A Great Big Redfish and a Great Big Smile

I took a friend fishing today. We hit some docks in a local river that empties into Tampa Bay. We were drifting by this one dock not intending to stop because I was heading to a different dock and my friend launched a cast as we drifted by. All of a sudden his line goes tight and his rod doubles over and he says "Redfish!". I'm thinking to myself, no big deal, when I see a huge swirl and he says "Big Redfish!". So Turn the boat with the trolling motor and try to slow our drift. I didn't want to drop the anchor as I didn't want this nice red to get tangled in the anchor rope. The current was ripping and the wind was blowing pretty good as well in the same direction as the current so I could barely hold the boat still with the trolling motor on high. It was more like a controlled slow drift. I ended up banging into a dock and the fish took off for the middle of the river, so I turned the boat to chase after it. I drifted next to a piling and reached out and grabbed it to stop the boat from drifting, ready to let go if the fish looked like it was going to try to wrap around it. So with one arm on the piling and the other with my boga grips I tried to help my buddy land his prize. I almost had the fish once but it took off when I touched the line with my free hand. My friend fought the fish to the boat again and once again tried to grab the line and again the fish took off. Finally the fish was wore out and I managed to get the gripper in its mouth. Its head was huge. Possibly the biggest I have seen, and the fish was very fat. I estimated it to be at least 33 inches but when I got it out of the water and measured it it was only 32 1/2 inches long. Needless to say my friend was ecstatic. I think I was just as excited about catching the fish as he was.The rest of the trip turned out pretty good as well. I caught 14 snook. 1 was a 28 1/2 inch keeper which I released for good mojo. I also caught a small redfish (compared to his anyway) and a catfish. My in addition to the redfish, my friend caught a nice 18 inch Spotted Seatrout, 2 catfish and 1 snook. He lost at least 5 snook. But I knew we would get him one. We also had a double hookup on some very large Jack Crevalle but we both got broken off at the boat on our light 20 lb leaders. Turns out that this was also his first inshore slam.
I think the look on his face says it all.
It's a great feeling putting someone on a nice fish like that, and very satisfying as well.

A Recent Discussion...

One of the fishing forums I frequent had a very heated discussion between two well established fishing guides with well over 40 years of guiding experience between the two of them, and two popular up and coming guides.
Apparently, the old timers took offense at the other guides sharing information on the forums with other fishermen about areas where they were catching keeper size grouper inshore. They younger guides said that they were looking to fill a niche by offering their clients the opportunity to not only catch the normal Spotted Seatrout, Redfish and Snook but also to catch grouper, usually only available by going many miles offshore. They are also trying to help out recreational anglers because they feel that that is what guides should do.
The old timers said that by sharing too much information with recreational anglers the young guides would ruin the fishery by causing too much pressure on the area. They also claimed that they have known about the area for decades and that the young guides had not discovered anything new.
Anyway, from there it turned into a free for all, not so much between the guides but from the illustrious members of the peanut gallery, choosing sides and bashing the guides that held a differing opinion from their own. Ultimately the thread was deleted and that was the end of that discussion.

Now for my take.

The old timers are concerned that the area will become a parking lot from all the recreational boaters fishing the area for grouper and eventually they will deplete the resource. They also take offense that the younger guides are, in their opinion, using their fishing reports as a vehicle for marketing their guide operations. And they are also concerned that by providing too much information to recreational anglers that they will possibly lose business due to the fact that if people can find out where to fish for free on the Internet, then they will not require a guide.

The young guides are trying to expand their services by offering a wider selection of fishing opportunities to their clientele. They are also trying to help out recreational anglers. They dont think that they are harming the resource or the business of the other guides, because even if the give out the locations that still doesnt mean that the other anglers will know the proper techniques or when to use them. I know for a fact there is more involved in catching fish than having a boat and a livewell full of bait and tend to agree with them. On multiple occasions I have went fishing with guides and went back to the same locations without catching fish on my own. I have taken other anglers fishing and they have told me that they tried to fish those same areas with no or limited success.

The guiding profession is very competitive, and I can see where both sides have valid points. As more and more people move to Florida, fishing pressure can only increase. I can see opportunities for guides to get more business but I can also see where the competition will increase as more anglers become guides. I think the successful guide will be the one who can stay on top of the fish as they move around due to seasonal changes, weather, and increased fishing pressure. The days of the secret honey hole are coming to an end, if they arent over already.

Fishing With My 3 Year Old

I took my 3 year old daughter fishing this morning. We launched around 9:00 am a little late by my standards, but it was about 50 degrees this morning so I wanted to wait for it to warm up a bit. When we got there, the tide was almost bottomed out so I missed the outgoing tide I was hoping to fish. I managed to find live bait near my usual bait stop but had to look in slightly deeper water do to the cool temps and lack of water.
I couldn't fish my regular spots because there wasn't enough water so I decided to do a little scouting and headed off in a new direction.
My daughter wanted to stop and play on a little island and I could see some mullet splashing around so I beached the Hotrod Gheenoe and we got out to "play" for a little while. I casted to the mullet a few times hoping to find a redfish or something mixed in with them but didn't have any luck. After about 30 minutes we decided to get back in the boat and ride around for some sight seeing. I checked out a couple residential canals and saw some big mullet. They must have been happy to see us to because one jumped right in the boat with us for a picture and a quick release.
There still wasn't much water, but I did see a school of mullet getting busted by some big fish, so I idled over and made a couple casts but didn't get any hits. Then I decided to head over to some docks where I saw some more mullet playing and ran over a small school of redfish. I made some casts but they left. I anchored up near one of the docks and tossed out a live bait and a couple chummers, hoping to find some redfish. Instead I caught a small snook. Perfect. I tossed out another and asked Emily if she wanted to catch a fish. She said yes so I handed her my rod. Sure enough almost instantly the line went tight and I told her to start reeling. She struggled with the reel a little bit so I held the rod for her as she reeled in the fish. A nice 20 inch snook was her reward. I asked her if she wanted to take a picture but she was afraid to touch the fish so I put it on a boga grip and let her hold it by the handle. We released the fish and I tossed out another bait and gave her the rod. She got another snook about a minute later. After she caught her third snook, she said she wanted to watch me catch fish and play with the chumbat...so I happily obliged and caught 4 more snook in a matter of minutes two of which were inside the slot at a little over 27 inches with the tail pinched. Both were released.
I looked at my watch and it was time to head in as I had to pick up my son from school so we left them biting.
I saw a couple guys fishing in a jonboat near the ramp and asked them if they would like some live bait. They were glad to have it as they said they had no luck looking for bait this morning. I even told them where to go catch some snook... I'm too darn nice for my own good sometime...

This was also my opportunity to try out my new IMX custom rod I got yesterday. Man that thing is light as a feather and so sensitive I could tell when I was gonna get a bite before the fish even made up its mind of it was gonna eat the bait or not. For being such a light feeling rod, it had plenty of muscle for pulling the snook out of the docks too. I know I am gonna catch a lot of fish on that thing.

I'm looking forward to taking my captains license class and test next month. I have some neat ideas for my business and think I will make a lot of anglers some great memories. But I cant let the cat out of the bag yet, so you will just have to keep checking in to see whats in store.

Gotta New Toy...

I normally do all my inshore/flats fishing with a 7 1/2 foot light to med action rod. They in my opinion are the best for the flats because you can get good long casts and the rods have great sensitivity for feeling when a fish bumps you lure or bait. However most of my fishing lately has been in narrow mangrove lined creeks and other tight areas where accuracy is more important than distance.
So I called an acquaintance of mine, Jim Gamble at Dudley Rods and told him I was looking for a 6 1/2 foot rod with plenty of sensitivity and a fast enough action to allow me to still reach out when I needed to, yet enough backbone to turn a large snook or redfish and keep them out of the mangrove roots.
He told me he could build me just the right rod to suit my needs. He used a 6 1/2 foot G. Loomis IMX blank with 7 Fuji SiC guides and a skeleton reel seat with a cork insert. The rod turned out beautiful.
I put on an extra reel I had sitting around and tied on a small jighead I had laying around and practiced casting it around in the front yard. The rod has a very nice action, I can cast it far enough to suit most of my fishing applications and it is very accurate. I can tell it is going to be one of my favorite rods for fishing in the mangroves. I will post a full report on the rod after I put it to use later this week..like hopefully tomorrow morning..if the wind lays down...
Jim can build you a custom rod to fit any application you desire at an affordable price to fit your budget. You can even pick out different colors for you wraps to show support for your favorite teams or whatever suits your individual tastes.
Jim can be reached at www.dudleyrods.com. Tell him you heard about him on The Hotrod Gheenoe Fishing Blog!

My First Fishing Rant...

Why is it that some people just cant go without stirring up controversy? It seems that when someone asks a question about fishing, or makes a fishing report on a fishing forum, instead of just answering a question or congratulating someone for a job well done there is always someone who has to make a negative comment. Then to make matters worse, another person has to come to the defense of the original poster or disagree with the negative commentor and the next thing you know, you have a full blown cat 5 shit storm.
It seems like when talking fishing there are a couple topics that just cannot be discussed on a fishing forum without evolving into big arguments. Bait vs. Lures and kayaks vs. motor craft are two such topics, much akin to religion and politics in their volatility. These are kind of understandable since they both involve different techniques used by different groups of anglers.

Bait vs. Artificial:
Now a wise angler would think that such discussions should be productive in teaching different approaches to the ultimate goal of catching fish. Sadly this just does not seem to be the case. Someone will always toss a proverbial turd in the punchbowl with some inflammatory remark about bait users not having enough skill to fool a fish with a hunk of steel and plastic. In many cases there could be some truth to this, but I would be willing to bet that the person making the comment started out fishing with bait until they were shown how to use lures. I think it all boils down to one of two things, either the person making the demeaning comments just wants to look like a big shot because they now can catch a fish using a lure, or they are jealous that they aren't catching as many fish as the angler using bait. Both cases most likely the result of an inflated ego.

Kayaks vs. Motor Craft:
This should be another subject full of opportunities to educate. The stealth and shallow water capabilities of a kayak are very powerful tools for fishing in the backwaters and shallow flats areas of Tampa Bay. It has become a very popular and economic way to fish. In addition to these capabilities, it also is very environment friendly as there are no propellers to tear up grass, and no oil or gas to leak out and pollute the environment.
Boating has been popular in Tampa Bay since the beginning. A multitude of boat designs have evolved over the years for specialized fishing from gheenoes, jon boats and small skiffs, to Bay boats and offshore boats for making long runs into the gulf to fish the deep water for grouper and migrating pelagics like kingfish and dolphin.
The argument here once again boils down to egos clashing.

In my opinion everyone seems to think that their particular way to fish is the best way. I tend to believe that an angler is going to try to fish using the most effective technique and equipment at their disposal to provide the most productive results possible. I have seen guys fishing in a cheap jon boat just tearing up the fish while anglers in expensive flats boats decked out with every gadget one could imagine did not catch near the numbers or quality of fish.

My opinion is that the best way to fish is whatever works. If the fish are eating live bait then I am going to use live bait, if they are hitting artificials I will use artificials. If they are hitting hot dogs or chicken liver, well, you get the point.

Unfortunately there is another type of discussion that turns ugly quick too. That is the one where some one has to come in and try to start an argument because they just feel like being an ass. They might bring up a tired old worn out subject and insert it into a pleasant discussion where it doesn't belong in the first place either because they are just an ass, or in an attempt to liven things up in a negative way. This is called being a troll. Trolls are on every Internet forum there is, covering any and every subject conceivable. Why? My money is on the ego thing again. Maybe they need more attention. Maybe they need to start a blog...

Fishing Forums on the Internet can be a good tool for gathering information about fishing a specific area or targetting specific fish. They are also a good place to share comraderie with other anglers and have fun talking about fishing and other things. The best way to keep them fun is to keep things light and your ego in check. As for dealing with trolls, that is tough, as a good troll is very skilled in getting everyone riled up, and that is their sole intention. Your best bet is to let them run their course without responding. It can be very difficult but eventually they will go away. As much as I hate to say it though, it can provide some very entertaining reading though as those with less resolve will try to argue with the troll, but then again, some people like soap operas.

Until next time. Go Fish

Another "Learning Experience"

I went out yesterday after having a really productive trip the day before. I was excited thinking that I knew where the fish were hanging and when they were supposed to be eating etc. In other words, I thought I had them dialed in.
I got out and caught some really nice bait and got to the first spot and we caught ladyfish galore and a couple redfish. I wrote it off as just being a little early. So I went to the next spot. We had better luck there, catching a mangrove snapper and then I kid you not, foul hooking a snook in the tail, get this, on a sardine that I had hooked through the tail. Sometimes you see the craziest stuff.

So I moved off to fish another area and had really slow action. Like it might has well been nothing. Couple redfish, some snook and a trout but nowhere near in the number I was expecting.
When I got back home I talked to some of my friends who were out fishing and they reported really slow trips as well. I got on a web forum and most everyone was reporting poor fishing.
I guess I need to take a couple days off and give the fish a chance to come back. I must have wiped em out. Just kidding. Actually the weather was much warmer yesterday than it has been in almost a week or more, there was barely any wind, and the sky was mostly clear. So that very well could have been the cause.
With everything cooling down to the mid to high 70's the fish are moving into their fall and wintertime hangouts, then all of a sudden the next day its 90 degrees by 9:00 am. I think they get confused and just dont know how to act sometime.
Oh well, we still caught fish and had a good time on the water. And that is all that really matters.

Learned A New Trick

I was contacted by a reader of this blog who asked me if I would take him fishing. I told him sure let me know when you can go and we worked out the details and went this morning.

I kind of took the approach that it would be kind of like a pretend charter, of course I didn't charge him anything because I am not a licensed captain and thus do not really charter, but it can be fun to make believe.

Anyway I met him at the ramp this morning and we launched the Hotrod Gheenoe and went to catch some bait. Then we headed to our first spot. I was kind of nervous that we would not have a good trip since I had not been having much luck the last couple days "scouting" the area, but as luck would have it, on his third cast he caught a nice slot redfish.

That was a nice surprise since I was targeting snook but knew that there were possibly redfish in the area as well. A few casts later I caught a redfish of my own.

We caught several ladyfish at that spot but no more of our targeted species so I decided to move a couple hundred yards and see if we could find more fish. I observed some baitfish getting busted on under a mangrove bush so I set up and we fished that spot for a few minutes. My "charter" caught another nice redfish, and then a smaller "rat" redfish.

We moved again and I caught a very small speckled trout and he caught a small snook, and we both were 1 fish away from an "Inshore Slam". An Inshore Slam is when an angler catches a Snook, a Redfish and a Speckled Trout on one fishing trip. I was pretty sure I would get one as I have been pretty good at getting snook lately and I knew the area we were going to next was loaded.

We both had several hits and misses but were having problems getting the fish to the boat, but at least we were getting some good action. Finally we started catching snook. We both got several to the boat and I completed my inshore slam. Then a few minutes later he landed a nice slot speckled trout.

We then headed back to the ramp but I made one last stop along the way to check out a spot that I have had limited success with and wanted to see how it would do with today's conditions. The water was already pretty high as the incoming tide was almost at its peak. I was having difficulties getting my bait under the mangroves since the water was touching the bottoms of the branches. Then he got a nice hit deep inside the mangroves, but the fish got off. I asked him how he got his bait inside there and he showed me. He was hooking the bait through the tail and casting it to the edge of the mangroves. Then gently tugging on the line, the fish would try to swim away and go right into the target zone. He was literally controlling the baitfish like a puppet.

Today's trip was very satisfying for me. I enjoyed the company and learned a new trick and most of all, I proved to myself that I can find some fish when I am under pressure.

It is totally different fishing with someone you have never met before than fishing with a regular fishing buddy. Of course there was no real pressure as I was not really doing it for compensation, only my reputation was on the line. I think it is good practice though. So if you read this and want to go fishing in the Hotrod Gheenoe, shoot me an email using the comments button and let's go fishing. I can use the practice.

I will be taking the captains license class next month in November and hopefully will have a captains license by February or March. Ill keep you updated on the progress. It might be interesting.

Anticipation....

After not fishing for 5 days, I knew I would be fishing the next morning. So I did my usual night before pre-fishing routine. Get on the computer and check the reports, check the tides and check the solunars for the next day. Go into the garage, check the battery, check the gas, check the tackle to make sure I have plenty of hooks, jigheads, plastics and any topwaters I might want to use. Decide which rods Im going to take. Check their leaders, make sure the have plenty of line, check the guides etc. Fill the tupperware with chum for bait. Check the filter on the baitwell, make sure everything is where it belongs in the boat so I can just hook it up and go.
Then get back on the computer and check the reports...tides...and solunars again just in case I missed something.
The off to bed to toss and turn for a couple hours while I think about what the game plan is for the next day... Where to launch, where to look for bait, where to go first, what if I dont catch catch anything there, next spot...maybe I should check out that other spot first...no...Ill check it out after I go to the first spot...Hmm, I havent been there in a few days, maybe I should check that other spot first...no. Last time the tides were like this I had pretty good luck on the other side over by that dead tree...maybe Ill go there first...I hooked that big snook over there that got off...No stick with the plan. Okay Ill go here first, then Ill work the mangroves to the other spot. Should I go up into that creek? Maybe, if Im not getting anything on the outside. Wait, what about the other side? Ill do that on the way back to the dock. But I want to check it before the wind picks up...okay then Ill start on that side...but then you will miss the start of the solunar at that other spot...ARGHHH!!!
And so it goes until I finally fall asleep...but wait...sleep offers no reprieve from the nightly anguish... The dreams begin... Hey look at that mangrove tunnel...the current is ripping pretty good through there, and it looks like it opens up about 25 yards up inside there. Ive never noticed that before, I think Ill go check it out...Crap! I just snapped off the tip of my $245 rod...I pick it up to look at it and it crumbles in my hands... damn...good thing I got a backup...damn its broke too. Look at all the snook just popping everywhere! and my rods are broken...Oh well. Wait I can still use this one...just the tip is broke... cast out... snag... or a slow motion 10 foot cast or some other crazy dream nonsense.
Man here comes an airboat...how did they get back in here...Oh well Ill go back and fish outside in the creek...and I go back through the tunnel and Im somewhere totally different...
And I wake up and its like 3:30 am and Im wide awake... I manage to get back to sleep to more chaotic fishing dreams and the alarm finally goes off and Im tired as hell...
But I go anyway... thinking I can go to bed early tonite... yeah right Im fishing tomorrow...

Special Report: Tampa Boat Show

(Normally I wont be posting on weekends but I had to because when the muse calls you just have to go with it.)

Well, couldn't go fishing because the schedule was too hectic, so I figured I could squeeze in an hour or so at the boat show downtown. I can do these things pretty quickly because I am usually looking for something in particular and don't even bother to waste time drooling over the high dollar crap I know I will never be able to afford unless I win the lotto...two or three times...

So being the inshore/flats guy that I am I was pretty much concentrating on the flats boats. I kinda want something that will allow me to go to the same areas as the Hotrod but allow me to take two or three anglers instead of just one and still fit in the garage.
Of course I expected the pickins to be a little slim since that is a fairly small niche in the fishing segment but I found a couple. Of course Family Boating was there with there Mavericks and Hewes lines. I liked the HPX but it wasn't the one I wanted to see. It was a 17' and I wanted to see the 15'. My favorite boat in that area was the Hewes 16' Redfisher. Looked like a decent deal too. Of course I would have had to add a few things and then it wouldn't have been much of a deal anymore...lol

I'll tell you though there was another boat that I had not seen before except for in pictures and the pictures don't do it any justice at all. It wont fit in my garage so I wont even consider it but the Maverick Master Angler 21' was a very nice looking boat.

Shearwater had 4 nice boats there. 2 flats boats that pretty much made me drool even though they were way to big for my garage...and a pair of bay boats that were super nice too. Price? If you have to ask, then you cant afford it.

I finally got to see all the ranger boats. They have 4 boats that meet all my criteria too. The Banshee, Ghost and Phantom. The Banshee they had on display at the show had some kind of midget half tower looking thing on it. I didn't really like the look of it but I'm no fool, I'll take functionality over looks any day, so I wont comment negatively on it until I try it. The Ghost and Phantom boats were very nice looking boats. Much more 'finished' than the Banshee which looked much more like a working boat. If I had one of them I would be way to anal retentive about keeping them nice and shiny to actually enjoy them I think. But that pretty much goes for any new boat that costs upwards of $25K. And believe me $25K is not even chump change when looking at the cost of new boats.

There were a few other boats that I saw that might have fit my parameters but they didn't do much for me either visually or from their reputations so although I did look, I didn't spend much time on them.
I did see one boat though that caught my fancy. It was a 16' boat it had almost a 7ft beam, it looked like it would run fairly skinny and my wife even liked it because it was yellow and had seat cushions...
It was the 1600 Fly Caster by Famous Craft. It was a nice looking little boat, with plenty of room for 3 people. I would definitely like to give it another look. Supposedly it drafts 7 - 9 inches and had a 90hp Yamaha with a manual jack plate. It was just begging me to take it home and with a show price of less than $16K I almost fell for it...Of course the trailer wasn't included and that would have been another $1800 and I could tell right off the bat that I would have to add some trim tabs, and a push pole to go with the poling platform. I am so glad I left my credit card at home...

Friday The 13th...

Friday the 13th is associated with bad luck. What does that have to do with fishing? Nothing unless your fishing. I didn't get to go fishing today so I guess it is bad luck...so bad in fact that I didn't get to fish since Tuesday...and probably wont get to fish all weekend either. So it is probably worse luck for me than it is for you, my readers. But just in case it is bad luck, I will make it good luck for you because I am going to talk about some fishing destinations.
Cockroach Bay. Located just south of Ruskin FL. Take I75 to college blvd Ruskin Exit go west. Turn south on US41 and a couple miles down the road you will see Cockroach Bay Rd across from a Circle K. Turn right on Cockroach Bay Rd and the ramp is at the end of the road. Good fishing there. There are lots of snook and redfish to be caught in the mangroves all along the channel that leads out to the bay as well is back in the little passes on your left hand side as your heading out into the bay.
If you choose to head back inside Cockroach Bay (CRB) by going left after launching instead of going out into the bay, there are lots of interesting little passes and coves that are worth exploring. The whole area is either slow speed minimum wake or idle no wake so please observe the signs. By ignoring them you are only hurting yourself and the other fishermen in the area because you are spooking fish. And believe me there are a lot of fish in there.
On a strong outgoing tide the current really rips hard out of the channel and the fishing is very good along the mangroves in the channel as well as just outside the mouth of the channel. During the summer months there is also lots of bait to be caught saving you a trip to the skyway or the markers to net bait.
If you head south the grass flats hold lots of trout, jacks, ladyfish and mackerel all the way down to the Port Manatee Spoil Island, which is designated as a Combustion Exclusion Zone and also holds lots of fish. Do not even think of running your motor inside the No Combustion Zone as the security at the port is very alert and will send a boat out to run you off or call the FWC or Sheriff's Office. Push poles or trolling motors only.
If you head north out of the CRB channel there are several passes along the shore line as well as the mouth of the Little Manatee River. These passes can be very productive as well with lots of snook and redfish and trout on the deeper flats. In the winter explore the backwaters inside these passes. This area is known as Little Cockroach Bay. Pay attention to the depth. On low tide there is not a whole lot of water in there and you could be stranded for hours waiting for the tide to bring the water back.
There are also fish inside the Little Manatee River all the way back to the US41 bridge and probably farther but I have never been past it.
I'm not gonna give up any specific honey hole spots but if you explore, you will find them. Look for areas where water is funnelled and the tide is moving well. Also look for points, bends, coves, oyster mounds, mangrove islands, any kind of distinguishing terrain feature is worth checking out. Of course that rule would go for any area being fished.
Good Luck I will get back to fishing again next week and hopefully I can put up some interesting action packed fishing reports to keep you coming back.

Lets Talk Diversity

I have only been fishing in Tampa Bay waters for a couple years but I have caught quite a mixed bag of fish. Not counting a few offshore excursions. Here is a list of the fish I have caught inside the bay, using the skyway bridge as a boundary using a hook and line.

Redfish
Snook
Speckled Trout
Silver Trout
Whiting
Flounder
Gafftop Sailcat
Hardhead Catfish
Jack Crevalle
Mangrove Snapper
Gag Grouper
Goliath Grouper
Pompano
Spanish Mackerel
Ladyfish
Bluefish
Sheepshead
Black Drum
Toadfish
Pinfish
Pufferfish
Cow Nosed Ray
Atlantic Stingray
Key West Grunt
Cobia
Tripletail

Not too shabby I would think. Of course there are still a few species left like Tarpon, Permit and various shark species, so I got something to shoot for in the upcoming days. One of the best things about the bay is the wide variety of fish you might catch on any given day.

My Fishing Addiction

I have an addictive personality. At least that is what I have surmised from multiple articles read on the subject of addictions. I can accept that, I mean at least I'm not an alcoholic, a drug addict, or a sex addict. Now that's a weird one if you ask me. I mean what man, given the opportunity wouldnt be a sex addict. But I digress.

I know I have an addictive personality because I have had many so called addictions throughout my life. When I was a kid I used to love to go fishing at every opportunity but I wouldn't have called it an addiction at the time. And I still wouldn't...(denial? lol) When I was in high school it was sports. I lived and breathed Football. After my senior years season was over I lived and breathed Track because I knew my football days were over. In the Marines it was Softball. I played two or three nights a week on base teams and teams out in town and played tournaments every weekend. When I got older I got into competitive NRA High Power Rifle shooting. I would go through complete 80 shot imaginary matches in my head, visualizing every step of the match from adjusting my sling to packing my gear and leaving the firing line. I coached the base shooting teams and practiced daily at the rifle range and shot matches 3 weekends a month. I would pay my own way and shoot individual matches if the base was not going to send the team to a match. I actually was a Ga. State Champion one year. When I wasn't shooting it was Golf. I played golf 3 or 4 times a week if I could figure out a way to get out of work. I never had the success in golf that I did in shooting but it wasn't for lack of trying. I did manage to qualify for the state finals in Long Drive competitions a couple years though. Then a buddy of mine took me fishing.... I haven't shot a rifle or swung a golf club at all since I started fishing. Well, I think I was cajoled into playing a round for a work function one day. I mean, go to work or play golf? No brainer.

So I started fishing. A lot. Every weekend like most anglers and occasionally during the week if I had some spare time to get away. Then I got my golden opportunity. I found a job where I could work evenings allowing me the opportunity to fish weekday mornings. Nirvana. Of course I had to give up weekends, but come on. Weekday fishing is so much better than weekend fishing. Granted it is harder to find people to go, but you pretty much have the whole bay to yourself. Not so much on Mondays and Fridays, but Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays are practically void of other boats and fishermen, with the exception of a couple guides and crabbers.

Is my fishing addiction a problem? Not at the moment, I mean, I dont spend the rent money on Berkley Gulp. (Their is plenty of live bait around right now...but this winter...who knows?) I don't tell my wife Im going out with the boys and sneak off to go fishing. (Of course if I thought it would work...) I would be like that guy in that commercial where he smears lipstick on his collar and messes up his hair and he walks in the house and his wife jumps his shit and says "You've been driving again!" only mine would accuse me of fishing and she would be right.

Yeah I know...Hello I'm Lou and I'm a fishaholic.

Tides, Solunars and Other Nuances That Make or Break a Fishing Trip

It happens to all of us. You go fishing and have a great day, the fish are practically jumping into the boat. The next time you go, could even be the very next day, you do everything exactly the same and you cant catch a cold.

This is a good example of when a fishing log would come in handy. What was different from the last time when you had a successful trip and this time when you didnt do so well?

The first thing to look at is the tide. When you get to your lucky fishing hole take a good look at the surroundings. Is the tide moving? Fast or slow? Is it coming in or going out. Can you see baitfish swimming around, mullet jumping? Any snook hangin out under that mangrove branch? Make a note or at least a mental note that you can write down when you get home. Hopefully you checked the tides before you left this morning, or at least last night before you went to bed. If you have a handheld gps that has tide data, look at it. What is the tide doing today.

I went fishing one day and had the pleasure of seeing a school of redfish swim onto the flat I was fishing that day. I caught big overslot redfish nonstop for nearly 2 hours that day 15 to be exact, and then they were gone. I had the presence of mind to look at my gps and check the tide data for that day and saw that it was shortly after a tide change from incoming to outgoing. I went back to that exact spot several times over the next couple weeks and absolutely hammered the reds every time. You could almost set your watch by them. I would just pull right in to the spot and start catching fish. Why? Not because I have magical fishing powers but because I knew their pattern. They were keyed on the tide at this particular spot.

Did you check the solunar tables for today? What is a solunar period? A solunar table is the closest thing to magic when it comes to knowing when the fish are going to be feeding. All animals are affected by the sun and the moon and they influence their behavior. I dont have the time to go into the "science" behind all of this. If you want to learn more about it, google it and read till your eyes bleed, or you can take my word for it.

In a nutshell, there are certain times each day according to the solunar tables that wildlife, in this case fish, will be actively feeding. There are usually 4 periods a day, 2 in the am and 2 in the pm. Of these 2 will be called majors and 2 are minors. A major period usually lasts about 2 hours, a minor lasts about 1 hour. Some days may only have 2 or 3 periods, and some days may only have 2 minor periods or 2 major periods and the major periods are usually 12 hours apart, ie 1 am and 1 pm, and the minor periods are also 12 hours apart. A major period and a minor period might be separated by only few hours to several hours. I havent figured out a pattern for them yet, but then I dont have to. Someone else has already done that for me and it is published on the solunar tables. I can also access them on my handheld gps.

I have sat on a hole I knew had fish and not had a single bite. Then all of a sudden they would just seem to turn on. Used to be I had no idea why. Now I know. For example, today. I knew there was a solunar minor that was supposed to start at 9:50. So I messed around and caught ladyfish, who dont seem to follow any kind of schedule and just eat all the time, until it was almost time for the solunar to begin. Then I set up on the spot and waited about 30 minutes, since sometimes the fish start a little early, and sure enough at exactly 9:50 I got my first snook. Yesterday it was 8:23 and not a moment before. Coincidence? perhaps... but it happens all the time, so it is at least worthy of some consideration.

Okay so you checked the tides, and the solunars...what else? How about the weather? Yeah I know... Your going fishing, dont care about the tides and the solunars or the weather. You looked outside, theres not a cloud in the sky, and the wind is nice and calm, its a beautiful day and by golly you're goin fishing. So grab the rods and hop in the truck and lets go. Whoa! Just a minute! When I say check the weather I dont mean see if its nice outside. I mean check the weather. Is there a front moving in? Is the barometer rising or falling or steady? What's the temperature? Write it in your fishing log. Some people say that fish feed better right before a front or right after a front passes through. Some people also say that barometric pressure affects the bite as well. Those bright clear blue skies and windless days, although they make for a pleasant day of fishing, they dont always make for a great day of catching. Give me overcast days and a slight breeze anytime. That doesnt mean that you cant catch fish on nice days, but at least you can compare the current conditions with those in you fishing log and see how you did last time when conditions were similar.

When I was a kid fishing in the lakes and ponds of Illinois and Missouri I used to love fishing in the rain. It always seemed that as soon as it would start getting dark and cloudy the bluegill would just go nuts eating anything I would put on a hook. And when it would start to rain they would keep on eating. Now Im not talking about fishin in a torrential downpour with lightning and all that. That is plain stupid. But during a light rain with no fireworks I would fish until my grandma and grandpa took my pole away and made me go home.

What's the water like? Is it crystal clear, a little dirty, or does it look like hot chocolate? Does it matter? Well, it does but it is not the most important factor in the equation. In clear water the fish can obviously see your bait better, and you can see them better but they can see you better too and they can see your line, and your tackle too. So in clear water you might want to consider using a lighter test leader and a smaller hook and be a little stealthier in your tactics.

What is the wind doing? I have fished on days when it was flat calm and I have fished on days so windy that the seagulls were grounded. Wind can make for a miserable trip, but how does it affect the fishing? Well the main thing that I have noticed is the wind can exagerate or diminsh the tidal flow. A wind blowing from the land to the water...called an offshore wind can actually push the water out making water levels lower than they are supposed to be. In conjuntion with a wintertime negative low tide you might find yourself fishing on the sand a couple hundred feet from what used to be the shoreline. A wind blowing from the water towards the land, called an onshore wind can make the water levels higher than normal, so if your fishing an incoming tide with an onshore wind It might mean you should get to your spot a little earlier than you planned so you can still get bait under the mangroves before the water is too high. If your on a pass, a creek or a river the wind can actally make the current move faster. This can be a good thing if your fishing for fish like snook that key on the waterflow when they are feeding.

So these are just a few of the variables that can record in a fishing log that you can use to help plan your next fishing trip. Also just because you got crappy tides, no solunar tables, a rising barometer and nothing seems favorable doesnt mean you wont catch any fish, so go when you can, you never know what's gonna happen. You might still have a great day.

A Quick Fishing Report for Oct 9, 2006

I launched from Williams Park on the Alafia river at 7:00 am and caught bait along the edges of the mangroves in shallow water. The bait was plentiful and I only used about 2 handfuls of chum to get them balled up so I could fill my baitwell in 2 throws of my 7ft castnet.
From there I motored about 200 yards to my first stop and put a nice frisky scaled sardine on a #4 Owner Mutu Light Circle hook and tossed it out next to the mangroves. The bait swam around for a few minutes with nothing trying to eat it so I reeled it in a couple cranks and let it swim for a few more minutes and then I started to reel it in so I could toss it somewhere else. I was almost ready to lift it out of the water when I heard the familiar popping sound of a snook feeding on the surface. It had hit my bait within 5 feet of the boat and it was still on! I started reeling in the slack and the snook came to the surface and took off for the shore line. I got a good look at it and it was a nice upper slot snook. Immediatley I started thinking about my camera and getting a nice picture etc...and the snook spit the hook.
I switched rods to my other which had a bigger hook, a #2 mustad live bait hook, and baited up and tossed it out to the same area. Fish on immediately. Set the hook and reeling and fish off. Okay, that's how they wanted to play today. Fine. I got just the thing. I tied on a #1 Owner Mutu Light Circle and put on a nice big scaled sardine and tossed it out. Fish on again, but this time I got it to the boat. A nice lower slot snook. I didnt bother to take a picture as I wanted to get the fish back in the water and catch one a little more photo worthy. I ended up pulling 8 snook and a redfish to the boat from that spot in the next hour along with 3 or 4 spit hooks and a couple break offs. By then the tide had pretty much slowed and the bite with it. I tried a few more spots just to see if there was anybody home but only caught ladyfish. So I went back to the first spot and tossed a big bait out next the the channel dropoff and went about cleaning the boat and emptying the baitwell so I wouldnt have to mess with it back at the ramp. When I pulled my line in I had a nice slimy suprise waiting for me.



All's well that ends well...

Fall Fishing is Almost Here!

The last few weeks the fishing has been a little spotty. The redfish schools began showing up on the flats and in the mouths of the various passes along the South Shore area of Tampa Bay and the Snook were moving back from the spawning areas along the beaches.

Last week I had pretty decent success finding the snook in some of their cool weather haunts. Fall fishing is almost upon us. In my opinion fall and spring are without question the best time of the year for fishing on the area known as the South Shore. The South Shore runs from the Alafia River all the way down to the skyway and Miguel Bay just outside of the skyway. As the weather and water temps fall, the fish start moving in to the back waters and begin to establish their fall fishing patterns. Bait is still plentiful on the flats and is the weapon of choice when targeting fall snook, redfish and trout as well as big schools of jack crevalle, and ladyfish. Big schools of hungry spanish mackerel are also easy targets out in the bay proper with an occasional kingfish mixed in to keep it interesting.

If you are in the bay and see a flock of birds dive bombing the water, check it out and you might get on a school of hungry fish. Make sure you have either a light wire leader or even 50lb mono if your gonna mess with the macks because they will slice through 20 and 30lb leader like a hot knife through butter. My favorite mack rig is a couple feet of 50lb mono or flourocarbon leader with a 2x long shank 1/0 eagle claw j-hook with a live scaled sardine or threadfin herring. I get cut off occasionally, but I would rather lose a box of 50 j-hooks than a couple gotcha plugs.

For redfish, if the water is high fish the edges of mangroves near passes and up inside the backwaters. I like to troll and prospect with live baits tossed as close as I can get them to the mangroves or with jigs with rubber tails or even jerkbaits rigged weedless with a little weight to get them down to the bottom. You can use weighted flutterhooks, weighted keeper hooks, or a regular worm hook with a small splitshot pinched right above the eye of the hook. A company called DOA also makes a pinchable weight that attaches right to the hook.
If the water is low, look for dropoffs along the edges of channels etc, and also keep your eyes peeled for disturbances in the water. If you are really lucky you might even see a school of redfish tailing. I usually find tailing redfish in the morning when there is an incoming tide flooding a flat. They like to get on the flat and look for little shrimp, crabs and small baitfish and will root around in the sand and seagrass trying to flush out a meal. Sometimes when they are tailing they are so busy concentrating on feeding that you can sneak right up on them and present your lure or bait to the fish of your choice. When your on a school of tailing redfish stealth is paramount. When I see tailers I will cut off my trolling motor 50 - 60 yards away or more and hopefully drift closer to them or put my anchor down and slowly and quietly wade to within casting distance.

For Snook, look for moving water. Try to find areas where bait will be swept from a shallow area to a deeper area, or past a mangrove point or even a cut where the water flows by and swirls into the cut. Present your bait so it gets carried by the current into the areas where the snook are waiting for an easy meal. Another favorite type of area that I like to target are creeks with low overhanging mangrove branches. I like to toss my bait so it will get carried underneath the overhanging branches to the snook waiting in the shadows.

I have been having lots of success using these tactics on these type of areas and they will only get better in the comming days and weeks.

Where to Fish?

That's easy. Where the fish are of course. Perhaps a better question would be, "Where are the fish?". Honestly, if someone knew that 100% of the time, they could make a fortune as a Tournament Fisherman or a Fishing Guide.

The fact is, fish move. They follow the bait, or they go to spawning areas, or they migrate with the seasons. Take Snook for example. They are a local Tampa and South Florida favorite. They can reach enormous sizes, up to nearly 50 lbs, they are ferocious fighters and great tasting table fare. They are fairly predictable in their habits and migratory patterns as well. In the colder months of the year, they can be found in back country mangrove tunnels with muddy bottoms that absorb warmth from the sun to help them stay warm. When the water temp gets too low, they pretty much go comatose and don't eat or swim or anything and become very susceptible to being caught by people with cast nets. As the weather and water temps warm they start moving towards the mouths of creeks and passes and other areas where there is an abundance of water flow which moves bait into areas where they can ambush it. Then as summer approaches they start moving out to the beaches to spawn. During the hottest part of the summer it is nearly impossible to catch a decent sized snook in the mangrove areas and passes where they hang out the rest of the year. And conversely during the winter time you will be hard pressed to find any snook on the beach.

So depending on what time of year, what the water temperatures are etc should help you determine where to go looking for snook.

Redfish are another favorite of inshore and flats anglers. They are hard fighters as well but don't usually provide the aerobatic jumps that a snook will, but what they lack in flash they make up for in tenacity. They fight hard and with lots of stamina. They tend to move around a little differently than snook. Redfish kind of patrol a certain area and if you find them in an area one day, there is a good chance they will be in that area then next day if the conditions are similar, by conditions I mean water level, clarity, temperatures etc. I have an area that I fish that I know that when the tide is coming in and reaches a certain level, the redfish will be coming in as well, and when the tides changes to outgoing, the redfish will leave with it.

And then there are Speckled Trout. That's easy. Look for sea grass in 2 to 5 feet of water with sandy bare spots in it, sometimes called potholes. Cast to the potholes in these sea grass beds and you will find the trout as well as flounder and the occasional snook or redfish. I usually consider trout a sure thing. Fall and Winter are usually the best times to find the bigger trout, but there are almost always little ones to be found year round.

All of these fish can also be found around docks in residential canals. Especially in fall and spring. Some docks will hold fish year round, and docks with lights are notorious for night time snook fishing.

So get out and explore and you will find the fish.

Welcome to the Hotrod Gheenoe Fishing Blog

My name is Lou Kapp and I like to fish.
I started fishing in saltwater about 3 years ago after moving to the Tampa Bay area in 1999. I lived here for several years and was an avid golfer playing 4 or 5 days a week. I had been interested in fishing in saltwater but had no idea where to start. I have fished in freshwater from as far back as I can remember for channel catfish, bass, blue gill etc. One of my earliest memories is of fishing with my great grandparents in farm ponds and lakes in west central Illinois.

I finally got the chance to go fishing in the bay after one of my regular golf partners bought a boat and asked me If I would like to go fishing. We went out that first day and I caught 3 slot redfish, and I tell you I had never had a fish fight anything like it. I was instantly addicted. Instead of playing golf on weekends I would go fishing with him any time I had the chance. I went and bought a used boat of my own a few months later.

It was a 1985 18 foot center console with a 150 hp. Mercury outboard, a livewell that would flood the deck of the boat and lights that didnt work... a real piece of crap. I put a lot of time and effort and money into the boat to get it ship shape and decided I didnt like it because I couldnt go to fish the areas I wanted to fish with it since it had too deep of a draft to fish the flats and back waters of Tampa Bay.

6 months later I sold the boat and took the money and bought a couple kayaks. Kayaks are great fishing platforms and I spent many mornings and days fishing the flats in one of my kayaks. Kayaks have many advantages over boats. They are easy to launch and when your done, you just toss it in the back of a pickup truck. You can clean them up in a few minutes and keep them in a garage. They can be outfitted with almost any kind of fishing accessories you could ever need. Their #1 advantage for the flats fisherman though is that you can silently sneak up on the fish in the shallowest of water. However they have some disadvantages as well. The average kayaker cannot stand up and fish in a kayak. They are slow, and you have to paddle them. (which is also a good thing as it is good exercise) They are also easy to flip due to poor balance on the part of the paddler, errors on the part of the paddler, and most importantly due to rough water and high winds. Safety is paramount to boating, but especially to kayaking.

I really enjoyed kayaking but one day a friend of mine asked me if I wanted to go fishing for sheepshead in his new boat. It was a gheenoe. It was 15'6 long and 55 inches wide with a 15 hp mercury outboard. It drafted about 10 inches with the motor down and best of all it would run about 20 mph and could go almost anywhere a kayak could go only a lot faster. We had a great day fishing catching lots of big sheepshead. I believe we ended up keeping 12 that day, and we threw back at least as many as we caught. The minimum size for a sheepshead is 12 inches. We only kept the ones over 16 inches.

Me with two nice keeper sheepshead.

My buddy Sam with a big sheepshead

Our take for the day.

And that was all it took for me to decide that I needed a gheenoe of my own... Well according to my wife I didnt need it...But I definitely wanted one.

As luck would have it, on New Years Eve 2005, I decided to go on an overnight party boat trip to the middle grounds on the Friendly Fisherman II out of Hubbards Marina. I was catching lots of porgies, grunts and barely legal mangrove snapper and throwing them back. The guy fishing next to me wasnt haveing quite as good luck as me and asked me if he could have my fish that I didnt want, so I started putting them on his stringer. Between fishing stops we struck up a conversation and somehow I got on the subject of fishing on my friends gheenoe. He said he knew what a gheenoe was, and in fact he had one that he was trying to sell. So I got his number and a couple weeks later drove all the way to Naples to check out his gheenoe. I bought it. It was a 2001 in perfect condition. It had a 25 hp yamaha engine, a trolling motor, casting decks front and back and a brand new trailer. Quite a deal too.

I outfitted it with a jack plate, and a livewell, got rid of the casting decks and dubbed it the Hotrod Gheenoe after someone got in a flame war with me on one of the fishing websites that I frequent said that "You go flying around in that Hotrod Gheenoe of yours..." and I liked the name so I kept it.

Now its October, Ive had the boat for nearly 10 months and I usually fish 5 days a week, monday thru friday and occasionally get out on weekends as well. Not to brag, but I have been getting pretty good at finding and catching fish and the excitement is starting to wear off. Now I get a thrill out of taking other people fishing in my boat and trying to help them catch fish. I have never asked anyone for a dime to go fishing in my boat other than asking them to bring ice for my cooler if they plan on keeping anything to take home and eat. I personally dont keep many fish because if I did I would never be able to eat them all and my family doesnt particularly like to eat them either. I will keep an occasional redfish as I really enjoy eating them, and I will rarely keep a snook as well as they are very good tablefare as well. I dont keep speckled trout because they are usually too small and they were pretty much wiped out last year by red tide.

I am considering getting my captains license and starting a charter business to help defray the costs of my fishing addiction and to save up some money so I can buy a bigger boat. I want to get a 16 foot Hell's Bay Whipray or maybe an 18 foot East Cape Canoe Lostmen. Whatever it is it will have to fit in my garage... Not really looking for a big boat, just something big enough to take more than 1 other person fishing and still get in the shallow water.