Originally published January 2007
I rarely get to go fishing. I’m not kidding. I’m a charter boat captain and I usually leave the fishing up to the client while I spend my time giving instruction, tying on fresh rigs, baiting hooks, casting and hopefully unhooking fish. If you’ve ever taken your family fishing then you have a pretty good idea of what’s involved during my day on the water.
Not long ago I was waiting at the dock for my passengers to arrive. The weather was what pilots and boat captains like to call “marginal”. A low pressure system was developing over the Gulf of Mexico and the forecast called for steady rain. The good news was there was no mention of high winds or lightning. When my folks arrived at the dock the decision was made to reschedule for another day. I had explained to them that getting wet was most likely, but that the bite should be really good because of the impending bad weather. They really weren’t equipped though, clothing wise, so we set up another date and they were on their way to breakfast.
As I was walking back to my truck I got to thinking about how rarely I get to fish alone. “Hmmm”, I said to myself, “I’ve got a fully equipped boat sitting in the water with bait, food and drinks on board. I’ve got a full-body Gore-Tex foul weather suit and there’s rising water, overcast skies and a low pressure system building in the Gulf.” I put the truck keys back in my pocket.
There was a light rain falling as I pulled away from the dock. I decided to make my first stop at the end of the long bar just outside of the Sanibel Bridge. The pompano had started to show up there a couple of weeks ago along with lots of mackerel and bluefish. Not today… The sharks were in, big time! In less than an hour I’d caught and released several big bonnet heads, a couple of black tips and one five foot bull shark. The smaller game fish were nowhere to be seen and having had my fill of “shark fun”, I headed for one of my favorite areas; Matlacha Pass.
I love the waters of Matlacha. It’s one of few places that you can fish and see only one or two other boats the entire day. Local knowledge of the water is required to navigate around the many oyster and sand bars and that keeps most unadventurous anglers at bay.
The rain was steady as I pulled up on a spot near a small creek opening. The water was coming in slowly around one of the mangrove points so I cast a free-lined shrimp on a circle hook just upstream and let it slowly move along the mangrove line with the current. Pop!!! It was the unmistakable sound of a snook hitting bait near the surface! I reeled the tension out of the line and the fish was on. After a brief struggle I was able to pull the 25 inch snook out of the mangroves, land it, measure and release it. Things were looking good!
Over the next couple of hours I caught three snook, four nice redfish, a bunch of sheepshead and several mangrove snapper. I released everything except a couple of sheepies for dinner and then decided it was time to head for home. The inbound tide had started to slow as it reached its peak and with that, the fishing had slowed as well.
The ride back was wet but uneventful. I passed small oyster islands along the way covered in white pelicans, royal terns and gulls. I saw an eagle on a channel marker and lots of dolphin feeding on ladyfish and mullet near the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River. I only passed one other boat along the way; a crabber pulling his traps.
After arriving at the dock I cleaned the fish and peeled off the wet rain gear.
There were breaks in the cloud cover and the rain had finally stopped. What a great day it had turned out to be; lousy weather with lots of fish! I made a mental note to do this again as soon as possible.
Captain Rob Modys
SoulMate Charters
Thursday, December 18, 2014
Tuesday, December 2, 2014
Trash Fishing
I have to admit it. I love fishing. As long as my rod is bent and the drag is singing I’m a happy man. I’ve found that to be true for a lot of anglers and that’s what brought me to this month’s topic... Trash fishing.
Seriously. A ton of articles have been written about how to catch tarpon, snook, redfish and seatrout, but I can’t seem to find a thing on the art of landing ladyfish, crevalle jacks or catfish; the elusive trash can slam. So I thought I’d take it upon myself to enlighten the readers with what I’ve learned about the big three of trash fishing.
I’m really not sure how the crevalle jack got on the list. Perhaps because it has little or no food value. But it makes up for that short coming with more fight, pound for pound, than most redfish I’ve hooked. They’ll readily eat just about any live or artificial bait and they don’t give up even when lifted out of the water. The “jack attack” is, without a doubt, one of the most exciting things I’ve seen while fishing. Imagine a school of about 50 fish cruising at about 15 mph, hell bent on eating everything in their path. It’s a ton of fun to throw whatever you can in front of this moving bus. And that’s what it feels like when your offering gets taken. You’ll swear you hooked a bus! Any jack over 5 pounds is worth the price of admission. They’ll blast off for the mangroves and then 3 seconds later light the afterburners and head for open water. hey move so fast I’ve seen anglers looking the wrong way for the fish and then ZING the line comes tight and the tip of the rod breaks off. Now that’s fishing!
There are two places in our local area that I target big jacks. Number one is the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River and a close second is the north end of Estero Bay. For some reason these two locations seem to always hold the biggest fish. In Estero Bay they seem to school more closely together then in the river but both areas are target rich environments. The easiest way to find them is to throw a few handfuls of live white bait in the water and watch for explosions, or you can simply blind cast a lure that looks like a bait fish. Always keep you eyes open for birds. The terns and gulls will usually hang right over a school of jacks hoping to pick off whatever leftovers the jacks leave behind.
Ladyfish are fun. Really! When the going gets tough and you can’t seem to buy a bite from any other species, there are almost always ladyfish to rescue the fishing trip. They are nicked named the “Poor Man’s Tarpon” for a reason. They jump and somersault when caught and 75 percent of the time throw the hook. But don’t worry. Just as soon as your dislodged lure lands back in the water there is another ladyfish waiting to attack it. They usually school up by the hundreds and they are relentless in their pursuit of your offering. It’s not all that unusual to catch two at a time on a lure.
For those of you that don’t already know this... ladyfish make great cut bait. I’ve caught just about everything catchable in southwest Florida using a chunk of this fish. Redfish adore it and a snook will pick it up off the bottom without much fanfare and swim off with it. I’ve also picked up huge trout and cobia using ladyfish, not to mention finicky tarpon.
Ladyfish schools move around quite a bit depending on weather and tides but the one place they seem to stay near is the grass flats out in front of St. James City on Pine Island. Once again, look for the birds. Ladyfish create quite a ruckus when feeding and they leave lots of leftovers behind for the birds to pick up. They’ll hit just about any type of artificial lure that looks fishy but make sure you move it quickly. They love a quick retrieve.
Catfish.
Why on earth would I give you tips for catching catfish?
Capt. Rob Modys
Seriously. A ton of articles have been written about how to catch tarpon, snook, redfish and seatrout, but I can’t seem to find a thing on the art of landing ladyfish, crevalle jacks or catfish; the elusive trash can slam. So I thought I’d take it upon myself to enlighten the readers with what I’ve learned about the big three of trash fishing.
I’m really not sure how the crevalle jack got on the list. Perhaps because it has little or no food value. But it makes up for that short coming with more fight, pound for pound, than most redfish I’ve hooked. They’ll readily eat just about any live or artificial bait and they don’t give up even when lifted out of the water. The “jack attack” is, without a doubt, one of the most exciting things I’ve seen while fishing. Imagine a school of about 50 fish cruising at about 15 mph, hell bent on eating everything in their path. It’s a ton of fun to throw whatever you can in front of this moving bus. And that’s what it feels like when your offering gets taken. You’ll swear you hooked a bus! Any jack over 5 pounds is worth the price of admission. They’ll blast off for the mangroves and then 3 seconds later light the afterburners and head for open water. hey move so fast I’ve seen anglers looking the wrong way for the fish and then ZING the line comes tight and the tip of the rod breaks off. Now that’s fishing!
There are two places in our local area that I target big jacks. Number one is the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River and a close second is the north end of Estero Bay. For some reason these two locations seem to always hold the biggest fish. In Estero Bay they seem to school more closely together then in the river but both areas are target rich environments. The easiest way to find them is to throw a few handfuls of live white bait in the water and watch for explosions, or you can simply blind cast a lure that looks like a bait fish. Always keep you eyes open for birds. The terns and gulls will usually hang right over a school of jacks hoping to pick off whatever leftovers the jacks leave behind.
Ladyfish are fun. Really! When the going gets tough and you can’t seem to buy a bite from any other species, there are almost always ladyfish to rescue the fishing trip. They are nicked named the “Poor Man’s Tarpon” for a reason. They jump and somersault when caught and 75 percent of the time throw the hook. But don’t worry. Just as soon as your dislodged lure lands back in the water there is another ladyfish waiting to attack it. They usually school up by the hundreds and they are relentless in their pursuit of your offering. It’s not all that unusual to catch two at a time on a lure.
For those of you that don’t already know this... ladyfish make great cut bait. I’ve caught just about everything catchable in southwest Florida using a chunk of this fish. Redfish adore it and a snook will pick it up off the bottom without much fanfare and swim off with it. I’ve also picked up huge trout and cobia using ladyfish, not to mention finicky tarpon.
Ladyfish schools move around quite a bit depending on weather and tides but the one place they seem to stay near is the grass flats out in front of St. James City on Pine Island. Once again, look for the birds. Ladyfish create quite a ruckus when feeding and they leave lots of leftovers behind for the birds to pick up. They’ll hit just about any type of artificial lure that looks fishy but make sure you move it quickly. They love a quick retrieve.
Catfish.
Why on earth would I give you tips for catching catfish?
Capt. Rob Modys
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Fishing - The Great Mind Eraser, Published March 2006
This article was first published in March of 2006. I’ve decided to start here because life deals us many challenges, both good and bad, and that’s what these stories are about. Nick Contessa was killed in an automobile accident a few years ago and I lost a good fishing buddy. This Blog is dedicated to Nick and the many people I have shared a boat or shoreline with over the past 61 years of my life.
Fishing - The Great Mind Eraser March 2006
There’s an old saying that goes something like this… Every day spent fishing adds another day to you life. I wish that were true! But there is some merit to the idea that spending time on the water, away from the trials and tribulations of life, can help alleviate some of the day-to-day stress found on the mainland.
Fishing, whether from shore or from a boat seems to be a “mind eraser” for most anglers. I know that when I’m out there looking for the next big snook, redfish or tarpon, I have very little time to think about anything but the approach and the hopeful impending hookup. This is what led me to call a good friend of mind whose father had recently passed away.
Nick Contessa and I had spent quite a bit of time together on Estero Bay fishing and talking about family, work and the latest lures and fishing tactics. The death of his father hit him hard and had taken Nick away from the water. Having lost my dad only a few years ago, I knew a bit about what he was feeling. Like my father, Nick’s dad had introduced him to fishing and had taken the time to see that angling became a part of his life. Nick told me that his dad really didn’t fish all that much himself, but he enjoyed watching and helping Nick. Obviously it’s paid off. Nick is an excellent angler and a pleasure to share a boat with. It was time for him to get back on the water. I called and we set the date.
We started early and headed to one of our favorite spots at the top of the bay. The fish were there and the fun began. We found school after school of marauding jacks chasing bait around and through the oyster bars. Some of the schools were so large the push of the water in front of them looked more like that created by a pod of dolphin! The mix also included a few snook, ladyfish and Nick managed to get hooked up with a big red.
Nick then suggested we try a spot that I hadn’t fished before and we were off to the backcountry of Estero Bay. After arriving we started casting soft plastics to the bushes and the bite began almost immediately. We both got several snook and large trout along with more jacks. The water was falling and the bite continued for over an hour. We still joke about my next comment. “Nick, I don’t think there’s enough water to float a fish back here now. We might want to think about getting out of here before we have to spend the night.” I then looked up under the mangroves and saw a big redfish moving slowly with a bit of his back and tail out of the water. I led him with a cast and within seconds the fight was on! A few minutes later I landed a twenty-six inch fish. After releasing the red and laughing about what I’d said about the lack of water, I spotted another push well up under the mangroves. Nick graciously said, “Go for it” and soon I had another big red on. The drag sang and the fish ran up and down the mangrove line but there was nowhere to hide. The water was well below the roots and after a short tug-of-war Nick netted another twenty-six inch redfish.
We decided it was time to move on so we headed to a creek opening and ate lunch while waiting for the tide to turn back inward. The conversation eventually led to our dads. We reminisced about past fishing outings with them and how we both were instilled with an appreciation of the outdoors and wildlife. We talked about the first fish we ever caught and the biggest. The conversation was never sad. It was more of a celebration of our angling roots. We both felt that if it hadn’t been for them, we wouldn’t be doing what we were doing that day and what a shame that would have been!
After catching a few more fish in the creek we headed for home. The fishing had been fantastic and the camaraderie even better. Nick was back on the water where he should be and both our dads were smiling.
Remember, find the time to take your sons or daughters boating and fishing. It’s important to show them what we enjoy in hopes that they’ll continue the traditions that mean so much to us.
Capt. Rob Modys, November 2014
Fishing - The Great Mind Eraser March 2006
There’s an old saying that goes something like this… Every day spent fishing adds another day to you life. I wish that were true! But there is some merit to the idea that spending time on the water, away from the trials and tribulations of life, can help alleviate some of the day-to-day stress found on the mainland.
Fishing, whether from shore or from a boat seems to be a “mind eraser” for most anglers. I know that when I’m out there looking for the next big snook, redfish or tarpon, I have very little time to think about anything but the approach and the hopeful impending hookup. This is what led me to call a good friend of mind whose father had recently passed away.
Nick Contessa and I had spent quite a bit of time together on Estero Bay fishing and talking about family, work and the latest lures and fishing tactics. The death of his father hit him hard and had taken Nick away from the water. Having lost my dad only a few years ago, I knew a bit about what he was feeling. Like my father, Nick’s dad had introduced him to fishing and had taken the time to see that angling became a part of his life. Nick told me that his dad really didn’t fish all that much himself, but he enjoyed watching and helping Nick. Obviously it’s paid off. Nick is an excellent angler and a pleasure to share a boat with. It was time for him to get back on the water. I called and we set the date.
We started early and headed to one of our favorite spots at the top of the bay. The fish were there and the fun began. We found school after school of marauding jacks chasing bait around and through the oyster bars. Some of the schools were so large the push of the water in front of them looked more like that created by a pod of dolphin! The mix also included a few snook, ladyfish and Nick managed to get hooked up with a big red.
Nick then suggested we try a spot that I hadn’t fished before and we were off to the backcountry of Estero Bay. After arriving we started casting soft plastics to the bushes and the bite began almost immediately. We both got several snook and large trout along with more jacks. The water was falling and the bite continued for over an hour. We still joke about my next comment. “Nick, I don’t think there’s enough water to float a fish back here now. We might want to think about getting out of here before we have to spend the night.” I then looked up under the mangroves and saw a big redfish moving slowly with a bit of his back and tail out of the water. I led him with a cast and within seconds the fight was on! A few minutes later I landed a twenty-six inch fish. After releasing the red and laughing about what I’d said about the lack of water, I spotted another push well up under the mangroves. Nick graciously said, “Go for it” and soon I had another big red on. The drag sang and the fish ran up and down the mangrove line but there was nowhere to hide. The water was well below the roots and after a short tug-of-war Nick netted another twenty-six inch redfish.
We decided it was time to move on so we headed to a creek opening and ate lunch while waiting for the tide to turn back inward. The conversation eventually led to our dads. We reminisced about past fishing outings with them and how we both were instilled with an appreciation of the outdoors and wildlife. We talked about the first fish we ever caught and the biggest. The conversation was never sad. It was more of a celebration of our angling roots. We both felt that if it hadn’t been for them, we wouldn’t be doing what we were doing that day and what a shame that would have been!
After catching a few more fish in the creek we headed for home. The fishing had been fantastic and the camaraderie even better. Nick was back on the water where he should be and both our dads were smiling.
Remember, find the time to take your sons or daughters boating and fishing. It’s important to show them what we enjoy in hopes that they’ll continue the traditions that mean so much to us.
Capt. Rob Modys, November 2014
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