December Fishing

December has been, as usual, good and bad. The warm sunny days are excellent for sightfishing with good shots at big snook and redfish. There are plenty of seatrout on the grass beds early in the am that have been taking Gurglers and Crease Flies. As far as snook and reds, baitfish patterns and tailing patterns produce the best.

We have also been traveling to the Everglades to fish for panfish….especially Oscars…pound for pound nothing else compares to their fighting ability. We also catch Myan Cyclids, bluegill, perch and stumpknockers. It is a lot of fun walking the banks of the many canals in the Everglades and casting to visible panfish.

Night snook is still rated good, although with colder water temps, the snook are entering the river systems in search of warmer weather and their winter haunts….

All in all, still lots of fish to be caught exploring the outside bars and flats….

Good Luck and Happy Holidays,

Capt. Al White

November Fish

November fishing has been good with lots of different species being caught. Seatrout, Redfish and Snook have all been attracted to flies. Baitfish patterns work well, and when the conditions are right Gurglers, Crease flies and poppers do well, especially on windy days…

Other species being caught are Gag Grouper, Ladyfish, Jack Crevalle, Bluefish, and a myriad of lesser species. The water has cooled to 73 degrees and the fish are active. We are approaching winter negative tides which will offer sightfishing for tailing Redfish in the backcountry. We will pole the mangrove islands and cast to tailers when conditions are right. Casts of 30 to 90 feet are required with an emphasis on accuracy. Weedless shrimp patterns as well as crab and baitfish patterns get the job done.

We are still waiting for False Albacore to make their annual appearance. Generally we will have plenty of schools that are northbound and eat flies readily….

We see blitzes of Jacks throughout the day and we try to get on them quickly…oftentimes there are also bluefish mixed in.

The weather is good with mild temps in the morning giving way to 70+ degree heat in the afternoon.

Fall is terrific time to fish Charlotte Harbor, The Gulf of Mexico and the backcountry.

Hope to fish with you soon,

Tight lines,

Capt. Al

October Fishing

October has started off great with the New Moon and high early morning incoming water, the bite is on. We are averaging twenty to thirty snook and day on baitfish patterns as well as Gurglers and Crease flies. The red tide is gone and the water is clean and the fish are moving onto the grass flats and feeding on crabs, worms and baitfish…. The redfishing is picking up also with 4 to 5 reds a day playing with topwater flies and plugs. Trout fishing is rated good also…it is possible to have twenty fish days on Seatrout…

With the cleaner water and cooler temperatures we are expecting a blitz of False Albacore to arrive in later October or Early November mixed with Spanish Mackerel and King Mackerel which will be on the beach frothing up the surface and hitting Cuban Anchovy patterns and smaller tan baitfish patterns. Also available in November will be Triple Tail… which will range from a couple of pounds up to 20lbs…..

FWC , in order to bring back some of the lost snook and redfish, FWC has made a Zero limit on snook or redfish until further notice….We can still catch all we want, but catch and release is mandatory. Trout,, Triple Tail, Pompano, Mangrove Snapper and all of the rest are open.

After the devastation of Red Tide it is nice to see nature replenishing itself as seen in the pictures of the red fish……

As the water cools and the high early morning winter tides are in the forecast, fishing will be rated Very Good…

Lots of topwater action on Gurglers and Crease flies as well as baitfish patterns.

Fishing rated….Good

Water temp…..81

Air temp………..87

Wind………………ENE at 10mph

High tide 12:30pm….1.9

Mangrove fly fishing rated …..Excellent

Flies for Backcountry trout, snook and redfish and tarpon

Gurglers, Crease flies in olive back,

Puglisi baitfish in white and S.F Rainbow back size 1/0

Tan or white bunny flies with a little pearl crystal flash with silver coneheads

Clouser Minnow chart/white… grey/white….tan/white

Water is getting colder and fishing is only going to get better!!!!

See you soon and tight lines,

Capt. Al White

August Fishing

August fishing is getting much better with  good catches of Big Seatrout, Redfish and Snook.

The Red Tide is basically gone from the backcountry , the water is clearing and it is fishing as usua,finally.... Snook are co-operating in the back country staging around the mangroves on the incoming tide and redfish are hanging around the oyster bars. Seatrout are in the deep cuts bordering the grass flats and have been striking surface flies, Gurglers and Crease flies as well as Zara spooks and Skitterwalks... With the water cooling and the fall approaching, Redfish will start schooling and seatrout will graze on the shallower grass flats.

We have also been catching a few Cobia on the flats...lFishing the early morning is best and getting off the water by noon to avoid the heat and afternoon thunderstorms.

WAter is looking better and better......

Tight lines,

Capt Al

June Fish Report

June has been a decent month for tarpon, snook and seatrout.  Big tides near the full moon have helped the tarpon movement on the beach and just offshore. We are getting really good shots at fish as close as 50 feet before they bounce off the boat. Lots of fish around when there is no red tide present.....

Snook fishing is good fishing inland docks and canals....lots of current movement producing the most fish to 28"

Alex Rubino had a great day of tarpon and snook fishing. He fought a triple digit fish for an hour before the leader frayed and broke.  I leadered the fish three times but never could control her. We then chased snook and he caught snook to 27". The day before we chased bluegill in some of the local ponds....where he caught  many.

June promised to produce more fish and better conditions until end of month..

May Tarpon

May has seen the fish move to the beach on Boca Grande. After a brief restover in the pass, the fish have started to cruise the beach...High winds on the beach have been a dirge on sightfishing poons on the beach, but we have still caught fish when the weather permitted.

The end of May and start of June will be more productive. We are seeing big "Daisy Chains" during the day...some on the surface and some deep. The best fishing is yet to come....

Still have a select few days in June available....

Tight lines and bent rods,

Capt. Al

Snook fishing is still good in the backcountry, trout fishing over the grass is still producing on deeper flats.   

May Tarpon Season

May is here and so are the Tarpon...Lots of big fish in Boca Grande Pass and fish starting to show on the beach. Jumped two poons May 4th in the backcountry and then started to fish the beach May 6th and connected with an 80 lb tarpon on fly.... Great fight, she jumped 7 times and finally landed her.David Pustejovsky fought her for 45 minutes and did everything right, putting plenty of pressure on her throughout the fight.  She was released, and happily swam away.  Video is on my facebook page Boca on the Fly, capt. Al White.

Snook aren't getting much attention but we did mange to slide into the backcountry for 15minutes and he connected with two....

Trout are abundant on grass flats with good topwater action to be had on fly and plug...Fish to 24inches are common right now.

We are booked pretty solid for Tarpon Season but have a few days open in June....Don't forget about July....yes it is hot but so are the fish....no pressure and ready to eat! Not as many fish, but the ones you see will chew!

Tight lines and good luck,

Capt. Al

April fishing

April has been a super month with good catches of seatrout, snook and redfish.

Northern winds shallowed out some of the backcountry but when we were able to get there the fishing was super. Night snook fishing was exellent even with some very cold and windy nights.

Early morning grass flats produced some prodigious trout and snook, with a 35" snook caught on a jigged on a 1/8 oz head with a Z-man jerk bait.  

Tarpon are showing at present but we still wait for the main migration to arrive. There are a few fish in Boca Grande pass but there are more fishing boats than fish right now. The entire southwest coast goes a little crazy when a few pre-migration fish show up... The "Pass" becomes a ticket worthy show! Some tarpon are south of Boca Grande, some are north in Charlotte Harbor.... The main migration generally shows around Cinco De Mayo and what a sight it is if you are fortunate enough to see it....The pass turns "Silver" as fish flood into the pass to rest and recuperate from their journey.

We are also catching Mackerel, Jacks and Pompano on fly throughout the day, Water temp today was 76, about average for this time of year.

Fishing will only get better through July with lots of 100lb tarpon to be caught.

I have a few days open for Tarpon in July if interested.

Remember to just have fun and soak in the beauty of the surroundings when you are on the water.....a lost of people miss it..... catching a few fish is also exciting though!

Best of Luck,

Capt. Al White

Captains for Cleanwater

BTT endorsed captain

Captain to Redbone Tournament fly division winner

March Fishing

March fly fishing has started out with a bang, eventhough we have had low water, winds and cold temperatures. The days have warmed up as has the water and the fish have started to move in the backcountry.  Night snook has been productive... Terry Byce of Sarasota had a great night of snook fishing with 15-20 snook up to 26 inches. Barry Sagotsky fished a couple of days and caught trout, big ladyfish, snook and a monster Redfish to round out his Backcountry slam....Ed Borman caught trout, ladyfish and snook with his son Justin who managed his first snook on fly.

Greg Haller of Oregon caught March Refish, Snook and trout for a slam plus a Big Sheepshead on fly which is unusual. 

March should get better as the weather and water warms... we have seen a few tarpon cruising around .. There are reports of fish in Boca Grande pass at present.  

I still have some dates open for Tarpon in May and June....should be a great year!

See you soon,

Capt. Al

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January fly fishing 2018

Still catching some nice reds and snook even with the fluctuating barometer, cold fronts and some high winds. With North winds blowing the water out of the backcountry fishing creeks and rivers are the best bet  to hook up.  Bill Nevins from Naples Florida had to endure 25mph winds all day but still managed a backwater slam....redfish,snook,and trout.  Water temp did hit 70 which helped.  Tripletail fly fishing is very good right now if we can get out on the beach...fish to 20lbs reported.... There are also Kingfish being caught and some Blackfin tuna out about 10 miles. 

December Fly Fishing

Sightfishing for Redfish has been consistently good poling Mangrove shorelines in the backcountry.  On average anglers are getting close to a dozen shots a day at quality fish.

Snook are still taking slow moving baitfish patterns and well as trout.

The scenic pictures give you an idea of the water we fish for REds...the birds are wading at low tide...one hour passes, and we wade those flats for "Tailing Reds"

Water is Gin Clear.....

Charter dates still available in December.

Happy Holidays,

Capt. Al