Re: Fishing in Englewood FL
Bugeye,
I live in Rhode Island but purchased a trailer right near Stump Pass. I keep a little skiff at Stump Pass Marina and fish there a few times a year. I have felt your pain trying to learn the ropes. In the beginning I got skunked every time out. Then as time went on I fished for up to 8 hours and caught maybe one redfish. Now I do pretty well usually catching several reds, snook and trout in the same amount of time. It's all about paying your dues, observing and teaching yourself the ropes.
No doubt about it, the inshore bay fishery in and around Englewood is a challenge because the fish have been pounded and are skiddish. The reason that the guides score consistently is either because they have "skinny" running boats and can get to spots that the average guy can't access, or they are experts with the cast net and have the luxury of chumming up the fish. They also know how to play the tides. At low tide they know the fish leave the flats and congregate in the sloughs and channels. As the tide floods they follow the fish up onto the mud flats and then on to the oyster bars and mangroves at the top of the high.
If you try to sight fish from a boat forget it unless you are totally stealth.The slightest sound or movement will send anything that you spot to deep water. I have spent countless hours poling around the grass flats to no avail. I have had no luck at all with live shrimp. Every time I use them it seems wherever I cast them they are devoured in seconds by little pinfish and trash.I know they work, but not for me. I have cast a live shrimp to tailing redfish however and the take is usually automatic.
Here's my advice. If you want to catch redfish your best shot is to first locate an area with "potholes". In the beginning I thought potholes were sand patches but that is not the case. Potholes are salt and pepper mottled mud areas of bottom. Redfish hang out and feed in these areas. The redfish seem to travel over the grass so I don't bother to fish these areas. Your best bet is to throw the anchor on your boat, put on a pair of old sneakers and get out and wade towards any salt and pepper area blind casting. One of the best explatory lures for this fishing is a Johnson's silver minnow spoon (1/2 oz.). They are easy to cast long distances which is vital. I tip mine with white split tail pork rind but it is unneccessary. Have confidence in the Silver Minnow, it is tops.
Another great bait is the jerk bait. My two favorites are the exude RTS slug in any brown color and the 5" gulp jerk bait. Use a 2/0 or 3/0 Mustad hook with 1/8 oz weight and bait keeper. These make the jerk baits weedless. These two baits catch everything from trout to snook to redfish to ladyfish and flounder. They don't cast as far as the silver minnow but they have a scent smell and the fish eat them!
One final hint. If you find a school of mullet, gamefish will usually also be found in that area. I didn't believe it either when people tipped me off to this, but I have found it to be true. If you can locate a mottled colored bottom flat with an incoming tide and mullet that's where you want to spend your time wading.
Captain Darryl, "Big Daddy" works in the marina bait shop and he is an awesome guy. He takes charters for 1/2 day and has all the knowlege needed to get you started. You may want to hire him because he'll teach you more in 3 hours than you will learn in a week by yourself. I would call ahead because this may be a busy time for him.
It has been a lot of fun trying to figure this fishery out and I confess that I have so much more to learn. There are fish there to be caught, but the average guy that leaves the dock comes home skunked. Just sit at the TiKi bar and watch the boats come in empty one after another. You need to put in the time to understand these species and more importantly the patience and committment to figure out the ecosystem. Without that committment you may as well resign yourself to enjoying the Manatees, dolphins and birdlife along with the other 99% of the fishermen in Lemon Bay instead of catching anything.
Best of Luck,
Rhode Island Red
