar, Yes bullet proof vest thread. While not exactly Kevlar close enough. Lets start with that, Braided line is amazing new line because it allows you fish fish with very heavy line, that is so small you can cast 20 pound test with the ease of 8 pound mono. Yes there is a difference between how thin a line is and the castiblity of the line, Take 30 pound braided line it is smaller than 12 pound mono, but when you throw it on a fishing rod it will cast the same distance as #12 mono , So 2o pound braid while the size of 4 pound mono will cast like 8 pound. Braid line is more resistant to scarping against barnacles so wears better than mono, Mono filament line tends to twist when used on s Spinning reel, and to get the twist our you would drag it behind the boat as very slow speed, When twisted mono looks a lot like wrought iron, and when pulled through the water the water would work out all of the twists in about 1 to 2 minutes. Braided line when it gets twisted just will not UN-twist when pulled through the water, some of the twist will come out but it takes 5 time longer to get the twist out. Braided line, being cloth material dose not hold the shape as will mono to help the water work the twist out. Good news is that it take 5 times longer to see the or have the twist in braided line become a problem.

Braid is stronger than mono line. That is what most people think and not really true. Braided line has no give or stretch, So on a flat dead pull with no jerking it is very strong, but if you pull then jerk on the braided line it will pop quite easy. This is the reason I use braided line when fishing against the mangroves or under docks, I use it because it breaks so easy, If you hang braided line in a tree branch a short sharp jerk of the line will pop the braid line easy, while mono fishing line stretches so much it is very hard to break and often sends high speed missiles back to the boat, the stretch acts like a sling shot. So contrary to people opinion I use braided so I can safety break it.

So if I am trolling or really open water fishing I still prefer mono as it gives/stretches when the fish hits making it hard to break. A hint if you are going to troll with braided, here is the equation. With mono line. The fish hits, the line stretches, the rod bends the drag on the reel gives. So when using braid to troll with. No stretch so set your drag at least 1/3 looser than you would with mono, so the fish will not break off.

Now mono line will get you more hits, the same way that Fluorocarbon leader will get you more hits than steel leader. So in open water I use mono to hook more fish, more fish on the line means more fun,
Now What color line is the best, not too ay years ago it was simple you had a choice of clear mono line or white mono line. Now the are tons of colors and lines with mixed colors, So which is best. that is easy they are all the best, but not all year, I had 8 rods and reels on the boat and each one had a different color line on it, no one colors catches more fish than the other all year, as the water colors changes and the conditions change so will the color of your line, I watched one color catch way more fish than the others only to fade back down to normal, then another color would get way more hits,
I fish every once in a while with white bait and white bait swims around a lot, now with each rod a different color I know which white bait is swimming behind the boat, or is under the boat and All I have to say is hey Yellow reel up, when the line were all one color everyone had to reel to find out whose bait it was. Tangles are easier to deal with when the lines are different colors as well, much simpler to get Yellow apart from green than green from green.
So there is no real down side to different colors other than we are not used to it,

Just to wrap this up as I could go on about a lot more issues, let me say, What is the best brand of braided line. There is not a best one. They are all good, the trick is to find which is the best for you, which brand of line cast good for you, with-out throwing wind knots, Some people will do better with one brand and some with an other. So if a line works for you, that’s means it is good. But it may not be the one for your fishing partner, how you cast, which rods and reel you put together. Whether you use bait or lures. All will make a difference in which line is the best for you. So when a line company says we are the best. No that is impossible, It is only true it may be the best for you.
Thanks I hope this helps
Fishin Frank

05/24/17

Hi Every body

You know for a guy with so many boats I don’t get out much, But got a chance to take out my little boat, which is a 15 foot skiff, This is the boat I plan to use for creeks and exploring. Anyway T and I headed out for a day of fishing the river. And not a bad day we used frozen pilchards for bait, here is a tip when you are using them bring a pair of scissors. A knife mushes up the bait too much.

First stop the I-75 bridge as it was about 8:30 in the morning and the winds were light, you and I know by afternoon the wind will pickup. So we anchored up at the bumpers and started out putting a half of a pilchard on at a time, using two #2 split shots, just to see if we would get a hit. No problem getting a hit. Cast once the bait hit the bottom tap, tap, tap, bang bait gone! Putting on a new bait I casted just a bit closer, by that I mean my bait hit the concrete ans slid down. Risky it is very easy to get stuck on the barnacles or debris, but it worked and bang a nice little Goliath grouper was on it's way to get it's picture taken. Notice the round tail, that is the way tell a Goliath from any other Grouper in the area I have seen this species in dark colors like this one and then light colors with red or browns, it has to do with where you catch them, A Goliath will try like almost all fish to blend in with the back ground colors so they do not get noticed either as a predator or as prey. This one is was dark brown with tan markings. Fun on the light rod I was using a fishin Franks Camo rod, I decided to use this one as the fish could not see the camo rod sticking out from the boat. Oh and I have some ocean front property in Wisconsin I would like to sell as well. After the little grouper it was cast and pick, pick, tap, tap, and bait gone. So I switched to a slip sinker rig so I could feel right when the fish started to bite the bait rather then after it had already taken the bait, Once we switched I caught a couple decent size mangrove Snappers, having forgot the ice chest for keeping the fish cold it was a catch and release day.
Now Terry or T as I could the wife did catch some fish at this spot, but she was shy about not wanted to get hung up on the piling and was casting within 2 feet of the bridge pilings but it seemed that the Snapper and grouper were closer and the Hello kitty moments were just out 2 feet or more from the pilings.
With the wind picking up and the tide starting to change we left the bridge to try a couple islands and no luck, The channel between the islands of bird key and long key before they dredged in the water pipe to Punta Gorda, which was necessary but that did screw up the fishing there. It would have been great if when they placed the pipe they would not have put all of the dirt back and had left a trench.
That would have made the fishing even better than before but they left a hill or long bump which made things worse. OK I get that hauling off the excess dirt would have cost money, but with every one screaming about the environment cleaning out some of that much while they were right there would have been the right thing to do.

After trying the Islands with no luck and to my defense the tide had stopped, So instead of waiting for the tide to turn we went up to the trestle on shell creek. And as we motored up the fish were not boiling at the surface but swirling would be a good word and so we started casting and I was using a Storm twitch stick and T had a Paddle tail jig on, She saw a fish bust the surface right between the piling and cast right on the swirl but the fish has swirled right over a piling which was under water so T broke off,
I gave her my rod and while she was trying to find fish I tied on a leader using 25# fluorocarbon and a DOA cal shad 443 color salt & pepper with a green tail. Right as I was done tying all heck broke loose at the other end of the Trestle, A big school of what I thought were Jacks wer3e blowing up the surface chasing bait. So I stated the motor and once I had pointed the boat in the right direction were the fish were frothing the water I shut of the motor and we drifted in. The bottom at that end of the trestle is hard sand and that makes it tough to use a stick it while the boat is moving so I eased the anchor over the side tied it off and then used the stick it pin to keep the boat from swinging towards the trestle, with that done we waited for the fish to start feeding again, and talk about blind chicken getting a kernel of corn they started right in front of us. I put a, if I might say prefect cast just the other side of the fish and the shad lure did not make it 3 feet and bang fish on, and when it jumped out and I saw the line on it's side I was stunned not jacks at all but a school of Snook, between 20 – 28 inches feeding like a bunch of jacks and what fun. Once we hooked one it takes a while for it to start again, So T put on a hook and float with a chunk of dead bait. The float/bobber was great to drift the bait along the edge of the pilings in and out of each section and she lost a couple nice fish.
Shell Creek is such a great spot to fish on the windy days peaceful and not a lot of boat traffic, we did see one guy who must have been having trouble with the seat cushions on his boat while we were heading home. And the poor fellow must have spilled something on his pants, as he was not wearing any, I assume to keep from staining the cushions with what ever he spilled. That seat cushion must have been stuck as he kept banging his hips against it. Well I did not stop to help as he seemed to have it under control. All in all a really nice day on the water, with birds fish and even a herd of manatees 7 of them can by the boat while we were anchored at the trestle. So a good day even the guy who was having trouble with his boat seats looked happy.
Have fun and be safe out there.
Fishin Frank

05/10/17

OK I know I keep talking about how strange the fishing is but this month is right on track for normal. In other words strange, Sheep head which should be scattered from heck to breakfast going around in pairs are thick at the Reef off Alligator creek and hitting free lined Shrimp. If you use a sinker and try to bottom fish for them no luck, But if you let the shrimp drift down slowly by casting up into the tide the Sheep head will bang it on it's way to the bottom. And here is the fun part and what helps make this weird that is exactly how you will catch the Cobia there so you cast up into the currant while thinking nice sheep head 12 to 14 inches and get a 30 inch Cobia, Yes weird but fun.

Now the Tarpon are playing hide and go seek in and out of the Pass, So take a big bait with you and if the Tarpon make ya too nuts head over to the phosphate dock and drop a big chunk of Mullet or lady fish, A big chunk of fish next to the pilings and get ready to go in reverse, Yes the Angler drops the bait right next to the pilings and when the line starts tugging you sift into reverse and slowly back away hoping to drag the fish away from the pilings. Keep in mind if you slam the boat into reverse too fast you have a very wet friend who used to be on the front of your boat. So back slowly.

Finding Tarpon during this month may require a bit of hunting. Keep your eyes on the water while running the boat as slow as possible while still staying on plane. And the driver of the boat looks ahead and it is never a good idea to Tarpon fish alone. Much more often than you think a boat is found with no one on board drifting, I have been punched in the face/head by a Tarpon, I think it did that for fun the dirty bugger. I reached down bending over the side of the boat to get the hook out of the Tarpon and it lunged a quick slash of it's tail and the darn thing head butted me. Bright pretty little lights or stars if you will went off in my head and I was a bit dizzy for a moment. Just a little harder and it could have knocked me out and over the side I could have gone. All in an instant. So back to looking the driver looking ahead and the other person looks side to side and behind the boat!!! Yes behind the boat.
One time myself Robert and the Wife “T” I call her all of us went up in a Huey helicopter and we were flying about 6000 feet and had a beautiful view of the gulf waters, in a Huey with all of the doors open is as close to being a very noisy bird as a human can get. We were looking down and there was a boat right below us and the guy on the front of the boat by himself, dumb idea and about to get dumber was giving a great demo as to how to cast a fly rod. We could see the into water at least 15 feet down and there was not a Tarpon any where in front of his boat. But from the water level he could not know that, and he was really casting. Now if that fellow had a friend on the boat the friend would have noticed there was three different daisy chains of Tarpon starting about 6 feet from the stern of his boat. I thought at one point a Tarpon might knock itself out on his prop. As we flew away he was still fixated on what was in front of him and the Tarpon were relaxing while they swam in circles off his stern.
Point being, look behind you, or better yet bring a friend.

Fish can be so weird, But then again us Humans are right there with them, I was just looking at my shiner tanks and I have a dozen or so gold fish in the tanks like the canary in the coal mines, they tell me if the water is OK. I have shiners dieing off big time, and worked with Bill from Certain water services to get my bait to live in the tanks. He tested the water and found out the problems and put in filter system so the fish would live, and we learned a lot of water quality, On a side note of that people think it is strange when I am filling my coffee water from the bait tank filler. But thanks to Bill It is the best water in town. And after that rant it brings me back to my point about the gold fish. The Gold fish were all put in the tank at the same time and yes they are fat and healthy but some are 2 inches long and some are 5 inches long. That puzzled me.

So I started looking into game fish like Snook or Tarpon and it is the same for them. Some Snook might reach the slot limit in less than a couple years other could take twice that long. Just one of those things I never thought about but looking at people some kids are 6'4” and another 5'2” at the same age so go figure we are not that different from other animals at that.
Well have fun out there and good luck

Fishin Frank

04/28/17

Spring is springing and the wind is blowing, and the Tarpon are moving in and out of the Harbor,
Snook are covering up the flats and the Red fish are behaving strange. So all is normal for Charlotte Harbor in May.

Lets start with Red fish. The Reds are wanting everything slowed down almost like is was August cut bait or Shrimp but not live ones, Shrimp that has been in the sun for an hour or so. Yes a bit stinky same thing with a chunk of Blue Crab. If you are using artificial baits, the lures of Choice would be a D.O.A. Shrimp reeled very slow just on top of the grass. Next best bet the Live Target green back bait, But steady retrieve with a pause like three slow cranks of the reel handle and then stop count to 2 then three cranks and stop. Another good one is the Mirr-o-lure Marsh minnow pearl white with a 1/8 once red jig head, again slow crank but a bit slower than the Live target and no pause just really slow retrieve. There is a lot more numbers and even larger Reds as you go south in the Harbor, Yes Pine Islands sound and the flats south of the Matlacha bridge are both loaded up with Reds. Turtle and Bull bay have reds but they are holding around the Islands, strange part is they are not under the branches as much as 10 feet out from the shore of the mangroves drip edge. I am not sure why the Reds are not up under the trees where I would think they would be, So when you approach the Island stay back twice as far as you would any other year and cast/work your baits from the tree line out, if you don’t get a hit move closer so you may cast up under the branches, Yes I would start out then work closer as the Reds any moment could start going back under the mangroves, as they did in past years.

The Snook on the other hand are wanting everything fast, The MR-17 twitch, twitch stop repeat, but quickly. The Storm twitch stik is doing good as well with a fast retrieve and a slight pause. The live Target bait is good as well but crank fast and when you pause the lure, it is a quick one count then a couple twitches and then fast crank again. With Snook out of season most people do not target them but a couple of catch and release Snook can save a fishing trip, and just remember to handle them with wet hands, or a wet glove or rag and the Snook will survive the catch and release easy. You are helping their cardio work out, he said with a grin.

Tarpon the big story of May, pun intended Lady fish and thread-fins are bait of choice and you will want a couple of crabs with you as well. The last week of April saw the Tarpon fishing up-river go crazy good. Live mullet or cat-fish, even cut bait chunks of mullet and cat-fish tails were getting Tarpon hooked up, several and hour. Yes the Tarpon had moved up River and as I write this they are still there, But by the time you read this, the Tarpon may have moved out into the Harbor, One thing would keep them up river, talipia Yes if the talapia hatch or run of baby Talapia is still going on the Tarpon will stay with the food, which could last the first week of may possible even into the second week. How ever I believe May will be Harbor fishing for Tarpon I would try the first week dead bait, whole Cat-fish 10 inches or so or large chunks of mullet free lined out from an boat anchored up at the deep holes or the mouth of the Myakka River. Tarpon are really starting to think about spawning finding a mate or group of mates and they are still in the dating mode so they are in the going out to dinner phase of dating at this point. So they will hit and that is the pint of this after all, putting them in the air, Yes Tarpon are a fish we count or score how we do by hook ups, which is how many Tarpon bite and then get off before they jump. If they Jump we count how many jumps before they shake of the hook. And last of all how many Tarpon to the boat and released. SO hook ups, Jumps, and landed.
I prefer the second choice I like Jumps if I can get 2 or 3 jumps from a tarpon and then it spits the hook, all good, I have been lucky enough to have caught way more than my share and do not feel the need for getting my arms pulled form their sockets for an extra 30 minutes. But I can tell you, my first few Dozen tarpon I was all about the fight, start to finish.
Lure for Tarpon this year D.O.A. Bait buster the classic, Storm swim baits, Bomber 16 sich long A, and a possible new one to the group the larger size live target swim bait. The live Target could be great or just a flop, funny thing is it looks maybe too real. Funny how the best Tarpon lure ever invented looks kind of well dopey the D.O.A. Bait buster is a very simple elegant design and continues to produce Tarpon in the air. The live Target may just do it, But I have reservations as I have seen life like lures fail before. This will be interesting to see.

So anyway weather you are a back bay Snook and Red fisher or a Tarpon hunter this is going to be your month to have fun, It looks like the rain is going to stay away for a while longer and that means crystal clear water so stay back a bit farther from the reds time to get out those 8 foot rods for the extra distance and with the clear waters make you Tarpon leader 60 pound fluorocarbon and add an extra 12 inches.
Good luck, Have fun

Fishin Frank

04/09/17

Well howdy Boys and Girls of the fishin world there is plenty to talk about, Yes lets start with the sort of bad news Red Tide, Yes the Red tide is staying around, the truth is it has not really left us. And continues to be in back ground to low concentrations although the waters of South west Florida, So lets hope this stays low. But do not be surprised if you are out fishing and your throat starts to get scratchy.
Good news is that is it not killing fish at this point but could happen any day.

The good news is that Bass fishing is hitting an all time high I think a lot of people are heading back to the lakes for some good old fashioned Bass fun. Soft plastics worms are still doing as good as they were years ago and the big thing lately is Frogs yes frogs weather used as top water or with a weight on a Carolina rig Frogs are producing some Big Bass 5 to 7 pound or better. Here is a neat trick the Ribbet Frog is one of the better top water lures for Snook, Yes the Ribbet has paddle tail style feet on it and rigged weedless can be cast right up under the mangroves. And give it a light pop, then a slow steady retrieve just fast enough to get the feet splashing and hang on Snook on! Keep in mind as with all top water lures, wait before you set the hook until you feel the weight of the Snook/any other fish, on the line. Humans are quick and you will pull the lure out of the fishes mouth before the fish can bite down on the lure causing you to miss the hit. So wait until you fell the weight of the fish.

Now the schools of fish you will hear about are Red fish, big schools of over size reds have been hanging out in Pine Islands sound and just south of Matlacha. The other big fish schooling is black drum these Monster fish average of 40 pound have been seen in the Harbor just north of Bokeelia and up to the 20 foot hole on the north end. And of Course the Tarpon. Yes schools of Tarpon are more common as the Tarpon first enter the Harbor during the spring. I like to run the out side of the bar on the west side from Cape Haze north in 6 feet of water watching under the water for dozens or hundreds of Tarpon which I believe are there to meet and greet their friends as they come in from the gulf, maybe to start picking mates for the spawn.

How to catch some fish this time of year lets go over the bait types, and this time of year white bait is your first choice, White bait is really a hard scaled Sardine. Or Green back. Much thicker and hardier than other species of similar baits, Use an Octopus 2/0 hook rigged across the bridge of the fishes nose for best results. Next best bait is pin fish, Pin Fish get their name not from body shape but from the dorsal fins. The dorsal fins are very sharp like needles and I would say at one time they were called pin cushion fish, shorten to pin fish. When I an using a Jig head with pin fish I hook them across the back and let them flop on the bottom making a fuss and kicking up sand. We call that a Red Fish Sundae,
If I am using a hook with a leader and a sinker I will place the hook into the Pin fish across trough the fish just above the Anal opening, this allow the Pin fish to pull against the weight, while remaining up right. If you wish to cast and retrieve a pin fish hook them up trough the Jaw So it will swim along with the pull of your line.

Tarpon how and where well watch for School of lady fish or Spanish mackerel, and bait fish or schooling fish is going to attract Tarpon, Like a fast food sign for a teenager. Now we all want to cast at the Tarpon with a blue crab or a larger thread-fin herring, which is part of the group o f fish people call white bait, The Thread fin has a green back, but it is brighter color green and has black dots on the back in the green color, the easiest way to tell a Green back from a Thread fin is the dorsal fin The Thread fin has a long extension on the back of the dorsal like you see on a Tarpon, The green back has a short dorsal fin.
While we want to cast at the Tarpon your best bet for a hook up is to cast out a Thread fin or crab about 4 feet below a bobber/float, this can be hard if not impossible to cast so often I will drop the bait off the side of the boat and then us the motor with my bail open to get away from the bait. Yes this is the time you will catch most if not all of your Tarpon on. Hey a watched pot thing maybe.

If you are trying to cast at Tarpon think like skeet shooting, you do not shoot at the skeet you lead it shooting in front of the skeet to where it will be. Same thing when I cast at Tarpon, I see which way the fish is moving when it rolls and cast in front of that. Hoping to get my bait just in front of where the Tarpon “will” be. The more violent the The Tarpon is rolling like when it rolls if you hear a tail slap, you will hook up, they are angry feeding and really hungry, if it is a very soft or quiet roll, the chances of a hook up are much less. And that is where the bait just sitting there under the float will be way more likely to hook your fish. Try to use a dual drag reel for the one in the rod holder, where you have a controlled free spool then just start reeling to engage the main drag system.

Well good luck I am hoping to have my boat back in the water a get you some fresh water and Salt water spot reports starting next month. I am ready to be back on the water.
Until next month Good luck

Fishin Frank

03/6/17

03/06/17

03/09/17

Tides are not that hard to understand if you are a bass fisherman. Think about it if you fish a lake on a regular basis, when you have a lot of rain and the water levels come way up, The Bass move up into the grass and places they can not normally go. As the water level gets back to normal, the Bass move to more regular locations around the shoreline, If the water in the lake happens to get very low. The Bass move into deeper water.

So here we have have this happen almost every day, as the water/Tide rises or falls the fish will move.

Now the thing to remember is you want to go on the flats at low tide. Think about it, after low tide the water comes in meaning you will get more. And you will be able to get out from where you are, If you go in at High tide the waters is out going and getting shallower as time goes by, so you may not get out.

Now fish know the tides and will follow the water as it comes in back into the creeks and shallow areas, So it works out fishing the mouth of a small creek at low tide and as the water rises the fish will go up farther into the creek. So the same with High tide as the water is falling I will often sit at the mouth of a creek waiting for the fish to come out.

Lets jump to the middle for a minute. Slack tide yes the time during the day when the water just is not moving. That is the kiss of failure for flats fishing you need moving water so go home? Nope just go to a reef. Yes reefs can be very good fishing during slack tides when the water is not moving. When the water/tide is moving the fish are looking into the tide. Fish have a great sense of smell and like to smell what is coming at them, the same as animals in the wild. So during slack tide the fish will mill about in all directions giving you a better shot at them finding your bait, This is a good time for sheep head or mangrove snappers, even Gag grouper have been known to hit better during this time.

Now we come to the change of tides, and sorry but nature is not run on a time table, so the tide chart might say 1:pm but that really means 1-ish. Wind and other things all play a role in exactly when it tides starts to move. This can be the best possible time to fish, once the tide has stopped moving and starts to go the other way, it begins to stir up all of the stuff which settled with the water coming from the other way, Small creatures like tiny crabs and shrimp get swept up and the food chain starts,

This stirring up of the debris and sand from one side of a rock to the other side is what gets the food chain feeding. So the Pin fish start feeding and then the larger fish and so on.

Water movement on the flats is key to having a good day catching rather then a good day fishing, The shrimp and smaller crabs all start into motion with moving water. Which brings the Red fish, Snook, Trout, even the Sting rays which stir up the bottom even more all happens when the water is moving.

Now Ambush fishing picking a place where the currant will bring bait by, Like between two islands or around a point, bait get swept through a smaller cut between two islands where the is a large body of water which is narrowed and intensified as it is squeezed between two islands, fish will lay in wait at this type of place, So I position my boat a long cast in front of the gap between the islands and cast a bait with no sinker or weights we call it free lining, because the bait is free to move with the current, Casting right at the mouth of the cut then leaving my bail open and letting the line get sucked between the islands which drags my bait right to the fish, So you should be at least 40 feet away as not to spook the fish in the cut. Another good way to fish a cut like that is with a bobber, If I know the dept of the cut, I will set my bait for about 6 inches off of the bottom and cast the float with my bait to the side of the cut and then again leaving my bail open to feed line out as the float takes my bait right along the edge or side of the cut. Now when I am free-lining a bait I go towards the middle hoping to bring the fish out to me, Because my line gets tangled in what ever branches or debris are along the edge where as when I use a float/bobber I can see the drift my float is taking and can adjust by swinging my rod tip towards or away from any obstructions.

Now if I am using lures I will cast up into a creek and try to work the lure as close to the edge of the cut as possible, Fish prefer to hang out close to structure like roots or branches hanging in the water, I think this is from when they were little being ready to escape a larger predator, by running around the branches in a life or death game of ring around the rosy.

Fishing With the tide is useful I guess you could say necessary, thing of trying to fish a bridge with the currant going the other way, using the tide to get your bait where you need it and again thinking that almost every fish is looking into the tide trying to small whats out there, in front of them, A bridge technique I like to use when the currant is stronger is I will take a free ling bait and cast at the bridge, letting my bait be carried up close to a piling. Once the bait is where I want it I let out another 3 feet of line as I then place on the line a sliding sinker, which will fall to the bottom dragging my bait down below the surface. As the tide continues to run the sinker will work it's way closer to my bait, This is the cool part my bait gets a little closer to the bottom every few minutes covering the entire water column top to bottom. Now this only works with a strong tide or currant, Easy to know if you cast a bait out and it is on the surface of the water from the currant keeping it up, this is time to clip on a sinker. And just let it go.

01/11/2017

20/21/17

Fishing and tackle store we get to see a bunch of things I guess you can say well just can not be UN-seen, or UN-heard. I have to say information at least critical information, is important in finding out what a customer is looking for for. Like the day a woman came in and said I need something 10 inches long and it has to be black. Well that was quite a declaration and I have to say it did take a couple minutes to figure out that a 10 inch Culprit Black bass worm was what her husband had sent her into the store for. A little more info in the beginning would have been helpful. Or the times when someone would pull up in their car and ask us to identify a fish in their cooler, What kind of fish is that can I eat it? First off a little late at that point and a couple times they were smaller tarpon. And If you think Jacks are not good eating, there has been so many times when a person is showing me Pictures of the Pompano they caught and while tough to clean were Just great eating and the Pictures showed Nice size Jack Crevele. Tasty is in the tongue of the eater.

 

Or in a different vein the guy walking in all excited about the monster grouper they caught in the canal, Only to be told it is endangered and you can not keep a Goliath Grouper but it has red it is a red Grouper, No sorry, Color can be one of the worst ways to I.D. A fish.
And when the Poor person has caught the Snook of a life time only to find out the Season is open But only on the east coast and here on the west coast it is still closed until march.
So many rules you should have a pocket lawyers.

As far as learning there as fishing clubs they are a great place to meet people, I am not sure it is the best place to learn how to fish. Joining a club is about friendship and being with like minded people. Here is the best advice I can give you. Never say to a person in the club, I would like to go fishing with you. OK that part is good, now here is where you are going to screw your self, Do not add “So you can show me where to go and how to catch fish. What? So what you just told them is you are too cheap to hire someone to teach you to fish and your value of that person is only about what they can do for you? Really? Going fishing together is about being with some one you enjoy and want to talk and spend time with. By the way this is the number one complaint from people who are asked to go fishing by someone. They feel you did not want to fish with them, that you only want a cheap teacher. As long as I am ranting, here is another thing, If you go fishing with someone, Pay your share of the fuel. And NEVER leave the boat until it is cleaned and everything is put away, NEVER no matter what.

Now classes this is good for general knowledge a class will give you basics of catching fish. I do not recommend a class for a specific fish, like catching a Snook, think of classes for how to fish from a boat or from a pier.

Hiring a local guides and hoping they will show you where they catch fish and how they catch fish,
is not really fair. People would even go as far as hiding their g.p.s. to find out where the guides were catching the fish. Which may work in the gulf but on the flats, This could be a real problem for people as much of the flats may be less than one foot deep. Folks who come down with a boat and think they can go where a Charter Captain can go with his boat on the flats, many times will just leave them high and dry on a sand bar. As learning flats fishing is knowing the boat and the depth of the water, So you do not end up waiting for the tide to come up. So hire a Captain to take you out and catch fish and have fun. Not to try and find spots.

 

A new thing is instructors People who go with you on your boat showing you where and how to catch fish, this is different as it is their job to show you good spots and help you. Which is different than the Captain who is just trying to catch you fish.
ire someone to teach you or pay the person you asked going rates are from $50 to $100. an hour.

There are so many things about fishing. The best thing is you can just go. Relax and enjoy where you are, it sometimes helps to turn off the phone. Stop in and say Hi sometime.
Fishin Frank

2017
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2016

01/25/16

02/21/16

06/22/16

06/24/16

Well with the rain and the river running filling the Harbor with freshwater, There are plenty of Tarpon to go chasing after, and the Red Fish have come out of hiding with good numbers on both the east and west sides of the Harbor. But Big Fish is what I am thinking, So what fish can you find in sheltered watered, let's face it Summer time thunder storms are a regular thing, and the wind is blowing hard one day and then OK the next so planning a trip out into the Harbor is kind of iffy.

That leaves one monster fish to play with Black drum, and what a great fish it is. The black drum has whiskers like an old man of the sea and likes to hang out back in the canals and around the bridges, Just a month ago thee were schools of thousands of these drum from 15 pounds to 60 pounds average fish in the school was about 40 pounds and there were thousands of them. Now the big school spawn or meet and greet is mostly over and the Black drum are now in their summer homes, the I-75 bridge and the 41-bridges both have a bunch of Black drum around the pilings,
The other place which is full of Black drum is the bridges in the P.G.I. canal systems.

For some reason there are black drum on the Port Charlotte side of the River but many, many more on the Punta Gorda side. I would suppose it is because of the canals are maintained. And the water is deeper. There are fewer openings to the canals in P.G.I. So the water moves faster and stronger going in or out than the canals over in Port Charlotte, I think that is the larger reason there are so many more drum in P.G.I.

Well enjoy the days of summer on the water and remember to drink more than you think you should.
Have fun with the drum and if it is too big, when the water is hot there is often a bunch of parasites in the meat. So for the summer Black drum are catch & release fishing. Once the water cools down you can go after our Black drum dinner. The meat is wonderful, white, flaky, and solid, excellent eating, Just wait for the water to get back in the low 70's or colder.
Fishin Frank

11/23/2016

11/23/2016

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01/11/2017

01/05/11

Sunday we said a last good bye to Angel during an on the water ceramony, It was very nice around 30 boats showed up
The weather was cold & windy, Jeff was taking waves over the bow. So 30 somthing boats was a lot.
Angels family all got to be together on the boats we rafted up, & Jeff dropped flowers up currant from the family,
Then all the boats did a final pass by salute to Angel. A fitting tribute for a good friend.

I spent the weekend at Arcidia days, Got to ride an Elephant, and watch the Frisbe dogs perform.
Lot of good bands Dixie Highway was great, I over ate both days the food was good. lots of work over 100
vendors and 6 bands, plus lots of other stuff, It was my Job to get everyone where they were supposed to be and get them what they needed
So I was busy. Did I mention I rode an Elephant how cool was that.

Billy B. was out today said the rat reds are all over the place. they caught a couple of Sheep head along the mangroves
and had a good time with the trout on the open flat just north of Prirate harbor.

01/05/11

Some of the better fishing right now by reports is in gasprilla sound Catfish creek ,
 whidden creek for big trout and bull & Turtle bay For Reds,
lots of small Reds but thats a good thing, means there is a real furture for them.
 remember the in-line cricle hooks for those little bait gulpers

01/02/11

Two guys just came in for thier 2nd 3 dozen shrimp, P.G.I. canals
Trout sre biting live shrimp with a very small split shot. or just freeline,
 cast wait for it to sink stay sharp it is a lite bite you have to be ready or the Trout get a free lunch.

Hot lures ,for a great day Trout fishin
mirrorlure 17MR,
Love lures tandum jigs Pink or white,
D.O.A. terror eyes, Red head / white, or black back with belly,
Maverick golden eye 222 red /wth , This oldie but goodie making big comeback
 this year, which is nice to see as they are made in The U.S.A. "I like that".

Trout in front of bull small but lots of them,
over by the three sisters flats and the back of devil fish cut bigger Trout but not as many.
Sand fly has had trout around the I/C side ,
Nice Trout mixed sizes from alligator creek down to Pirate Harbor,
Inside Pirate Harbor lots of Small trout.

Redfish , Turtle bay back in the holes and out front by Gallergers lots of reports of 6 to 30 fish for the day ,

08/19/2011
Robert has actually taken the last couple of Fridays off for some well deserved R & R and gone fishing. Today he is off to a reptile show. In his
words, "Theoretically he should be here next week."  Time will tell.

7/29/2011
The summer sun is really heating things up out there. That along with all the fresh water running out of the Peace and Myakka rivers is pushing the
fish down the harbor further where there's a better exchange with the saltier and slightly cooler waters of the Gulf. If you really think you have to
fish the upper end of the harbor the best thing I can tell you is that its pretty inconsistent unless you're fishing for tarpon. They're moving into the
holes and around the bridges at night and of course you have the juveniles up in the PGI canals. Other than that your best fishing is going to be in
 the ICW/Pine Island sound area, unless you're heading out for some off shore fishing. Red grouper are on hard bottom and structure from 8 to about
15 miles. Lots are small but there are enough keepers there to make it worthwhile. Take lots of bait, squid, sardines, shrimp, pinfish, and believe it
or not, night crawlers. They're eating just about anything you drop down. Some chicken dolphin out there close, but you need to get out around the
50 mile plus mark to get on the bigger ones and the black fin tuna.

7/22/2011
Glass minnows and ladyfish, along with a few bluefish, have moved into the harbor in really good numbers. That means the tarpon are with them,
but they're just not showing themselves a whole lot yet. They're scattered from Cape Haze to the mouth of the Myakka. Threadfins, pin fish, and
ladyfish are your best baits. No, there's nothing you can do to avoid the catfish that will eat those also, so be ready to get slimed. Have a pole rigged
for pitching to the cobia that will swim up to you. Offshore fishing has been great. Dolphin up to 15 pounds, but mostly small, from 12 to 30 miles
and the further out you go the more consistent it gets. A few kings and black fins at 30 to 50 miles. Grunts and mangrove snapper are doing well at
10 to 15 miles in 60 to 65 feet of water. Inshore, go early or stay home. Frozen shrimp, cut bait up under the bushes and be ready to wait. And yes,
the live shrimp are still small.
 

7/15/2011
Lots of changes happening out there in the harbor now that both rivers have water flowing out of them in more than a trickle. I'm not a big fan of
fishing around tides, but for the next 3 months, especially in the middle to upper end of the harbor, the incoming tide is much better. That incoming
tide will bring in cooler, saltier water which is what the fish will be looking for. Glass minnows, small greenbacks, and threadfins have been showing up
in good numbers the last couple of days which means the smorgasbord is open. Lots of ladyfish, Spanish mackerel, occasional blue fish, small sharks,
and tarpon are starting to move into the harbor , mostly between marker 5 and Boca Grande, and they're all chasing the bait. It should only get better
here over the next few weeks. Mangrove snapper have started showing up all over the passes and inside too. Nothing huge but there are some nice ones
in the mix. The nice snapper are out on the near shore reefs along with the grunts and Spanish mackerel. Small dolphin, sails, blackfins, and the occasional
wahoo are at about 30 miles. This is the primetime for offshore because the seas are relatively calm except for the thunderstorms that roll through and stir
things up. The reds and snook are out there, but if you're not getting under the bushes you're probably not going to do real well. The shrimp are tiny so
don't be afraid to use the frozen shrimp and cut baits. The main thing is slow presentation. Too hot for those fish to get real excited about chasing food.
Again, make sure you stay well hydrated out there too. Heat stroke is not one of those things that you want to get the t-shirt for.

7/08/2011
Well, it has been a rather wet and soggy week to sat the least. We needed the rain to get things going on land and in the harbor, but enough is enough.
As usual, its the same old same old, your better fishing is going to be closer to the intercoastal, and the shrimp are going to be small for the next 3 or
so months. Your bigger reds and snook are down in the Pine Island area and some nice fish also around Whidden and Catfish Creeks. White bait is
the best way to go but frozen shrimp is a good second choice. Yes, the fish will eat the frozen shrimp, so quit whining and try it, you might be surprised.
Snook  are stacked out along the beaches, and since they're still closed, we're not passing along any secret tricks for getting them. Tarpon are all over
the beaches and passes with a few fish up inside the harbor. The one good thing about the rain is that it should start moving them up into the harbor.
We'll just have to wait and see. Offshore wasn't the best place to be this past week, but there were a few brave souls that ventured out to the near shore
reefs. They were rewarded with some decent mangrove snapper, Spanish mackerel, and grunts. Also some fairly large flounder which is not all that
common in our area. We'll see how things go this next week with all this rain. Its bound to change things up out there. Don't forget its hot out there
so make sure you stay well hydrated and Fido too if you take him along.
 

7/01/2011
As you can see I wasn't here last week. Actually took the day to try to go tarpon fishing, but the weather didn't cooperate. Nice scenery from the
Placida wharfs at the Fishery restaurant though. Well its finally raining and the water temps have actually dropped a full 2 or 3 degrees. This should
do a lot of good things for the bite out there. We should start seeing an influx of fish into the harbor, such as Spanish mackerel, tarpon, cobia, and
bait fish. As far as right now is concerned, tarpon are stacked along the beach and passes with a few in the intercoastal. Spanish mackerel and mangrove
snapper are on the near shore reefs. A few small sharks and Spanish mackerel on the inside with a few cobia mixed in, mainly around the markers.
Look for the fishing to get better throughout the coming week with the rainfall we've been getting. Everybody have a safe and happy Independence
Day week-end.
 

6/17/2011
Thank you everyone for making the 26th year of Fishin Franks shark, sail cat and sting ray tournament a huge success. A good time was had
by all (especially the winners). A huge thank you to Frank and Terry for making it all happen. Tarpon fishing should be improving this week
now that we've had a little bit of rain and the hill tide is over. Start looking for a lot more fish to start moving up into the harbor and out onto
the beaches and into the passes. Crabs are still working better than the threadfins and both are working better than any artificials right now.
Look and be ready for cobia while you're out there. They're showing up everywhere out there right now, from the middle of the harbor all the
way up to the 41 bridges. Take some frozen sardines and shrimp with you to start off with but try to get a live whiting for better results. Hogy
eels are a good choice for an artificial to throw at them. We need a little more rain to get all the fish turned on out there. The full moon this month
and next month are going to be the best times for fishing the snapper on the near shore reefs as they'll be out there spawning. The redfish bite has
been on and off but they are out there. There have been some decent reds taken up close to the north end of the harbor but the big boys are further
down the harbor. They have been taking white bait pretty consistently but will still eat a shrimp if you put it out there. Snook are just about any
and everywhere you fish out there except for maybe up the river. They're wrecking the white bait if you can find it right now. That little bit of rain
we got the other night has murked up the water inside of the bars on both sides of the harbor making it difficult to spot the bait. Don't forget its
still a catch and release for the snook and apparently is going to be for another year on this coast. The FWC has decided to open the snook season
on the Atlantic side but not on the Gulf. What will be will be and we're going to have to live with it whether we agree with it or not. Hopefully
this will turn out to be a good decision in the long run.
 

6/10/2011
This week-end is our annual shark, sail cat, and stingray tournament. Notice annual, there's only one so don't miss it. Make sure you get
out there and enjoy the time with your family and friends. This past week has been really screwed up for tarpon. There's plenty of fish out
there, but they just aren't cooperating as far as the bite goes. Doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to when they're going to eat. I think
part of the reason for that is the low pressure system that's sitting over Cuba. At least its there and not a hurricane, at least not yet anyway.
I had the opportunity to fish with Captain Jody from the boat The Ocean yesterday (Thursday) and some guests of his. It was definitely a
thrill for me, and I wish I could tell you that I managed to get us on some nice sharks, but that would be a lie. All we managed to do is get
some sun and burn a lot of fuel, but it was still a great day for me and I enjoyed the experience immensely. They're extremely nice people and
I hope that if the opportunity arises to fish with them again that I can manage to get us on some fish. Lots of small sharks scattered
throughout the entire upper harbor, with some mixed reports of bigger black tips and bulls offshore chasing the schools of bonito and jacks.
Look for the frigate birds. Cobia are scattered all over the inner harbor with reports from the bridges all the way south to the ICW. The
Spanish macks are moving back into the harbor and the spade fish have the Alligator Creek reef about covered up. Snook are all over the
beaches, in the passes, and along the eastern edges of the ICW. Still a lot of smaller fish inside too with some big girls thrown in as well. The reds
are playing a little hard to get, probably due to the tournament pressure and the fact that the water is heating up pretty good. They are out there
though for the fisherman that has the patience to get out there and beat the bushes. Reds will eat just about anything you put in front of them,
but they have been eating the 4" new penny Gulp shrimp pretty consistently. There have been some nice mangroves being caught inside also,
but not a lot of big numbers. Hope you all get out for the tournament.

06/03/2011
Its June, the kids are out of school, and summer is all but here. The official start of hurricane season happened a couple of days ago,
the water has warmed up nicely and hopefully won't get too hot too soon. For now, we're still in one of our better times of the year for
fishing in Charlotte Harbor. The tarpon bite in the pass is still going on even if the fish have been a bit finicky, but they are spread out
over the harbor and the beaches a bit more and eating crabs and DOA Baitbusters. The bite would probably improve a bit if we'd ever get
some rain to flush the crabs down out of the rivers and on out through the pass. Smaller sharks are everywhere in the harbor along with
a few bigger ones in the deeper holes. Cobia are being reported along most of the upper harbor piers and the 41 bridges as well as out
on the flats off of Ponce and Colony Point. Snook are all over the place but still closed. Hopefully that will change come September 1st.
The reds are out there to be had but only if you work at it. Between the water temps and the pressure from the tournaments we've already
had, they're pretty spooky and doing their best to hide up in the bushes. You can still get them out on the flats, but only if you go early.
The offshore bite has been good on the red and black grouper at 40 miles plus along with the red snapper a bit further out at 55 miles.
Bonito and some kingfish are showing up at about 10 miles and there are some larger sharks on the reefs. Remember that the state
joined in with the feds and closed gag grouper as of June 1st as well as the ajs. Getting tougher out there. The last and best is just a
reminder that next Saturday June 11th is the annual Fishin' Franks shark, sail cat, and stingray tournament, $30.00 per entry. Lots of
fun for a pretty reasonable price. There's only one tournament again this year, so don't miss out.

 

05/27/2011
A few tarpon are scattered in the center of the harbor, but the majority of the fish are still concentrated around the passes, ICW,
and beaches. Crabs, crabs, and more crabs are your choice for live bait and are out fishing threadfins 20 to 1. Lots of small sharks
throughout the entire harbor and a few bigger ones toward the passes and offshore reefs. Some cobia, bluefish and Spanish mackerel
have moved in around the bait balls in the harbor. Offshore there are some kings around the nearshore reefs and some bonita.
Amberjack, grouper, and snapper get bigger the further out you go, but remember that gags and ajs close on June 1st. Some big trout
scattered on the grass flats on the east wall and Pine Island Sound, not great numbers but real quality fish. There have been lots of
snook down the east side eating white bait and some very large ones up in Turtle Bay also eating white bait. Reds are scattered all over the
place but catchable if you go out and work at it. Would like to tell you that the water has cleared up on the west wall, but that isn't the
case and whatever's causing it seems to have moved on down into Muddy Bay (Cape Haze Bay on the charts) and on around the point
into the entry of Turtle Bay. Its crystal clear from there on out and the entire east side is just beautiful. A big congratulations goes out
to Captain Dwayne French and Team Sea Hunt/Bomber for their win in the PTTS last Sunday with a 205 pound fish. Not bad for an
old cracker. Its Memorial Day week-end, time to remember and thank those who have served and made the sacrifices necessary so that the
rest of us can enjoy this great country. Like they say, freedom is not free. Thank you each and everyone.
 

05/20/2011
The water is finally clearing up out there in the harbor. The higher tides and the westerly afternoon sea breeze have probably
had a lot to do with that. As for fishing, its tarpon season. The fish are stacked up in the pass and along the beaches, so are the
boats. The fishing should be getting even better here over the week-end and into next week. Crabs and threadfins are the baits
of choice, and of course jigs in the pass. Lots of small sharks throughout the harbor while the larger sharks have moved offshore.
Speaking of offshore, the red grouper and red snapper bite are excellent at the 40+ mile range along with the lanes and the
vermillion. Inshore the spanish macks and cobia have moved back inside. Look primarily around the bait balls which you should
see by watching for the birds. Redfish are scattered but catchable if you work at it. The upper east side has been fairly productive
early in the morning and late in the afternoon, while the west wall has been spotty at best probably due to the murky water and low
oxygen levels over there. Its getting clearer but still isn't great. Hopefully that'll change soon.
 

05/06/2011
The drastic tide changes this past week have made the fishing out there way better. Threadfins have shown up from the middle
of the harbor all the way out to Boca, which has brought the spanish mackerel back in, sharks of assorted sizes , and the tarpon.
Early morning and evening bite has been the best for the tarpon. There has been an unbelievable amount of large bull sharks in
the pass and ICW. Makes for getting the tarpon to the boat pretty tough. Kingfish, snapper, porgies, and grunts still good offshore,
but the wind this week has made it tough getting out for all but the heartiest of souls. Redfish have been scattered and tough to
locate for even the best of them. A good case in point is the fact that the Elite Flatsmasters series was won with a weight of under
14 pounds this past week-end. The water clarity has improved since last week so maybe this bloom thing or whatever it was is
clearing up. Just have to wait and see.

04/29/2011
Sorry there was no report last week, but we had no internet service for 5 days. Gotta love that. Been pretty breezy out there this
week but the few brave souls that did venture out have been reporting a huge number of cats being caught, both hardheads and
sailcats. Seems that they're the replacement for the Spanish mackerel that came in like a whirlwind a few weeks back and have
now all but disappeared. What's up with that? We also have some kind of weird algae bloom out in the harbor that seems to have
its origins from somewhere around the I-75 bridges. Don't know if that's a contributing factor or not, but the water has been
downright ugly. All of your best fishing for any species seems to be further down the harbor around the ICW and Pine Island
Sound. That's also where you'll find the whitebait, because they're definitely scarce up on this end. Again maybe from the algae bloom.
I say algae bloom, but don't know that its really that. Just something weird going on out there.

04/15/2011
Robert is off today enjoying the company of his family and will be back next week with his regular report. He did ask that
we tell you all that the tarpon are starting to be more plentiful and will probably be moved into the pass in the next week
or so. The sharks are getting more plentiful too and have already gotten reports of them being lined up for dinner in the pass.
There are some big hammers out there already.

04/08/2011
Whitebait starting to move in pretty well this past week, still spotty but better. Tarpon becoming more consistent but
still scattered through the harbor, ICW, and the passes. More redfish moving around on both sides of the harbor. Been
a little funky, we're thinking because of the rain, and that's pretty much across the board on fishing in general. Kings are
becoming more consistent offshore and the pompano are biting pretty well along the beaches. Still better things to come.

04/01/2011
A guy trolling for Spanish mackerel inside the pass yesterday hooked and landed 2 sailfish. The strong southwest
wind had apparently blown in a couple of huge bait balls that the sailfish followed inside.......April Fools. Couldn't
pass that one up. On the serious side, fishing is getting a lot better. The rain is pulling in more bait which in turn means
more fish. Reds are getting bigger and bigger and more abundant. King fish have shown up all over just offshore
along with the good sheephead and snapper bite on the bottom. Shark and tarpon are scattered all over but are still
mainly inconsistent. Be ready though, all of that's right around the corner. Pompano numbers are good along the
I.C.W. and the beaches. Cobia moving around better on the east side and the near shore reefs. Time to get out there
and hit the water.
 

3/25/2011
Still a little inconsistent out there, but kings and permit are starting to show up offshore. Bottom fishing is
incredible, but be careful out there because of those March winds. Inshore has been tough to figure out. There are
still a lot of Spanish mackerel scattered throughout the harbor and a lot of rat reds just about everywhere. The
bigger reds are closer to the ICW although the keepers can be found up close if you work hard at it. Lots of whiting
and sugar trout. Too bad snook is closed. Gonna get a whole lot better here pretty soon so hang in there.

03/18/2011
Fishing is pretty inconsistent out there this week. For your best advice go read our weekly updated fishing report.
Hopefully next week there'll be something worth hootin' and hollerin' about. Good luck out there and let us know
if you do any good.

03/11/2011
Things aren't a whole different than they were last week. The temperatures have been balmy, but the March
wind has definitely arrived, and as of this morning hopefully the last cold front of the year. Things are going
to be inconsistent on the catching side of things, so make a guess and go for it. Things should get a little
better once this front moves through and it warms back up. We should be able to give you a better report by
the beginning of the week. Call the shop for some more up to date info then. Don't forget about the big tent
sale next week-end. You don't want to miss out on the bargains.

03/04/2011
We lied in the last report. Life caught up to us and kept us off the page obviously for a while. Sorry about that
and we promise to try to be here on a regular basis. On the fishing side of things, its a hundred times better than
it was the last time around. The balloon is about ready to pop. We're about 4 weeks ahead of schedule on the
species of fish thanks mainly to the warmer than normal temps we've been enjoying. Sure beats the hell out of last
winter. Some larger reds are starting to show up along the intercoastal in Pine Island and Boca. Spanish macks are
all over the harbor but mainly down south. Pompano and cobia starting to make an appearance on the east side
and in Pine Island. Tarpon in the river and canals staring to get anxious. Sheephead, mangrove snapper, and porgy
at the near shore reefs. Bring the whole arsenal of tackle for all fish that could show up.

01/20/2011
Sorry about missing last week and this week isn't really going to be a report. Just a quick note to apologize to the
faithful readers that haven't found anything new here the last couple of weeks. We're a little disorganized here the
last couple weeks with 4 of the guys in Seaschool for their captains license, the boat show going on this week, and
Frank off to Gainesville for his daughters wedding. Congratulations Heather! We will be back to normal next week
if you all think there's anything normal about what goes on around here. See you then.

01/07/2011
If you read last weeks report, everything is still pretty much the same fishing wise. Sheepshead have moved in on the
Alligator Creek Reef  and El Jobean in really good numbers. There is so much structure on the reef that if you're not
catching fish in one spot, just move to another. Be prepared to lose your anchor occasionally, but its all part of the
cost of fishing. Rat reds are everywhere, but then its that time of year. Finding the larger keeper reds is tough this time
of year, so don't get discouraged. You're not doing anything wrong. Its just a typical January fishing pattern.

12/31/2010
Another year has gone by and time to get ready for what life throws at us in the new one. Fishing has been a little
spotty with the crazy weather we've been having, but trout and sheepshead should be the main attraction for the next
couple of months as long as the weather stays cool. If you're just looking to bend the rod and don't care about the size,
shrimp under a poppin cork will work just fine. For those bigger trout though, you want to change tactics a little. Drift
the flats or troll working an artificial slowly. Water conditions permitting, topwaters work well for trout. Zara Spook Jrs,
or Zippin Ziggys are 2 good choices. If the water is a little to choppy to work them well, time to use something that runs
under the surface. Of course there's always the old reliable Johnson Silver Minnow, but plastics work well too. Try an
Exude Slug or a Gulp Ripple Mullet rigged on a Strike Zone jighead. The choices are endless and a matter of personal
preference. Good luck out there. Everyone have a safe and Happy New Year!

12/24/2010
We lost a close personal friend this week, Captain Angel Torres, so my head hasn't been exactly clear, but I have
managed to hear a few reports of people catching fish. Lots of rat reds out there with the occasional legal and
oversized one mixed in. Look to the potholes in Bull and Turtle Bay for the best action. Live or frozen shrimp worked
slowly should do the trick. Sheepshead are abundant around the docks, piers and oyster bars. Pieces of shrimp
or sandfleas are your best bet since fiddler crabs are hard to come by. Will have a better report for you next week when
our heads are a little clearer. Everyone have a Merry Christmas! Remember, its all about spending the time with your
family. Enjoy it while you can.

12/16/10

With the temps dropping the fishing is going to be inconsistent, so fishing is going to change from day to day.
Sheephead, Black drum, and redfish are three species that are not bothered as much by the cold. They will be
a little sluggish though, so work your lures and baits slowly. Its all going to be hit or miss though until we start
getting more consistent temperatures. Hopefully warmer than they have been of late. Call 941-625-3888 for
more up to date information.


 

12/03/2010
Look for the fishing to change dramatically all over the area with this cold front that's moving through over the next week.
The water temps are going to drop significantly pushing some fish out of the area completely, notably tarpon and sharks and
possibly kings, and push others further up into the harbor. Look for the sheepshead, pompano, and snook to start coming in
closer and the reds to start moving up the rivers and into the deeper potholes. Remember its rat red season so try using circle
hooks and Strike Zone circle hook jigheads to insure a safe release of these future keepers. Anything we  would put here is
going to change at any given moment with the weather the way it is, so good luck.

11/25/2010
Happy Thanksgiving! Make sure you spend some quality time with your friends whether you're fishing or not. Your best
bet for fishing is still out along the beaches or in the Gulf of Mexico. Kings, Spanish, and amberjack are all over the near shore
reefs. The grouper and snapper is also still going strong. Pompano, sheepshead , and flounder are showing up in good numbers
along the beaches and passes. The inshore bite has been off and on, but they're out there if you take the time to hunt for them.
Again, enjoy your holiday and don't eat too much turkey.

11/18/2010
As you can see, this is the first report in several weeks. We had computer problems which are theoretically solved now....
until the next time. The marvels of modern technology. Fishing in the upper harbor has been a little inconsistent. The water
is still a little too warm. Fishing is decent at the mouths of the canals, but its going to get a lot better. Reds are scattered
all along the west wall, white bait and shrimp seem to be your best bet. The spanish mackerel along with some bluefish and
a few kings are doing pretty well in the middle of the harbor. The gulf is on fire and not because of  the oil spill. Trolling
for grouper in 30 to 40 feet of water has been extremely productive. Also Gags up to 15 pounds along with a few kings up to
30 pounds. Around the reefs, especially the boxcars, palm island, and Helens reef, kingfish, bonito, aj's and barracuda are
eating everything in site. Grouper and snapper are doing very well along with a few scamp, and lots of large sheepshead and
porgies. A few nice flounder also are being caught on the outside edges of the reef. Try using shrimp for most of these bottom
fish right now.
 


 

10/22/2010
Offshore fishing is totally off the hook. If its a gulf species, they're eating and you will be too if you go out. Trolling or
bottom fishing starting at 2 miles out and as far as you care to venture will get you on the fish. Tarpon are still here
eating ladyfish. Whatever species you want to catch, you can be pretty sure you're going to get it if you go after it. Take the
time to spend with friends and family and make a day of it on the water.
 

10/14/2010
Tarpon are still everywhere, but you're bored. Pompano, snook, and flounder are doing really well  along the edges of
the passes and just inside them. Live shrimp and small bucktails are your best bets for bait. The bull reds are
showing up along the beaches along with a lot of decent reds along both sides of the harbor. They're primarily under the
bushes, not out on the flats. Lots of small trout all over the place, but still waiting for the big ones to show up in
better numbers. Spanish and small kings are offshore. The gag and red grouper bite has been unbelievable from 7 to
16 miles out.

10/08/2010
In case you're not bored with tarpon yet, they're from the 20 foot hole up into the Myakka and to the 41 bridges.
Ladyfish or threadfins are your best bait. Under normal weather patterns , about two more weeks of  great
fishing is what you can expect and then they'll be gone. Red fish are becoming more abundant under the
bushes and sand holes on both sides of the harbor. Their feeding habits have been varying so try everything
for baits or lures. Pompano, whiting, and flounder are getting real good out along the beaches.

10/01/2010
Just in case you didn't notice, the morning temps and humidity have started dropping off. Like May this is
a phenomenal month in general. Fishing is good, the weather makes you want to be out there with nature.
Life is good. Be prepared for just about every species of fish from Tarpon, reds, flounder, pompano, spanish
mackerel, snapper, sheepshead, trout, along with just about everything else you can imagine. Its going to be
like this for the next several weeks. Live bait will work well, but now is also a good time to dust off the
artificials and start using them.
 

9/24/2010
Tarpon have finally started feeding on ladyfish in the center of the harbor, but these "March" winds have been
making it tough to spot them. The redfish bite has started to get better with the rain slacking off the last week
or so. They're starting to move back up the harbor, but the bigger schools are still down towards the southern end.
Things should only get better from here. There are plenty of reports of snook, but unfortunately you can't keep
them. Makes it better for next year.     

9/17/2010
Tarpon are everywhere but still being a pain in the butt getting them to eat. The bite should start improving with
this "cooler" weather and lack of rain over the past few days. Redfish have been pretty spotty in the upper harbor,
 primarily due to all the rain we had the last couple of weeks. There have been some good reports of  schooling
fish further down the harbor and particularly along the ICW, Pine Island and Gasparilla Sound areas. Whidden
creek and Useppa Island would be a couple of good places to start your hunt. Live shrimp, white bait and cut
ladyfish are all good choices for bait. Start looking for flounder along the beaches and near shore reefs.

9/10/2010

With all the rain this past week, fishing has been spotty at best. Tarpon are still all over the upper end of the
harbor, but with all the food out there, they've been very difficult to pinpoint and catch. There's acres of bait
all over the harbor including greenbacks, threadfins, glass minnows, spanish sardines, ladyfish, catfish and
crabs. So for a tarpon to find your one bait in that mix, good luck with that. Also with all the rain, reports on
redfish have been scattered, but look for fish along the ICW where the water is cleaner and less freshwater
flowing. The incoming tides should be your best bet. Try under the docks in Lemon Bay and along the edges
of the channels. Live or frozen shrimp are still your best bet for bait.

9/3/2010

Tarpon bite is staring to get better, Ladyfish and DOA Baitbusters are the baits of choice. The fish are
moving around a lot, so no one spot is better than another. Redfish are starting to school up primarily
around the ICW. Places like outside of Whidden Creek, Sandfly, and Pine Island Sound in general are good
places to start your search. Live shrimp and pinfish are doing well for live baits, and 3" new penny gulp shrimp
and the bone sl spook junior are working well for artificials. The mangrove bite on and offshore is getting
better but reports are still scattered. Have a good Labor Day week-end.

8/27/2010
Due to all the rain this past week, fishing is going to be unpredictable. Tarpon have slowed down on their
slurping and are focusing more on ladyfish. You'll have to look for rolling or free jumping fish with your best
bet being from the mouth of the Myakka to the middle of the harbor. Redfish are starting to show up in better
numbers but scattered locations, here today there tomorrow. Live shrimp is outperforming all baits significantly.
Snook are still abundant on the beaches and along the ICW with some fish moving in closer on the barrier
islands. To get a more accurate report on what's going on out there, stop by or call the shop.

8/20/2010
I'm glad I can't hear fish scream. There are millions of glass minnows from the 41 bridge to the middle of the harbor
being destroyed by tarpon, ladyfish, spanish, sharks. and terns. Tarpon are all over out there but not being very cooperative
about getting on the hook. This slurping pattern will last another week or so. Ladyfish (live or dead) will be your
best choice for bait. Shrimp are getting a little bigger and so are the redfish. The quantity and quality of these
fish is getting better throughout the harbor. The early morning bite has been the best before the sun gets up high
enough to boil the water and the fish.

8/13/2010
Robert is on vacation this week, visiting mom and probably chasing snakes and lizards around in the desert.
Really not a lot to report on this week anyway with all the rain we had the first three days. He'll return next week.
 

8/06/2010
Tarpon are still doing great. In case you're bored with this, they'll be gone in another 5 to 6 weeks. Redfish are starting to pick up
both in numbers and size. Cut sardines and ladyfish, along with small pinfish are doing very well for bait. Pine Island around Rat Key
and Lemon Bay docks are some of your most consistent spots. Trout are still slow, but getting some good reports on early morning
topwaters in Lemon Bay. Look for 4 to 5 feet of water and work it slow. Some big spanish and an odd king at the offshore reefs. Fishing
overall should start getting better from day to day, so be patient. We're on the upward curve of the flats fishing and its only going
to get better from here.

7/31/2010

Tarpon fishing is absolutely incredible. Fish are on the beaches, the passes, and all over the harbor. There's
no reason to crowd anyone. There are plenty of fish and plenty of room. DOA baitbusters, ladyfish, and pinfish are
your best baits. Redfish are doing much better, but they are lethargic because of the extremely high water temps.
Early morning is the best time to fish for them.  Try cut ladyfish, frozen shrimp or sardines, along with live
pinfish, for baits. Its really hot out there right now, so keep yourself cool and hydrated. The fish are hot too, so take
your time reviving them after the fight if you are releasing them.

7/23/2010
Red snapper is closed. Mini lobster season opens this week. Watch your limits and be safe. Tarpon are all over in the
center of the harbor. Threadfins and DOA baitbusters working the best. Quite a few small sharks between Cape Haze
and the intercoastal. Snapper bite inside has slowed down, but offshore at the reefs is doing very well. Redfish are
picking up, but if you're looking for bait, get your quarter inch mesh net out.

7/16/2010
Tarpon are all over the harbor from the 41 bridge and the Myakka all the way to Boca. Live threadfins and DOA
baitbusters working very well. Work your baits slowly as the tarpon have been a little on the picky side. The dog
days of summer are here and fishing overall has been slow, but remember the early bird gets the worm. If you're
looking for bait, there's plenty of small stuff out there, but let it grow up. Try using frozen or cut baits and artificials.

7/09/2010
Fishing has been a little slow this past week due to the weather. Tarpon are scattered all over from the beaches
 to the harbor. This week-end will be the last decent hill tide of the season and the tarpon will move into the
harbor after that. The offshore snapper bite has been incredible and should continue the rest of this month.
Still plenty of small sharks, with the occasional large shark in the lower end of the harbor. Catch and release
snook action along the beaches is incredible.

7/02/2010
In case you haven't noticed, it has been raining. That has helped drop the harbor water temps from 91-92
degrees to about 88. Doesn't sound like much, but it should make fishing in general a little more productive.
Due to the weather, fishing has been pretty tough this week. Tarpon have been staying offshore but should
move back in. Crabs and threadfins are your best bait. Offshore fishing has still been great for those brave
souls that went out. Lots of nice snapper and grouper being brought in. Trout have all but disappeared, but
the snook bite has been good pretty much everywhere along the east side and out along the beaches.
Remember, catch and release only. Start looking for the reds at the mouths of the creeks and cuts dumping
into the harbor with all the rain washing the bait and other goodies out.



6/25/2010
Tarpon are still incredible. The offshore fishing from 10 to 50 miles out is absolutely wonderful
as it usually is this time of year. Bottom fish such as grouper, mangroves, lanes, yellowtail, and red
 snapper have been doing exceptionally well. Good to great action on pelagics, tuna, kings, dolphin
sailfish, and wahoo. Remember the thunderstorms can be wicked and your cell phone does not work
offshore. Be safe and be prepared.



6/18/2010
Do I need to say that the tarpon fishing is still great? Pass is full of them and they're all over the
harbor again after cramming the pass over the week-end for the hill tides. Lots of blacktips and
bonnetheads scattered around the harbor, and some big sharks moved into the pass. Big spanish
out along the intercoastal and the beaches, with some big trout running Pine Island Sound and
up around Devilfish and Three Sisters.

6/11/2010
Another phenomenal week of tarpon fishing, and it should continue to be great with the hill tides
running over the week-end. We expect the tarpon season to last into July out along the beaches
and the passses. The snapper bite on and offshore is getting better every day, but the full moon of
June and July will put the fish into spawn and  full feeding mode, with plenty of quality fish. Permit
still doing well on the nearshore reefs with the evening bite doing better.

6/04/10
June is the transition month for most of the flats fishing species, snook, reds, trout, etc...Look for
these fish along the intercoastal and passes. Couple key places will be the bushes and docks in
Lemon Bay and  and down around Captiva and Pine Island. Tarpon fishing in general has been off
the hook this past week. Jig fishing in the pass has been consistent throughout mid morning into the
afternoon, but also plenty of small schools from the 41 bridge to Boca and the beaches. Concentrate
your efforts around the schools of threadfins and look for rolling or free jumping fish. Threadfins, crabs,
and DOA baitbusters are your best choices for bait. Also lots of small sharks around these schools. Try
to use barbless or circle hooks for catch and release of these little guys.


5/21/10
This past week has been an incredible fishing week. Did a new personal best on what I call a big
fish slam, Tarpon, shark, and Jewfish in the same day. Bull was 9' about 300 lbs., jewfish was about
300 lbs., and the tarpon was 100 lbs. Tarpon fishing in the harbor has been very good from the pass
all the way to marker 6. Has also been fish in the upper harbor by Ponce and the mouth of the Myakka.
Lot of good flats fishing for snook and redfish due to the decreased pressure on them because of all the
tarpon fishing. Spanish mackerel and kings doing lots better offshore around the boxcars and the
school bus reef.





5/14/10

Tarpon are moving to the Pass for Friday and Saturday nights hill tides. Usually when they leave they bring
back a lot more friends. In addition to the tarpon, the larger sharks should be right behind them. There are plenty
of spanish mackerel, blacktips, and blacknose sharks in the lower end of the harbor. Look for schools of bait
from marker 5 to Boca. There will be tarpon and cobia in addition to the mackerel and small sharks around the
bait balls. Mangrove snapper bite has really started to pick up all over.



 

5/08/10

Tarpon are finally here. Getting a lot of reports and pictures of fish being caught
 around the 20 foot holes in the middle of the Harbor and the inster-coastal around captiva pass.
 Fish are starting to show up in Boca Grande Pass.
The pass itself should get better and better over the next week.
There are a lot of small sharks moving around the entire harbour.
 A couple of key places are cape haze bar, Pirate Harbour flat,
and the flat around devil fish key. Spanish Mackerel are scattered throughout the harbour,
 around the tire reef and marker one. Cobia are starting to move around  a little bit more too,
 getting some good reports around the 41 bridge, the mouth of the Myakka.

 

The Fishin Reports

4/29/10

Inter-coastal and beach fishing have been a lot more productive than the upper harbor.
Schools of threadfins and glass minnows are in the southern part of the harbor,
along with some whitebait around Cape Haze and Devilfish.

 There have been a few tarpon mixed in feeding on the bait schools,
 along with spanish mackerel, bluefish and a few black tips showing up.
There are still a few pompano on the beach, but they are starting to thin out
but there are still a lot of nice whiting.
Night fishing off of Placida and Tom Adams bridge have been producing
nice oversized redfish, along with some blacktips, and Bonnet-heads
with some scattered pompano.

4/22/10

All along the beaches right now, there are schools of lady-fish, blue-fish, &
Spanish Mackerel. larger numbers of the can be found in Little Gasparilla pass,
and Captiva pass. 

Feeding on these schooling fish are good size Spinner, and Black-tip sharks.
The Macs and Lady-fish fish are pretty tasty to them, Just keep in mind.
It is against the law to cut up Spanish Mackerel for bait, no problem on the Ladys.

Red-fish are really moving around, there are lots of very good reports From
Pine Island sound up to Bokeelia and over to Usseppa. To the north Whidden Creek.

These are the main Fish People are talking about,

The Tarpon are going to light up just out of no where.

There is a huge, cold water up-welling, Extending from Destin down as far south as Captiva
Which is holding down the water Temp. making the water cooler than it should be at this time of year. This is slowing the Tarpon bite. The up-welling could be because of the cool fronts blowing in from the west.

The Tarpon bite around St James city is good and even better around Sanibel.

The cobia just showed up in Destin a few days ago. About a month late.
So It is still a go for tarpon fishing here.
It just is going to take a little longer for the sliver king, bite to Happen.

04/15/2010

Fishing has been good despite the wind. With all the rain, fishing has been much better down
towards the inter-coastal. Shore fisherman have been whacking the pompano from
Venice to Sanibel. Small sharks and cobia moving along the near-shore reefs,
along with Spanish mackerel and some kings. Tarpon are moving around down by Sanibel
and Pine Island, but aren't consistent yet. If you really want to try catching one,
go around the power lines in Pine Island or Captiva Rocks.
Larger sharks are moving around Captiva pass and following the schools of Spanish mackerel.
A couple more weeks of sheepshead around the phosphate docks, Tremblay reef ,Novak reef
and the 7 mile ledge, before they move off.
Trout are doing well on the grass flats in Lemon Bay at Stump Pass.

Good luck fishing out there.
Feel free to call or stop in at the shop for more up to date fishing reports.      
 

1-1-11

 Billy just got back from turtle bay he would not exzactly where ,
all he said was 30 red fish from 1 deep hole , live shrimp on a strike zone jig head.
 

The entrance to brunt store has lots of smaller trout, same thing inside Prirate Harbor,
 some of the biggest Trout are coming from the n.e. end of pine island,
I-75 has lots of silver Trout with some smaller spotted mixed in .
lots of Trout just inside alligator creek but deep and slow is the key to finding keepers.
Love Lures selling like crazy today

Ok all you crappie people can get your minnow rigs together this stable weather with no fronts
has turned the crappie bite on. the canals around the peachland loveland area are produceing
 some nice size fish, Up- in north port there are lots of crappie biting no as many reports of
 bigger fish but lots of them. The spi...ll way on the coco plum just north of toledo blade doing

 I was just talking to a young man, about 12 years old He got up this moring walked over to a canal ,
 he said I pitched a DOA shrimp up under the mangrove bush et it sit for a mnute then twitch it,
thought it was stuck lerked a little hard and the red fish fight was on. Thats a great way to start a New year,

Well I guess I am a lousy store owner ,
I do not have any big specials, or really any promotions to entice your business,
But if you are going Fishing today I hope it is with frineds or family,
I wish all of you, a Very Happy new year, with money & the time to enjoy it.

 It's quiet now after a crazy day, I was thinking about friends here and gone, And the one thing, I can say, is they enjoy life, I have been and still am surounded by the best people. I last year there were good and real bad times, But this is not a practise round this is life, Be happy, enjoy your job, your hobbies , f...rineds and family, I am so lucky this is what I already have. A real good life. Happy new year.

12/26/10

Fishin can be tough in this weather on my into the store this morning, I watched a couple of guys
 standing and casting lures in a canal, a strong gust a icy cold wind hit and they doubled time it to the car.
I did not see them catch anything, but a valiant effort was made.
Fronts can really mess up the catching of fish, but this cold weather makes the going to fish tuff.
Now like my dad said says just put on another jacket it beats sitting around the house.
On these windy days even fishing the canals & rivers can be challenging almost impossible
to keep the boat in position. If I was going to try for a saltwater day of fishing it would be with a bag of frozen
shrimp #4 gold hooks , 3 way swivels and some 1 oz sinkers, the tresses and piers at Placida should be loaded with sheep head
Tie the 3 way to your line , then tie the hook off the 2nd eye of the 3-way. at he bottom eye I tie the sinker about 30 inches below
the swivel. attach the hook with a 10 inch leader, cover the hook entirely with the shrimp so it can not be seen, I will usually peel
the shrimp and thread the meat over the hook. drop the rig on the side of the pier, facing the tide. let the sinker sit on the bottom
and keep the rig tight so your bait will be suspended 2 1/2 feet off the bottom, set the hook just before the sheep head bites.
"just a joke" but if you feel the slightest bump set the hook Sheep head are some of the most educated bait stealers there is,
I like to say start setting the hook before you leave the house and you stand a better chance of hooking up.
Last of all bundle up, try think warm thoughts.

Proud to say I am a PETA person
Person Eating Tasty Animals.
You didn't think I was becoming a wack job, didya?

12/18/2010

This is not about fishin But as we are all friends Capt. Angel is in getting surgey as I write, My thoughts
are with him and as I find out more I will post it.

12/17/10

Hey every one, I think it is morning ? I might have indulged a little last night at the F.F. Christmas get-together
 Food , friends, and My sister brought Egg-Nog, I had Capt Jerry's Rum. WELL I guess the out-come was inevitable.

 We had a great time, It is hard for all of us to be in one place at the same time, Between People who work at the store,
 friends who help -out, guides who work out of the store, and other who are part of Fishin Franks, one way or another
 there is over 50 of us not including Wives,
So once a year we try to all get together. good times, maybe the best of times

Watch it Daffy they are out in force.
Woke up this morning to gun shots, We are just off the peace river & it is duck season,
 For all of the anti hunters, keep in mind by the 1970's ducks were all but extinct.
The feds started the Duck stamp and the money was used to buy & maintain wetlands and the ducks came back 100 fold,
If you like ducks, buy the lisc & go hunting , You do not have to take a gun a camera will do.

I am going to take a minute to talk about Got-cha lures.
 this type of lure was originally called a jerk jigger,
they were used to catch fish suspended in deep water,
you would find the fish on the depth finder,
then meter out the lure to the correct depth
Working the jerk jigger with a light jigging motion,
up & down not reeling in just bonycing it in the school,
intill one got mad enough to bite.
 
Today we use the got-cha lures for casting,
I have not seen a lure out fish the got cha for Spanish Mackerel,
 or lady fish or even trout.
  25 years of selling Got-cha under different names it is still one of the best.

Cast the Got-cha plug out when it hits the water it will fall about 2 feet per second in salt water so if you are in the gulf,
 you  can time it to reach the school of fish suspended in the water, that you saw on the fish finder.
 If the fish are surface feeding start to reel just before the Got-cha lure hits the water when you cast.
Then give it a lifting jigging motion as you reel in at medium speed.
The only time I use a side sweeping retrieve with the Got cha is when I am fishing Spanish mackerel.
 then the darting action of the side sweep motion makes it hard for the Spanish to resist the Got-cha.

  click this picture to see the got-cha lure we have in stock.

 I was just asked why there are so many dead lady fish this year. The ones which died are the smaller ones,
 just not big enough to make it. If you were to look close you would see lots of dead pin fish , white bait & many other smaller fish.
 If their body is too thin the cold penetrates to their organs quicker.
The thicker the body of a fish the more protected it is. also the deeper the water the fish is in the more insulated from the cold.
 & Lady fish like being at the surface a bad habit in cold weather
Many of the Snook killed in last years cold was because they were too lazy to leave the flats
 as the water went down with the tide and the wind blew it out they tried to stay in the shallow pockets of water near the mangroves,
 and the water went to 28 degrees.
There were lots of dead lady fish, and millions of other smaller fish last year, but because the cold was so extreme for so long
 they mostly went un noticed because of all the bigger fish, they just did not get the attention. millions of pin fish died also,
 but it is harder to notice a 1/4 oz fish with a 10 pounder laying there.
 

12/14/10

Getting reports of dead lady fish in the canals, not many reports of Snook floating,
But tonight will be the night to watch, one cold night is bad but too many in a row is real bad.

Weird how Red fish are not effectuated by the colder temps,

It is easy to forget we live in a tropical paradise, "Key word tropical . it just should not be cold here.

SIDE NOTE---> "Best way to hear god laugh"  tell him your plans or how you think things should be.

12/13/10

Crappie guys are fishing and a few brave hearted, sheep head guys,, fishing at Placida
and they are catching fish not just colds.

Trout have been getting more regular at P.C. beach & lashley pier, a late day bite off bay shore pier
fishing with poppin corks & shrimp is doing good.

Canals are the biggest story with Black drum, red fish, Snook, all huddling up in the canals
getting the afternoon warm up from the sun,

Best bet if you want to use your boat try trolling in the canals, or just anchor up and fish under some of the bridges
there are fish to be caught, maybe just not where we thought we be going, change your plans change your tactics
you will preserver.

12/11/10

There are three really cool jobs to have where you can tell people anything
and it really dose not matter if you are correct

 1 weather man,-  self explanatory on this one.

2, politician or any government job, again pretty much self explanatory. although here
there screw up cost us lots of money. then they get a pay raise?

3 give fishing advice,  the fish did not cooperate, you were not holding your tongue
in the right place in your mouth, and the lunar activity in relationship to Jupiter,
caused a gravitational shift in the tides, of course this is why the double hooked swimming,
sinkin wap-belted-jigger did not catch fish.

The main thing we have in common, we do not have to be right and we still get paid

Hey you can not predict the weather, the fish did not cooperate, As for the politicians
well you just cant fix stupid. I guess that really make them not quite qualified for this category,
 

 lets just add instead Doctors lots of money to guess give you pills cut you up, and charge you lots of money
to be wrong.

My only complaint is that I picked the lowest paying one.
Damn I should have been a weather man.

12/10/10 Brenda F. wrote me with this. Josh and Tank caught 6 sheephead, 2 speckled sea trout, a flounder and
 a Red Drum in the back yard today (and a couple of pin fish) Sweet! Released all but the sheephead...which will be dinner very soon

Gulf of Mexico near shore reefs within 15 miles Have grouper , snapper, amber Jacks and a bunch of other fish
 Capt. Angel called in to check the limits on a couple of fish it is hot & heavy now.

PC canals have a lot of out of season Snook under the docks ,
 free line a tail hooked live Shrimp count to 20 reel it in cast again, three cast under the dock then move to the next one.
 If they were in season many of the fish have been in the slot

Crappie fishing is great, terrific, NOW, the canals by Peach land are full of big Crappie Minnows
 under bobbers are the bait of choice.

 Catfish creek today has produced some 4 to 7 pound redfish. I do not know what bait they used.
 We are going through a lot of mirror lure 17 but I can say for sure

PGI canals are loaded with red fish Shrimp with a #7 slit shot watch for corners where canals meet
 or holes Capt Andy M. on a charter today stopped counting at 50 Redfish,

 Alligator Creek reef Mangrove snapper if you anchor up and bottom fish with squid, or shrimp,
Gag grouper either bottom fishing chunks of fish or frozen sardines, 2 guys called they caught them trolling the stretch 6 along the edge of the reef.

12/09/10

it is rainy and cold even the crappie guys are not showing up this morning,
As bad as this weather is we do need the rain. I am not talking about the plants or
grass or even the flowers,
Rain is an important part of the oxygen levels of the water ways,
the simple action of rain drops hitting the surface of the water
raises the level of oxygen, and with the cooler to cold temps the water can absorb huge amounts,
 this helps as the water warms and starts to lose oxygen to the heat.
the other source of oxygen is waves,
the wind blows across the surface of the water as the wave break it adds oxygen
to the water, weather it is the gulf , Harbor , or a pond this is necessary for life in the water.
Take heart soon the weather will be nice again & the Fish will have lots of oxygen and ready to eat,
while this is uncomfortable For us.
 it is a necessary part of nature, and I promise the fishing is going to be unbelievable very soon.
Get your gear ready
It is almost time for some of the best fishing Florida has to offer.

12/07/10

I have not much to talk about salt water wise. but the crappie guys are loving this.
How long has it been since you went Crappie fishin, No not fishing a bad day just
heading out to a canal or lake and do some speckled Perch fishin, a couple of dozen minnows is
about $2.00 and if you are fishing in your home county with a cane pole, line hook bobber, you do not need a freshwater
license if you are fishing from land. So go get a stick put some line and a hook on it and have some fun,
and get dinner at the same time. I would not suggest the old tie the string to your toe trick right now as
you toe would freeze.

Here it is the new "BP Toxic Mullet" color, badonk-a-donk from Bomber lures

12/01/2010

Welcome to the holiday season I woke up this morning with every thing blowing off of the decks.
the crappie fishermen & the Sheephead anglers are happy as this cold weather turns on both species,
that statement works on a couple of different levels, as it triggers their instinct to spawn, which makes them want to eat.
So yup they are turned on.
 

11/27/10

Big Spanish right of the beach as well as whiting
Pompano along the coast. lots of out of season Trout
Up here from the piers, Reds doing well from the north end of the 41 bridges

11/26/10

Lots of whiting along the gulf beaches, Pompano
hitting pink & white jigs, with or without the shrimp tippet.
Red fish in Turtle bay along the mangroves, and on the barrier bars.

11/25/2010

Accord to Capt Dwayne French
Red fish in the deeper pot holes of the flats, Shrimp on a Strike zone jig head worked slow
through the pot holes, Dwayne says the holes in front of the eagles nest are a best bet.
Rig the shrimp by removing the flipper from the very back of the tail and threading the
Shrimp onto the hook of the Strike zone jig head a 1/4 oz chartreuse. is his favorite right now.
 

11/18/10

Wind and water temps are changing every other day it seems like.
It is hard to predict what is going on.
The best bet still seems to be trolling, whether you are in the Harbor or the gulf,
trolling is the best way to find, the fish, once I have located them.
you can switch to baits or start casting at the fish. Pompano, and Spanish
Are both around, more reports of big kings and grouper in the near shore
3 to 15 miles out.

11/07/10

Trolling is still going great, inshore in the gulf,
But with the winds this last couple of days, I have had a lot of reports from
west spring lake trolling Bomber 14's sipk and the Si colors another
one I had been hearing is the Yo-zuri F-7c24 the lip is small so you
 need to let out more line to keep it in the water but it is catching fish.
If you need to be closer to the boat try a F-8

X-rap lures are the king of the Peace river, more fish than any other lures,
at this time the SXR-8 in the BBS on one side and the SXR-10 BNK on the other,
this is a two lure trolling, about 900 rpm's along the out side bends of the river
has been catching every thing from Blue fish, Tarpon, Snook, Jacks, Lots of reports
lots of fun. When it is too windy to fish the harbor we hear a lot about people trolling
and fishing the rivers, I find it strange that when the weather gets better,
 they go back to the Harbor when they caught so many in the river.
Another mystery of life as a fishier man.

10/*31/10

I guess I have to keep writing, there is so much fishing going on right now.
Trolling for grouper by the near shore reefs, by this I mean any reef within,
10 Miles of the coast. reefs in 30 to 40 feet of water, Helen's, Mary's, Tremblay,
Novak, pulling Rapala XRMAG-30 about 1500 rpms on the other side pull a XRMAG20
My best selling colors are the S, & the GGM, 8 different guys bought them all
were doing the same thing coincidence, conspiracy, maybe ?
well what ever sounds like a good bet to me.  34 inch grouper, Kings in the 50 inch range
what are you waiting for 

10/30/10

Here is a weird one for you. I have been fishin here quite a while and have seen
big schools of blue fish out at Captive Pass , I have caught one or two here and there in the
Manchester waterway and over in P.G.I. but i have never seen hundreds or thousands
 like are here this year. whats up with this, I just got a call from P.G.I. he thought it was a school of jacks
bustin in the canal all blue fish. Up the peace river huge schools of blue fish. All you Jersey & Mass,
people if you want a taste of home now is the time the BLUES are here.

10/29/10

Red fish in lemon bay, & a big school of 20 to 40 pounds reds just off shore of Boca,
stretch 20 , 25 or 30, are the lures of choice right now they are a blast,
 yes way to big to be Florida legal but fun , fun, fun,
 

Mackerel kings, that is trolling for these big kings using a spread of stretches.
Lady fish and Spanish are in the Harbor now,

Tarpon are still doing great D.O.A. bait buster continue to dominate the hook ups.
from I - 75 to the holes in the Harbor the "Cold" cool front may start to push some of the Silver kings
south so get them while you can.

 

10 / 10/10

Fishing is great all over right now, the best fishing is in the near gulf. I believe the oil spill
has killed most or all of the bait/food for the fish and they are moving closer to the shore-
where they would normally be much deep at this time they are having to come closer in to find food.
Mahi, amber jacks, King mackerel, grouper, snappers, sail fish, permit,
The oil spill combined with the Global warming, where there is not as much water
tempeture difference between here and the Pan handle fish are not migrating the way they should.

In Charlotte harbor the fishing is great, Lady fish all over with Tarpon chasing them.
Red fish on the east, & west sides, Turtle bay and Bull bay, both have good schools of reds right now.
 

Fishing in Lemon bay has been very steady, small Snook, lots of trout, and enough Reds
To fill a day, Here in Charlotte Harbor Reds on the east side are mostly out by the bar,
Trout have moved into the flats by Pirate Harbor.
A lot of small sharks still in the area, along the gulf beaches.

Gag Grouper have been biting at both reefs in the harbor, Trolling a Rapala
you need to be down at least 6 feet, or more. Chum bags and sardines with a bottom rig.

Pompano in front of bull bay hitting good on small jigs, or bait 3 feet under a bobber.

Red fish on the east side have been in large schools cursing the length of the flats,
Where you find them one day, they will be a mile away the next, Keep looking
they are there.

09/16/10

Much to my surprise there is a lot of Shark activity in the Harbor.
and near shore reefs, Black tip, black nose, Bonnets, bulls,
all are still here plus many other species.
A bobber with a chunk of sardine or free line a chunk of fish,
and my crystal ball say "outlook good" for having fun catching Sharks.
Just One thing NO barbs on the hook, flatten the barb with you pliers and file it.
I like the bump from the barb but not the barb. You should only use a barbed hook.
if you want dinner. It is too hard on the fish to catch and release with a barbed hook.
It only takes a minute, and you will be able to preserve this terrific activity for generations
to come.

Ok I am done preaching .

09/09/2010
Another great week in Charlotte Harbor The upper Harbor
seems to be teeming with little runt reds, Yup they are too small to be called
Rat reds in you find yourself in a school of these little guys, try switching to
inline circle hooks with a piece of shrimp meat. For some reason these runt reds
really inhale the bait, We caught about a dozen and gut hook 2 of the 12 I did not have any
circle hooks with me. of the 2 one I do not think will make it. the other I am sure was fine.

I was fishing with family yesterday, There were schools of fish hitting the surface
all over the Harbor, There was even catfish, hitting the bait on the surface, along with Lady fish
Trout, and what I think was Mackerel, how weird is that.
In the creeks, we caught mangrove Snappers, Sheep head, and small Reds,
the trick was to use a slip sinker. free line would not catch anything.
Live shrimp, dead shrimp, rotten shrimp, even some old freezer brunt shrimp. worked fine.

Circle Hook Jig heads are the only legal jig heads you can use for Grouper and Snappers.
The state of Florida has determined you must use Circle Hooks,
 when ever you are fishing with live or dead bait, for Snapper and or Grouper,
So if you tip your Jig heads with squid or any other type of bait you by law ,have to use a circle hook.
Circle hook Jig head are the way to stay legal. This law is for anywhere you would catch Snapper or Grouper.
If you are in two feet of water in a canal, you must use Circle hook jig heads,
or in hundreds of feet of water, again you must have circle hook jig heads.
This is a little crazy, but the law is you must have circle hooks, So now Jig heads with circle hooks are a must Have.
  Get your Florida legal circle hook Jig heads at our on-line store.
or stop by Fishin Franks and see them for your self.

08/28/2015

Peace River We all know the Peace river is here, but do you know how cool it is? Lets start at the 41 bridges. Now the real mouth of the river is in a line from Ponce DE Leon park in Punta Gorda across to Hog Island. So the Gilchrist bridges or 41 bridges as we call them are really a little over 4 miles up river.
To get to where the river is fresh all year is about 17 miles up where Horse Creek enters the Peace river
or 22 from the mouth of the river. I thought I would throw that in as I get this question a lot, most people do not under stand the Peace river is 104 miles long and in the past a Major trade route for goods, before stage coaches and wagons, I guess I should say before roads, heavy goods were transported by barges. Now we use interstate Hwy but back then a lot easier to put a couple tons of stuff on a boat and push it.

Now lets get to the fishing, Snook fishing can be done on most of the peace river, Zolfo Springs and Wauchula have for part of the Year some very good Snook fishing. Even Tarpon can be found up the River.

Back to a trip up the river, Starting at 41 you are in a full on Salt water environment, as you pass the bridge for I-75 you are into a Mangrove environment, still salt water now once you pass Harbor heights you will see saw grass, This is where the transition starts, this is a true brackish water environment. Now watch the shoreline as you head up river at Harbor heights take the right fork and you will see the plants are changing more ferns, and the trees are different the Mangroves thin out and the Cypress tress begin to be more common, Watch Island 33 you will know which one this is as the channel marks stop here, you have been seeing the typical Red or green markers now in front of you is a marker with red and green on it, half and half. That is the Charlotte county line. And the channels markers stop here this is also the first place with less than 4 feet of water, you have been over holes deeper than 20 foot on your way here but in front of you is a shoal which extends all the way across the main channel of the river and at high tides there is 3 feet of water at lower tides less than 2. Now you can take and go around the back side of island 33 and while there is not much more water the bottom is soft and you will have no trouble making it through. In front on the main channel the bottom is much harder and may ding your prop. I always use the main channel as I run a flats boat and only need a foot of water to run comfortable. Once you are past island 33 hold to the out side bends of the river and there is not really any shallow places, until you get past the camp ground. And that is only shallow if you are not thinking out side of the bends, which means you must picture in your head an “S” follow the curves,
The fish will also hold on these out side bends. Near the shoreline and You could cast a lure like a Rat-L-trap or a Bomber at the shore or I prefer to troll these bends in the River. These bends get deep quick and it is a good idea to idle over a bend to see where the deep starts, Pick a tree on the shore as your guide. When I troll I am less than 5 feet from the bank so a certain tree is a good reference point to know where the deep part of the hole is.

Now the only tricky turn is at the water treatment plant, you will be running along and then find your self in a bay. The river had just taken a hard right which you will not have seen and now you are in the bay where we in Charlotte County get our drinking water from. I would take a few minutes to fish here.
In the water treatment bay there are often tarpon, and the Snook tend to lay up along the shore line on your right hand side, I like to anchor out in the middle and try for some of the giant Gar fish which live here not uncommon to find gar over 4 feet long. A shiner under a bobber with a 4/0 wide gap/ Kahele hook is the trick to fishing for them or catching them. If you are a Fly person, use a 2/0 hook with a piece of red ribbon, I would make the ribbon at least 4 inches long, I like 6 inches then I shred the last 3 inches. This works the gar go to attack the ribbon and their teeth get stuck in the shredded part.

Now lets get back to the river Now the river tends to look like Jungle, think Tarzan movies, Johnny Weissmuller filmed Tarzan movies here. It is the last transition Until you get to the real world again up in Arcida. come out of the bay and make a hard left and around the island you will see the bridge for hwy 761 go under the bridge, and all the way to the left hand shore line. There is a sand bar which comes off of the main channel of the river, which is on your right, If you go straight ahead the Snook fishing is great on the left hand bank but it is a dead end. Wait to head up the river until to get right in front of the main channel coming from the right, that will take you to the Fort Ogden trestle, where it is deep and the fishing is good right around the pilings. You may only get a little ways farther up river from here, take this next ½ mile slow there is no deeper section, and often fallen trees in the water at or near the surface. You will make a left turn and there is a nice beach and some bug round Piling maybe, I am sure at some time long ago there was a bridge or something here this is the mouth of Horse Creek ahead of you there is what we call the narrows, great fishing for Snook, Bass, Blue gills, even some times Red fish, the main channel of the river goes off to your right but is really shallow less than a foot deep. This is where I will stop as this is about where you need to stop, I have not been up past this for a year so, I will make a run up there and then I will continue our journey
to Arcadia and Points beyond as a last thought there is a great park in Arcadia on Hwy 70 at the edge of town fishing is OK, for Snook and or Bass, but a really nice park and a cool place to just check out by Car.
 

08/02/15

07/28/2015

07/18/2015

06/24/2015

06/15/2015

05/24/2015

05/13/2015

04/13/2015

03/22/2015

tired of waiting the Mack attack is here
Spanish mackerel are in the Harbor in good numbers, From Marker #2 to the 41 bridges, Then they seem to space out a little and start again by the reef, the largest grouping of Spanish is at the south end of the Harbor by Marker #5 and cape haze, with Jug creek shoals coming in a close 2nd.

Spanish are very well-known for taking lures so unlike most fish I often tell people to troll lures they don't use any more or don't like much, The lures need to be smaller 3 inches or less. and while it is thought that the Mackerel will bite through the line, which is sort of true it is the buddies of the one you have hooked which bite through the leader/ line. When one Mackerel gets hooked up its excited thrashing around makes the rest of the School think it has the best food ever, and they come to get in on the feast. Mackerel will hit anything which moves or makes noise, which if you think about it, if a mackerel got 4 foot I don't think I would go in the water. Getting back to the point the one hooked gets the other excited and they start darting about looking for the thing which got the other fish so excited and your swivel or the knot which attached the leader to your line is a perfect target even where your line is hitting the water, the V it makes while you reel in is fair game to crazy feeding Spanish.
If you are looking for very good lures to troll, try the Maverick Golden eye in the small version or the Storm twitch these lure have a lip on them and do not spin when you troll them, use a light rod. Lets say a 6 to 12 pound class 7 foot spinning or bait cast set up with some thing 6 pound test or more.
I troll at about 3 miles per hour for the mackerel.
Another trick I learned is to keep the rods I am trolling in front of me, I mounted Rod holders on the front deck of my boat so I can watch where I am going and see when a fish hits. If you do not have front mounted Rod holder any couple of your friends will do just fine. If they are in front of you, you can see when the rod gets hit and stop the boat if the people or Rods are behind you, you may not find out about what is happening until you are out of line.
To make sure the rods and lures are working right watch the tip of you rods they should be vibrating the tip of the Rod that is. The lures have a lip on the front of them which when pulled through the water causes them to be pulled under and the force of the water gets deflected off of the lip causing the lure to swing side to side imitating a swimming action of a bait fish. that Side to side movement of your lure, makes the tip of your rod bounce ./ vibrate in time with the side to side action and So when you look at your rod it should be bent a little and vibrating, if the rod end is bouncing or Best case pulling hard, meaning joy of joys you have a fish on, or if pulling down a bit then rebounding back up would mean a very small fish or a weed has been caught in the lure. either way reel in clear the lure and start again.
If you are going to cast for mackerel I would suggest Spoons or Got-cha lures. Spoons should be small Like the Clark Squid Spoon #0 or #00 problem is they are too light to cast so I put a water fill-able casting bubble on the line a head of the Spoon to give it weight in the air but once the bubble hits the water it is nothing just a plastic bubble full of water. The got-Cha lure is different it is a jig type bait and should be reeled in moderately fast with a jigging action, which means while reeling steady you would sharply lift the tip of your rod. Then lower it, repeating this the whole time you are retrieving the lures
 

Spanish Mackerel are not a fish to catch and freeze for later, The meat is not tasty after being frozen. So I only keep them if I am going to have time to clean and cook them that night. If I am going to have time I will keep 3 for two people, The seem like more than you would want but if you have a grill some butter, and McCormick brand lemon herb Spice. It may not be enough. I butter one side of the Fillet, then sprinkle some of the lemon Herb on it and place that side down on the hot grill. Oh yes when you fillet a Spanish watch for bones by the belly, Spanish are tricky to fillet properly and get out all of the bones. after removing the skin rub your fingers up and down the meat. Your finger can feel bones way better than your eyes can see them. When the side facing down on the grill is brown I butter the top side add some seasoning and fill it over. brown on both side is done.
Serve with your choice of side dish as you will only be thinking about eating more of the mackerel any way.
Good luck out there, have fin and be safe
Fishin Frank
 

 

02/24/2015

Dad and I decided to go fishing on Monday, as that is not a real busy day on the water. How Ever the store is slammed on Monday’s so by the time dad is ready I end up running out the door. Last week I forgot the bait, Yes I forgot to take bait on my way to go Fishing. This week Dad picked up the bait in the morning. I won’t live that down for a while. Our trip this week was to Pirate Harbor and the flats Just north of there. We started out inside the canals looking to see if the Trout were still hanging out, not so much Dad got a 14 inch Trout. he had a slip sinker rig with a 1/2 once weight using as Live Shrimp. Not very exciting as we had been there about a 30 minutes before we got our first hit. I was using My storm twitch for 15 minutes then switched to a Paddle tail jig. So I could bounce it off the bottom. No luck either way, But then again Dad only caught the one Trout. so we saw a couple People catch some Cat-fish and decided we were heading out on the flats, Going out on the open flats the wind was perfect for a drift, So we started drifting and casting in front of the boat while we moved, The best part of drifting is you can see if there is fish moving where the fish lay lots of information to be had just by looking, I can tell you the thing I learned there are no fish in the open, it will be around the middle of February before the fish are back on the open flat, We stayed with out fish less drift until we came to a set of islands, then using my stick in as a push pole, guided the boat to drift right between two of them and the was a nice ditch. trough running about 4 foot deep between the islands, we casted the trough then just before we got to the back side of the island I anchored the boat and dad tossed his Shrimp under the poppin cork 3 feet from the mangroves and Blamm, that bait must have hit that Red fish while it was yawning right in the mouth and it was on, Boiling and fighting. saw another Red following the one on his line I tried casting at it but no luck. Dad’s Red was heading around the boat so I reeled in and took up the landing net and camera. Dad got the red in Nice fish about 25 inches and foot-ball fat Fish. We fished the island for a while but we had made a lot of noise while landing the first one and getting pictures, we had spooked the fish.

 

Why was that Red fish there in that spot?  Time for a little Lewis and Clark aka exploring. It is not enough for me to catch a fish in a spot, I want to know if there is a chance that there will be more fish there. Why was the fish there anyway?  It is crazy but after 30 some years of fishing the Harbor I had never fished these islands before, so we idled the boat along the shore line spooking out two more reds, It turns out there is a nice deep hole there 3 to 4 foot deep maybe 20 feet long and 8 feet wide, right against the shore line and that hole connects to the cut between the two islands, So the fish can be in the currant during the incoming tide and sit back next to the island as the water gets low. Perfect place to hold Red fish or Snook. Now I have a map of that hole in my head, I used the stick it pin to find the depth, I am going to mark my stick it pole with foot marks so I can tell how deep each spot is, I count anything more than 6 inches as a hole, figuring the average depth two feet that is 25 % of the depth, So a hole. I am excited about going back there to try this spot when I know where to anchor and where to cast. I even went around the outer island to make sure I could get in that way. So I will be ready next time. I will let you know what happens.

 

we fished around a couple more islands spooked some fish, but they were not ready to eat, So we headed out by the Sand bar to See if the fish out there were ready to play, We anchored where we could see dark and light places in our casting zone. Then Putting Shrimp under Poppin corks Cast out lines out the sides of the boat, so they would drift back behind us covering as much water as possible. I decided to help the fish find us, So I took a bag of Frozen Shrimp and crushed the shrimp in my fingers and started tossing them out in a broad pattern behind the boat. Just to get some smell in the water, It worked and about 10 minutes after I started the chumming Dad got a bite feisty little fish. Getting it to the boat Puffer

Puffers really like Shrimp, They are just the craziest little fish. with a sharp beak like Jaws like a parrot, they are biters. But so cool when they blow up. Then the Line we had a shrimp on with a sinker on one of the sand holes goes screaming off, I picked it up and the fish ran way off to the side of the boat, and I now there is something weird with the world when it turned out to be a cat-fish. But I will not complain about the kitty at least I was not fish-less. This is the problem when you start chumming on the flats, it can bring in any fish. not just the ones you want. Dad caught a couple more puffers than the needle fish starting hitting. You can tell the needle fish by the way they attack your bait. the bait will go sideways and so will your poppin cork, So if your bobber lays on its side and you see a light splash in the water where you bait should be that’s a Needle fish striking your bait.
I knew Vinnie was going to Pirate Harbor to try for Trout, So I called him, while calling I put the Rod in the rod Holder and Just as Vinnie started to tell me about the Snappers biting inside Pirate harbor, line rod bent double, and I saw the most Amazing Sea Trout I would guess close to 30 inches Jump into the air Spit my hook and laugh at me all the way back into the water. Yes I should have expected that. any way we had a great trip, with only 3 ours to fish, we had a Nice Red fish to fillet, released a Trout, caught a few Puffers and robbed by needle fish, and I caught a crazy side ways running Cat-fish. Found a new spot to fish. Oh and Vinnie and Darlene caught a Cobia at the mouth of Alligator Creek 1 inch shy of keeper.
It was a good day. Oh the other thing slow down, lures should be slow and steady, don’t pop the poppin corks. and you will catch fish. Everything is slow. By the middle of February The water should start warming up and you can pick up speed but to be honest, the weather, the water, the fishing, all are perfect right now, the catching could be a little better.
Enjoy have fun
Fishin Frank

 

1/26/2015

Hi there boys and girls

I have decided to go fishin Mondays with my dad, Just to let you know he is the original Fishin Frank, and boy this was a heck of a Monday to start, Jan 26th started out nice as could be at 6:am but by 7:am the front was here, the air temp dropped and the rain and wind blew in, and I knew this was going to be a fishin trip, not a catchin trip. But we loaded up the little boat and off we went to Hathaway Park out of Washington loop. Our thought was maybe the front would not stop the freshwater catfish from biting, hint it did.
Dad and I launched the boat and headed up the creek watch the depth finder when we found a deep hole we would then Anchor up above the hole. Dad would cast a night crawler just to the edge of the hole trying to get it to fall slide down the side of the hole to the bottom and wait for the cat fish. Well we waited next to a half dozen holes and no cat fish would come and play.
Shell creek is narrow and it could be blowing 40 mph you are not going to have waves and I will tell you, I had forgotten what a beautiful ride it is up the Creek, And I’ve seen up a lot of creeks as you would guess often with out a paddle, This time with a 20 horse out board, and being there is a real treat, The banks are oaks, cypress, and palms, with Vines and cypress knees stickin up all over. really quite beautiful and lots of Turtles getting warm in the sun, Hard to believe how deep the creek is many spots of 12, 15, even 20 feet of water in a lot of holes, an average depth of 6 foot, with the shallowest water we found at 5 feet,
The ramp at Hathaway is a little steep but not bad. I was not in the mood for live bait.
So choice was a Plastic dinger worm hoping for bass, and a beetle spin. I flipped that dinger in to weeds and along the shore line as we moved up the creek and one bend I got a hit but swing and a miss, It felt like a smaller fish, but I would have been ok with that. So on the way back down the creek I choose a beetle spin which is my go to lure, after all everything eats a beetle spin, and Creek-Zilla was no exception, I had been casting the shore nothing, and then started trolling the spin, still nothing, we were at the 2nd bend from the ramp and I decided to reel in. and Just to cast at a bunch of Lilly pads, So I made my first cast when the beetle spin hit the water I would let it fall for the first couple feet then a Small twitch to the spin after that a moderate steady retrieve, this style has worked for me many times before, the 2nd cast the beetle spin hit right at the edge of the weeds and it was on the drop and I just twitched it, and Wham something slammed that beetle spin and took off for the bottom my rod bent over double, I was praying my 10 pound line would hold, when ping my lure came flying to the surface. Swing and a miss! I told dad. then finished reeling in the beetle spin. after getting it in my hand I looked and something had ripped off the spinner blade which has never happen to me before, and crushed the hook. So I was fish less and befuddled what could have ripped of the spinner and crushed the Hook, up here in a creek? I though about trying again but it was getting dark and cold and I found my self completely under gunned for the situation, But now I know where Creek-Zilla lives and I will be back.
If you have not been fresh water fishing lately give Shell creek a try.  I have maps on how to get there on fishinfranks.com “click” Where to go fishing maps.  But I am not telling where Creek-zilla is, we have a personal score to settle
Fishin Frank

12/22/2014

2014 Still no flying cars, Tele-transportation, interstellar space ships, but we do have smart phone which are just smart enough to know how to annoy you. and then there is the fishing, some great some ok and some well not so good at all, But lets start with the year of the Snapper.

Mangrove Snappers, in huge numbers, and large sizes average 12 –14 inches are Increasing steady catch here in the Harbor and near gulf, over the last 10 years, And 2014 was a banner year for big Mangrove Snappers, One of the reasons for this could be as simple as fashion, It is not cool to fish for Snapper right now, Going after Reds has a more fashionable sound to it. But if it is dinner a a great fight on light tackle few fish compare to the Snapper people concentrating on other species. Inside the harbor Fish like Reds and Trout amongst other fish have taken over as fashionable, So the numbers have increased each year for the last 10 years,, When I fish for Snapper here in the harbor, Small white bait free lined is a good bet, But most of the time I use a regular bottom rig, with a sliding sinker, so I can feel the bite and hold the bait near the bottom, and either a Live shrimp or a Shrimp tail peeled. For Snapper I thread the hook into the shrimp, starting at the tail end threading the hook up toward the head. I want the most meat at the same end as the point of the hook. and toward the middle of the Shrimp, as that is where the snapper most often bite, unlike most fish which eat a shrimp head first.

 

Black Sea Bass, in The passes this year a first for us in about 6 years, not to say that there have been none but few and far between, The Sea Bass is a welcome return to the Passes, and a few Star Gazers have been caught along the beaches, at the beginning of 2014 we had good numbers of Lane Snappers here in the passes, So some of the once plentiful fish are just starting to trickle back into the passes,

 

In Thinking back on 2014 and Changes, how we hate that word, We as humans have a life span of about 70 years and we think of our corner of the world as unchanging. What the world was when we were young is how it is supposed to be, But the truth is nature changes slowly up to a point then it wallops you with a big one. The spillways along U.S 41 have had a major change this year, Man made changes this time. The Canals here were dug in the 1950’s when we had a rainy season, each day during the summer the clouds would go up the Myakka river and down the Peace river circling & circling until they got together and Bam thunder lighting 2 inches of rain 30 to 40 m.P.h winds, It was not uncommon then for a winter resident who decided to move here to sell out and move back north after their first rainy season, It was so intense and so much thunder and lighting, the storms would send them packing, this ended when Murdock was developed and broke the could pattern we now have a rainy-er season but nothing like it was. This is important information as to why the canals had to be re-done, there was simply not enough rain water to flush out the canals anymore, So the rain we do get has been channeled to help clean out some of the canals which had become congested pools of algae and bacteria, Lot of local Snook and Tarpon fisherman are complaining this will ruin the fishing, and it will be good again. I remember the last time they fixed the dams along 41, changing the dams made the fish leave, and it took a few years and the fish found new homes there are that became the normal. Change How soon we forget that what once was new and different will over time become familiar and the way it should be, Until we change it again, I was talking to a person who said the new bridge was horrible at the hover dam, And I could not help but think how when they first built the hover Dam how ugly that had to be to the locals, then over time became part of the land scape and an old familiar friend. The spill ways will get Snook and Tarpon back and the fishing may even be better, or sadly worse. Lets hope for the best. this all reminds me of Boca Grande pass and the shipping lane, The so called fishing guides out there did not even know the state had been dredging it every 4 years for over 90 years. and as I said of the spill ways this will now be different, only in the case of Boca, it will never again be constant, once the spillways settle in the fishing while different than it was might be better or worse time will tell, But it will be a constant bad or good after a couple 3 years. Boca Grande is now wild and free and changing each year, each storm. If history is a judge, the area just out side the pass should settle in at about 11 feet deep instead of the 30+ feet it had been, once it reaches this depth the changes each year should be less drastic than the ones we see now. but with no history to guide us as the pass has not been natural since 1911, hard to tell.

Any way foot note 2014 ended with a lot of Red Grouper in Boca Captiva passes, Yes there are more shorts than legal size fish, But legal size can be had right there in the passes, and Red Grouper is open in state waters, So get out there and enjoy.

 

Tilapia Had a big spawn this year I have not seen a hatch like this since the 1980’s when each year, thousands or millions of baby tilapia would come boiling down the river to the delight of the Snook and Tarpon, Tilapia were for 2 months every fall the best bait you could get, Now I have learned since then that is is ill-legal to use live tilapia for bait, which is stupid even by Florida Standards which have you noticed our government that’s a pretty bold statement, If the state wants them dead, thinned out, what better way than to let a Snook or Tarpon eat them? I understand and completely agree with never transporting fish from one lake to another, very bad, but in the water you caught them in? this is just FWC at it’s dumbest. To finally get to the point it was the rain this year up-river which brought the Tilapia hatch down the river, and the fish went crazy on them, cause the best Tarpon fishing the Peace river has seen in over 20 years

Red Fish, slot size that is are very few this past year,compared to the last 4 years, there seems to be quite a few Rat reds which is a great thing, and really lots of over size larger than the legal slot for keeping a Red fish, So to figure this out we have to think back 3 years ago what happened? well the freeze was 4 years ago so Red from the freeze year are past the slot limit any way, and then I remembered the Red Tide. Yes we had a pretty bad red tide event all along our coast, It came into Bull and turtle Bays and Pine island sound, just about the time the tiny red fish fry were hatching. a problem we have during this time of technology is that if we don’t see it on our screen, Computer or T.V. it did not happen and no T.V can see Red fish 1/4 inch long, But it seems as though a lot of the Red fish fry did die during that Red tide event. To under stand now you have to look back.

 

Any way, I think this has been enough ranting about 2014, and I am looking forward to 2015, and some great fishing, with all of the Rat “small” Red-fish next fall should be a banner year on Red fish fishing, and the Snook are thick. Lot of big Sheep head this year so this coming year will have a huge supply of Sheep head becoming legal size in time for the cooler weather, All in all I would say lots of really good fishing to look forward to in 2015,
Thank and I will catch you again Later
Fishin Frank

11/22/2014

A hearty ho ho ho and it is being to look a like like Trout season, every where you go from the east side to the west, and the poppin corks abound. ok, enough of that, but it is true The Trout are getting thicker by the day, here in Charlotte Harbor and the whole of S.W. FLa. The water will be cool all through December and we should have plenty of Sunny days combine all that and that lights up the trout bite, like strings of lights on a red necks porch in July, I will say the one thing different this year is the bobber jiggin, for Sea Trout, I will explain to bobber jig get a stand poppin cork an un-weighted one would be better, and a Rock port rattler jig head, bright colors seem to be the best Pink or Chartreuse, What makes this really effective is that the Rock port Jig head has a rattle built in. Place the jig head about 2 1/2 feet below the cork. Hook on a live shrimp to the jig head, It dose not have to be very big a choice size or about 3 inches total length, Hook the shrimp through the head, One of the better spots would be on the east side of the Harbor behind the sand bar 1/4 mile north of the Pirate Harbor entrance, go through the channel markers but slow down going into the channel, just because it is marked as a channel dose not mean there is any water in the channel average depth 2 feet, So go slow boat flat not rolling white water, head to around half way between the start of the channel and the trees in front of you, turn North or left as it is the same thing go about 5 minutes, yes I know it does not seem long but use your watch it is longer time that you think. Now turn into the wind, leave your out board motor as deep as you can, go until the motor bottoms out turn off the motor and cast in to the wind let the boat drift until the engine bottoms out and raise the motor a little and head back into the wind for another drift, it is impossible to get stuck if you follow this simple system. Now when you cast out to bobber jig into the wind your bait will trail the boat, so I let out some extra line I do this by leaving the bail open on my reel until the bobber/cork is about 50 feet away from me then close the bail. The Trout will get spooked by the boat then try to circle back to where they were, And here is a tasty shrimp for you mister Trout,
When bobber jiggin you do not really pop the cork as much, half as often as you would regularly pop. maybe if the is a breeze and a light waves I would not pop at all, the waves make the Rock port rattler jig head with your shrimp on it, bonce up and down that makes the rattle , rattle in the jig head which attracts the Trout so poppin is not really necessary, but I enjoy the pop of the cork so I still do it now and then.

Trout are one of the most dangerous fish we have here, no it is not the big fangs or all of the Teeth they have it is that they are slippery little devils and you get ahold of one it starts to slip and you tighten up your grip just as the hook reaches your hand, and zap a hook through your thumb, first of all use a Mustad 37140 #2 hook as it will hook in the corner of the mouth every time, this makes it easier to see where the hook is and avoid it. also un-like a circle hook you can get it out of the Trout’s mouth with-out doing major damage, it is way less expensive then circle hooks and works way better. So to warp this up,  if a Trout starts to slip out of your hand, let it slip, and pick it back up. Remember dry hands  or dry rags kill trout, use the water in your bait bucket or live well to wet your hands or rag before handling a Trout, cool thing for you is you do not have to get the slim off your hands it will stay on the Sea Trout, A Trout handled with a dry rag dies within a few days, So keep it wet, you and the Trout will both live better, Have fun out there enjoy the Trout fishing, For some larger trout head down to pine island sound not as many but larger fish on the average.
Thanks Fishin Frank

09/23/2014

What a Great time to be in Florida. The cooler air and the water temps are going down the rain is slowing, just perfect.  and the Big, huge, giant, Red fish are coming
Yes October this year is the Month we get to catch huge Red fish right along the beaches and just in front of Turtle bay and Jug Creek shoals, and the are here, Some years we have to wait until November before we get these big Reds. By big I mean over 34 inches and some of these fish will weigh in at 40 pound or more.

 

In the gulf from land you can catch these Reds, but this is evening , night or morning thing. If you are fishing during the day all I can say is that it is better to be lucky, If you are there early or late which is the prime target time. Try casting 3/4 once weed-less spoons out from the beach I like to add a length or fish bites, I cut the fish bites strip down to 4 inches and stick on the hook of the spoon. cat out and reel in trying to get the spoon to come back in about a foot off the bottom, I use the count method where off the sand I figure to have about 6 feet of water so when the spoon hits the water I count to five then start reeling, and keep your rod tip down, this is keep the spoon from trying to swim up as you reel it in.  and a slow steady retrieve, I will stop reeling two or three times on my retrieve to let the Spoon settle on the bottom. Once the spoon is on the bottom I will just lift or sharply jerk my rod tip to sort of dance / slide the spoon across the bottom then start reeling again. Think bait jumping off the bottom to escape a predator fish.

 

Now trolling for these big reds is the same thing as trolling for Grouper a lure which will dive at least 30 feet, and trolling between 3 to 4 mph, what I look for is a path between 2 reefs like Mary’s and the power poles. I figure that the fish would most likely head from one food source to another So trolling from one reef to the next always seem right to me. Now I do this is around 30 feet of water and the lure says it goes 30 feet deep, You may compensate by reeling in some line to get the lure shallower or letting line out to get deeper. Pink and bright greens for one of the lures, and the other purple dark and light is key then if you get hit on the darker color a couple time switch the other lure over and visa/ versa.

 

Now getting into the Harbor just out side of Jug creek shoals, this is a bait thing, lure will work but it is double tough to do it. I do a Lewis & Clark on the sand bar when the tide is very low so I can see where the cuts in the bar are at, By this I mean slight ditches if you will where the water has cut a trough across though the sand bar. this is where the Reds will cross from the Harbor to get back up on the flats. They are going up on the flats to find Shrimp or Pin-fish, But white bait {hard scaled sardine} will work the best right now. Get to the trough at Low tide and get set up, then be quiet like a hole in the water. The reds as the tide comes up will want to get up on the flat to feed, cast your bait into the middle of the trough and wait if you fish them, they will come. I have seen the huge bull reds wait for schools of smaller mullet or lady fish to try and leave the flats as the tide is falling and just lay out side the cut in the bar and ambush the fish as they come out. So don’t get all hung up on fishing the trough/cut that you do not see a big school of Reds right there. This is the reason I try to keep the boat to one side or the other of the opening So the fish will try to move through the cut. if your boat is setting right where the reds are trying to get on the flats, as you guess not good stay off to the side and try not to interfere with the fish as they travel except to stick some as they pass by,

 

How you rig up depends on the tide a slow moving tide, I free line the bait 20 pound braid with 25 pound test floro leader, now if the fish get closer to 40 inches go to 40 or 50 pound test leader, the #20 braid should hold but it takes longer so the thicker leader gives you more time to land the fish. If the currant from the tide is stronger or if you have to cast farther to stay out of the path of the fish I will add a sinker about 30 inches up the line from the hook. Split shot maybe even a 1/2 to keep my bait in the trough, If I am using a sinker I switch from hooking the bait in the head or mouth to hooking just above the Anal opening. {Right over it’s butt} this allows the bait to swim better pulling against the hook & line rather than pushing it.

 

I hope you find these schools of big Bull Reds, if you can find some blue crabs and cut them into bait chunks that is candy, crack for big Red fish. And don’t worry if the fish breaks your Rod or pulls it out of your hand, I have more to sell, Hang on to your rod, have fun and best fish wishes
Fishin Frank

08/25/2014

Nature is crazy and mix people with wild things and the weird is going to happen.

One night Larry who came in with friends who were going to Fish the Placida trestle, Larry bought a brand new rod and a bait runner type reel, this reel has 2 drags one to which is used for waiting for the fish, and the other for fighting the fish, the trick is to remember to set the waiting drag then click it on. Well it was his first time using it and his first time fishing in Florida. So like many people he laid the rod down while waiting for his fish, and did not thing about the bait runner, So you know what came next, all of a sudden rattle clunk splash the Rod and reel was pulled right of the pier and into the water. Larry spent the next half hour cussing and stomping around on the dock, he had not caught even one fish with his new set up and in the water it went, His friends did not want to leave, well they did not lose their Rods, and them a bite one of the guys had a hit and slowly started to reel in, It did not feel quite like a fish and it wasn’t it was a large Blue Crab which had his line in one of it's claws, and it appeared to be tangled up in line, So they netted the crab and found it had that line in it's right claw and another line in it's left claw, You guessed it the other line they pulled in hand over hand, and there was Larry’s new rod and reel, a little wet but no worse for the dunking and it had a 5 pound cat fish still on the hook so Lost and found with a little help from a Blue Crab which Larry let go back into the water, while his buddies fussed about wanting it for bait, No way Larry did not want that bad Karma. After all the crab gave him his tackle back.

 

Fishin Piers can be a great stress relief, One of our customers just got a new rod & reel, and was casting a lure and wham nice hit, Fish on & the fish was jumping and going crazy, and the Rod he said preformed excellent a Shimano C-I4 and a Star Seagis rod, it should be great, that is an expensive

set-up, But what a dream to fish with. Now he was breaking it in with a 4 pound Lady fish, after a good battle he landed the lady fish, letting the lady fish lay on the pier hook still in the fishes Jaw, he turned to get his pliers from his Tackle box and hear a noise behind him, quickly turning around he was just in time to see a large Osprey with the lady fish in it's talons flying off with his fish, Now keep in mind the lady fish still had the hook in it's jaw and his new rod and reel was hanging below the bird, the Osprey having a hard time with the weight of the fish and the rod & reel made it about 30 feet up and 50 feet away from the pier before letting go, and Splash went the fish, Rod, reel, and during this few seconds all the guy could do was stand there, mouth open and watch. He packed up came into the store and wonder. I have heard a lot of stories about losing rods but this one, Just plain weird. What was that osprey thinking?

 

07/29/2014

Howdy campers, welcome to fishin franks summer camp

 

So much is going here at summer camp, Fishing, classes, hiking, Kayaking,

Lets start with fishing, Sharks the #1 south after catch this year, are still thick here in the Harbor, surprising so, from 2 foot to 14 feet, Lets grab up a chum bag head to either the pirate Harbor hole or the middle hole and toss out a chunk of mullet or lady fish normal spinning tackle like you would use for Snook or Reds is the most fun, but I would take one elephant gun with you 65 to 80 pound test and put a 2 pound bait on it, Yes Big bait big fish, there have been some lemons or bulls here well over 8 foot in length. not quite tons of fun but pretty close, Plenty of spade fish on the in Harbor reefs, a crappie jig tipped with a piece of shrimp will keep the kids happy reeling in fish, What I do to keep it simple is put the jigs as deep as I can under the bobber, and be able to cast, still cast it the waves will jig the jig. and there is not so much casting involved, safer that way, although some of the crappie jig would make nice earing rings.

Classes her at summer camp include court room law, Yes I attended court about the guys who robbed us, Good news they are both convicted and going to be in prison for several years, remembering that day, getting woke up by a call from the cops at 4:30 in the morning, saying the store had been robbed, getting to the store and seeing empty shelves, then thinking in the court room and hearing them say well it is not like a home, “Horse Hockey!” it is as much a home to us as our houses, I spend more time her at the store,  than I do at the house, and 65k in merchandise could have about put me under, This was one of those perfect storm screw ups, The alarm company called me the night before as the system had just quit, and asked could he come Friday instead of Wednesday night, I said sure what’s the difference as it turned out about 65 K, but how was I to know this, and The building had just turned 90 years old, well when a building turns 90 the insurance company canceled your theft/ break-in, hurricane, and other coverage's, until you get approved with up-to date alarms and other inspections so I had no insurance. and then this sob picks the night when all of these things created a gap. son-of-a-old-dog you have to be kidding me. Murphy strikes me big time.
 

The good news is we had Officer Baras, Who was Chasing down all of the leads, there were many people involved, Charlotte County officers, Punta Gorda police, But the Guy I was dealing with and while he had his own leads which were right on he was also directing officers to follow all of the leads I was getting from facebook and other internet sources, the phone rang all day, and I texted detective Baras, each lead, The way we got lucky was video of the guy in the store and video of him outside the store, getting his face & being able to see him before and during the break in was key, it is hard to chase a ghost, you need video. and having a few thousand friends on the internet and in their cars locally helps a lot, there is so much tackle being stolen right no it is incredible, but while a had the perfect storm of bad luck I also had the perfect timing of good luck. The CCSO was on a roll. the had solved every crime they had investigated for the previous two weeks, and that stayed true to out break in, and after for a while, 17 hours straight Baras worked and by the end of that day both guys were in custody and with the help of some friends most of the stuff was found the next day 64”"K out and 40 back
all in all things worked out and they will spend a long time in prison. Thank you to the Officers and people who helped, and the state attorney's  One final note about this is just for information fort Knox could learn fro us, motion sensor’s trip sensors, video in-side and out,
I did learn security is not to be taken lightly, so if you scratch your back side I will see it and I promise only me, and I will snicker only a little bit.

 

Hiking here at camp is fun, We start at the one of the beaches on the gulf and walk out until you are knee deep then walking along casting a storm twitch lure, working it back to you slowly starting and stopping the lure, You will have a great time playing with Snook,

the wife may also do her share of catching Snook or She might like walking along the beach. There have been a lot of summer storms this year and the beaches are producing some beautiful shells, Cayo costa and even the swimming beaches are getting stirred up and sharks teeth & shells are being pushed up where you can see them, You need to out on  the beach just as the sun comes up, as the shelling this year is rally good and not a secret.

 

The best fishing right now is from just before sun-up to about 11 :am Red fish are the main target with over slot Snook a close second, The canals to the beaches,

Kayaking from 19th on Boca is beautiful and Snooky with some nice Reds, paddle out to Hoagen key and the north end has lots of snook the Red fish seem to be out in the pot holes across the flats early in the day and then going up under the docks or mangroves as the sun hits midday.

So all good here at summer camp, a fun filled exciting time, or at least the afternoon storms make it exciting as Florida is number 1 for lighting hits, and I know that all too well. Yes I have been hit explains a lot don’t-cha think?

Have fun and be safe
Fishin Frank
  

 

04/28/2014

We killed them,
I would guess tis is not the best way to start a story, but as far as this is concerned the truth. Yes we need to stop using phrase like the bait moved, and use the correct term We killed that school. Harsh maybe but here is what I know. In 1968 Zapata Foods did a fly over South west Florida, Mike Mack Sr. flew the plane, The report was that there was a School of bait not different school, but one unbroken school of bait from Naples to St. Pete never less than 1/4 mile wide and in place over a mile wide granted that was almost 50 years ago. lets jump ahead to the 1980’s which is  30+ years ago when I was first throwing a net for bait. The thread fin would come into Charlotte Harbor and cover the whole of the River from the 41 bridges to marker 2 and 300 feet from the shore on both sides of the river. Green backs were thick from Ponce park, which was my favorite place to catch bait, all the way to two pines. I would just cruise along and watch when I saw them as they say one & done. A single cast of a 10 foot net would get more bait than I needed. Now just 10 years ago I knew the white bait was in trouble when we started selling more 1/4 inch mesh than 3/8, the meaning behind this is that people were starting to throw on smaller bait with their cast nets.
The common phrase’s were the bait moved or not coming in, again these are the problem phrase’s and in my opinion the problem, If we would start saying “we killed that school” instead of they moved, I believe by simply admitting the truth, we would start to fix this problem. A hard Scaled sardine or green back needs 4 to 6 months to reach sexual maturity, or be big enough to spawn make babies. We kill them before they ever have a chance to spawn, this is not they or them, this is us, you & me, we are the problem, this is time to take responsibility for what we are doing, and I am not talking about not having bait to fish with, I am talking about the food for fish like Snook, Tarpon, and the others who rely on these bait fish for the oils they need to spawn properly, over eons of time fish have developed a need for oily bait fish when it comes to breeding, not to mention a fish will grow much faster if that fish has enough food, In truth it is hard to starve a fish they can live on very little food, but they grow much slower and do not have viable eggs when they spawn. So lets take using bait for fishing off the table and just look at the fact that we are taking away the nourishment needed by the fish to survive properly. So we have all but wiped out the bait fish. Not just here all along the coast, you with your cast net, & me with mine, People at the end of their trip do not even put the bait back n the water, they pull the trailer up onto the ramp and toss the bait onto the concrete to die. We have to start thinking differently and never say again the bait moved, once we under stand that we killed that school and for every two that die next year there is 500 that wont be here, we will finally be able to address this problem. What is the answer. Only take what you need, not what you want, do not squeeze the bait when you use the for chum. release everything in your well long before you get to the ramp, when the day is over release the bait alive. this will help, How ever the truth is we might need to ban all cast netting in the Harbor during the months of April, May, June, July & august to let any bait grow big enough to spawn. this may be the only way to bring the bait fish schools back in numbers which will allow us bait to use and food for the fish.  It is not a bad thing to cast net bait fish they only live 1/2 to 2 years, the primary purpose of their being is to be food for something, The problem is the have to be able to get big enough to spawn and make more of their little selves. think of it this way if 100 boats go out and get 50 pieces of bait each, that is 5000 pieces a day. 5000 a day is a very low estimate the real number would be much higher. Now here is the licker to this story, everything I wrote here may be B.S. and not true at all, this is what I would call a Frankisum, The weather cold water or just a bad year for bait could be causing this. I really believe the the truth lies some where in the middle, Yes the weather, pollution and other factors are contributing, I would say we are only 95% responsible, Sorry but this is just the way I see it, and the sooner we take that to heart the sooner things will get better.

A case in Point for bait to more catchable size fish is Texas, Texas was having a problem with find legal size Grouper or snapper big enough to keep, They found there was just not enough food for the fish, So they put a ban on Shrimping until the shrimp were big enough to have spawned once, Now the fishing in Texas is getting better by the year. after Texas put a stop to year around shrimping many of the boats came to Florida where there are no restrictions. and any night from Oct to February, when the wind picks up, you will see anywhere from 2 to 20 boats shrimping the Harbor. Because this happens at night and no ones sees it, did it really happen, the answer is Yes. Haven’t you ever wondered why the bottom of Charlotte Harbor is so flat with no features, it is dragged flat, Shrimp is the most prolific creature each pair making thousands of eggs, and they reproduce faster than almost any other critter, but we still have to be careful as we can kill faster than anything can grow, except maybe Ants. The good thing is there are quite good supplies of shrimp here in Florida, and we are in no danger of running out, but this year presents a problem, with no bait fish anglers are more reliant on Shrimp for bait, and Shrimp only hatch once a year and we are this month going to get to the time of year called PEE-Wee season, which the adult shrimp have left the shallow water for the deep water of the Gulf where they live out their lives, never to return again. The ones that are here after June are the ones which hatched this year. As in tiny shrimp or Pee-Wee. Fun Fact shrimp die if you net them in more than 10 feet of water they die quickly so as the adults move to deep water they are unreachable for bait

White bait, is the subject. there are really quite a few different types of bait here in Charlotte Harbor, Squid yes Charlotte Harbor right now has thousands if not millions of small Squid, which will stay until the rains come. Bumper or Menhaden, Butter fish, Bally–hoo Yes we have a lot of bally-hoo here but unlike the keys almost nothing eats them here. That is quite the puzzle, Why are Bally-hoo such good bait in the keys but not here. Skip-jacks / Yellow jackets which have fins on their belly and back which if they poke you burn. They are not dangerous unless you are allergic to bee stings, then I have heard of people being bothered by them, but for the vast majority of us they are just painful/annoying. The
bait as a whole is subject to water temps, water pollution and there may be nothing we can do to bring the bait back. But one thing is sure this is not good, and this needs to be looked at to see if we are just catching too much as I suspect or if there may be a more wide spread problem maybe a virus or a contaminate in the waters. At this point the easy thing is t say we catch too many before they spawn, and this is the easiest to fix. I only hope this is the problem.

 

03/26/2015

Sharks a size for every one and one of the best fights there is.
 
This is time time when all eyes turn to big fish, The Sharks are really starting to come in,
People forget or don’t know that many sharks jump or even do flips when hooked up on a rod & reel. Black tip sharks are fast, real fast they can make a bone fish look lazy. So they are a great Catch & release fish, as they are great fighters and they will make your heart pump a real know your alive situation.

Many of the smaller shark species like Bonnets , black tips and Atlantic sharp nose are filing the Harbor. while the black nose, sand bar, Bull and many other species are thick on almost every near shore reef, and this year Tiger sharks are being caught along the beaches. To catch these toothy fish you need to get a pattern, a game plan going, I like to cover all of the bases, So let’s start with your chart I use the 15-F from water proof charts, what I need is to see the bottom contour, where the in-roads for the sharks would be, I look for deeper troughs along the bottom I the harbor or ledges in the gulf, Once I find the bottom I like be it a deeper trough on the bottom or just a place between 2 reefs on the gulf. When I get there and once my boat is anchored.  Oh and the tricky part of anchoring is that I use a couple of crab trap floats tied to my anchor line So I can cast it away without having to bring it in the boat, No time for that with a big fish on peeling off line like your hook up to a Chevy and I know it is hard to imagine 300 yards of line being ripped off your spool but it can happen in just seconds, several species of sharks can reach speeds of 360 feet per second So time is important. The last bit of advice is to use a loop knot over the cleat, instead of tying the anchor line to the boat.. So the line can be tossed away from the boat and I can chase the fish.

Now that the anchor is out I want to put my chum bag over the side, over the back really, often I use the chum  already in the bag, it is easy and when I am done I can just throw the bag in the garbage. The trick to using this type of chum is not to let the bag float on the water. I shorten the line up enough to keep the bag up-right, so it is hanging from the cleat. this way every time I walk or a wave hits the boat it sloshes the bag up & down dispensing the chum, if it is just floating on the water it will not dispense properly. Now that I have all that I put out my first line.

My first rod out is a 40 size spinning reel, with a med/heavy rod the same as I would use for Snook or Red fish, 12 pound mono or 15 pound braid line. As the sharks I am trying to land on this rig are 2 to 4 feet, for tackle I use a 4/0 AFW red leader. On the hook is a half of a sardine. and most important a bobber on this line.  This will be the farthest away from the boat, the longest line out, I let the currant take it at least 75 or 100 feet away from the boat, and the bait is 3 to 4 feet below the float.

Now the second line is free-lined out and placed in the back left corner of the boat with no float or sinker, it will adjust itself to the currant lay on the bottom during a slack tide, or as the tide picks up and starts moving faster, the bait will come up off the bottom.Same hook, leader and bait, the ole trusty sardine. Now with the first rod on a float and the second free-lined there is almost no way for them to tangle.

 

The 3rd and 4th rods both go in the holders mid ship. these are the heavy rods, the 3rd one is a 6500 Live liner with 65 pound test braided line and it has a  3 foot 100 pound test steel leader with a 7/0 hook and 4-finger size chunk of mullet on it, with a 4 once sinker to keep it in place, preventing tangled lines, cast this out at a 45 degree angle from the boat towards the back.
 

The 4th rod a 9/0 or bigger Penn conventional reel, loaded with 80 pound mono line, I use mono as it seems safer to me I can tell when it is about to break and dose not bury into itself as easy as braided. This has a 6 foot 250 pound test leader with a 12/0 hook and a big chunks of bait, like half or whole mullet maybe a lady fish but big 3 pounds of bait, the smaller sharks may push it around, but it will take a big shark to pick it up.

Use a heavy sinker 8 once or bigger to hold the bait out and away from the other lines, even though it is heavy the currant pushes hard a such a large piece of bait hence the big weight. Again I cast this at a 45 degree angle back of the other side of the boat.

 

So now I have a line with a float covering the sharks running near the surface. Free lined with cover the middle depths of the water and finally ones with sinkers on the bottom.
The smaller baits on the first 2 will entice any black tip or smaller sharks 3 foot or less to bite, the larger rods with big baits will get the big Bull or larger sharks t eat.
One all of the rods are set, you have to wait now, I usually figure on about 45 minutes for the chum to really start working, that is why the chum is the second thing I do after getting in the Anchor set, that way the clock is running,
another tip is that makers hold bait and make for good shark fishing but I do not get close as the sharks will tend to run around the marker and break off, so if I am fishing a marker I am about 100 yards away letting my chum bring them to me.

 

I hope this helps you in the quest for some heart pumping fishing excitement, which once you know a few tricks, you will be able to do. Just keep in mind this is a apex predator can you could just as easily become it’s prey so be carful and as a last thought, you are not allowed to shoot a Shark, So again be carful & above all have fun.
Fishin Frank

 

02/25/2015

Stories I wrote.
 Here are some of the monthly Fishing up-dates, I have written, going back in time
I wish I could blame someone else, for writing these But it was Me Fishin Frank. I did use spell check, but that dose not always work.

08/28/2015

Peace River We all know the Peace river is here, but do you know how cool it is? Lets start at the 41 bridges. Now the real mouth of the river is in a line from Ponce DE Leon park in Punta Gorda across to Hog Island. So the Gilchrist bridges or 41 bridges as we call them are really a little over 4 miles up river.
To get to where the river is fresh all year is about 17 miles up where Horse Creek enters the Peace river
or 22 from the mouth of the river. I thought I would throw that in as I get this question a lot, most people do not under stand the Peace river is 104 miles long and in the past a Major trade route for goods, before stage coaches and wagons, I guess I should say before roads, heavy goods were transported by barges. Now we use interstate Hwy but back then a lot easier to put a couple tons of stuff on a boat and push it.

Now lets get to the fishing, Snook fishing can be done on most of the peace river, Zolfo Springs and Wauchula have for part of the Year some very good Snook fishing. Even Tarpon can be found up the River.

Back to a trip up the river, Starting at 41 you are in a full on Salt water environment, as you pass the bridge for I-75 you are into a Mangrove environment, still salt water now once you pass Harbor heights you will see saw grass, This is where the transition starts, this is a true brackish water environment. Now watch the shoreline as you head up river at Harbor heights take the right fork and you will see the plants are changing more ferns, and the trees are different the Mangroves thin out and the Cypress tress begin to be more common, Watch Island 33 you will know which one this is as the channel marks stop here, you have been seeing the typical Red or green markers now in front of you is a marker with red and green on it, half and half. That is the Charlotte county line. And the channels markers stop here this is also the first place with less than 4 feet of water, you have been over holes deeper than 20 foot on your way here but in front of you is a shoal which extends all the way across the main channel of the river and at high tides there is 3 feet of water at lower tides less than 2. Now you can take and go around the back side of island 33 and while there is not much more water the bottom is soft and you will have no trouble making it through. In front on the main channel the bottom is much harder and may ding your prop. I always use the main channel as I run a flats boat and only need a foot of water to run comfortable. Once you are past island 33 hold to the out side bends of the river and there is not really any shallow places, until you get past the camp ground. And that is only shallow if you are not thinking out side of the bends, which means you must picture in your head an “S” follow the curves,
The fish will also hold on these out side bends. Near the shoreline and You could cast a lure like a Rat-L-trap or a Bomber at the shore or I prefer to troll these bends in the River. These bends get deep quick and it is a good idea to idle over a bend to see where the deep starts, Pick a tree on the shore as your guide. When I troll I am less than 5 feet from the bank so a certain tree is a good reference point to know where the deep part of the hole is.

Now the only tricky turn is at the water treatment plant, you will be running along and then find your self in a bay. The river had just taken a hard right which you will not have seen and now you are in the bay where we in Charlotte County get our drinking water from. I would take a few minutes to fish here.
In the water treatment bay there are often tarpon, and the Snook tend to lay up along the shore line on your right hand side, I like to anchor out in the middle and try for some of the giant Gar fish which live here not uncommon to find gar over 4 feet long. A shiner under a bobber with a 4/0 wide gap/ Kahele hook is the trick to fishing for them or catching them. If you are a Fly person, use a 2/0 hook with a piece of red ribbon, I would make the ribbon at least 4 inches long, I like 6 inches then I shred the last 3 inches. This works the gar go to attack the ribbon and their teeth get stuck in the shredded part.

Now lets get back to the river Now the river tends to look like Jungle, think Tarzan movies, Johnny Weissmuller filmed Tarzan movies here. It is the last transition Until you get to the real world again up in Arcida. come out of the bay and make a hard left and around the island you will see the bridge for hwy 761 go under the bridge, and all the way to the left hand shore line. There is a sand bar which comes off of the main channel of the river, which is on your right, If you go straight ahead the Snook fishing is great on the left hand bank but it is a dead end. Wait to head up the river until to get right in front of the main channel coming from the right, that will take you to the Fort Ogden trestle, where it is deep and the fishing is good right around the pilings. You may only get a little ways farther up river from here, take this next ½ mile slow there is no deeper section, and often fallen trees in the water at or near the surface. You will make a left turn and there is a nice beach and some bug round Piling maybe, I am sure at some time long ago there was a bridge or something here this is the mouth of Horse Creek ahead of you there is what we call the narrows, great fishing for Snook, Bass, Blue gills, even some times Red fish, the main channel of the river goes off to your right but is really shallow less than a foot deep. This is where I will stop as this is about where you need to stop, I have not been up past this for a year so, I will make a run up there and then I will continue our journey
to Arcadia and Points beyond as a last thought there is a great park in Arcadia on Hwy 70 at the edge of town fishing is OK, for Snook and or Bass, but a really nice park and a cool place to just check out by Car.
 

08/02/15

07/28/2015

07/18/2015

06/24/2015

06/15/2015

05/24/2015

05/13/2015

04/13/2015

03/22/2015

tired of waiting the Mack attack is here
Spanish mackerel are in the Harbor in good numbers, From Marker #2 to the 41 bridges, Then they seem to space out a little and start again by the reef, the largest grouping of Spanish is at the south end of the Harbor by Marker #5 and cape haze, with Jug creek shoals coming in a close 2nd.

Spanish are very well-known for taking lures so unlike most fish I often tell people to troll lures they don't use any more or don't like much, The lures need to be smaller 3 inches or less. and while it is thought that the Mackerel will bite through the line, which is sort of true it is the buddies of the one you have hooked which bite through the leader/ line. When one Mackerel gets hooked up its excited thrashing around makes the rest of the School think it has the best food ever, and they come to get in on the feast. Mackerel will hit anything which moves or makes noise, which if you think about it, if a mackerel got 4 foot I don't think I would go in the water. Getting back to the point the one hooked gets the other excited and they start darting about looking for the thing which got the other fish so excited and your swivel or the knot which attached the leader to your line is a perfect target even where your line is hitting the water, the V it makes while you reel in is fair game to crazy feeding Spanish.
If you are looking for very good lures to troll, try the Maverick Golden eye in the small version or the Storm twitch these lure have a lip on them and do not spin when you troll them, use a light rod. Lets say a 6 to 12 pound class 7 foot spinning or bait cast set up with some thing 6 pound test or more.
I troll at about 3 miles per hour for the mackerel.
Another trick I learned is to keep the rods I am trolling in front of me, I mounted Rod holders on the front deck of my boat so I can watch where I am going and see when a fish hits. If you do not have front mounted Rod holder any couple of your friends will do just fine. If they are in front of you, you can see when the rod gets hit and stop the boat if the people or Rods are behind you, you may not find out about what is happening until you are out of line.
To make sure the rods and lures are working right watch the tip of you rods they should be vibrating the tip of the Rod that is. The lures have a lip on the front of them which when pulled through the water causes them to be pulled under and the force of the water gets deflected off of the lip causing the lure to swing side to side imitating a swimming action of a bait fish. that Side to side movement of your lure, makes the tip of your rod bounce ./ vibrate in time with the side to side action and So when you look at your rod it should be bent a little and vibrating, if the rod end is bouncing or Best case pulling hard, meaning joy of joys you have a fish on, or if pulling down a bit then rebounding back up would mean a very small fish or a weed has been caught in the lure. either way reel in clear the lure and start again.
If you are going to cast for mackerel I would suggest Spoons or Got-cha lures. Spoons should be small Like the Clark Squid Spoon #0 or #00 problem is they are too light to cast so I put a water fill-able casting bubble on the line a head of the Spoon to give it weight in the air but once the bubble hits the water it is nothing just a plastic bubble full of water. The got-Cha lure is different it is a jig type bait and should be reeled in moderately fast with a jigging action, which means while reeling steady you would sharply lift the tip of your rod. Then lower it, repeating this the whole time you are retrieving the lures
 

Spanish Mackerel are not a fish to catch and freeze for later, The meat is not tasty after being frozen. So I only keep them if I am going to have time to clean and cook them that night. If I am going to have time I will keep 3 for two people, The seem like more than you would want but if you have a grill some butter, and McCormick brand lemon herb Spice. It may not be enough. I butter one side of the Fillet, then sprinkle some of the lemon Herb on it and place that side down on the hot grill. Oh yes when you fillet a Spanish watch for bones by the belly, Spanish are tricky to fillet properly and get out all of the bones. after removing the skin rub your fingers up and down the meat. Your finger can feel bones way better than your eyes can see them. When the side facing down on the grill is brown I butter the top side add some seasoning and fill it over. brown on both side is done.
Serve with your choice of side dish as you will only be thinking about eating more of the mackerel any way.
Good luck out there, have fin and be safe
Fishin Frank
 

 

02/24/2015

Dad and I decided to go fishing on Monday, as that is not a real busy day on the water. How Ever the store is slammed on Monday’s so by the time dad is ready I end up running out the door. Last week I forgot the bait, Yes I forgot to take bait on my way to go Fishing. This week Dad picked up the bait in the morning. I won’t live that down for a while. Our trip this week was to Pirate Harbor and the flats Just north of there. We started out inside the canals looking to see if the Trout were still hanging out, not so much Dad got a 14 inch Trout. he had a slip sinker rig with a 1/2 once weight using as Live Shrimp. Not very exciting as we had been there about a 30 minutes before we got our first hit. I was using My storm twitch for 15 minutes then switched to a Paddle tail jig. So I could bounce it off the bottom. No luck either way, But then again Dad only caught the one Trout. so we saw a couple People catch some Cat-fish and decided we were heading out on the flats, Going out on the open flats the wind was perfect for a drift, So we started drifting and casting in front of the boat while we moved, The best part of drifting is you can see if there is fish moving where the fish lay lots of information to be had just by looking, I can tell you the thing I learned there are no fish in the open, it will be around the middle of February before the fish are back on the open flat, We stayed with out fish less drift until we came to a set of islands, then using my stick in as a push pole, guided the boat to drift right between two of them and the was a nice ditch. trough running about 4 foot deep between the islands, we casted the trough then just before we got to the back side of the island I anchored the boat and dad tossed his Shrimp under the poppin cork 3 feet from the mangroves and Blamm, that bait must have hit that Red fish while it was yawning right in the mouth and it was on, Boiling and fighting. saw another Red following the one on his line I tried casting at it but no luck. Dad’s Red was heading around the boat so I reeled in and took up the landing net and camera. Dad got the red in Nice fish about 25 inches and foot-ball fat Fish. We fished the island for a while but we had made a lot of noise while landing the first one and getting pictures, we had spooked the fish.

 

Why was that Red fish there in that spot?  Time for a little Lewis and Clark aka exploring. It is not enough for me to catch a fish in a spot, I want to know if there is a chance that there will be more fish there. Why was the fish there anyway?  It is crazy but after 30 some years of fishing the Harbor I had never fished these islands before, so we idled the boat along the shore line spooking out two more reds, It turns out there is a nice deep hole there 3 to 4 foot deep maybe 20 feet long and 8 feet wide, right against the shore line and that hole connects to the cut between the two islands, So the fish can be in the currant during the incoming tide and sit back next to the island as the water gets low. Perfect place to hold Red fish or Snook. Now I have a map of that hole in my head, I used the stick it pin to find the depth, I am going to mark my stick it pole with foot marks so I can tell how deep each spot is, I count anything more than 6 inches as a hole, figuring the average depth two feet that is 25 % of the depth, So a hole. I am excited about going back there to try this spot when I know where to anchor and where to cast. I even went around the outer island to make sure I could get in that way. So I will be ready next time. I will let you know what happens.

 

we fished around a couple more islands spooked some fish, but they were not ready to eat, So we headed out by the Sand bar to See if the fish out there were ready to play, We anchored where we could see dark and light places in our casting zone. Then Putting Shrimp under Poppin corks Cast out lines out the sides of the boat, so they would drift back behind us covering as much water as possible. I decided to help the fish find us, So I took a bag of Frozen Shrimp and crushed the shrimp in my fingers and started tossing them out in a broad pattern behind the boat. Just to get some smell in the water, It worked and about 10 minutes after I started the chumming Dad got a bite feisty little fish. Getting it to the boat Puffer

Puffers really like Shrimp, They are just the craziest little fish. with a sharp beak like Jaws like a parrot, they are biters. But so cool when they blow up. Then the Line we had a shrimp on with a sinker on one of the sand holes goes screaming off, I picked it up and the fish ran way off to the side of the boat, and I now there is something weird with the world when it turned out to be a cat-fish. But I will not complain about the kitty at least I was not fish-less. This is the problem when you start chumming on the flats, it can bring in any fish. not just the ones you want. Dad caught a couple more puffers than the needle fish starting hitting. You can tell the needle fish by the way they attack your bait. the bait will go sideways and so will your poppin cork, So if your bobber lays on its side and you see a light splash in the water where you bait should be that’s a Needle fish striking your bait.
I knew Vinnie was going to Pirate Harbor to try for Trout, So I called him, while calling I put the Rod in the rod Holder and Just as Vinnie started to tell me about the Snappers biting inside Pirate harbor, line rod bent double, and I saw the most Amazing Sea Trout I would guess close to 30 inches Jump into the air Spit my hook and laugh at me all the way back into the water. Yes I should have expected that. any way we had a great trip, with only 3 ours to fish, we had a Nice Red fish to fillet, released a Trout, caught a few Puffers and robbed by needle fish, and I caught a crazy side ways running Cat-fish. Found a new spot to fish. Oh and Vinnie and Darlene caught a Cobia at the mouth of Alligator Creek 1 inch shy of keeper.
It was a good day. Oh the other thing slow down, lures should be slow and steady, don’t pop the poppin corks. and you will catch fish. Everything is slow. By the middle of February The water should start warming up and you can pick up speed but to be honest, the weather, the water, the fishing, all are perfect right now, the catching could be a little better.
Enjoy have fun
Fishin Frank

 

1/26/2015

Hi there boys and girls

I have decided to go fishin Mondays with my dad, Just to let you know he is the original Fishin Frank, and boy this was a heck of a Monday to start, Jan 26th started out nice as could be at 6:am but by 7:am the front was here, the air temp dropped and the rain and wind blew in, and I knew this was going to be a fishin trip, not a catchin trip. But we loaded up the little boat and off we went to Hathaway Park out of Washington loop. Our thought was maybe the front would not stop the freshwater catfish from biting, hint it did.
Dad and I launched the boat and headed up the creek watch the depth finder when we found a deep hole we would then Anchor up above the hole. Dad would cast a night crawler just to the edge of the hole trying to get it to fall slide down the side of the hole to the bottom and wait for the cat fish. Well we waited next to a half dozen holes and no cat fish would come and play.
Shell creek is narrow and it could be blowing 40 mph you are not going to have waves and I will tell you, I had forgotten what a beautiful ride it is up the Creek, And I’ve seen up a lot of creeks as you would guess often with out a paddle, This time with a 20 horse out board, and being there is a real treat, The banks are oaks, cypress, and palms, with Vines and cypress knees stickin up all over. really quite beautiful and lots of Turtles getting warm in the sun, Hard to believe how deep the creek is many spots of 12, 15, even 20 feet of water in a lot of holes, an average depth of 6 foot, with the shallowest water we found at 5 feet,
The ramp at Hathaway is a little steep but not bad. I was not in the mood for live bait.
So choice was a Plastic dinger worm hoping for bass, and a beetle spin. I flipped that dinger in to weeds and along the shore line as we moved up the creek and one bend I got a hit but swing and a miss, It felt like a smaller fish, but I would have been ok with that. So on the way back down the creek I choose a beetle spin which is my go to lure, after all everything eats a beetle spin, and Creek-Zilla was no exception, I had been casting the shore nothing, and then started trolling the spin, still nothing, we were at the 2nd bend from the ramp and I decided to reel in. and Just to cast at a bunch of Lilly pads, So I made my first cast when the beetle spin hit the water I would let it fall for the first couple feet then a Small twitch to the spin after that a moderate steady retrieve, this style has worked for me many times before, the 2nd cast the beetle spin hit right at the edge of the weeds and it was on the drop and I just twitched it, and Wham something slammed that beetle spin and took off for the bottom my rod bent over double, I was praying my 10 pound line would hold, when ping my lure came flying to the surface. Swing and a miss! I told dad. then finished reeling in the beetle spin. after getting it in my hand I looked and something had ripped off the spinner blade which has never happen to me before, and crushed the hook. So I was fish less and befuddled what could have ripped of the spinner and crushed the Hook, up here in a creek? I though about trying again but it was getting dark and cold and I found my self completely under gunned for the situation, But now I know where Creek-Zilla lives and I will be back.
If you have not been fresh water fishing lately give Shell creek a try.  I have maps on how to get there on fishinfranks.com “click” Where to go fishing maps.  But I am not telling where Creek-zilla is, we have a personal score to settle
Fishin Frank

12/22/2014

2014 Still no flying cars, Tele-transportation, interstellar space ships, but we do have smart phone which are just smart enough to know how to annoy you. and then there is the fishing, some great some ok and some well not so good at all, But lets start with the year of the Snapper.

Mangrove Snappers, in huge numbers, and large sizes average 12 –14 inches are Increasing steady catch here in the Harbor and near gulf, over the last 10 years, And 2014 was a banner year for big Mangrove Snappers, One of the reasons for this could be as simple as fashion, It is not cool to fish for Snapper right now, Going after Reds has a more fashionable sound to it. But if it is dinner a a great fight on light tackle few fish compare to the Snapper people concentrating on other species. Inside the harbor Fish like Reds and Trout amongst other fish have taken over as fashionable, So the numbers have increased each year for the last 10 years,, When I fish for Snapper here in the harbor, Small white bait free lined is a good bet, But most of the time I use a regular bottom rig, with a sliding sinker, so I can feel the bite and hold the bait near the bottom, and either a Live shrimp or a Shrimp tail peeled. For Snapper I thread the hook into the shrimp, starting at the tail end threading the hook up toward the head. I want the most meat at the same end as the point of the hook. and toward the middle of the Shrimp, as that is where the snapper most often bite, unlike most fish which eat a shrimp head first.

 

Black Sea Bass, in The passes this year a first for us in about 6 years, not to say that there have been none but few and far between, The Sea Bass is a welcome return to the Passes, and a few Star Gazers have been caught along the beaches, at the beginning of 2014 we had good numbers of Lane Snappers here in the passes, So some of the once plentiful fish are just starting to trickle back into the passes,

 

In Thinking back on 2014 and Changes, how we hate that word, We as humans have a life span of about 70 years and we think of our corner of the world as unchanging. What the world was when we were young is how it is supposed to be, But the truth is nature changes slowly up to a point then it wallops you with a big one. The spillways along U.S 41 have had a major change this year, Man made changes this time. The Canals here were dug in the 1950’s when we had a rainy season, each day during the summer the clouds would go up the Myakka river and down the Peace river circling & circling until they got together and Bam thunder lighting 2 inches of rain 30 to 40 m.P.h winds, It was not uncommon then for a winter resident who decided to move here to sell out and move back north after their first rainy season, It was so intense and so much thunder and lighting, the storms would send them packing, this ended when Murdock was developed and broke the could pattern we now have a rainy-er season but nothing like it was. This is important information as to why the canals had to be re-done, there was simply not enough rain water to flush out the canals anymore, So the rain we do get has been channeled to help clean out some of the canals which had become congested pools of algae and bacteria, Lot of local Snook and Tarpon fisherman are complaining this will ruin the fishing, and it will be good again. I remember the last time they fixed the dams along 41, changing the dams made the fish leave, and it took a few years and the fish found new homes there are that became the normal. Change How soon we forget that what once was new and different will over time become familiar and the way it should be, Until we change it again, I was talking to a person who said the new bridge was horrible at the hover dam, And I could not help but think how when they first built the hover Dam how ugly that had to be to the locals, then over time became part of the land scape and an old familiar friend. The spill ways will get Snook and Tarpon back and the fishing may even be better, or sadly worse. Lets hope for the best. this all reminds me of Boca Grande pass and the shipping lane, The so called fishing guides out there did not even know the state had been dredging it every 4 years for over 90 years. and as I said of the spill ways this will now be different, only in the case of Boca, it will never again be constant, once the spillways settle in the fishing while different than it was might be better or worse time will tell, But it will be a constant bad or good after a couple 3 years. Boca Grande is now wild and free and changing each year, each storm. If history is a judge, the area just out side the pass should settle in at about 11 feet deep instead of the 30+ feet it had been, once it reaches this depth the changes each year should be less drastic than the ones we see now. but with no history to guide us as the pass has not been natural since 1911, hard to tell.

Any way foot note 2014 ended with a lot of Red Grouper in Boca Captiva passes, Yes there are more shorts than legal size fish, But legal size can be had right there in the passes, and Red Grouper is open in state waters, So get out there and enjoy.

 

Tilapia Had a big spawn this year I have not seen a hatch like this since the 1980’s when each year, thousands or millions of baby tilapia would come boiling down the river to the delight of the Snook and Tarpon, Tilapia were for 2 months every fall the best bait you could get, Now I have learned since then that is is ill-legal to use live tilapia for bait, which is stupid even by Florida Standards which have you noticed our government that’s a pretty bold statement, If the state wants them dead, thinned out, what better way than to let a Snook or Tarpon eat them? I understand and completely agree with never transporting fish from one lake to another, very bad, but in the water you caught them in? this is just FWC at it’s dumbest. To finally get to the point it was the rain this year up-river which brought the Tilapia hatch down the river, and the fish went crazy on them, cause the best Tarpon fishing the Peace river has seen in over 20 years

Red Fish, slot size that is are very few this past year,compared to the last 4 years, there seems to be quite a few Rat reds which is a great thing, and really lots of over size larger than the legal slot for keeping a Red fish, So to figure this out we have to think back 3 years ago what happened? well the freeze was 4 years ago so Red from the freeze year are past the slot limit any way, and then I remembered the Red Tide. Yes we had a pretty bad red tide event all along our coast, It came into Bull and turtle Bays and Pine island sound, just about the time the tiny red fish fry were hatching. a problem we have during this time of technology is that if we don’t see it on our screen, Computer or T.V. it did not happen and no T.V can see Red fish 1/4 inch long, But it seems as though a lot of the Red fish fry did die during that Red tide event. To under stand now you have to look back.

 

Any way, I think this has been enough ranting about 2014, and I am looking forward to 2015, and some great fishing, with all of the Rat “small” Red-fish next fall should be a banner year on Red fish fishing, and the Snook are thick. Lot of big Sheep head this year so this coming year will have a huge supply of Sheep head becoming legal size in time for the cooler weather, All in all I would say lots of really good fishing to look forward to in 2015,
Thank and I will catch you again Later
Fishin Frank

11/22/2014

A hearty ho ho ho and it is being to look a like like Trout season, every where you go from the east side to the west, and the poppin corks abound. ok, enough of that, but it is true The Trout are getting thicker by the day, here in Charlotte Harbor and the whole of S.W. FLa. The water will be cool all through December and we should have plenty of Sunny days combine all that and that lights up the trout bite, like strings of lights on a red necks porch in July, I will say the one thing different this year is the bobber jiggin, for Sea Trout, I will explain to bobber jig get a stand poppin cork an un-weighted one would be better, and a Rock port rattler jig head, bright colors seem to be the best Pink or Chartreuse, What makes this really effective is that the Rock port Jig head has a rattle built in. Place the jig head about 2 1/2 feet below the cork. Hook on a live shrimp to the jig head, It dose not have to be very big a choice size or about 3 inches total length, Hook the shrimp through the head, One of the better spots would be on the east side of the Harbor behind the sand bar 1/4 mile north of the Pirate Harbor entrance, go through the channel markers but slow down going into the channel, just because it is marked as a channel dose not mean there is any water in the channel average depth 2 feet, So go slow boat flat not rolling white water, head to around half way between the start of the channel and the trees in front of you, turn North or left as it is the same thing go about 5 minutes, yes I know it does not seem long but use your watch it is longer time that you think. Now turn into the wind, leave your out board motor as deep as you can, go until the motor bottoms out turn off the motor and cast in to the wind let the boat drift until the engine bottoms out and raise the motor a little and head back into the wind for another drift, it is impossible to get stuck if you follow this simple system. Now when you cast out to bobber jig into the wind your bait will trail the boat, so I let out some extra line I do this by leaving the bail open on my reel until the bobber/cork is about 50 feet away from me then close the bail. The Trout will get spooked by the boat then try to circle back to where they were, And here is a tasty shrimp for you mister Trout,
When bobber jiggin you do not really pop the cork as much, half as often as you would regularly pop. maybe if the is a breeze and a light waves I would not pop at all, the waves make the Rock port rattler jig head with your shrimp on it, bonce up and down that makes the rattle , rattle in the jig head which attracts the Trout so poppin is not really necessary, but I enjoy the pop of the cork so I still do it now and then.

Trout are one of the most dangerous fish we have here, no it is not the big fangs or all of the Teeth they have it is that they are slippery little devils and you get ahold of one it starts to slip and you tighten up your grip just as the hook reaches your hand, and zap a hook through your thumb, first of all use a Mustad 37140 #2 hook as it will hook in the corner of the mouth every time, this makes it easier to see where the hook is and avoid it. also un-like a circle hook you can get it out of the Trout’s mouth with-out doing major damage, it is way less expensive then circle hooks and works way better. So to warp this up,  if a Trout starts to slip out of your hand, let it slip, and pick it back up. Remember dry hands  or dry rags kill trout, use the water in your bait bucket or live well to wet your hands or rag before handling a Trout, cool thing for you is you do not have to get the slim off your hands it will stay on the Sea Trout, A Trout handled with a dry rag dies within a few days, So keep it wet, you and the Trout will both live better, Have fun out there enjoy the Trout fishing, For some larger trout head down to pine island sound not as many but larger fish on the average.
Thanks Fishin Frank

09/23/2014

What a Great time to be in Florida. The cooler air and the water temps are going down the rain is slowing, just perfect.  and the Big, huge, giant, Red fish are coming
Yes October this year is the Month we get to catch huge Red fish right along the beaches and just in front of Turtle bay and Jug Creek shoals, and the are here, Some years we have to wait until November before we get these big Reds. By big I mean over 34 inches and some of these fish will weigh in at 40 pound or more.

 

In the gulf from land you can catch these Reds, but this is evening , night or morning thing. If you are fishing during the day all I can say is that it is better to be lucky, If you are there early or late which is the prime target time. Try casting 3/4 once weed-less spoons out from the beach I like to add a length or fish bites, I cut the fish bites strip down to 4 inches and stick on the hook of the spoon. cat out and reel in trying to get the spoon to come back in about a foot off the bottom, I use the count method where off the sand I figure to have about 6 feet of water so when the spoon hits the water I count to five then start reeling, and keep your rod tip down, this is keep the spoon from trying to swim up as you reel it in.  and a slow steady retrieve, I will stop reeling two or three times on my retrieve to let the Spoon settle on the bottom. Once the spoon is on the bottom I will just lift or sharply jerk my rod tip to sort of dance / slide the spoon across the bottom then start reeling again. Think bait jumping off the bottom to escape a predator fish.

 

Now trolling for these big reds is the same thing as trolling for Grouper a lure which will dive at least 30 feet, and trolling between 3 to 4 mph, what I look for is a path between 2 reefs like Mary’s and the power poles. I figure that the fish would most likely head from one food source to another So trolling from one reef to the next always seem right to me. Now I do this is around 30 feet of water and the lure says it goes 30 feet deep, You may compensate by reeling in some line to get the lure shallower or letting line out to get deeper. Pink and bright greens for one of the lures, and the other purple dark and light is key then if you get hit on the darker color a couple time switch the other lure over and visa/ versa.

 

Now getting into the Harbor just out side of Jug creek shoals, this is a bait thing, lure will work but it is double tough to do it. I do a Lewis & Clark on the sand bar when the tide is very low so I can see where the cuts in the bar are at, By this I mean slight ditches if you will where the water has cut a trough across though the sand bar. this is where the Reds will cross from the Harbor to get back up on the flats. They are going up on the flats to find Shrimp or Pin-fish, But white bait {hard scaled sardine} will work the best right now. Get to the trough at Low tide and get set up, then be quiet like a hole in the water. The reds as the tide comes up will want to get up on the flat to feed, cast your bait into the middle of the trough and wait if you fish them, they will come. I have seen the huge bull reds wait for schools of smaller mullet or lady fish to try and leave the flats as the tide is falling and just lay out side the cut in the bar and ambush the fish as they come out. So don’t get all hung up on fishing the trough/cut that you do not see a big school of Reds right there. This is the reason I try to keep the boat to one side or the other of the opening So the fish will try to move through the cut. if your boat is setting right where the reds are trying to get on the flats, as you guess not good stay off to the side and try not to interfere with the fish as they travel except to stick some as they pass by,

 

How you rig up depends on the tide a slow moving tide, I free line the bait 20 pound braid with 25 pound test floro leader, now if the fish get closer to 40 inches go to 40 or 50 pound test leader, the #20 braid should hold but it takes longer so the thicker leader gives you more time to land the fish. If the currant from the tide is stronger or if you have to cast farther to stay out of the path of the fish I will add a sinker about 30 inches up the line from the hook. Split shot maybe even a 1/2 to keep my bait in the trough, If I am using a sinker I switch from hooking the bait in the head or mouth to hooking just above the Anal opening. {Right over it’s butt} this allows the bait to swim better pulling against the hook & line rather than pushing it.

 

I hope you find these schools of big Bull Reds, if you can find some blue crabs and cut them into bait chunks that is candy, crack for big Red fish. And don’t worry if the fish breaks your Rod or pulls it out of your hand, I have more to sell, Hang on to your rod, have fun and best fish wishes
Fishin Frank

08/25/2014

Nature is crazy and mix people with wild things and the weird is going to happen.

One night Larry who came in with friends who were going to Fish the Placida trestle, Larry bought a brand new rod and a bait runner type reel, this reel has 2 drags one to which is used for waiting for the fish, and the other for fighting the fish, the trick is to remember to set the waiting drag then click it on. Well it was his first time using it and his first time fishing in Florida. So like many people he laid the rod down while waiting for his fish, and did not thing about the bait runner, So you know what came next, all of a sudden rattle clunk splash the Rod and reel was pulled right of the pier and into the water. Larry spent the next half hour cussing and stomping around on the dock, he had not caught even one fish with his new set up and in the water it went, His friends did not want to leave, well they did not lose their Rods, and them a bite one of the guys had a hit and slowly started to reel in, It did not feel quite like a fish and it wasn’t it was a large Blue Crab which had his line in one of it's claws, and it appeared to be tangled up in line, So they netted the crab and found it had that line in it's right claw and another line in it's left claw, You guessed it the other line they pulled in hand over hand, and there was Larry’s new rod and reel, a little wet but no worse for the dunking and it had a 5 pound cat fish still on the hook so Lost and found with a little help from a Blue Crab which Larry let go back into the water, while his buddies fussed about wanting it for bait, No way Larry did not want that bad Karma. After all the crab gave him his tackle back.

 

Fishin Piers can be a great stress relief, One of our customers just got a new rod & reel, and was casting a lure and wham nice hit, Fish on & the fish was jumping and going crazy, and the Rod he said preformed excellent a Shimano C-I4 and a Star Seagis rod, it should be great, that is an expensive

set-up, But what a dream to fish with. Now he was breaking it in with a 4 pound Lady fish, after a good battle he landed the lady fish, letting the lady fish lay on the pier hook still in the fishes Jaw, he turned to get his pliers from his Tackle box and hear a noise behind him, quickly turning around he was just in time to see a large Osprey with the lady fish in it's talons flying off with his fish, Now keep in mind the lady fish still had the hook in it's jaw and his new rod and reel was hanging below the bird, the Osprey having a hard time with the weight of the fish and the rod & reel made it about 30 feet up and 50 feet away from the pier before letting go, and Splash went the fish, Rod, reel, and during this few seconds all the guy could do was stand there, mouth open and watch. He packed up came into the store and wonder. I have heard a lot of stories about losing rods but this one, Just plain weird. What was that osprey thinking?

 

07/29/2014

Howdy campers, welcome to fishin franks summer camp

 

So much is going here at summer camp, Fishing, classes, hiking, Kayaking,

Lets start with fishing, Sharks the #1 south after catch this year, are still thick here in the Harbor, surprising so, from 2 foot to 14 feet, Lets grab up a chum bag head to either the pirate Harbor hole or the middle hole and toss out a chunk of mullet or lady fish normal spinning tackle like you would use for Snook or Reds is the most fun, but I would take one elephant gun with you 65 to 80 pound test and put a 2 pound bait on it, Yes Big bait big fish, there have been some lemons or bulls here well over 8 foot in length. not quite tons of fun but pretty close, Plenty of spade fish on the in Harbor reefs, a crappie jig tipped with a piece of shrimp will keep the kids happy reeling in fish, What I do to keep it simple is put the jigs as deep as I can under the bobber, and be able to cast, still cast it the waves will jig the jig. and there is not so much casting involved, safer that way, although some of the crappie jig would make nice earing rings.

Classes her at summer camp include court room law, Yes I attended court about the guys who robbed us, Good news they are both convicted and going to be in prison for several years, remembering that day, getting woke up by a call from the cops at 4:30 in the morning, saying the store had been robbed, getting to the store and seeing empty shelves, then thinking in the court room and hearing them say well it is not like a home, “Horse Hockey!” it is as much a home to us as our houses, I spend more time her at the store,  than I do at the house, and 65k in merchandise could have about put me under, This was one of those perfect storm screw ups, The alarm company called me the night before as the system had just quit, and asked could he come Friday instead of Wednesday night, I said sure what’s the difference as it turned out about 65 K, but how was I to know this, and The building had just turned 90 years old, well when a building turns 90 the insurance company canceled your theft/ break-in, hurricane, and other coverage's, until you get approved with up-to date alarms and other inspections so I had no insurance. and then this sob picks the night when all of these things created a gap. son-of-a-old-dog you have to be kidding me. Murphy strikes me big time.
 

The good news is we had Officer Baras, Who was Chasing down all of the leads, there were many people involved, Charlotte County officers, Punta Gorda police, But the Guy I was dealing with and while he had his own leads which were right on he was also directing officers to follow all of the leads I was getting from facebook and other internet sources, the phone rang all day, and I texted detective Baras, each lead, The way we got lucky was video of the guy in the store and video of him outside the store, getting his face & being able to see him before and during the break in was key, it is hard to chase a ghost, you need video. and having a few thousand friends on the internet and in their cars locally helps a lot, there is so much tackle being stolen right no it is incredible, but while a had the perfect storm of bad luck I also had the perfect timing of good luck. The CCSO was on a roll. the had solved every crime they had investigated for the previous two weeks, and that stayed true to out break in, and after for a while, 17 hours straight Baras worked and by the end of that day both guys were in custody and with the help of some friends most of the stuff was found the next day 64”"K out and 40 back
all in all things worked out and they will spend a long time in prison. Thank you to the Officers and people who helped, and the state attorney's  One final note about this is just for information fort Knox could learn fro us, motion sensor’s trip sensors, video in-side and out,
I did learn security is not to be taken lightly, so if you scratch your back side I will see it and I promise only me, and I will snicker only a little bit.

 

Hiking here at camp is fun, We start at the one of the beaches on the gulf and walk out until you are knee deep then walking along casting a storm twitch lure, working it back to you slowly starting and stopping the lure, You will have a great time playing with Snook,

the wife may also do her share of catching Snook or She might like walking along the beach. There have been a lot of summer storms this year and the beaches are producing some beautiful shells, Cayo costa and even the swimming beaches are getting stirred up and sharks teeth & shells are being pushed up where you can see them, You need to out on  the beach just as the sun comes up, as the shelling this year is rally good and not a secret.

 

The best fishing right now is from just before sun-up to about 11 :am Red fish are the main target with over slot Snook a close second, The canals to the beaches,

Kayaking from 19th on Boca is beautiful and Snooky with some nice Reds, paddle out to Hoagen key and the north end has lots of snook the Red fish seem to be out in the pot holes across the flats early in the day and then going up under the docks or mangroves as the sun hits midday.

So all good here at summer camp, a fun filled exciting time, or at least the afternoon storms make it exciting as Florida is number 1 for lighting hits, and I know that all too well. Yes I have been hit explains a lot don’t-cha think?

Have fun and be safe
Fishin Frank
  

 

04/28/2014

We killed them,
I would guess tis is not the best way to start a story, but as far as this is concerned the truth. Yes we need to stop using phrase like the bait moved, and use the correct term We killed that school. Harsh maybe but here is what I know. In 1968 Zapata Foods did a fly over South west Florida, Mike Mack Sr. flew the plane, The report was that there was a School of bait not different school, but one unbroken school of bait from Naples to St. Pete never less than 1/4 mile wide and in place over a mile wide granted that was almost 50 years ago. lets jump ahead to the 1980’s which is  30+ years ago when I was first throwing a net for bait. The thread fin would come into Charlotte Harbor and cover the whole of the River from the 41 bridges to marker 2 and 300 feet from the shore on both sides of the river. Green backs were thick from Ponce park, which was my favorite place to catch bait, all the way to two pines. I would just cruise along and watch when I saw them as they say one & done. A single cast of a 10 foot net would get more bait than I needed. Now just 10 years ago I knew the white bait was in trouble when we started selling more 1/4 inch mesh than 3/8, the meaning behind this is that people were starting to throw on smaller bait with their cast nets.
The common phrase’s were the bait moved or not coming in, again these are the problem phrase’s and in my opinion the problem, If we would start saying “we killed that school” instead of they moved, I believe by simply admitting the truth, we would start to fix this problem. A hard Scaled sardine or green back needs 4 to 6 months to reach sexual maturity, or be big enough to spawn make babies. We kill them before they ever have a chance to spawn, this is not they or them, this is us, you & me, we are the problem, this is time to take responsibility for what we are doing, and I am not talking about not having bait to fish with, I am talking about the food for fish like Snook, Tarpon, and the others who rely on these bait fish for the oils they need to spawn properly, over eons of time fish have developed a need for oily bait fish when it comes to breeding, not to mention a fish will grow much faster if that fish has enough food, In truth it is hard to starve a fish they can live on very little food, but they grow much slower and do not have viable eggs when they spawn. So lets take using bait for fishing off the table and just look at the fact that we are taking away the nourishment needed by the fish to survive properly. So we have all but wiped out the bait fish. Not just here all along the coast, you with your cast net, & me with mine, People at the end of their trip do not even put the bait back n the water, they pull the trailer up onto the ramp and toss the bait onto the concrete to die. We have to start thinking differently and never say again the bait moved, once we under stand that we killed that school and for every two that die next year there is 500 that wont be here, we will finally be able to address this problem. What is the answer. Only take what you need, not what you want, do not squeeze the bait when you use the for chum. release everything in your well long before you get to the ramp, when the day is over release the bait alive. this will help, How ever the truth is we might need to ban all cast netting in the Harbor during the months of April, May, June, July & august to let any bait grow big enough to spawn. this may be the only way to bring the bait fish schools back in numbers which will allow us bait to use and food for the fish.  It is not a bad thing to cast net bait fish they only live 1/2 to 2 years, the primary purpose of their being is to be food for something, The problem is the have to be able to get big enough to spawn and make more of their little selves. think of it this way if 100 boats go out and get 50 pieces of bait each, that is 5000 pieces a day. 5000 a day is a very low estimate the real number would be much higher. Now here is the licker to this story, everything I wrote here may be B.S. and not true at all, this is what I would call a Frankisum, The weather cold water or just a bad year for bait could be causing this. I really believe the the truth lies some where in the middle, Yes the weather, pollution and other factors are contributing, I would say we are only 95% responsible, Sorry but this is just the way I see it, and the sooner we take that to heart the sooner things will get better.

A case in Point for bait to more catchable size fish is Texas, Texas was having a problem with find legal size Grouper or snapper big enough to keep, They found there was just not enough food for the fish, So they put a ban on Shrimping until the shrimp were big enough to have spawned once, Now the fishing in Texas is getting better by the year. after Texas put a stop to year around shrimping many of the boats came to Florida where there are no restrictions. and any night from Oct to February, when the wind picks up, you will see anywhere from 2 to 20 boats shrimping the Harbor. Because this happens at night and no ones sees it, did it really happen, the answer is Yes. Haven’t you ever wondered why the bottom of Charlotte Harbor is so flat with no features, it is dragged flat, Shrimp is the most prolific creature each pair making thousands of eggs, and they reproduce faster than almost any other critter, but we still have to be careful as we can kill faster than anything can grow, except maybe Ants. The good thing is there are quite good supplies of shrimp here in Florida, and we are in no danger of running out, but this year presents a problem, with no bait fish anglers are more reliant on Shrimp for bait, and Shrimp only hatch once a year and we are this month going to get to the time of year called PEE-Wee season, which the adult shrimp have left the shallow water for the deep water of the Gulf where they live out their lives, never to return again. The ones that are here after June are the ones which hatched this year. As in tiny shrimp or Pee-Wee. Fun Fact shrimp die if you net them in more than 10 feet of water they die quickly so as the adults move to deep water they are unreachable for bait

White bait, is the subject. there are really quite a few different types of bait here in Charlotte Harbor, Squid yes Charlotte Harbor right now has thousands if not millions of small Squid, which will stay until the rains come. Bumper or Menhaden, Butter fish, Bally–hoo Yes we have a lot of bally-hoo here but unlike the keys almost nothing eats them here. That is quite the puzzle, Why are Bally-hoo such good bait in the keys but not here. Skip-jacks / Yellow jackets which have fins on their belly and back which if they poke you burn. They are not dangerous unless you are allergic to bee stings, then I have heard of people being bothered by them, but for the vast majority of us they are just painful/annoying. The
bait as a whole is subject to water temps, water pollution and there may be nothing we can do to bring the bait back. But one thing is sure this is not good, and this needs to be looked at to see if we are just catching too much as I suspect or if there may be a more wide spread problem maybe a virus or a contaminate in the waters. At this point the easy thing is t say we catch too many before they spawn, and this is the easiest to fix. I only hope this is the problem.

 

03/26/2015

Sharks a size for every one and one of the best fights there is.
 
This is time time when all eyes turn to big fish, The Sharks are really starting to come in,
People forget or don’t know that many sharks jump or even do flips when hooked up on a rod & reel. Black tip sharks are fast, real fast they can make a bone fish look lazy. So they are a great Catch & release fish, as they are great fighters and they will make your heart pump a real know your alive situation.

Many of the smaller shark species like Bonnets , black tips and Atlantic sharp nose are filing the Harbor. while the black nose, sand bar, Bull and many other species are thick on almost every near shore reef, and this year Tiger sharks are being caught along the beaches.

To catch these toothy fish you need to get a pattern, a game plan going, I like to cover all of the bases, So let’s start with your chart I use the 15-F from water proof charts, what I need is to see the bottom contour, where the in-roads for the sharks would be, I look for deeper troughs along the bottom I the harbor or ledges in the gulf, Once I find the bottom I like be it a deeper trough on the bottom or just a place between 2 reefs on the gulf. When I get there and once my boat is anchored.  Oh and the tricky part of anchoring is that I use a couple of crab trap floats tied to my anchor line So I can cast it away without having to bring it in the boat, No time for that with a big fish on peeling off line like your hook up to a Chevy and I know it is hard to imagine 300 yards of line being ripped off your spool but it can happen in just seconds, several species of sharks can reach speeds of 360 feet per second So time is important. The last bit of advice is to use a loop knot over the cleat, instead of tying the anchor line to the boat.. So the line can be tossed away from the boat and I can chase the fish.

Now that the anchor is out I want to put my chum bag over the side, over the back really, often I use the chum  already in the bag, it is easy and when I am done I can just throw the bag in the garbage. The trick to using this type of chum is not to let the bag float on the water. I shorten the line up enough to keep the bag up-right, so it is hanging from the cleat. this way every time I walk or a wave hits the boat it sloshes the bag up & down dispensing the chum, if it is just floating on the water it will not dispense properly. Now that I have all that I put out my first line.

My first rod out is a 40 size spinning reel, with a med/heavy rod the same as I would use for Snook or Red fish, 12 pound mono or 15 pound braid line. As the sharks I am trying to land on this rig are 2 to 4 feet, for tackle I use a 4/0 AFW red leader. On the hook is a half of a sardine. and most important a bobber on this line.  This will be the farthest away from the boat, the longest line out, I let the currant take it at least 75 or 100 feet away from the boat, and the bait is 3 to 4 feet below the float.

Now the second line is free-lined out and placed in the back left corner of the boat with no float or sinker, it will adjust itself to the currant lay on the bottom during a slack tide, or as the tide picks up and starts moving faster, the bait will come up off the bottom. Same hook, leader and bait, the ole trusty sardine. Now with the first rod on a float and the second free-lined there is almost no way for them to tangle.

 

The 3rd and 4th rods both go in the holders mid ship. these are the heavy rods, the 3rd one is a 6500 Live liner with 65 pound test braided line and it has a  3 foot 100 pound test steel leader with a 7/0 hook and 4-finger size chunk of mullet on it, with a 4 once sinker to keep it in place, preventing tangled lines, cast this out at a 45 degree angle from the boat towards the back.
 

The 4th rod a 9/0 or bigger Penn conventional reel, loaded with 80 pound mono line, I use mono as it seems safer to me I can tell when it is about to break and dose not bury into itself as easy as braided. This has a 6 foot 250 pound test leader with a 12/0 hook and a big chunks of bait, like half or whole mullet maybe a lady fish but big 3 pounds of bait, the smaller sharks may push it around, but it will take a big shark to pick it up.

Use a heavy sinker 8 once or bigger to hold the bait out and away from the other lines, even though it is heavy the currant pushes hard a such a large piece of bait hence the big weight. Again I cast this at a 45 degree angle back of the other side of the boat.

 

So now I have a line with a float covering the sharks running near the surface. Free lined with cover the middle depths of the water and finally ones with sinkers on the bottom.
The smaller baits on the first 2 will entice any black tip or smaller sharks 3 foot or less to bite, the larger rods with big baits will get the big Bull or larger sharks t eat.
One all of the rods are set, you have to wait now, I usually figure on about 45 minutes for the chum to really start working, that is why the chum is the second thing I do after getting in the Anchor set, that way the clock is running,
another tip is that makers hold bait and make for good shark fishing but I do not get close as the sharks will tend to run around the marker and break off, so if I am fishing a marker I am about 100 yards away letting my chum bring them to me.

 

I hope this helps you in the quest for some heart pumping fishing excitement, which once you know a few tricks, you will be able to do. Just keep in mind this is a apex predator can you could just as easily become it’s prey so be carful and as a last thought, you are not allowed to shoot a Shark, So again be carful & above all have fun.
Fishin Frank

 

02/25/2015