Water LIFE Dec 2019

Water

LI FE

Charlotte Harbor, Lemon Bay, Venice, Estero, 10,000 Islands and the Gulf

The Charlotte Harbor Reef Association

December 2019

FISH PIX! Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX! Water LIFE magazine

Lynn landed two golf course trophy bass, on November 7

Humberto with a keeper trippletail

as m t s i r Ch Me r ry e w Y e a r !

N Happy

FISH PIX!

Gary Reger with a mangrove snapper off Englewood

Water LIFE magazine

Txt Us Ur FishPix! weʼll use ʻem! see page 4

www.waterlifemagazine.com

FREE!

PAGE

2

EMAIL:

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

DECEMBER 2019

DECEMBER 2019

BACK ISSUES @

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

PAGE 3

1/1/20

(239) 347-4983

PAGE

4

EMAIL:

WE WANT YOUR FISH! Txt Us Ur Fish Pix txt to: 941- 457- 1316

eMail letters and photos to:

1) No Pictures Sent to

Other Publications 2) No Old Fish

3) No Blatant Ads

Include anglerʼs name and what kind of fish.

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

WaterLIFE@comcast.net

SUNSEEKER RESORT PROGRESS REPORT

DECEMBER 2019

Txt fish Pix ONLY to 941-457-1316

US 41 North, OTB

They have brought another big crane onto the site. Now there are five. According to Allegiantʼs John Redmond, to date they have poured almost 6,000 cubic yards of concrete. Once all the ground work reaches the first level, things will go up quickly. Redmond said they are booking reservations starting December 8. Weʼll have to see how that goes.

I got a text last month from Izzy the barber. Izzy told me that one of his barbers told him that a customer who was talking to one of the merchants at Schoolhouse Square Shopping Plaza said that guy told him that Redmond was looking to buy the shopping center, but when we talked to merchants there no one knew anything..... so maybe itʼs true!

According to Allegiant, they will be able to offer free airfare to anyone who stays at the resort and no other airlines can compete. They say it's game over for the competition because Allegiant owns the resort and they plan to get 90% of the guests spending, so giving up the 10% for airfare is no problem.

They want it all, thatʼs Allegiantʼs approach. Thatʼs whatʼs coming to Charlotte County. – MH

To Water LIFE Gentlemen : I look forward to reading your publication every month and have gained much knowledge by doing so.

In the interest of sharing knowledge, I refer to the November issue on page 19 which shows a photo of a sawfish out of the water. The sawfish is an extremely endangered species and it is illegal to take them out of the water for any reason. Thank you for your concern. Dan Garigen

S SA AI IL LI IN NG G

(941) 766-8180

FishPix, text only number 941-457-1316

217 Bangsberg Rd.

Port Charlotte, FL 33952

Independant - Not affiliated with any other publication!

Vol XVIII No 12 © 2019

NO PART of this publication (printed or

electronic) may be copied, reproduced or re-used in any manner without specific written, witnessed and notarized, permission from the Publisher

Contributing Editors:

Upper Harbor: Cameron Parson

Peace River: Capt. Dave Stephens Punta Gorda: Position Open

Photos and text by Fran Burstein

The Hospice Regatta on Charlotte Harbor took place on November 16 and 17. Steady 14- to 15-knot winds made for exciting racing. Ten one design Harbor 20s and 9 PHRF Yachts raced in the event hosted by the Charlotte Harbor Yacht Club. The Regatta was a fund raiser, the net proceeds went to the Tidewell Hospice. This regatta is a qualifying event for the National Hospice 2020 Championship. The Race Committee selected Jim Nuzzo and John Walsh to receive an invitation to the National which will take place on June 5 -7 in Charleston, SC. Sail Racing This Month December 10&11 – CAN/AM #1 - Midwinters - Charlotte Harbor Yacht Club, December 13-15 – CAN/AM #2 US Nationals - Charlotte Harbor Yacht Club

ADVERTISE HERE! Water LIFEʼs 1/8 page ad (this size)

still only $105 per month!

call 941-766-8180

4- C O L O R is always FREE

Ellen Heller Publisher

Baitshop: Fishinʼ Frank

from Water LIFE magazine

Note* The $25 is for Tufts!

www.WaterlifeMagazine.com

Senior Editor: Capt. Ron Blago

FISH PIX!

Page 12: Matt Tufts (adult) with a snook and Miller Tufts (kid)

waterlife@comcast.net

Photography: ASA1000.com

Weʼre giving our favorite FISH PIX $25 vouchers good at Fishinʼ Franks This Monthʼs Gold Star $25 Winner

Water LIFE inc.

The effective & economical month-long advertising solution!

WE areTHE WAY to reach people who love the WATER!

Venice: Glen Ballinger

Estero: Capt. Joe Angius

Everglades: Capt. Charlie Phillips Kayaking: Bob Fraser

Sailing: Fran Nasher-Burstein Pier Fishing: Bobby Vitalis Diving: Adam Wilson

AD STRATEGY: 1. ADVERTISE BY THE MONTH - NOT BY THE WEEK 2. LOOK AT THE FISH PIX, THOSE ARE OUR READERS 3. THINK COST EFFECTIVE CALL ELLEN AT WATER LIFE 941-766-8180 Space is always limited in Season!

RENEW AGAIN!

TOM AT THE BOAT HOUSE “ADVERTISING WITH YOU IS A NO BRAINER! IT WORKS FOR US”

RENEW AGAIN!!

AND BOUGHT AN AD FOR OUR OTHER BUSINESS "WE ARE VERY HAPPY WITH THE RESPONSE TO OUR AD IN WATER LIFE"

Mine PLUS Acid Ponds for Horse Creek?

DECEMBER 2019

By Michael Heller Water LIFE Editor Christmas is coming and my wife Ellen says I have to lay off the computing, so I’m typing this at night, out on the deck. I’m going to try and keep this light, but it’s a pretty serious subject.... Uh oh......here she comes, I’m busted already!

OK, I’m back. Now I’m down on the dock, the wi-fi is sketchy here. When I got caught earlier, I lied and said I was looking for a Christmas gift for her. She gave me those puppy eyes and the moon was out and suddenly I lost my thought... so I said: di...... I was looking at a di..mond. Bad move! I knew it immediately. She said she would make believe I never told her. Even worse!

What I was really doing was reading about desalination. Did you ever wonder why there isn’t more desalination going on in Florida?

Desalination takes energy so the whole process is expensive, and then there is brine, the salty leftover of the desalination process. The brine has to be disposed of.

There are two types of desalination: There is reverse osmosis, which forces water through filters, and there is distillation, which boils

BACK ISSUES @

water and the steam condenses into clean water. Neither process gets rid of the salt, the salt is always a byproduct.

Uh Oh again, the light just came on the deck. She’s looking for me.

I’m going to hide in the garage.

Now where was I? Since most commercial desalination happens near the shore, the brine is usually dumped back into the sea. But the brine is heavy and it sinks to the bottom. Brine kills the environment and kills marine life.

The answer for desalination is to dilute the brine with more salt water.

When my wife walked in earlier, I was thinking that desalination is a lot like phosphate mining, the left overs are diluted and pumped back into the environment. For phosphate mining it’s 78-million gallons of acidic, radioactive waste water pumped into the Peace River every month. And just like in the desalination process, the phosphate residue sinks to the bottom.

The possibility of a strip mine 12 miles up the Peace River from Punta Gorda is very real. There are also settlement ponds of radioactive acid slurry associated with the process. I don’t think we are going to stop it,

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

but what we can do is require Mosaic Mining to do a better job handling our water. It IS our water.

So I’m sitting here in my garage looking at some paper cones I use to filter paint before it goes into the spray gun. Mining must be required to filter their waste water more. It’s that simple. The water they put back must be kept at the same level of purity, or better then when they removed it. They can’t be allowed to continue to make it worse.

The technology exists to do this kind of high pressure filtration, it may cut into profits, but that just has to be the new cost of doing business.

The Army Corps of Engineers has laid the groundwork for a change like this to take place. When it comes to releasing water from Lake Okeechobee, the Army Corps has now adopted a policy saying people and the environment must come before the needs of the sugar industry. That is a HUGE statement.

So too must the Governor set the priorities for phosphate mining. People and the environment must come before Mosaic’s profits.

Uh oh, here comes my wife again. I’m almost done. Read the text in the box to the right. Make a difference, make a phone call.

Merry Christmas, from us both!

PAGE 5

PICK UP YOUR PHONE – MAKE A DIFFERENCE RIGHT NOW If YOU do nothing, phosphate mining will come to Horse Creek and with it there will be 7 huge acidic settlement ponds. You know about hurricanes, you know what will happen. Unless we all do something right now you can say goodbye to the Peace River and the Charlotte Harbor fishery. It doesnʼt matter if you live in Charlotte County or not, use your phone to call Charlotte County Commissioner Chris Constance at (941) 743-1300. Hit option 2. Tell him or his secretary Janina you want him to talk to the Governor about phosphate mining. If itʼs after hours, just leave a message, get on the record. He wants to hear from us.

Tis the Season for Light Tackle PAGE

6

Cameron Parson Water LIFE Charlotte Harbor Fall time temperatures have finally hit us after so long. And with the temperature change the fishing pattern will also change. There are still quite a few bigger fish around, but fall and winter time fishing will require you to downsize your gear. Light to medium-light gear is all that's needed...1000 to 3000 size reels with 6- to 10-pound braid will offer the best fight for whatever you decide to hook.

There will still be quite a few fish against the bushes, however the bulk of these fish will move out to the open flat to warm up in the sun after being chilled throughout the night. They'll use anything from potholes and grass to sandy or muddy dark bottom to warm up. Snook, trout, and redfish will seem completely motionless if you happen to spot one, then they will take off like a missile leaving behind a wake and a dust cloud if spooked. They can be super spooky at times and even completely spiteful to whatever you're tossing at them, for disturbing them.

If you're seeing fish that won't eat anything you toss at them, try chunking and soaking a few baits. You'll drive

EMAIL:

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

DECEMBER 2019

6-, 8-, or 10-pound braid is all that's needed with a 3-foot long piece of 20pound fluorocarbon. A light or medium light 7-foot or 7'6- with a 2500 size reel. will be more than plenty to handle the flats.

Get out there and utilize your stealth. Put the trolling motor on low.

Take your time. Use the push pole for maximum stealth. Scale down your gear.

Challenge yourself. Learn and have fun.

Catch some fish!!

Cameron Parson can sometimes be found at Rio Villa Bait and Tackle in Punta Gorda: 941 639-7166

FISH PIX! f fr ro om m

yourself nuts over repeatedly tossing at fish that continue to turn their nose up.

Some fish simply want an easy meal, nothing they have to work for. Give the area a break or locate other fish somewhere else, anchor up, and toss your baits into the spot. Let them sniff it out.

You'll know whether they're hungry or not within a few minutes.

Cool temperatures will also require you to downsize your baits. A standard 5inch stick bait or jerkshad may need to be clipped down to 4 inches or so. If you've ever tossed an artificial at a fish, watched

them trail it, but not eat it, that probably means you need to shorten the bait up just a bit. The Exude Dart in golden bream or shrimp and the Slayer SSB in molting are excellent choices to rig either on a jighead or weedless, and they're simple to cut down if needed.

Along with downsizing your bait, downsize your rod and reel. The water is generally gin clear this time of year. Rule of thumb: if you can see the fish, the fish can see you. Shallow, crystal clear water will require fishing from a distance.

Lighter gear will allow for longer casts.

W Wa at te er r

L LI IF FE E

m ma ag ga az zi in ne e

Brittany Cortes, tripletail

SHARKING DECEMBER 2019

BACK ISSUES @

PAGE 7

FISH PIX!

By Capt. John Brossard Water LIFE Shark Fishing Fishing has been pretty darn good even though it’s been red tide north of Naples. We are still catching sharks from close in shallow backwaters to offshore 5 miles, with plenty of runs every trip. With the water temperature dropping a little bit there has been lots of big stingrays around as by catch while shark fishing.

I have been fishing quite a bit just before dark until just after dark and the fishing has been good within a mile of the beach, between Naples and Bonita Springs.

Also been fishing down south in the Everglades and the fishing has been great there too, with big bull sharks a couple miles off shore on the near shore reefs. There were also lemons and bull sharks in the back waters.

The only dead fish around from the minimal red tide we have had are catfish so far. Other fish seem to be strong and eating. There is a lot of bait around which is good for the fishing. For bait I’ve mainly been using mackerel and blue runners.

Norman Boudreau and Pat Monette with a ray

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

Capt John Brossard 239-777-9279 sharkchaserfl@gmail.com sharkchasercharters.com

f fr ro om m

Top left: Easton Keller, a.k.a. Gilligan, with a nice blacktip shark caught about 100yards from the beach in Naples.

Top: Alex Parisi With a bull shark he caught while camping in the Everglades.

Right: Aaron Monson with a blacktip shark

W Wa at te er r

L LI IF FE E

m ma ag ga az zi in ne e

Almost 8-pounds. Lime green getting it done this fall, bass have been feeding up on bait and this big girl came out of the pads for a nice green snack!

Grant Newlin

PAGE

8

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

EMAIL:

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

DECEMBER 2019

Angler Greyson. Myakka River catch and release snook

FISH PIX! f r o m Wa t e r L I F E m a g a z i n e

Readerʼs Photos

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

txt us ur fish pix -

Lyndsey with a mangrove in a Port Charlotte canal.

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

See page 4

Lianna with a nice mangrove at her secret fishing hole.

FISH PIX!

Angler Skyy with a couple of bass

FISH PIX!

Lacy with her first sheepshead caught at her home dock.

from Water LIFE magazine

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Angler Greyson.

Lake Parish. 7-pounds

Trent Bonifas caught this nice little redfish while angling on the Peace River In Punta Gorda.

Trent lives in Ohio

DECEMBER 2019

BACK ISSUES @

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

PAGE 9

cushions canvas covers

Slow Zone Ahead

By Capt. David Stephens Water LIFE Charlotte Harbor Winter has finally moved into Southwest Florida. I wouldn’t say that the sky is falling, but a number of cold fronts have dropped down our way. Chances are we will warm back up into the 80s and maybe break a record and hit 90, but no matter, our fishery is in for a big change.

For the past 6-to 8-months our local fish have been living it up in our warm sub-tropical waters; now for a couple months of the year our water temperatures will drop below that magical 70 degrees.

One of the major things that happens is a change in bait. During the warmer months we use live pilchards, threadfin herring and pinfish. But the cooler water slows down our gamefish, so something slower is more on the bait menu now.

This is the time to focus on our crustacean friends and shrimp now become the main focus of our fishery.

Shrimp can be fished more ways than any other natural bait. I promise, if you ask 5 different anglers, you will get 5 different opinions on how to fish shrimp.

Probably my favorite way would be, with a popping cork. You can cover a large area of water and fish many different techniques with just a popping cork with a

jig head. That is the way to locate fish over shallow flats and around potholes.

When the waters cool down our local flats fish such as trout and reds move to these solar-heated sandy retreats. The biggest key is to have your shrimp just above the bottom so your bait is visible.

Over the last few years the popping cork market has expanded vastly. We have seen the red and white popper of old take

a back seat to floats with rattles and wire slides that work very well. I recommend you try out a few of the new ones to see what suits you best.

Another favorite shrimp rig of mine is just a jig head. I use this when I’m fishing in deeper water, or in cooler water temps. If we have some extreme weather push down our way, fish might take refuge in the deeper water. In this case I want my shrimp to be right near the bottom.

Jig size can play a big role into this situation. I never try to pin my bait to the bottom, but it is very important to make contact. Adjusting

the weight of the jig might depend on depth and current flow.

I know some anglers make a big deal out of color. Well I have always told anglers color is a comfort thing. If you have a favorite color use it. Don’t let changing weather conditions discourage you from getting out and enjoying some great fishing. Just change with the conditions and enjoy some great fishing!

If you would like to experience some of Charlotte Harbor’s finest fishing, call or send me an email. All of our charters are private and customized to fit your needs.

Capt. Dave Stephens, 941-916-5769 www.bayxtremes.com

PAGE

10

EMAIL:

ESTERO BAY Biodiversity and Bait

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

Capt. Joe Angius Water LIFE Estero Optimal weather conditions have arrived. The weather fluctuations we experience this time of the year promote the biodiversity necessary for healthy ecosystems to thrive.

With this change anglers will have the opportunity to catch a multitude of fish.

As the weather shifts, so will the feeding styles and appetites for a lot of our inshore gamefish. Being prepared for these changes and knowing what to expect this month will make you a successful angler.

One of my favorite things about winter fishing is since the water temperatures are down and the fish are becoming more lethargic, shrimp becomes my go-to bait of choice. During the summer months using live large baits is a must. In the summer, when it comes down to catching quality fish, I’ll always want to use something other than shrimp.

This is not the case for the month of December. There are a variety of species such as redfish, sheepshead, cobia, black drum, and triple tail that will take up a shrimp offering. Not only will shrimp allow anglers to catch a variety of species, but not throwing the net and not getting the boat extremely dirty is a plus in my book.

Bait presentation is very important when targeting a wide array of fish species. The one setup I will always have ready on the boat is a long 30-pound fluorocarbon leader with a 2/0 Owner circle hook or SSW all purpose “J” hook weighted by a #5 split-shot. What’s best about this rig is that by quickly removing the split-shot, you have a completely different presentation.

Some other common rig setups to use with shrimp would be a popping cork, jig head, and a pompano “goofy jigs”. Once I figure out which rig is working best it’s time for me to decide on how to hook the shrimp.

As simple as it may sound, hooking a shrimp a certain way can actually lead to more bites. There are four common ways to hook a shrimp: 1) In the head, under the horn and in front of the membrane. 2) In the tail, from the underside up. 3) In the tail, with the tip of the tail cut off and the hook going through it and up out of the back. 4) Hooked pieces of shrimp, broken in all shapes and sizes on the hook.

Remember, hooking a shrimp through

DECEMBER 2019

the head will create more surface area.

This allows the bait to float along a mangrove edge more naturally and at a slower pace, where as if you were to tail hook the shrimp it would become more streamlined and move out of the strike zone quicker. The angle and current direction you are fishing should help you determine how to fish your shrimp.

When it comes to shallow water or fishing potholes, I prefer tail hooking my shrimp.

This presentation allows me more distance in my cast, streamlines the bait which eliminates grass getting caught on it, and on the retrieve it looks like it is naturally swimming away from a predator.

No matter how you hook it or present your bait to the fish, at the end of the day it’s all fishing.

Stop thinking and just cast. Experience what Southwest Florida has to offer through fishing, shelling, and sightseeing.

Capt. Joe Angius (727)-234-3171 www.speakeasyfishing.com speakeasyfishing@gmail.com

DECEMBER 2019

BACK ISSUES @

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

PAGE 11

PAGE

12

EMAIL:

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Nice Estero Bay red, Scotty Rhoades with Capt.

Fred Gowdy

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

DECEMBER 2019

Backwater snook Estero Bay Capt. Fred Gowdy

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

$25 WINNER

Good to see trout back in Estero Bay Capt Fred Gowdy

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Lynn caught this trophy 3 1/2 -pound tilapia

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX! FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Matt Tufts (adult) with a snook and Miller Tufts (kid) Miller Tufts, mangrove snapper editor notes* look closely!

Max Riesbeck with a 38-inch snook

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Snook caught by Trent Burnam in Cape Coral

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Adam Wolowicz from Rhode Island caught the big Barracuda fishing on the Tommy V3

Bill Koves. Trout

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Grant Newlin caught in North Port

Bill Koves Redfish

DECEMBER 2019

BACK ISSUES @

FISH PIX! f r o m Wa t e r L I F E m a g a -

Barracuda Blitz for Halloween. John Wolowicz and Paul Stebing with catch and release large barracuda

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

Readerʼs Photos

txt us ur fish pix -

PAGE 13

See page 4

FISH PIX! Pop-pop with grandson Wyatt W and his first fish, from South Gulf Cove canals

from Water LIFE magazine

Dakoda Kirk caught this carp on bread in Cape Coral yesterday.

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Fishin buddies for over 50 years. Back row (l-r): Tom, Tim, Greg. Front row: Sammy da Snook

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

28-inch redfish caught and released by Gayle Vandenbergh with Capt. Steve, Southern Charm Charters.

Ben Milburn, caught Nov 9, 29-inch snook

Spud B. with a nice catch near Cape Haze with pop

Balazs Hepp with his first ever Goliath Grouper caught fishing with his friend Michael around Marco Island.

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Michael Fernandez with a 18 pound gag grouper caught and released off Fort Myers Beach.

Using a squid for Bait.

Michael Fernandez, 25 pound goliath grouper caught and released off Fort Myers Beach.

Using a mullet head for Bait.

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Whatʼs Catching?

PAGE

14

By Mallory Herzog Water LIFE Inshore/Offshore Inshore we are starting to see our usual fall patterns. As I type this, the water temperature was close to 70 degrees today.

Redfish are schooled-up and moving around the backcountry. Where they are one day, they may not be the next.

They are chasing food, digging around in the mud and searching for a quiet place to hang out. There is nothing quite like pulling up to a happy school of redfish.

Anglers have been hooking up to the reds using shrimp and artificial baits. When they are in a school, a rattling type lure or a flashy soft plastic will get their attention in the dark colored waters.

Recently, snook have taken over one of Capt. Andrew's favorite redfish spots. No complaints here! The BIG ladies were pouncing on whitebait and really putting on a show.

EMAIL:

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

Costa's and a tee shirt if you catch one, take a photo of the tag in the fish and report it via the 1-800 # or to the website on tag!

Scientists rely on local fishermen for data collection. This information will help researchers better understand, growth, breeding and environmental changes that could be impacting these fish.

We also tag triple tail and sheepshead, which are moving in now that Itʼs become a tradition in our family, to fish on Thanksgiving our waters are cooling morning and bring home some fresh tripletail down. Both of these fish can be sight- cast as they We are still tagging fish for Grey Fish Tag stick to structure, both floating and stationResearch. Just this week, 10 snook and redary. They are ambush feeders that grab a fish were tagged and released in Charlotte quick meal as it drifts by.

Harbor and its surrounding locations.

Sheepshead also love barWhat does tagging mean for you? FREE nacles and will pick at them with their human like teeth underneath docks or off stationary boats. With a lot of our inshore species protected at present, these two fish make a GREAT meal.

Mallory’s husband, Captain Andrew Herzog, operates Big Bully Charters.

He can be reached at 941-661-0304 ... by phone or text

DECEMBER 2019

DECEMBER 2019

BACK ISSUES @

Report from the Ponds

By Nicholas J Water LIFE Bass Since my last report two significant changes have occurred: we had the time change kick in and finally some well needed cold fronts have dropped the temps bringing less humidity. The barometric pressure is staying steadier, but it has been a little high at times. We are still having some very windy

Tails... you win!

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

When the water is in the 70s that is when the fish are most active, and a smaller lure like a D.O.A. Cal shad or a 3-inch storm swim bait is the best you can throw. But as the temperatures fall below 70 (or move above 80 degrees) it is time to start thinking big tail. And not only big tail but a floppy, big, paddle-tail like a Strike King Rage Swimmer or a Gambler Big EZ, or even a MirrOlure Marsh Minnow. These all have big, floppy, paddle tails that are held onto the body of the lure by thin or softer plastic.

You want the tail to be able to move when the lure is barley moving. Don't go small, go larger like 5- or 6-inch lures; it is all about calories for effort.

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

days and still may get a pop up shower here and there. The early mornings have been calmer, then the winds would pick up during the day ‘till sunset.

The bite has been pretty good and steady, the water temperatures averaging about 64-degrees, at about 18-feet deep.

The morning is slow but I have gotten lucky in the morning hooking some nice rouge lunker bass. The midday would be off-and-on with mostly smaller bass. The sunset bite would always produce some nice lunkers, especially after sunset when the bite got better but the Mosquitoes got worse....lol The bite is still not very aggressive so you still have to work to get a bass’ attention at this time of year, especially the bucketmouth largemouths that are staying suspended out deep, or buried in the tall water reeds along the banks.

For fall and winter, my bait and lure choices are pretty basic and simple – these have produced trophy bass for me over and over again and continue to do so.

1) Booyah Pad Crasher Weedless Frog 2) Missile Bait Crawl Bruiser Flash 3) Sticko 5 3/8 baby bass color 4) Sticko 5 3/8 junebug color 5) Berkeley Swimbaits and Storm Swimbaits.

In ponds that have murky water I use dark baits and

When it is nice and warm, not hot, not cold, fish will chase after smaller lures, maybe just for fun I think, sometimes. But when it is too hot or too cold, a meal for the least energy expended is the primary mission. So going big and slow is the plan. Another trick is to use a very lightweight jig head, the heavier the jig head

The bigger Strike King Rage and a DOA C.A.L.

the faster you have to reel to keep it off the bottom, so by using a 1/8 or even a 1/16 oz jig head, you can reel slower, giving the fish time to see the lure and decide, if it wants to eat it. Using a bit larger lure moving really slow, with a loose paddle tail to make noise, to get the fish’s at-

PAGE 15

in ponds with clear water light colored baits. Right now the bass hook ratio for me has been 50/50. Fifty percent topwater hits with the booyah and 50-percent underwater hits, mostly with the Stickos, crawl and swimbaits. As the bass’ behavior changes through the year I start changing bait strategies. I have an arsenal of awesome

lures and baits to keep the hits and hookups steady for trophy bass. When one’s effect starts wearing off I change it out.

With the Holiday Season upon us it gives us Bass Addicts a good reason to get out buy some new fishing gear and equipment and hit the ponds for trophy bass.

As always, get out and hook one today!

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

Now where would you go to cast this lure? I would suggest an open flat near a sand bar. Flats with white sand bottoms and patches of dark grass are the easiest places to find snook or redfish during cold water months. The shallow water allows the sun’s rays to penetrate and the dark grass acts as a solar collector, giving the fish a warmer place to lay up.

Think if you were 6 inches tall and laying in a small depression 6 inches deep, you would be hidden from predators looking across the flats and you would have the grass to warm you up. Life is good for that fish and now all it has to do is just wait for food to swim by, (hint) so stay back and use light line, like 10 pound test or less, on the longest rod you have - by stay-

ing back you do not get the fish nervous and your chances of hooking up are way better.

Good luck & have fun!!

Frank@fishinfranks.com Port Charlotte (941) 625-3888

PAGE

16

EMAIL:

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

DECEMBER 2019

Readerʼs Photos Text Us Ur Fish Pix! see page 4

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Great fishing in Englewood

by Big Al.

Scott Larsen topwater redfish New Port Richey Florida

FISH PIX! f fr ro om m

W Wa at te er r

L LI IF FE E

m ma ag ga az zi in ne e

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Smallmouth bass caught off dock Leif & Sam Bretan Sturgeon Bay Wisconsin

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Smallmouth bass caught off dock Leif & Sam Bretan Sturgeon Bay Wisconsin

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Vince DeBari with a black drum caught in the rim canal

Jeff Bellairs with his first cobia

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Mike Kusmierek red grouper, Captiva Island offshore

Mike Magnine, visiting from Minnesota, with Jeff Bellairs and a nice catch of Spanish mackerel.

DECEMBER 2019

BACK ISSUES @

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

PAGE 17

Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

These are both Crystals catches from Cape Coral. Both caught from the bank on MirrOlures!!!! She wouldnʼt hold the second one! LOL

Red Tide Perspectives On the Line

By Capt. Ron Blago Water LIFE Senior Staff A fisherman , a scientist, and a businessman walk into a bar; and the bartender asks, how is the red tide in Lemon Bay? The fisherman says he was fishing this morning and although the bite was slow, he caught fish, saw pods of bait and plenty of mullet swimming around. The fish were there, but they just were not biting. He even found a manatee swimming near Cedar Point that seemed pretty healthy.

The scientist said he could tell you how the red tide was last week. He had taken 38 different samples in Sarasota County last week, and found very little red tide in that County. He also had 28 samples from Lee County that showed red tide levels all over the map from very high to low.

With all those samples coming in the lab, the scientist said that

Charlotte County only submitted 5 samples, submitted from three different organizations; and unfortunately some of the samples were 10 days old, but he did say the last sample from Englewood showed low levels of red tide.

The scientist added that he didn't know how the red tide was at that moment or where it started or where it was going or how long it would last; but he did have good data on where it was; and if he had more money he was confident he could get a handle on this red tide thing.

The businessman was particularly concerned, he said this is the start of the winter season and the mere mention of red tide will cause a domino effect of economic disaster. Hotel and resort reservations get canceled, restaurants and stores see a slow down in customers and fishing guides and charter boats and any business near the water will suffer a

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

financial loss. He was very concerned.

This little story is true, I'm the fisherman, Mote Marine is the scientist and the Chamber of Commerce is the businessman.

We all have our own perspective on red tide.

I mentioned last month that dead manatees are a good measure of red tide’s severity. When I wrote my article last month , there was only one manatee that died from red tide in 2019. This month, 10 more have been added to that list and I'm sure that the pathology lab in St. Pete has many more manatee carcasses on ice that will be found to have died from red tide. With only one month left in 2019, red tide manatee deaths won't be close to the 289 that died in 2018; but it could point to a bad 2020. If the red tide lingers or grows and we have a cold winter we can expect to see a lot of manatees floating flippers up in our local waters.

Captronb@juno.com

Ron Levitt of Punta Gorda with his first snook and his first sheepshead ever. The 34-inch, 15 pound snook was quite a surprise on a very light spinning rod

BAYSHORE PIER Contrary to previous reports of itʼs demise, there is no engineering letter declaring the Bayshore Pier ready for demolition. At the last MAC (Marine Advisory Committee) meeting it was disclosed that the Pier will be rennovated and reopened soon. The delay, allegedly, had something to do with the lights on the pier not working, but we are here to report the lights on the Pier come on automatically every night. The Pier has been closed due to minor damage since Hurricane Irma, in 2017.

PAGE

18

EMAIL:

Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

FISH PIX!

Tiffany Derby caught this tarpon in Burnt Store Isles.

Seine Net Outing from Water LIFE magazine

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

Reader始s Photos

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

By Michael Heller Water LIFE editor We had our annual Seine Net Pull and wading trip with our 6th grade class. We usually go on an offshore trip the following weekend, but the weather gods didn始t coperate offshore, in fact we rescheduled and then had to cancel the rescheduled trip as well. Hopefully this month we will get to take the offshore trip on Saturday December 7.

But for the seine net wading trip, the weather was perfect. It was still warm and the water was crystal clear. The seine net pull is an event with FWC fisheries biologists who first show the kids how to work the net on land and then hand the net off to them to take it out into the Harbor.

We conduct this event from Ponce deLeon Park in Punta Gorda where a nice sandy flat runs right along the shoreline.

On this day there were lots of little sardines, and crabs, shrimp and gobys, baby puffers, tube fish, flounder, jellies and menhaden ..... and I forget what ever other kind of Harbor creatures we captured that were swimming around, waiting to be examined.

Actually, the net is a purse seine, named for the bag-like pocket that develops as one end of the net is staked in place and the other end is pulled around in a circle. A seine net has weights on the bottom edge and floats on the top. When the ends come together it forces everything swimming into the purse.

FWC staffers Courtney Saari, Alia Court and Joey Nolan helped Capt. Cayle Wills, my wife Ellen and I keep the kids pulling in unicin as we answered questions about what they were capturing. Once in the purse, the creatures were transfered to buckets and then brought to tanks on shore where the class could study them.

Thank you ALL for what turned out to be a great morning!

This is the 19th year of our kids program. This year Charlotte County has added funding for elementary schools to expand their athletic programs, that translated into 6th graders having more options for after school activities. At any other time I始d be worried about our school enrollment, but the enrollment in our summer $1Bill Challenge, our kids educational fishing tournament, has been up, so we are reaching the same number of kids except we are interacting more in the summer now.

Please support our programs if you can. We only receive a small grant from the County and now I understand the County is considering requiring matching funds for that. Running the program isn始t easy but the smiles and Ethical Anglers we are creating make it worthwhile.

txt us ur fish pix

Zared Derby caught this nice Jack Crevalle in Alligator Creek.

In class, students learn about local fishing, Ethical Angling, tying knots and protecting the local environment. On our outings they get to pull a seine net, fish offshore and, in the spring, fish inshore in Charlotte Harbor.

DECEMBER 2019 See page 4

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Sam, Max, and Josh with Black Drum

DECEMBER 2019

10,000 ISLANDS

BACK ISSUES @

So Long to the Silent Nights

By Capt. Charlie Phillips Water LIFE / Everglades City 2019 has been a great year for us down in the Everglade and 10,000 Islands. We have had a good season of fishing to start the year and are off to a good start for our winter season too. We dodged the storms this year, the fish are feeding and healthy and, as the phrase goes, we are ‘living the proverbial dream’!!

I enjoy this time of year as the weather is much more tolerable though the tradeoff is there are more boats on the water. That’s ok though, I enjoy seeing all the folks and catching up with old friends upon their arrival back south.

That being said, be patient with each other folks, not going to be unusual this time of year to find someone else on your “secret” spot before you get there, or have someone cut you off, come too close or just generally annoy the begesus out of you. Not all who do that are bad folks, many just don’t know any better. Try to have a polite conversation and remember often on the water, small ears are listening, and small eyes are watching. The actions you take in a challenging encounter, become the same paths young minds may take down the road when they are captaining their own vessels.

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

Enough on that, fishing has been pretty sold. We’ve had a great time this past month with targeting the snook and small tarpon in the back waters of the 10,000 Islands area.

Fishing mostly around Port of the Islands we always do well working these fish on artificial offerings during the lower tide stages. Great time and place for fly anglers as well, to get a shot at some good fish. Many times, it’s blind casting, but if you know where the fish live and you target them there, you will find success.

Been finding some solid trout, and pompano around the outside points on the higher tide stages. Shrimp tipped jigs work well for both, with a pink jig as my favorite for the pompano and a green one for the trout. Though I have to say it’s hard to beat the old tried and true popping cork and live shrimp for the trout.

Haven’t been offshore much due to the wind. The days I have been able to get out, my customers, or schedule don’t allow it. Hope to remedy that this upcoming month and see if any tripletail or cobia are still around. This time of

PAGE 19

year, historically for me is a great period to target both of the just mentioned species so stay tuned for more on that next month.

I hope you all enjoy your Christmas holiday and have a grand time spending it with family and friends. Use some of the off days to get some kids out fishing. It’s the future of our sport so get them involved early to develop that love that we all have. Be safe, Merry Christmas and I will see you again in 2020.

Capt. Charlie Phillips, President, Florida Guides Assn.

Owner/Captain, Hope Fishing Adventures Everglades City, Florida hopefishing.com 863-517-1829

PAGE

20

SCUTTLEBUTT EMAIL:

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

DECEMBER 2019

Sometimes Unsubstanciated, But Often True protected birds. An additional charge is pending for discharging a firearm into the neighborʼs property.

LOCAL SINKINGS Officers responded to a report of a capsized vessel in Charlotte Harbor. The vesselʼs prop was fouled, and the three occupants went together to the back of the sixteen-foot vessel to clear it. Water came over the stern and the vessel soon capsized. The three occupants were recovered by sheriffʼs deputies. Officers also responded to a report of a capsized vessel in Placida Harbor. The vessel had a crack in the transom and was slowly taking on water.

By the time the occupants realized the problem, water had rushed over the stern and capsized the vessel. Sheriffʼs deputies rescued them too.

HIGHLITES: GOVʼS NEW BUDGET $9.9 million to combat Invasive Species, which includes an additional $1 million for python removal. $3 million for the State Reef Fish Survey to estimate reef fishery populations. $1.9 million for Red Tide Research, which includes two dedicated staff. $4 million for Mechanical Removal of Invasive Plants. $2.4 for Coral Reef Disease Response and Restoration. $600,000 to Combat Wildlife Disease.

WHERE NO ROBOT HAS GONE BEFORE The Australian Antarctic Program is working with NASA over the next few months to test an under-ice robot which

THIS DAY IN HISTORY Dec 20, 1956 The snowbird migration started right then!

HAWKISH The FWC responded to a caller advising a red-tailed hawk was shot in his backyard. The hawk was found at the base of a fence dividing two properties. A chicken coop was observed on an adjacent property. The owner of the chicken coop admitted to shooting the hawk and firing in the direction of his neighborʼs house. The owner of the chicken coop was charged with violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and reminded that only non-lethal steps can be taken to protect his livestock from the

Spanish Lessons

By Bobby Vitalis Water LIFE Pier Fishing Spanish Mackerel are a good sport fish to catch. They give a good fight by making fast runs. This Spanish mackerel was caught at Sharky’s Pier in Venice. It was caught from high to low tide.

Most of the time Spanish mackerel come in schools. If you find one you are going to find another. The Spanish mackerel come and go. In this area, the legal length to keep Spanish mackerel is from 12 inches or more measured from the fork of the tail. And, people do eat this fish too.

The weight of the Spanish mackerel I caught in the past is anywhere from 1- to about 5-pounds. Most of the time I use artificial lures to catch the Spanish mackerel. I am using GOT CHA lures, which is made by SEA STRIKER. The color of the lure is a red head with silver body and red treble hooks. The weight is one ounce.

The model number is G501RH. There are a lot of different GOT CHA lures to try, not just this one. They come in many dif-

White pelicans are back on the sandbars in Gasparilla Sound. Thank you Sea Tow Charlotte Harbor for the photo.

ferent colors and sizes. The weight of the lure to try to use is from 7/8 to one ounce.

I like using the one ounce at this Pier and when using this lure, the best place for me to catch Spanish mackerel is at the end of the Pier. You want to cast out as far as you can.

When reeling the line in, give the rod a twitch every so often. You want to give a fast retrieve to move a lure at a pace that will get the mackerel to bite.

Sometimes the Spanish mackerel are at the surface of the water, or, sometimes they are running deep. At certain times, the Spanish mackerel are far out or sometimes they are close to the pier. When casting with GOT CHA lures, for my main line, I use 30-pound test SUFIX ADVANCE super line braided

may eventually be used in a space mission to look for signs of extra-terrestrial life on Jupiter within the next decade to better understand the planet and investigate Europa, one of its icy moons. NASA scientist from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory said Europa is one of the most likely places to find alien life within our solar system. The robot will travel on the underside of the ice

color green, which is more than enough weight.

So, at the end of that line, I use wire leader line. I use 6-to 8-inches of AFW 7x7 Surflon Micro Supreme knottable nylon leader wire, 40 pound test, color camo, Model number

DM49-40-A

Wire line is good to use due to the Spanish mackerel’s sharp teeth.

There are a lot of different brand wire lines that you can try. I like this wire line because it’s knottable.

If you do not want to use wire leader with your lure, don’t. I sometimes see people do that, but you might lose a lure or two due to their sharp teeth. Another good lure to use is the Clark spoon model

A larval tile fish in a sea of plastic

SICK SLICK NOAAʼs Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center conducted studies to learn where larval fish spend their time and what they eat there. The team found that surface slicks contained far more larval fish than neighboring surface waters. Surface slicks are naturally occurring, ribbon-like, smooth water features at the ocean surface. They form when internal ocean waves converge near coastlines in marine ecosystems worldwide. The surface slicks also aggregate plankton, which is an important food resource for larval fish. Unfortunately, the team also discovered the same ocean processes that aggregated prey for larval fish also concentrated buoyant, passively floating plastics. Plastic densities in these surface slicks were, on average, eight times higher than the plastic densities recently found in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Researchers concluded that plastics were 126 times more concentrated in surface slicks and that there were seven times more plastics than there were larval fish.

number 1-RBMS 3/8 ounce 3-inch color chrome plated with a 5/0 size hook. I see people using this spoon with long fluorocarbon leader line with a Billy Boy bobber. And, also sabiki rigs made by MARATHON or R&R tackle. But with the sabiki rigs, sometimes the Spanish mackerel will bite the fly right off.

Sabiki rigs come in many hook sizes and colors. Try hook size 15 model number GI14 or try hook size 16 model number HTC16 with the R&R Tackle brand sabiki rigs. Some sabiki rigs come with many flies. You only need to use a couple of flies at a time. So, cut the rig up according to how many flies you want to use. I use 4 to 5 flies on my rig. When using sabiki rigs, I use a 1-ounce pyramid sinker weight.

Just for your information, last year there was red tide at this pier. The water is looking pretty good at this time and, I am catching fish, so, I am hoping the red tide won’t come back so people can go fishing.

So, when or wherever you go fishing for Spanish mackerel, try using these lures.

DECEMBER 2019

BACK ISSUES @

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

PAGE 21

FISH PIX! f r o m Wa t e r L I F E m a g a z i n e

Rick Papay from Ohio had the catch of the day in our backyard, Countryman Waterway!!! 28-inch black drum!!! Please publish his picture. He has said for a while one day he wanted to get in the fishing paper, lol.

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Ted 50-pound cobia in the Gulf

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Alex Parisi with a tarpon he caught next to his back yard in Bonita Springs fishing with his wife.

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Mike Navakas, red grouper caught in 82 feet, west of Fort Myers Beach

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Leonard doing some Venice sheepshead fishing

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

Joe Sheaffer with a nice snook from Placida Pier the evening of Nov. 24

RJ caught this nice Snook off the dock Charlotte Harbor

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

They're here! Jeanne' S. trout caught and released for another day. Charlotte Harbor.

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

A couple of nice keeper groupers, caught at 65 feet. Tom Mills

LAST CAST

Evan Kramer with his 37-inch cobia in 78-feet off of Englewood This was the last picture we received before going to print this month

FISH PIX!

from Water LIFE magazine

PAGE

22

The BIG-4

Nearshore water temps are now in the low 70s fish are moving closer to shore

TRIPLETAIL on crab traps around markers and debris

95˚ 90˚ 85˚ 80˚

75˚ 72˚ 70

68˚ 50˚ 45˚

FISHING RIGHT NOW: VERY GOOD! Capt. Jackʼs

Englewood Bait House

live shrimp etc.

Head-Boat Offshore Fishing

941- 475-4511

EMAIL:

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

Fish you can expect in

SHEEPSHEAD ICW docks and moving to the piers

December

REDFISH Schools in the Harbor, some to the south

DECEMBER 2019

SNOOK In the creeks and canals

December – Predictions and Suggestions

Peace River Charlotte Harbor Frank at Fishin’ Franks 941-625-3888

This is the wonderful time of year that causes me a lot of problems – because as the temperature drops the white bait goes deep or leaves entirely... so shrimp becomes the number one thing. Now shrimp is king. Now all the Captains want shrimp - 50 or 100 at a time. There is a line here first thing in the morning for shrimp and the big ones are gone in the first hour.

A free lined shrimp is probably the best way to go. Fishing the mangroves, take the tail off and toss it up there.

You don’t want a weight on the shrimp because it tumbles the bait.

There are plenty of redfish on the east side and the north end of the West Side. The best redfish are at Indian Field and Icehouse 2, that whole stretch by Matlacha has had a ton of reds on it. Snook is following the same pattern. By 10 a.m. the fish are coming out and laying in the potholes, what you are looking for is grass patches; you want a dark spot with shallow patches of grass. Get your 7.5- or 8-foot rod with 10-pound test and make long casts. Tail hook the shrimp to get a longer cast out of it.

Twenty - to 25-pound-test leader is working real good.

Out in the Harbor a there is still a little bit of permit and pompano in front Bull Bay, out by the white sand.

Still some Spanish mackerel from the reef down to Mkr. No. 5 and at Boca Grande Pass, but the Pass has had some red tide. We have king mackerel 12- to15-miles out in the Gulf. Bottom fishing is sporadic right now. All the normal grunts, porgys and snapper are there, but quite a few fish have come in close, so check your close numbers before you go out to 100 feet.

Cut ballyhoo is working pretty good right now; squid too.

There are a lot of bonnet sharks on the east side and in Turtle Bay, some trout (and actually pretty good size) in Pine Island Sound, averageing 16- to 18-inches. Bull has good trout fishing too, but Turtle is hit or miss. Up on the

Peace River at Harbor Heights guys are catching trout over 20- inches.

Sheepshead are getting to be in decent numbers on the near reefs. Guys are dropping down in the Gulf and finding the bigger sheepshead fishing frozen sand fleas and fiddler crabs. Those baits will reduce the snapper bite. At Placida they are on and off again, Crappie are starting to bunch. This month will be the start for crappie.

Lemon Bay, Placida, Gasparilla Sound Jim at Fishermen’s Edge 941-697-7595

The fishing has been good and the Bay fishing has amped up. No problem with red tide. Whidden and Catfish creeks are all good - no evidence of the red tide back there.

There are a lot of redfish, big redfish, around. One guy told me he caught a 36-inch red in Lemon Bay, on shrimp. I’ve seen a lot of pictures, 14 or 15 redfish in a 3 hour trip, all fish way over the slot. Reds along with some snook too. Thay have been around. Redfish have been really good, but Oh my gosh! ... the snook has been really good too. My friend went up in Coral Creek, his son was going back to Canada and they caught 40 snook just casting a plug around. Guys are saying trout has been good too, both up in Lemon Bay and out in the Sound.

Snapper and sheepshead are being caught up by the Tom Adams Pier.

Guys are catching quite a bit of king mackerel out in front of Manasota Key and down through the lower Gulf to Boca Grande. Put on a spoon or something to troll. Guys have been catching a variety: sheepshead, pompano, mangrove snapper... no one is coming back skunked. Offshore has been good but I don’t know what closes next. Gags are good, there are a lot of different snapper, and an occasional cobia swimming by, grunts and pogys are pretty much a given. Not that many guys pumping up the bass fishing, not a lot of big ones around, but they are catching some at Myakka Park and the Sports Park on Roberts Road. Happy Holidays to everyone!

BackBay Xtremes Capt Dave Stephens www.backbayxtremes.com

941-916-5769

Explore!

Fish with one of our Guides

Youʼll learn something and youʼll catch some fish!

DECEMBER 2019

BACK ISSUES @

WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM

PAGE 23

PAGE

24

EMAIL:

WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET

DECEMBER 2019