On the Water: Vacation Fishing in Southwest Florida | News, sports, jobs

A dinner with fresh fish is always a pleasure on the holidays. Bob Pettigrew and Darryl Mahan scored with a fatty sea trout limit when they met Capt. Bill Russell fished in Charlotte Harbor near Bokeelia. PHOTO PROVIDED

The holiday season has arrived and it’s a great time to spend a relaxing day fishing with friends or family in the waters of southwest Florida. The weather is often great with fish hunger as we move on to cooler days. It’s a great time to enjoy a simple day of fishing – just grab some bait, get in the water, and see what you catch. For me, it’s fun and exciting when you don’t know what the next fish on the line might be.

Shrimp are the all-round best and most productive bait for inshore and nearshore fishing. Even more so in the cooler months. They eat everything except mullet. They are also readily available at most bait and fishing stores. No need to throw out a heavy net and mess up the boat to start the day like catching your own live bait.

When you fish with shrimp you never know what to hook next, it can be 3 inches or 3 feet long but the chances are very good that you will hook something.

One of the most popular methods is fishing the bait under a popping or rattling cork, suspending the shrimp between the top and bottom of the water column. This works great over coastal grass bottoms at depths of 3 to 8 feet. The most popular way to drift is to locate the bite, then anchor the boat.

If you find yourself in an area abundant in fish, there is a variety to catch, which can include a dozen or more different species. That’s the fun part, especially with kids and beginners. Every time the bobber goes down and the rod doubles, you have no idea what’s on the other end.

If you’re drifting with little or no bites, start the engine and take a pull. It is common to start slowly and then drift into an area where the bite is warming.

It’s not possible to list all of the fish you can catch, but some of the most popular are sea trout, pompano, Spanish mackerel, blue bass, mangrove snapper, redfish, jack crevalle, ladyfish, and sharks.

As mentioned earlier, you can catch small fish like pinfish or pigfish. They are great bait to be dropped on a heavier rig behind the boat.

If you are drifting, fish these under one float. In addition to the few fish mentioned earlier, you can hook yourself on a grouper, cobia, tarpon, great shark, or snook.

If you really want to get a shark to the boat, fish with a few feet of wire leader to keep its razor-sharp teeth from severing the line.

When the water cools down, it is a great time to fish for structures both offshore and offshore. Here, too, live or fresh shrimp are the top bait. Two popular baits are thumper rigs with an egg sinker that can slide freely over a small hook and bare jigs heads that are mounted with shrimp. Both combinations work great near the coast and over artificial reefs near the coast and hard bottom.

Schafkopf becomes a popular destination for many anglers in the cooler months, but you will catch a wide variety of fish including red and black drum, pompano, permit, and snapper – to name a few.

These are easy fishing methods, but they are also fun, relaxing, and very productive. It’s a great way to get someone new to the sport with lots of fish and hooks. Of course, it’s great for kids, they love action and all kinds of different species of catching.

If you choose to use shrimp as bait, you will go through a lot more than you think. I generally take at least twice the amount I think I could use – nothing is more frustrating than getting a hot bite and running out of bait. Give it a try, find your own day, catch fish and have fun!

Happy Thanksgiving and I hope you can enjoy the holidays on the water.

If you have a fishing report or need charter information, contact the Gulf Coast Guide Service at 239-410-8576 (call or text); on the Internet at www.fishpineisland.com; or by email to gcl2fish@live.com.

If you’re looking for the perfect gift, we have gift certificates for the holidays.

Have a safe week and good fishing.

A lifelong resident of Matlacha and Pine Island, Captain Bill Russell has spent his life fishing and learning the waters around Pine Island and Southwest Florida and for the past 23 years as a professional fishing guide.

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