snookfinaddict

Upcoming Destination Trips

Mars Bay Bonefish Lodge, South Andros, Bahamas-Oct 29-Nov 5, 2022                                                    Call or e-mail for more info

Montana Medicine Lodge/King Outfitters, Dillon, MT-July 24-30, 2022                                                   Call or e-mail for more info

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Mars Bay Bonefish Lodge, South Andros, Bahamas Fishing Report, November 2021

After a hiatus from the trip due to COVID restrictions last year, I hosted a group of friends and clients at Mars Bay Bonefish Lodge in South Andros, Bahamas recently. Stewart Lavelle and Mike Perez, from Sarasota, Kirk Grassett, from Middletown, DE, Rusty Chinnis from Longboat Key, Bill Crelin, from Milwaukee, WI and I drove from Sarasota to FXE in Ft. Lauderdale where we met up with John and DJ, from NY, and Tracy and Cullen Baker, from NC and traveled to Congotown, South Andros on Makers Air.

We waded vast sand flats and also fished from flats skiffs for everything from large cruising or tailing single and double bonefish to large schools of fish. Conditions were tough on a couple of days with wind and rain but action was fairly good on those days. There were also a couple of slower days but overall actions was good and included a few bonefish in the 4 to 6-pound class and a couple of double digit fish. Top producing flies during the week were Peterson’s Spawning Shrimp, Mars Bay Special, Ververka’s Mantis Shrimp, Gotchas and Gotcha variations. Overall it was a great trip to a great lodge!

Bill Howard, the resident owner/operator, does a great job making things run smoothly at the lodge. We dined on a variety of excellent authentic Bahamian dishes including fresh fish, lobster and conch. One of the best things about Mars Bay Lodge, the southernmost lodge on South Andros, is fishing the vast sand flats and scattered mangrove keys to the south. Being the southernmost lodge on South Andros also means about a 10-mile shorter boat run each way and more fishing! South Andros has got to be one of the most beautiful places on earth! This trip, as well as my Montana trip, are annual trips so if you have an interest in any future trips contact me or go to the Destination Trips page of my web sites.

Back home in Sarasota, tripletail in the coastal gulf has been a good option depending on conditions. Deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay have been producing trout, blues and jacks on CAL jigs with Shad tails and Clouser flies.

Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
FFI Certified Fly Casting Instructor
Orvis-Endorsed Fly Fishing Guide at CB’s Saltwater Outfitters
Orvis Outfitter of the Year-2011
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
www.snookfin-addict.com, and www.flyfishingflorida.us
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
(941) 923-7799 (office)

Capt. Rick Grassett’s Montana Fly Fishing Trip Report for 8/21/2021

I hosted a group of friends and clients on my annual destination fly fishing trip to southwest Montana recently. Rusty Chinnis, from Longboat Key, and I traveled from Sarasota to Bozeman and met up with Kirk Grassett, from DE, Nick Delle Donne, from PA and Denton Kent, from VA and made the 2-1/2 hour drive to Medicine Lodge, on a 100,000 acre working ranch near the Beaverhead River, outside of Dillon, MT. We met up there with Mike Perez and Dennis Kinley, from IN, who drove and met us at the lodge.

Despite some fishing restrictions due to heat and low water, we caught and released some quality trout. We fished the Beaverhead, Big Hole and Madison Rivers with guide Dave King, owner of King Outfitters (406) 596-0209 in Dillon, and his talented group of guides. I’ve fished with these guides for more than 20-years, they work hard, do a great job and know their fishery well. We had great action on 5 and 6-weight fly tackle with brown and rainbow trout to more than 20” on streamers, dry flies, dry/dropper and nymph rigs. The dry fly action was with a variety of grasshopper patterns, sometimes with a nymph dropper, or with a smaller dry fly and a few other bugs. Like fishing everywhere, there were good days and slower days but overall it was great!

Equipped with an industrial size kitchen and a large dining room with ranch style seating, it is a great place for a group. Chef Annie Kubicka spoiled us with hearty Montana meals and desserts! The weather and scenery were outstanding with temperatures ranging from a very comfortable high 40’s in the morning to the mid 80’s in the afternoon with only 10% to15% humidity, a welcome relief from southwest Florida’s heat and humidity in August! In addition to beautiful valleys surrounded by rugged mountains, the wildlife is amazing! We saw lots of deer, pronghorn antelope, hawks, eagles, ducks, geese and sand hill cranes.

Back in Sarasota red tide is an issue, but there are areas of clean water that are fine. Catch and release snook fishing around dock lights and bridges should be a good option now. There should be tarpon in areas of upper Charlotte Harbor and Tampa Bay. Juvenile tarpon in canals and creeks may also be a good option. You might also find them in a few places mixed with snook in dock lights. Due to the nature of red tide, conditions may change from day to day so be ready to adjust if necessary. Our natural resources are under constant pressure from red tides fueled by residential, industrial and agricultural runoff, toxic spills and intentional releases, freezes, increasing fishing pressure and habitat loss and degradation, please limit your kill, don’t kill your limit!

Tight Lines,
Capt. Rick Grassett
FFI Certified Fly Casting Instructor
Orvis-Endorsed Fly Fishing Guide and Casting Instructor/CB’s Saltwater Outfitters
Orvis Outfitter of the Year-2011
Snook Fin-Addict Guide Service, Inc.
www.snookfin-addict.com and www.flyfishingflorida.us
E-mail snookfin@aol.com
(941) 923-7799