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Find Fish
May 19, 2013
Tips for Catching Cobia
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The first time you see a big cobia near your boat, it's likely you're going to figure you're looking at a shark. Their shadow, their seeming fearlessness as they flow easily through the water, and the feel that there's something serious in the water all add up to shark. If you're like we were the first time we saw one in three feet of water, the big white stripe along the animal's sides and the clearly flat head… Read More
May 15, 2013
Fishing for Sharks in the Springtime
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Shark fishing in the spring can be very productive and very fun. In the spring the water is beginning to warm up in the the 68-72 degree range. At this temperature the bait fish begin to show up again and with that the chain reaction begins. Bait fish bring the Spanish mackerel, king mackerel and other predator fish which in return draw in big sharks again. Finding Sharks Sharks are found on the beaches and chase the big… Read More
May 01, 2013
May 2013 Fishing Forecast for Sarasota
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Tarpon fishing will take off during May as migratory fish arrive along our beaches. Also look for Spanish mackerel, tripletail, cobia and false albacore (little tunny) in the coastal gulf. Snook will move into passes and the surf and reds and trout should feed heavily on shallow flats as baitfish become more plentiful. Blues, Spanish mackerel and more mixed with trout on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay should also be… Read More
April 01, 2013
April 2013 Fishing Forecast
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This is a great month for snook on shallow flats or around lighted docks and bridges in the ICW at night. Reds and trout will also be more active as the water warms and baitfish become more plentiful. You might find Spanish mackerel, blues and pompano in passes or on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay. Look for Spanish mackerel, false albacore (little tunny), cobia and tripletail, in the coastal gulf this month. Tarpon… Read More
March 11, 2013
Catching black drum in different seasons
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Black drum are in the same family as the redfish we love to target. They eat mostly the same baits and (to a surprising degree) taste exactly the same when they're young. If you have ever caught and eaten a big redfish or black drum you know why experienced anglers who harvest some of their catch favor the young'uns. The species start small, and until they're about eight or ten pounds display distinct stripes -- four or… Read More
February 17, 2013
Catching Snook in Different Seasons
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Snook are around all year, and you can catch them in the dead of winter and in the middle of the day in the heat of summer. If you talk to one expert they'll tell you that the best time and place to catch snook is under the bridges at 2 in the morning in December, and another will argue flyrods with tiny flies on the hot flats of mid-August. They're both right. But for the sake of being the best single place in the world… Read More
February 11, 2013
Fishing the Flats; 12 Important Tips
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There are fish everywhere. Literally, You can catch big largemouth bass in little tiny golf-course ponds. You can catch tiny fish all day long fishing on huge party boats. But living near coastal waters means you're living near the richest fisheries on the planet: grass flats. And catching fish on grass flats is something that's not very hard to do if you know a few simple steps and tips on being more effective. Fish… Read More
January 09, 2013
40 Break On The Live Wire
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Captain Travis Palladeno is one of those "Legends" we talk about. There are only so many of them, after all. But of all the people we've been lucky enough to have lunch with in the few months since we started this amazing adventure is a guy named Captain Travis. In the coming months and years we can only hope to get as active in protecting our sport as Captain Palladeno is. Being in the fishing business, I have had the… Read More
January 01, 2013
Capt. Rick Grassett’s Sarasota, FL Fishing Forecast for January 2013
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Fishing can be good in January, especially if you are able to pick your days based on tides and weather. You may find reds and trout concentrated in potholes of Sarasota Bay or reds may tail on shallow grass flats. Snook should be in rivers, creeks and canals although docks in the ICW can also very good this month. You might also find sheepshead, reds and more around docks. Not much happening in the coastal gulf along… Read More
December 21, 2012
Fishing the Flats
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Fish have been around for a long time. In a past when mankind was living in a world lit only by candle (the title of a wonderful book), fish were doing the same thing they're doing now. Their ability to survive is based on feeding patterns which (in turn) are based on seasonal change. Northerners do not think we have seasons in Florida, but we do. Fishing the flats in the winter is different than fishing them in the… Read More
December 10, 2012
Dock Fishing in the Winter Part 2; Skip Casting
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"Fishing Docks in the Winter; Skip Casting" is part 2 of our "Fishing Docks in the Winter" series. In this article we will touch on the proper way to get your bait far under the dock where fish generally are going to be set up waiting for a meal. Skip Casting; the secret to effective dock fishing So what’s so hard about this? If you know where the fish are going to be when it’s cold outside, and you know just about how… Read More
December 01, 2012
December Fishing Forecast
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You may find reds along with big trout concentrated in potholes or along the edges of bars when the tide is low in December. Reds may tail on shallow grass flats of Gasparilla Sound or lower Tampa Bay when the tide is low. You may also find reds and sheepshead around docks this month. This is a good month for catch and release snook action around lighted docks in the ICW. Some lights will also have trout making it… Read More
November 24, 2012
Largemouth Bass Habitat; Finding Fish Near You
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Largemouth bass are something many of us grew up with; so, too is largemouth bass habitat. In the springtime of our youths, we watched the six and eight pound fish that frequented the newly-dug and scraped gulf courses of the west coast of Florida come into the shallow water to dig three-foot holes. We knew how to catch them, and knew better than killing the big girls, whose eggs kept those lakes and ponds alive. We… Read More
November 02, 2012
How to Saltwater Fish; Making the Change from Fresh to Salt
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I was sitting on a plane returning from a successful hunting trip to Wyoming the other week, when I heard a father talking to his young son about possibly going fishing once they got to Fort Lauderdale. Having lived in South Florida most of my life, I'm used to the hordes of people flocking down to beaches of Florida in the Fall and Winter with hopes of escaping the cold of the north, and also getting some quality time… Read More
November 01, 2012
Sarasota Fishing & Fly Fishing Forcast for November 2012
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As the water cools this month there will be many changes. You may find blues, Spanish mackerel and pompano mixed with trout on deep grass flats. You'll also find larger trout in skinny water along with reds. Snook will stage around bars and on shallow flats as they make their move towards winter areas. Action in the coastal gulf with Spanish mackerel, blues, false albacore, tripletail and more will explode! Look for… Read More
October 02, 2012
Sarasota Fishing Forecast for October 2012
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Reds should still be schooled up early in October. However, schools will break up later in the month and reds will be more widespread on shallow flats. Snook will be staging around docks and bridges in the ICW and on shallow flats as they make their move towards winter areas. Trout fishing will improve as the water cools and fish spend more time feeding in shallow water. Migratory species such as king and Spanish… Read More
October 02, 2012
Sarasota Fly Fishing Forecast for October 2012
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Reds should still be schooled up early in October. However, schools will break up later in the month and they will be more widespread on shallow flats. Snook will be staging around docks and bridges in the ICW and on shallow flats as they make their move towards winter areas. Trout fishing will improve as the water cools and fish spend more time feeding in shallow water. Migratory species such as king and Spanish… Read More
August 16, 2012
Snook Fishing Tips
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Well folks I could not resist. It’s back to snook fishing. Why? Because it's that magical time of the year when BIG snook are cruising the beaches and passes! If you put your time in on the water this month, a 40 incher should be an achievable goal. There have been so many big snook showing up that its almost impossible not to run into one sooner or later if you're fishing in these areas. We're getting double and triple… Read More
July 01, 2012
How to Fish; Fishing the Flats
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We always talk about how important the whole lifestyle is for us - how the actual pull of the fish is only part of the game. That said, it's fun to catch fish, and finding fish on grass flats is usually a matter of finding the holes. And the holes are easy to find if you know what you're looking for. So this article is about finding fish, and finding them based on the shape of the grass flats around us. This grass flat… Read More
May 23, 2012
How to Find Fish Anywhere
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When you have fished one place - or even one huge fishery like we find in Tampa Bay or Charlotte Harbor or Biscayne Bay or the Raritan River in New Jersey or Galveston Bay or Boston Harbor, you get to know it. And you might even be one of a broad swatch of any angling community like ours that are of the "that is my spot" coalition. All communities have such populations of the protective, just as they have some anglers… Read More
May 01, 2012
Truly understanding Solunar Tables
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What fishing web site is complete without solunar tables? When we first started the site a couple of years ago, one of the very first things we did was a story about solunar tables. I wrote about waxing and waning, and about the role the moon plays in creating our tides. But best efforts often fall short, for sure, and readers have asked more than once what that first article was trying to say. The man who invented them… Read More
April 18, 2012
Where to Fish: Bass in Local Ponds
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Have you ever caught a fat largemouth bass? A six-or-eight pounder? Or even a small one that just weighed a pound? If you answered 'yes', then chances are you might be fishing very close to home. Right next door in some cases. Scouting your neighborhood for largemouth bass We are elitists. Face it. There are all these huge, hungry, hard-fighting sportfish all around us, and we hardly fish for them. Or at least I hardly… Read More
April 03, 2012
Capt. Rick Grassett’s Sarasota, FL Fishing Forecast for April 2012
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April is one of my favorite months for a variety of species. With the warm winter we had this year; spring fishing is already in full swing. With more plentiful bait due to warmer water, redfish, snook and trout should be on the feed. In addition to trout, look for Spanish mackerel, blues and pompano on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay. Migratory species such as Spanish and king mackerel, blues, cobia and tripletail… Read More
March 09, 2012
Seeing Spots --- Big Spots!
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When Mike Bucca goes fishing, he sees spots. But it's an addiction, not an affliction. While spotted bass are an incidental catch for many anglers, the guide specifically targets them in North Georgia lakes such as Lanier, Carters and Allatoona, where they predominate. What he has learned about them and the success that he enjoys pursuing them might convince you to target them as well. And in ways that you've never… Read More
February 29, 2012
Fishing Forecast for West Central Florida
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March is usually a good month for fishing the flats. Fishing for redfish and trout should be strong this month as baitfish become more plentiful. Top water plugs should work well due to the warmer water we've been having here in Florida. You might also find sheepshead around docks and oyster bars. Look for catch and release snook in the ICW at night. In the coastal Gulf, king and Spanish mackerel and more should begin to… Read More
February 29, 2012
The Lure(s) of Tarpon Fishing in Charlotte Harbor
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Sometimes when I am out on that water, there's some kind of feeling that comes over me. It's not the water. It's not the mud. It's not the air. It's not the gasoline or the quiet sound of paddles moving a canoe or kayak. It's not the birds or water, although in some ways it is that, too. It's something else. Something ancient. There's no words for it, so it's not something I can "define" like I can a slip knot. I believe… Read More
February 26, 2012
Florida Black Crappie
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In Florida, black crappie are not just another fish in the pond. In fact, they are considered "the other white meat" by many of us who love their clean, white meat and delicious gentle flavor. Florida black crappie are more numerous than the state's black bass and just as sought after. After the Florida largemouth black bass, Florida black crappie are the second most popular freshwater species targeted in Florida. Black… Read More
February 07, 2012
Florida's Trophy Bass Program
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Twenty-five years ago, the first largemouth bass entered in Texas’ fledgling ShareLunker program, and also proved to be a state record, weighing in at 17.67 pounds. Since then, anglers fishing Texas waters have caught more than 400 bass weighing at least 13 pounds, including 50 that weighed 15.38 pounds or better. Among them, an 18.18 record caught in 1992. Activist Angler Robert Montgomery with a trophy-sized largemouth… Read More
February 03, 2012
Using Google Earth to Find Fish Part II
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This is the second article we're writing about the incredible program called Google Earth. Google Earth increases the chance of you finding fish, and gives you a way to share fishing spots with your friends, as well as, the community. To us, it's all about sharing, and trust us, the places you find and catch fish aren't a secret. You may have found your own secret 'honey-hole.' But, reality is that it is thirty other… Read More
January 31, 2012
Capt. Rick Grassett’s Fishing Forecast for February 2012
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On sunny afternoons this Feburary, you are likely to find reds and trout on shallow grass flats. Look for pompano and blues on deeper grass flats. You might find flounder on the edges of bars, in potholes, or on deep grass flats that have a good mixture of grass and sand. Look for sheepshead, flounder and reds around docks with deep water. Catch and release night snook fishing in the ICW should be a good option, unless… Read More
.jpg&w=150&h=125&zc=1 "History of Ft. Desoto")
January 23, 2012
History of Ft. Desoto
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Fort Desoto is a place that's been attracting campers and fishers for a long time; there are scientists that venture to say as many as 10,000 years. We do know that for the last 400 years our entire region's attracted a wide array of western and world travellers. At first those travellers met the Tocaba Indians -- the latest tribe we have some vague information about. They had been here since roughly 1,000 A.D. The… Read More
January 02, 2012
January Fishing Forecast
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Weather will be a factor this month so fish smart ahead of fronts, or in windows of good weather between fronts for the best action. You’ll find reds and trout in potholes or around deep docks on low tides in the morning. Snook should be in rivers, creeks, canals, and around lighted docks and bridge fenders in the ICW at night. It may be worth taking a look in the coastal gulf for albies (little tunny), tripletail, and… Read More
December 29, 2011
Bass Fishing: Deepwater Winter Tactics
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A new lake, stream, canal, or pond is an easy read, if you know what you are looking for. When I was a licensed Captain in Florida, clients would ask if I was taking them to an old haunt, or a favorite spot, and many a time I would reply, “No, I've never fished here before.” The reason why I had never fished there before, is because all water is the same no matter where you fish. From The Rocky Mountains to the rivers,… Read More
December 27, 2011
Dock Fishing in the Winter Part 3; Positioning your Boat
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"Fishing Docks in the Winter Part 3; Positioning your Boat" is part 3 of our "Fishing Docks in the Winter" series. In this article we will touch on the proper way to position your boat to help get your bait in the strike zone (under the dock!). If you are just finding this article and haven't read parts 1 and 2 yet, you might want to read them first! Here are both of the previous articles: Fishing Docks in the Winter Part… Read More
December 03, 2011
Under the Boat: Basic Bottom Fishing
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Understanding Thermoclines, Structure, and Fish Behavior at or near the bottom Most of us at TOF – and indeed many of the guides and contributors to our site – fish live bait. Let's say that 70% of the contributors are live-bait people, with 20% never touching live bait, and the other 10% not caring one way or another. If you fish live bait near or on the surface, or use lures near or at the surface (popping corks on a… Read More
November 28, 2011
Bass Fishing in the Slot
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This time of year in Southwestern Florida, area ponds are bumping up and down in temperature ranges by as much as five degrees (in what's called by scientists as Diurnal Range). This temperature differential makes for some hard angling, but if you use the right baits, you can have days where you hook up almost every cast, if you fish "in the slot". "The slot" in this case isn't the legal size of the fish, but is the time… Read More
November 15, 2011
Wintertime Largemouth Florida Bass Tips
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Some of the toughest fishing you will ever find is catching Florida Bass in the Winter. Largemouth bass become lethargic in cold water, as do many other freshwater fish, seeking the shelter and warmth of the deep. Eating habits are true year round -- large bass eat generally in a 48 hour cycle, with the exception of wintertime where at the peak of this 48 hour window, they generally feed only an hour or two. Compared to… Read More
October 10, 2011
How to Catch Kingfish: Trolling
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The other morning it was probably around 63F. outside my Saint Petersburg home, and the wind was absolutely howling from the east. Signs of Fall's arrival are starting. I had spoken with a close (Northern) friend of mine just the night before about seasons -- or what he felt was a lack thereof in Florida. I reminded him of one day last Fall when we were out on my boat during the height of our local fall kingfish run.… Read More
September 10, 2011
Use Fishy Spot Maps for Trip Planning
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A fish's eye view... This is an article that I've been wanting to write for some time, but didn't really find the right context in which to draw the analogy between how a fish sees the world and how we see the fish's world. The chance comes with a comparison between a spot you can see on one of our Fishy Spot maps and a sideview of a very productive hole. The hole, by the way, wasn't even mentioned in the original map.… Read More
June 13, 2011
How to Catch Redfish; Kitchen Reds
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This story came from Captain Scott Moore, in one of many conversations I've had with this legendary fisherman over the years. It's about how to pull "slot" reds out of those schools of big breeder redfish that frequent our flats at different times of the year. To keep the one legal redfish you are allowed to target in Florida, it has to be between 18 and 27 inches. (You can access the FWC online regulations by clicking… Read More
April 12, 2011
Capt. Ray Markham's - West Central Florida Fishing Journal- April 2011
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Trout and redfish take the main stage Good numbers of fish have been caught over the past few weeks with a number of different lures. The variety of fish caught has been good, including snook, trout, redfish, flounder, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, cobia, and ladyfish. We’ve seen some tarpon rolling in the lower Tampa Bay over hard bottom but they have not been on our target list…yet! Read More
March 05, 2011
Springtime Fishing Forecast
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After a winter like we've just experienced on the West Central coast of Florida, it's easy to think that we're about to experience an unusual springtime fishery. Is it true? Will we see more fish than normal? Will the bite be above the frenzy we see in a "normal" season? What exactly is a "normal" season? Or will the coldest winter many of our readers have ever seen suppress the feed that warming waters, mating… Read More
February 18, 2011
Circus
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Brought to you (in part) by the schools of BIG Black Drum (the rest is by me)! Seems like yesterday, but it was two years ago, Capt. Billy Turney, his son Reese, my son Jake and I were out for a little scouting trip in the lower bay. I had a couple of charters on the books and wanted to see if the redfish were chewing in this part of the bay. We were tooling from one spot to the next when I see the whole flat rise up and… Read More
January 24, 2011
The Canal Game
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I just can’t get enough of fishing our canal systems in West Florida. There are endless docks, beautiful homes, the occasional friendly sunbather (sorry honey), and of course, the fishing. On a recent trip in Sarasota Bay with Capt. Erik Nixon along for the ride, we came across flounder, sheepshead, and redfish schooled in the hundreds. We only saw over slot trout, including a few 30”+ gators that looked at us, flipped… Read More
December 18, 2010
Mangrove's Galore
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Depending on the weather, winter fishing is in full swing in Tampa Bay. According to what you want to catch is the area you wanna be in. Myself, Captain John Baty and Chef Davie (Dave Brewer) put the boat in at Apollo Beach ramp after paying the 10.00 fee about 10am and headed for the power plant warm water outlet. Upon arrival at the power plant discharge outlet, we anchored just inside the metal fence where it was… Read More
November 24, 2010
Free Charting Software and Waypoints
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With the advent of Open Source software initiatives - you can now obtain a software program that will run on your Windows XP computer that has the ability to plot way points and tracks on the ocean for you, and did I mention it's FREE? Here's the really cool part... the charts you need are also Free. Now ... if you could only find some way points for all those wrecks and manmade reefs. Well... look no further - you'll… Read More
November 17, 2010
Bay Grouper with Vance Tice
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Vance Tice has been a fixture in the sport fishing community for most of our readers' lives. His "Bubba Jigs" are still in many of our tackle collections somewhere. This image of Vance in his store is only one side of a very diverse, interesting, compassionate, and plain-fun guy. His dedication to our community includes years of spending his time, money, effort, and frustration working to protect our right to fish in his… Read More
November 10, 2010
You Never Know
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My buddy John mates part time on the charter boat Jamaican Princess out of Pt. Pleasant, NJ. Each fall they go on an annual cod and Pollock trip out of Glouster, MA. I got a message on my phone ‘Cod trip gone bad o ya’ and attached was the following picture. Upon speaking with John he told me the story. They were having a great time catching cod when a school of giant bluefin tuna showed up and started eating their cod.… Read More
October 17, 2010
Proof that Cavemen Fished!
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This week is Fred Flintsone's fiftieth birthday. For those of you that don't know who Fred and his friend Barney are, watch this week's video in the lower-right corner of this page to see an episode about the two going on a fishing trip together. Remember, these were pre-iPhone days, so they used their feet to drive their cars, and we can only imagine that races other than Caucasian hadn't yet evolved, though. There were… Read More
September 12, 2010
Bite-ON, Bite-OFF
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Catching fish or going fishing to your favorite spot is like, well, turning on a light switch; up it is on, down it is off. Fishing pressure, traffic, weather and water conditions can all cause bite-on to bite-off behavior, causing a previous productive fishing pattern to fall apart. Change is not a bad thing if you can read the pattern and understand just what is going on with that area of concern under the surface in… Read More
August 31, 2010
The Humps of the Florida Keys
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There are a series of three humps located on the edge of the continental shelf off of the Florida Keys. These humps are loosely called seamounts, because they are like mountains rising from the ocean floor. Worldwide, there are thousands of these structures. Some are remnants of underwater volcanoes; others may have once been emergent islands. Wherever you find them, seamounts are unique marine habitats. The Marathon… Read More
August 17, 2010
Drifting Over Structure Offshore
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Matthew and I talked about the fact that you can create a grid for fishing offshore structure in much the same way as you do to fish new flats. The difference with a flat, of course, is that you can 'triangulate' the spot visually; offshore you have to do the same thing with buoys -- but the concept is the same. Draw a grid and use the wind and tidal flow to create a zig-zag drift that effectively covers the entire area… Read More
July 16, 2010
No Oil Guarantee
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Even though there’s no oil on our coast, for some people there’s the perception it’s everywhere. Just last month Governor Christ asked for another 50 million from BP for advertising, but was turned down. I say, “Good!” In my opinion, all the money that was spent on advertising should have instead gone to the people whose livelihoods are ruined in Louisiana. Read More
June 17, 2010
A Bucket List and the Live Wire
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Using an iPhone is a lot of fun, and quite useful. When Matthew Chin and I were about 9 feet from the back of Captain Travis Palladeno's bright red truck at 4:50am on Tuesday, the phone broke through Bob Marley to tell us we had arrived for a trip we were really excited about. Although a writing project, it was more than that, as you'll see. I only live about 10 miles from John's Pass, where the Captain's 45'… Read More
June 02, 2010
My Window on the world
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“Florida can never really come to grips with saving the environment because a very large percentage of the population at any given time just got here. So why should they fight to turn the clock back? It looks great to them the way it is. Two years later, as they are beginning to feel uneasy, a few thousand more people are just discovering it all for the first time and wouldn't change a thing. And meanwhile the people who… Read More
April 12, 2010
Ladies Let's Go Fishing
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Women's fishing program teams with Langford tournament By staff report Treasure Coast News Ladies, Let's Go Fishing, the award-winning educational program designed to instruct women of all skill levels on fishing knowledge, tips and techniques, has partnered with the Frances Langford Memorial Fishing Tournament in Jensen Beach April 23-25. The union will give lady anglers the opportunity to participate in and experience… Read More
April 06, 2010
America's Newest Online Fishing Magazine
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If you spend time fishing, it's likely you spend time on the Internet looking for fishing information-- reading about fishing, talking about fishing, talking to other fishers on forums, hopefully finding the best fishing reports from pro guides, and generally have a place to go when the subject of your favorite sport crosses your mind. The Online Fisherman is just that. And more. With the top experts, activists, and… Read More
