May 7, 2013

I am a little delayed with my fishing report.  Time has just gotten away from me for the last few weeks.  A busy April flew by and here we are into May!  The fishing action has been very good overall with some large snook, redfish, tarpon and sharks making appearances.

Snook fishing has been good with fish ranging to the 20 lb. mark in the passes and channels near the outside.  Plenty of small fish are still scattered through the back bays and taking live baits as well as soft plastic swim baits and flies.

Redfish have been reliable as well and as usual the higher tide phases provide the best opportunities with well placed baits under the mangrove cover.  We did find a good number of reds on a recent trip while fishing a falling tide under several docks behind Keewaydin Island. There were snook and some seatrout to 20 inches mixed in.

Tarpon are of course the stars of the late spring line up in Southwest Florida and they are showing in good numbers. They are being found in the larger inside bays and when the weather and wind are cooperating, along the beaches.  Starting last weekend, we have had a prevailing NW wind making the gulf waters very rough and turbid shutting down the beach run tarpon fishing for a few days.  I expect it to bounce back by next weekend when the winds finally turn around and the waters clear up.  We should continue to have good tarpon shots through June.

Capt. Todd Geroy

 

April 21, 2013

As I sit writing this report on a Sunday afternoon with summer-like thunderstorms outside, I can’t believe how quickly the seasons have changed in just a matter of a couple of weeks.  The fishing scene has definitely made a fast transition into a warm pattern with tarpon, big sharks, snook and redfish all in the offering right now.  An angler can pretty much pick his quarry and pursue it with reasonable confidence of success.

Tarpon have shown up in good numbers through out the back bays.  We have dedicated a few trips to them in the last week or so and have managed to hook up with 7 big fish while bringing two boat side including a big 120 lb. tarpon caught by Burke Cessna.  Plenty of big sharks are in the same areas and are keeping us busy between tarpon bites.  The sharks are a “sure thing” right now and are ranging from 5 footers to 8 foot behemoths in excess of 250 lbs!  The most common are bull, lemon and blacktips.

Snook fishing has been good.  We have had some trips releasing upwards of 20 fish in a half day.  There are loads of 20 to 25 inchers with a few 30 inches and bigger thrown in the mix.  We are finding snook just about everywhere from the passes to deep in the back country.  Live sardines are key to catching big numbers.  A by catch while snook fishing has been an abundance of hard fighting jack crevalle.  We have caught jacks to 15 lbs. in the last couple of weeks.  These great fighters really put anglers and gear to the test!

Redfish have been cooperating with quite a few fish caught averaging 24 inches. Live baits fished tight along flooded shorelines are getting the most bites.  Catching redfish right noiw is a matter of making good casts in specific pockets and points and moving often to cover as much water as possible. They seem to hit on the first cast or two if they are in the area.

Ben and I are looking forward to more great fishing during the next few weeks.  Tarpon fishing should get better and better through April and into May.  May and June are peak months for big tarpon in Southwest Florida.  Contact us for remaining dates during premium tide phases.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

April 9, 2013

April is underway and we are finally settling into a more normal spring pattern.  Throughout the last few weeks, we have ridden the rollercoaster of weather as cold fronts continued to roll in each week bringing record low temperatures and some very windy days.  It has been said by locals that we have the best of the worst weather in the country!   I have to agree to that statement.  Never the less,  we have kept busy with full schedules despite some challenging weather days. As spring break continued throughout the country, many of our trips included youngsters visiting from the north seeking any kind of action.

There were some good days and some tough days but despite conditions, most trips caught plenty of fish and many produced some nice fish.  Plenty of sheepshead kept us busy when things were rough, as they did not seem to mind the muddy water and rough conditions.  Several trips found a few nice redfish and black drum along the mangroves as well as some very nice trout.

We are on a warming trend now and the fishing is already starting to break loose as snook are getting more active along with more redfish and quite a few tarpon showing up as the waters warm quickly.

Catch and release snook fishing has been great the last few days, with a couple trips out releasing up to 20 fish.  Live sardines are eagerly being consumed by the snook that almost seem deprived of a good meal after a pretty harsh winter.

Redfish are starting to show in better numbers and are averaging 3-6 lbs.  A trip a few days ago with Bill Porter and Wynn Paulson with me produced a  flurry of nice reds as we found them schooled up.

Capt. Ben has kept busy and is keeping is clients on the fish recently.  Here are a few of his early April catches…

Spring is in full swing now.  Let’s get out for some outstanding tarpon and snook fishing soon!  Prime tide dates are going fast for the next couple months.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

March 25, 2013

We have had a pretty good run of action in the last week with few exceptions.  Capt. Ben and I have managed to keep the rods bent on a variety of species including everything from sheepshead, trout, pompano, redfish, big jack crevalle and snook to big sharks and even a hook up on a large tarpon on Ben’s boat.

Sheepshead continue to be schooled up heavily spawning in the passes.  Trout are being caught through out the area from outside passes to inland channel edges as they begin their spring spawn.  Redfish are starting to turn on a little more now along mangrove shorelines and oyster beds.  Snook fishing is picking up with fish scattered everywhere from the passes to inland bays.

I spent two afternoons with Ted Noeftling and each of two sons, Tanner (8) and Will (6) from Pittsburgh.  Will and Tanner caught countless sheepshead before we moved on to find a bigger pull on the line.  Using live sardines, the two anglers soon were hooked up to some solid jack crevalle running to 10 lbs.  Tanner had his hands full with this feisty jack…

The following day Ted returned with his 6 year old son Will for his first backwater fishing trip.  Will really worked over the fish all afternoon as he counted all 28 fish he caught.  The sheepshead were more than cooperative but Will also managed to catch mangrove snapper, sea trout, spanish mackerel and snook during the afternoon outing.  Here is Will with a beautiful trout…

Will’s first snook…

Capt. Ben got his clients onto a similar variety of fish though the week.  He also managed some nice redfish including a couple on an outing with Whit Harvey and wife Jo Ann.  Here is Jo Ann with one from Friday afternoon…

On Saturday, Ben fished with Bob Ellis and family for the second time in a week.  The plan for this day was to head into the back bays in search of sharks.  They weren’t disappointed as within minutes they were hooked up and brought a 6 foot bull shark boat side for a release.  Three more sharks were hooked up including another bull brought to the boat, a battle with a large blacktip which ended up biting through the leader and another shark that managed to send back an empty hook.  The finale in the last minutes of the morning trip was a 100 lb. class tarpon hook up that put on the usual spectacle of jumps before managing to throw the hook.  A great thrill for anglers even when they get away!

The tarpon have been in the area off and on for the last couple of months.  They should become more an more active as waters finally stay on the warm side.  The tarpon will soon become a primary focus on many of our trips.  It is just a matter of comittment to get the hookups.

It is time to get on the schedule for some big spring fish in SW Florida!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

March 17, 2013

The saying is that “March roars in like a lion” has held true this year!  The last two weeks have brought some relentless weather systems to Southwest Florida.  With one cold front after another bringing cool temperatures and many days of strong northerly winds, water temperatures dropped into the 60 degree range making fish a bit lethargic.  It has been rare to have a day where we have taken the jackets off.  Despite that, Capt. Ben and I have had a full schedule and have been working hard to keep clients on the fish.  Some days have been just plain tough to get the bites with less than favorable conditions, some days have turned out some fine catches.

Sea trout have been cooperating in some of the deep channels way inside.  I fishes last Friday afternoon with Dave Dougherty and Jim Chisholm.  The guys caught at least 30 trout in one spot using Gulp shrimp on jig heads.  The fish all ranged from 16 to 19 inches.  all but a couple for dinner were released.

Redfishing has remained a bit spotty, but we managed fish in the 23 to 25 inch range on several trips.  Live shrimp presented along flooded mangroves at high tide produced a few fish.  I expect redfishing to improve as soon as warmer, more consistent weather patterns settle in.  Here are some pictures of a few anglers and their redfish from the last week…

Sheepshead are schooled up heavily in the passes right now and feeding well on pieces of shrimp fished near the bottom. Many of the fish are running in the 3 to 4 pound range.  They provide plenty of action on some of the cooler days and are great table fish.  Along with them are some nice black drum and a few redfish.

On Friday 3/15, Capt. Ben had a busy morning catching a variety of species including this large black drum released by George Bariso…

We are expecting a warmer week ahead.  If this forecast holds true, we should see the return of snook action and maybe some tarpon starting to move into the area.  We are ready for spring to settle in and the fishing action to really explode.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

March 2, 2013

We have now rolled into March and are off to a good start with last weeks fishing showing a strong rebound from previous weeks.  Red tide no longer seems be an issue on the inland waters at least for now.  Warming waters and the return of bait fish have contributed to some great action with snook, redfish and a variety of other fish.

Snook fishing really turned on last week as water temperatures reached the upper 70′s for the first time since early December.  It was as if somebody opened the gates and the snook magically appeared on the scene.  We caught as many as 30 or more on a couple of trips, releasing many small fish and several ranging to 28 inches. Live sardines were the bait of choice.

Redfish were also cooperating on several trips for Capt. Ben and myself.  We sight fished to cruising reds on shallow edges at low tide as well as producing fish along flooded oyster laden shore lines at high tide.  Sardines, shrimp and jigs all took fish this week.

On Friday, Ben fished with Kevin Vance, Scott Steinberger and young sons Jackson and Wyatt Steinberger.  The group caught a variety of fish including redfish, some hefty black drum, snook, mangrove snapper, gag grouper and big jack crevalle.  Here is Scott with a nice redfish…

I spent a full day out on Friday with Bill Palmer, son David and their buddy Gary.  A gloomy, chilly day with temperatures only reaching 63 degrees, we found some great action.  Using live sardines all day  they released over 30 snook, countless jack crevalle and nice redfish.  Here is Gary with a nice redfish released late in the day…

During the week we also found some nice sea trout running to 18 inches along with pompano and bluefish.  I have been spotting some big tarpon in the back bays along with sharks, but we have not made any attempts for hookups yet.  It is looking like March fishing is going to shape up nicely!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

February 17, 2013

Last week brought a continuation of the red tide affecting the fishing action on the inshore waters of our area.  We fished hard and managed to pull off some real nice fish on several trips.  Weather was a challenge with some heavy winds mid week preceding a couple of rainy days Thursday and Friday followed by a strong cold front arriving Saturday.

Or main target through the week was anything that would bite.  I tried to stay well inland for the most part, jumping from spot to spot to knock on as many doors as possible and avoid the worst of the red tide.  We caught some very nice redfish ranging to 25 inches using live shrimp cast into pockets along points and shorelines.  Plenty of mangrove snapper were in the mix as well as some small snook, black drum and some sheepshead.  Casting was difficult with very high tides and windy conditions mid- week, but anglers that could get the baits into tight quarters were rewarded.

We also did pretty well on a couple of the trips fishing the outside passes for sheepshead which are congregating to spawn right now.  We caught quite a few ranging up to 3 1/2 pounds using pieces of shrimp fished near bottom structure.

Trout and pompano remained to be scarce due to poor water conditions in and around the outer bays where they are found this time of year.  Conditions seem to be improving and with the wind change occuring with this cold front, I am hopeful that we will see improvement over the next couple of days.

Saturday morning, I fished with long time clients Doug Brown and his sons Jeff and Dave.  We fished as the front moved through and northerly winds increased and experienced some pretty solid fishing compared to the previous days.  The group managed five nice redfish in the half day along with loads of mangrove snapper and black drum.  Here is Jeff with a 25 inch red caught way inland near Rookery Bay Saturday morning…

Capt. Ben Geroy also experienced similar results on his trips during the week.  Some decent redfish along with a mixed bag of other species kept his clients busy while dealing with changing weather conditions and poor water conditions associated with the red tide.  Friday afternoon, Ben headed out in the rain with Mike Dyer and buddies.  They found a couple of nice redfish willing to play along with plenty of snapper and some jack crevalle.  Here is Mike and the group with a nice backcountry red released on 2/15/2013

- Capt. Todd Geroy

February 12, 2013

Well, the great fishing we encountered last week came to a bit of a speed bump late last week as red tide creeped inland. The algae bloom, having been prevalent along beaches and just offshore during recent months finally made its way through out the inshore waters of Naples to South Marco Island.  There has been an abundance of dead fish washing up mainly mullet and catfish.  Red tide at this level does not kill our game fish but slows down feeding activity as oxygen levels are depleted.  Click Here to learn more about red tide.

Despite the challenging conditions, we are still hard at it and finding a few very nice fish still willing to bite the hooks.  Redfish in the 22-26 inch range can be found cruising the shallow edges at low tide. Yesterday morning (Monday) we found several schools working in less that 1 foot of water.  They were waking, tailing and feeding heavily near the surface on glass minnows.  We made some accurate casts to fish that we could see and managed to hook up with several nice fish averaging 24 inches.  We took two home for dinner and as I filleted them found that they were completely gorged with the small bait fish.  Coming off of the new moon phase, tides are running very high in the afternoon.  Anglers who are persistent in getting their baits far under the mangrove cover are also being rewarded with a few nice redfish each trip.

Large sheepshead are being caught along the outside beaches and passes.  Bottom fishing with a piece of shrimp will fool these picky biters.  Some of them are running upwards of five pounds.  Scrappy fighters, they are also great table fish.

Pompano and trout action seems to have subsided for now, but I expect they will return on the scene as soon as the water conditions shape up a little.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

February 2, 2013

We ended January and merged into February with some outstanding trips last week!   Coming off of the last full moon, the redfish made a sudden appearance from where ever they had been hiding for the last month or so.  Several trips caught more reds than I have caught total in over two months!  Trout and pompano were also willing to bite as well as some large sheepshead and as many as 12 other species mixed in.

The redfish were most active during the afternoon trips.  High tides and steady southerly winds are often the best combination for redfish here and it all came together.  Anglers on both my boat and Capt. Ben’s boat caught numerous slot sized reds.  The larger ones were right at 26 inches.  Live shrimp delivered under the flooded mangrove overhangs were the ticket to success.  Some decent snapper and a few snook were mixed in with the reds.

Some great trout and pompano fishing was also available.  We did well on the morning trips using shrimp tipped jigs worked in deep troughs adjacent to shallow bars and flats.  Most of the trout are running in the 15 to 18 inch range.  The pompano are in the same areas and running from 12 inches to 18 inches.

A strong cool front came through Thursday night bringing temperatures down to 45 degrees Friday morning.  We headed out Friday morning with what I promised to be some of my favorite conditions for winter fishing.  It turned out to be a fabulous day with countless redfish, trout, pompano, snook and 10 other species on fire!

Prospects for February are for more of the same.  Capt. Ben still has some openings through the month.  Plan ahead for the best tides options.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

January 26, 2013

This is my last fishing report for January and while this month has had some ups and downs on the fishing front, I must say that it is winding down on the strong side.  Cooler weather moved in on Tuesday evening and as the water temps have dropped gradually, the fish have gotten more concentrated in the back bays south of Naples.

Trout have been the most responsive targets.  We have managed to boat a bunch of nice ones in the 15 to 18 inch range the last few days.  We are doing quite well fishing channels with Berkley Gulp shrimp rigged on 3/8 oz. jig heads.  The most productive spots are in stronger tide flow, especially where there is a break in the current caused by a merging of two channels or a point or shallow bar creating a rip.

Pompano really have turned on as well.  They are being caught in many of the same areas as the trout.  They are averaging 14 to 16 inches.  A shrimp tipped surgical tube jig is deadly.

Redfish remain scattered with only a few fish caught during the week. Early last week,  I had a dedicated and skilled young angler out for an afternoon with his grandfather and friend.  Rich impressed us with his skills with a spinning rod as he was able to repeatedly fire live shrimp way under the mangrove cover.  The results were several redfish in the 23 to 25 inch range for Rich. While we worked hard to find them, the rewards were high.

With the cooler water, the sheepshead are also making an appearance.  Some of them have been running to about 4 pounds and provide great table fare as well as being strong fighters.

I am looking forward to another busy week and some great winter fishing!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

January 20, 2013

Another busy week as we round the corner to the end of January.  Last week was a productive week overall on both boats with myself and Capt. Ben having success on a number of species and the action picking up from the previous week or so.

We both had good success with redfish on several of the trips.  Most were caught at high tide and took live shrimp either free lined under the mangroves or with a small split shot attached.  Most were keeper size, ranging up to 24 inches.

Trout fishing was pretty good  for me, I managed limits on a couple trips while fishing outgoing tides in channels near shallow flats.  Live shrimp were the bait of choice.  Typically, we have good success this time of year with jigs, but the trout have been a bit picky, only taking the shrimp.  In the same areas, we enjoyed some fast action with bluefish to 5 lbs. and some large spanish mackerel to 5 lbs.  Also a good number of pompano and even juvenile permit.

Friday, a cool front had come through bringing a drastic change to the temperature overnight.  I headed out with Bob and Scott and hit the deeper creeks to avoid the chilly wind.  We sat in two spots for several hours and had continuous action with large black drum, snook, redfish, sheepshead, snapper and flounder.  As the morning progressed, the lack of sunshine and cold wind had gotten to us and we returned to the dock an hour early to clean fish and thaw out.  Finally the sun broke through as I returned on the afternoon trip and again found a mixed bag of drum, sheepshead, flounder, some nice sea trout and a couple of permit.

Another busy week ahead of me and I am looking forward to some great winter fishing in the backwaters!

Capt. Todd Geroy

January 9, 2013

We have been on an incredible streak of beautiful, warm weather for the last 5 days now.  Given that, it probably sounds strange for me to say that I wish it would get cold and windy again!  While this unseasonable warm up is pleasant for us that enjoy outdoor activities, it really throws the fishing action off.

I have been slammed for weeks now, fishing two half days daily except for the weekends.  The fishing has been a roller coaster for the last week with no particular pattern or consistency from one trip to the next regarding what we might catch.  The warm weather has brought in a good number of large tarpon to the backwaters however, I have not given them a shot as I just have not had anglers aboard that seriously want to target them.  I am seeing quite a few in several areas daily.

Another interesting twist has been the availability of good bait fish which are working nicely to bring some snook to the boat as well as lots of big jack crevalle for some hard pulling action.

Redfish are scattered along the mangrove shorelines and while we are able to turn up a nice fish or two with some dedicated effort, the reds have been singles for the most part.  Live shrimp with a small split shot are taking most.  Some decent sheepshead have been showing in the same areas as the reds.

Trout fishing started off pretty good last week, but as the waters warmed up since the last cold front they have practically disappeared.  Pompano action slowed as well, however there are quite a few small ones hitting jigs in the channels outside the passes.

The bottom line is that while the fishing seems to be in a little slump temporarily, it is hard to beat being outside right now.  There are certainly worse ways to spend the day than on the water, enjoying nature and catching a few fish. “You never know if you don’t go”!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

December 30, 2012

I am writing this on a chilly 43 degree Sunday morning taking a well needed day off after a very busy run of trips the last couple of weeks.  We have had ever changing weather recently, with cold fronts moving through every few days.  The fishing action has fluctuated along with the weather as the fish have been on the move.  Pompano, sea trout and redfish have been the main targets.  We are using both jigs tipped with shrimp as well as live shrimp with equal success.

Wayne Fox and Tim Cabral came out just before Christmas for a morning half day.  With water temperatures hovering at 72 degrees,  I netted a load of sardines before the trip and headed to the mangroves to see if we could produce a few snook.  The snook cooperated, with Tim and Wayne releasing several nice fish each.   The star of the morning was Wayne after battling a very feisty 33 inch snook from under the bushes.  We also worked the outside passes near Marco Island with jigs and boated several pompano.  Here is Wayne wtih his big snook…

Other notable trips were Bob McClure and son Joe last Thursday morning.  The duo had a great catch of pompano and sea trout.  Most were caught on jigs tipped with shrimp.  We were fishing in the Rookery Bay area.

Dave Fruend and Nick Smirnov fished Friday afternoon and pulled a bunch of redfish out of one pocket on a mangrove shoreline in Johnson Bay with live shrimp.  A couple of them were invited home to dinner.  The redfish were running from 18 to 24 inches.  We then proceded to a channel  bordering a long flat.  It was loaded with trout.  Several were caught on jigs, but most seemed more interested in live shrimp.

We have been finding a wide variety of other species on many trips with as many as thirteen different fish being caught.  These include snook, redfish, trout, pompano, black drum, sheepshead, flounder, small permit, mangrove snapper, jack crevalle, goliath grouper, black grouper, bluefish and spanish mackerel.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

December 11, 2012

Southwest Florida has been experiencing some unusually warm weather so far this December.  And while we have been enjoying it, it has made the fishing a little hit and miss.  By the end of November, the waters had cooled and put the fish into a typical winter season pattern.  With the warm up, the fish seemed to have scattered more and while we have had some great trips others are finding it a little more challenging.

I have been going back and forth with both live sardines and live shrimp as well as jigs trying to find a pattern to success.  We have managed to find some nice snook to 34 inches along with some giant jack crevalle destroying the sardines.

We are still finding a few pompano in the back country channels with jigs tipped with shrimp.  There are a few trout scattered in the same areas.  Although scattered, we have been managing a few decent redfish on most outings.  They have been taking shrimp as well as live sardines.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

December 2, 2012

Another full week behind me and rolling into a busy December on the the back waters of Naples and Marco Island.  My trips last week were pretty productive and brought a wide variety of species with as many as 13 different fish caught on a half day trip!

Pompano, sea trout and redfish were the main targets, however some nice snook were caught and released early in the week including a 13 lb. fish by long time client Mike Randall.

Pompano and sea trout were cooperating while fishing the channel edges and holes with jigs tipped with shrimp.  There were many other fish in the mix as well.  On Thursday morning I fished with the Forte’ brothers, Jack and Bill.  They released 13 species of fish consisting of snook, redfish, snapper, black drum, pompano, sea trout, jack crevalle, lady fish, blue fish, sheepshead, blow fish and grouper!

Friday morning, I fished Charlie Reid and Bill Stoutenburg.  The two had a busy morning catching trout, pompano to twenty inches, a dozen redfish to 24 inches as well as six or so other species.

I expect more great fishing in the next week with water temperatures warming and great weather expected.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

November 26, 2012

November is winding down this week and as is usually the case this time of year, the fishing scene is in full transition right now.  I have had a full schedule of two half day trips each day for the last week and mother nature has brought in a solid week of down right chilly weather.  With that, the fishing action has changed with some new targets showing up such as pompano, trout and bluefish.  Snook have seemed to go into temporary hibernation as water temperatures cooled down to 63 degrees in some of the back bays.  Redfish are still working the area, however we have had to really hunt for them catching mostly single fish in one spot and moving on.  Most of the reds have been in the 23 to 24 inch size range.

The pompano are throughout the back country channels adjacent to shallow flats.  Moving water is the key to success on either tide.  A favorite bait for these tasty fighters is a 1/4 to 3/8 ounce jig.  I like to tip the jig with a cleanly cut segment of fresh shrimp tail.  anchor or drift on the channel edge and make cast across current.  Keeping the tip up slightly, bump the jig up off the bottom with a sharp one foot hop, retrieving the slack as it falls back to the bottom between hops.

My favorite jig is sort of a Naples entity developed on the Naples pier a half century ago. The tail of the jig is nothing other than a short piece of surgical tubing. Chartreuse and pink are colors of choice.  These are easy to make and there are several locally made versions available in area tackle shops.  I attach a piece of 25 lb. leader directly to the line with a modified surgeons knot.  Here is my typical rig…

The redfish action last week was hit and miss.  While most trips caught a few nice reds, we were never able to locate them in schools.  We targeted them in deeper mangrove edges as well as shallow oyster bottom and cover with live shrimp or jigs.  Moving spot to spot, when we found a fish, it was and instant strike.  The reds were all nice fish running 23 or 24 inches.  Friday morning, Barritt Gilbert and son William worked hard for some nice results catching and releasing several pompano and then moving on to releasing several nice reds.  Heres William with a 24 incher caught in heavy cover…

I have another busy week ahead, and with the weather finally on a warming trend along with strong tides, I expect it to be more productive.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

November 14, 2012

Every now and then despite everything going for you such as great weather and good tides, the fish gods just aren’t smiling.  Tough days when all is going for you is just the way fishing is sometimes.  Such has been our experience since my report a week ago.  While we had a great time on every trip with some nice fish hooked and caught, a few were lacking in the action we expect this time of year.

I ventured out into the Gulf of Mexico early in the week fishing just offshore of the beaches.  With calm conditions, we found plenty of spanish mackerel and bonito feeding voraciously under clouds of gulls and other sea birds.  They were easy targets, and we caught plenty while casting jigs into the feeding frenzies.

In the back country, the action was a bit spotty.  We did manage some nice redfish on each trip along with snook and some big jack crevalle.  Live sardines were the bait of choice.  We also took some fish taken on shrimp imitations on 1/4 oz. jig heads.

This morning I fished with long time clients Tom Iverson, Jay Sandza and friend Kim Shearburn and managed six slot reds averaging 25 inches while sight fishing on a very low tide.  The fish were cruising water as shallow as 6 inches.  A bait placed in the right spot in front of the them got immediately consumed.  We also caught several snook to 25 inches along the same banks.  Later in the morning after a lull in the action,  we headed to a snook spot that had been red hot a couple of weeks ago on similar tides.  Right away, Tom was hooked up to a 14 lb.snook.  After finessing it out of the mangroves on light tackle, the fish came aboard for a photo and release.  Here’s Tom with a great catch…

After that fish was released, Jay and Kim were instantly hooked up with two more big snook at the same time!  Kim’s managed to throw the hook while Jay’s stayed tight and burned into the mangroves.  Jay eased tension on the fish and we managed to pull close to shore and boat the fish.  This one weighed in at 15 lbs!  Jay with his snook catch before release…
Great November fishing action in the Naples backwaters!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

November 7, 2012

November started out a little rough on the fishing scene as Hurricane Sandy skirted the east coast bringing some very strong winds to Florida.  That was followed by a cool front which really slowed the action for several days.

We adjusted to the conditions for a few days, targeting redfish with to jigs and live shrimp instead of the live sardines that had been the norm.  It paid of pretty well on several trips, with some decent numbers of reds being caught.  These were all slot fish in the 22 to 24 inch range.  Last Thursday afternoon, Jay Sandza and Tom Iverson managed to boat ten nice redfish fishing the oyster laden shorelines of Rookery Bay.   The reds took Berkley Gulp shrimp on 1/4 oz. jigheads as well as live shrimp.

As the waters settled down by last weekend, the sardines showed up again in large numbers.  I fished the annual two day Redsnook tournament with Doug Poe and Jim McGuire.  Despite good bait being plentiful, we found the fishing to be off on the first day with only small snook to 25 inches and reds to 23 filling our card.  A family medical emergency forced Jim to head back to Alabama after day one.  We recruited my son Capt. Ben Geroy to fill in on day two.  Fishing turned out a little better filling the card with reds to 23 inches and a 31 inch snook caught at the last spot by Ben.  We ended up 6th in the field.  A good time to benefit the Conservancy of Southwest Florida.

Fishing improved the last two days with some larger redfish to 26 inches being boated on each trip as well as some good snook action with fish ranging to 27 inches.  Joe McGurrin boated this nice 26 inch red on Monday morning…

Another cool front is moving through today as I write this and I expect the pompano and sea trout action to heat up after it’s passing.  Cooler waters usually move these fish into the backwaters in November. I have a very busy month ahead and am looking forward to some great days on the water!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

October 28, 2012

This will be my last report for October and the month has certainly lived up to it’s reputation as one of the very best months to fish in the Naples Backwaters!  I have been fishing every day and my anglers have been having great trips with plenty of redfish and snook action.  Last week brought some very windy conditions due to Hurricane Sandy skirting the east coast, but that only turned on the fishing more.  We are getting our first strong cold front of the season moving through as write this, and it remains to be seen what that will do to the fishing for next week.  I am sure we will be changing up the techniques and adapting to the conditions.

Redfish have continued to please anglers with some trips catching and releasing as many as 20 on half day trips.  Live sardines free-lined along the mangrove edges at high tide are being eagerly consumed by the redfish.  A little live chumming gets them going when they are being picky. All of the redfish are running within the keeper slot with most measuring out at around 23 inches. There are some larger fish in the 29 inch in the mix as well.

Snook have been cooperative in many of the same spots as the redfish.  We are also releasing up to 20 fish on several trips.  Plenty of small snook in the 18 to 24 inch range have been the norm, however a couple trips got into fish that were running in the 15 to 20 lb. range.  Unfortunately this week, the big fish beat us up by running my anglers lines deep into the heavy cover and breaking free.  Not before several epic battles with these great fish.

Dave Rowe and Wayne Mulligan fished with me on Tuesday morning.  We were off to a slow start for the first couple of hours with only a few jacks and a big 26 inch flounder to show up for our efforts.  But later in the morning as the tide started out, I found the honey hole!  Wayne and Dave ended up hooking up on slot redfish and snook on nearly every cast that was on target for nearly an hour!  We released close to 20 redfish in the 19 to 26 inch range.  A couple of the reds along with the flounder made it home for dinner.

Friday morning, as the winds picked up to gusts to near 30 knots, I fished with Chris Mans, his cousin Pete Mans along with brother-in-law Matt Head.  The trio enjoyed a fantastic morning of action as the fish were on a feeding frenzy obviously connected to the weather change.  We released countless snook and redfish along with too many big jacks crevalle to count.  At the last stop, Matt slugged it out with a couple bruiser snook in the 15 to 20 lb class only to end up cut off in the cover or with a pulled hook.  What a blast we had though!

I have a full week of trips booked next week with the annual Redsnook tournament next weekend.  I’m looking forward to some good days on the water!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

October 16, 2012

The seasonal migration of “snowbirds” from the north has arrived a little early this year and they have kept me very busy with daily trips.  Fall fishing has continued to be excellent with a variety of fish cooperating.

Redfish and snook continue to be the headliners with as many as 20 of each being boated on several recent trips.  Even on some of the slower days, my clients have been rewarded with larger snook in the 15 lb. class as well as some juvenile tarpon to 30 lbs.

As usual, the redfish and snook are feasting on live sardines of which there are endless schools along the coast right now.  A little live chumming gets the fish active when they are being finicky.  Tides don’t seem to matter as long as the water is moving.

Friday morning, I took Rich Kamp and his 16 year old son Parker out to bend the rods.  They caught some beautiful redfish and plenty of snook throughout the morning.  The highlight of the trip was a 15 lb. snook caught by Parker at the last stop.  This fish really gave Parker a challenge as it made a strong run into the mangrove roots and tangling in the heavy cover.  Parker was able to finesse the fish out and we were soon celebrating his largest snook ever!

There is still time to get out and enjoy some great fall fishing in Naples!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

October 7, 2012

Wow!  As I’ve mentioned before, October is one of my favorite months to fish the backwaters in SW Florida.  Last week was no exeption.  On several half day trips, my clients enjoyed plenty of action with snook, redfish and juvenile tarpon.

Snook fishing was good, but as the week went on the action seemed to taper off.  However the redfish action really took off as we had trips catching 25 or more fish during half day trips.  The redfish are averaging 24 inches and seem to be just about everywhere we stop right now.

The highlight of the week was Friday afternoon, with long time client John Shroyer and his daughter Susan.  The two found constant action with redfish (boating at least two dozen in four hours) as well as several snook, flounder, too many jacks and a hookup with a 40 # tarpon by John which ended up with a cut off in the mangroves.

John managed to muscle in a huge 24 lb. 26 inch redfish from under the mangroves.  This was the largest red ever boated in the backwaters aboard my boat during my 31 year career!  My previous boat record was 17 lbs.

Bull reds like this and larger were common in the 1980′s but were always caught in the gulf or near the passes.  This was certainly a trophy fish as well as a fish of a lifetime!

Here’s John and Susan with the prize catch before release…

This morning (Sunday) I had a repeat trip with Chuck Maston and buddy Chris.  We managed a mixed bag of several slot redfish, snook, two juvenile tarpon, snapper, gag grouper and plenty of fiesty jack crevalle.

I  am looking forward to another great week on the water!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

October 1, 2012

Rolling along now into what is usually my personal favorite month for back water fishing here.  Snook, redfish and tarpon are all potential targets and the action can be all day long.

I had some great snook action on trips the last two days.  I found snook throughout the area and had anglers releasing as many as 30 fish per half day with several running up to the 14 lb. range.  Live sardines provide the best results.  I am fishing quite a bit in the Johnson Bay area right now as well as along the Intercoastal waterway between Naples and Marco.  Moving water is the key regardless whether the tide is incoming or outgoing.

This morning, I fished with Chuck Maston and buddy Chris Conure.  the duo boated and released more snook than they could count.  Chuck battled the two largest fish which were 11 and 14 lbs.  Once the tide came in a bit, they managed 4 redfish up to 26 inches before it was time to come in.  There were plenty of jack to fill in the gaps between all the other bites to keep lines tight all morning long!

Here’s Chuck with his two prize catches of the morning…

It’s time to book now for some of the best fishing our area has to offer!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

September 25, 2012

More of the same action last week as redfish continue to prowl the back waters of Naples and Marco Island.  Snook action has been very good as well.

Reds are congregating along hard bottom shorelines at high tide as well as shallow channel edges during low stages.  Low tides have brought some good sight fishing opportunities lately.  Live baits as well as jigs and other soft plastic lures are being eagerly consumed by the hungry reds.

Snook continue to be just about anywhere we fish.  We are boating fish to 30 inches on each trip while releasing as many as 25.  On Friday afternoon, I got a quick trip in between rain storms with young anglers Dylan (7) and Carson (5) Phelps.  We stayed close to home with the pending severe weather but both boys managed to boat a number of snook and a few redfish in a short time.  The highlight was a 29 inch snook caught by Dylan on a new rod and reel that he had received a few days before on his birthday.  A nice job by both guys!  Here is a picture of the three of us with Dylan’s snook…

- Capt. Todd Geroy

September 17, 2012

We’re mid-way through September now and things have continued to improve along the fishing front.  Temperatures have started to transition ever so slightly, but just enough to allow the waters to cool down to about the 83 degree range.  That makes the fish happy and has put them on the move.  Snook and redfish both can be found just about anywhere through the waterways of SW Florida from the beaches to well into the back country.

Redfish have become very reliable targets now as is the norm for this month.  We are finding plenty of schooling reds along the mangrove edges on the incoming tide, especially at the higher stages.  As usual, they are taking live baits such as sardines and shrimp, but jigs also get plenty of takers.  Most of the reds are running 22 to 26 inches.  Some larger fish are being caught in the passes such as Gordons as well as off the Naples pier and along the beaches.  These fish are running up to 20 lbs. and will take live and cut baits with a little weight added to get near the bottom.

Snook are also more active throughout the day now and are also just about everywhere you go.  Plenty of small fish in the 18 to 26 inch range are keeping our lines tight with my half day trips boating from 20 to 30 per trip.  Last Friday morning’s trip brought three hookups with fish in the 15 pound class.

Minimal boat traffic and fishing pressure right now make September one of the very best months to fish here.  Take advantage of it before the “snow birds” arrive!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

September 6, 2012

I can now say that the fishing action has totally rebounded since the weather events of last week stirred things up.  Waters are settling down and the bait fish have returned, bringing plenty of activity for a variety of fish the last several days.

Last evening I fished with local client Jim McCann and his buddy Mark Banks, visiting from Dallas.  After blacking out the bait wells with loads of baits, we headed down towards Rookery Bay for what would be a full evening of catching.  The two boated and released a bunch of redfish and snook as well as too many scrappy jack crevalle to count.  A couple redfish were taken home for a fish fry.  We also found a pretty good bunch of tarpon in the 25 to 40 lb. class rolling up and down a shoreline late in the evening.  We had several good shots at them, but did not get hooked up.  It is good to see that many of them around and hooking up is just a matter of commitment and a little luck.

There are some nice mangrove snapper around as well,  a trip the other morning near Gordons’ Pass produced a limit of these smaller but tasty fish.  They were aggressively attacking 1/4 ounce jigs and averaged 12 to 15 inches.  I have noticed plenty of spanish mackerel in the area both inshore and outside the pass.  They are feeding on small baits near the surface. I would expect some large tarpon to be feeding along with them and on them in the same areas soon.

While this is one of the most productive months of the year to fish,  it is also the most quiet on the water as far as fishing pressure.  It is slowest for my business making it a great time to schedule a trip on short notice before things start to get busy again in October.  Give me a call and get in on some great action while having the waters all to yourself!

August 30, 2012

Thanks to Hurricane Issac skirting us as a tropical storm last Sunday and Monday, I can say that so far this week, the fishing was a bust with strong winds and torrential rains keeping us off the water for a few days early in the week.  Things are now improving and I am heading out with a couple of anglers this afternoon to see what we can round up.

Before the storm, we were enjoying consistent action with schools of redfish as well as some good snook action through out the back waters below Naples.  I expect things to bounce back pretty quickly as the weather pattern is getting back to normal.

I did have to break my “cabin fever” yesterday morning as I headed out for a little scouting with my golden retriever, Cooper on board.  I worked some points and sections of shorline for a couple hours with a 1/4 oz. jig and was pleased to catch several snook and a couple of slot redfish with out too much effort.

Last Thursday, my son Ben along with my fishing buddy Capt. Rob Walczak and I headed south for our annual Flamingo fishing trip.  We left Naples in the wee hours of the morning to launch Rob’s skiff in Flamingo around 8:30.  We had some incredible fishing using spoons and jigs.  By 9:45 we had already boated and released nearly 30 redfish and several nice snook.  As the tide fell, we moved onto the flats for some sight fishing action.  Redfish were on the move everywhere for the remainder of the day.  We continued to boat numerous reds in less than a foot of water using weedless spoons.  Ben got top nods with several large fish including this 30 incher. I always appreciate the rare opportunities I get to be on the bow for a change as well as sharing the day with two special fishing partners.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

August  21,2012

The big news on the water this week has been that the red fish are starting to show up in good numbers.  We found good schools of them on several trips in the last week and boated numerous fish in the 20 to 24 inch range with a few of them topping out at 30 inches.  Live baits such as pilchards and Gulp! shrimp on a 1/4 ounce jig head are both taking plenty of fish.

Friday morning, I fished with local angler Jim McCann.  Jim and I managed to dodge the numerous thunderstorms that were moving through the area and found plenty of hungry redfish cooperating.  There were plenty of small snook in the mix although, one was 29 inches.

Jim released this nice 10 lb. redfish early in the day…

Yesterday morning, I fished one of my popular specialty shark trips with Rob Walker and his boys Danny (10) and Johnny (13). These up state New Yorkers are avid anglers and the boys have had plenty of experience with a variety of fish.  They were aboard to take on a new challenge!

We didn’t have lines out very long before Danny was hooked into a sporty little 3 foot lemon shark.  That was fine, but I assured them that was just a warm up for what was to come.  Minutes later, Danny’s bait was picked up again. This time it was obvious that he had a much larger shark hooked up. For a solid hour Danny battled the giant, pulling with all his might by any means possible.  He prevailed and finally brought a giant 7 1/2 foot lemon shark to the boat. I got the tailer on the fish and with Robs help, we put it on the deck for a few snapshots.

Here is Danny putting his body into the fight…

A tired young angler, guide and a big lemon shark before release…

Now it was Johnny’s turn.  He had hooked into another briefly while Danny was doing battle, but the hook pulled.  The tide went slack and there was a lull in the action for about a half hour.  We relocated to another spot nearby and were rewarded.  This time Johnny was hooked into a shark that made a blazing 300 yard run across the shallow bay with a trail of mud behind it!  We gave chase with the boat to recover the line and soon we were being towed back across the bay on a SW Florida sleigh ride!  Johnny was in for a long fight also and after an hour, he too boated a 7 1/2 foot lemon shark.

Here is Johnny putting the heat on his big catch…

Johnny and Capt. Todd with the business end…

Two great memorable catches for two enthusiastic young anglers.  Great job boys!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

August 15, 2012

I have been fortunate to have been fishing most every morning during the last week during what is usually our slowest month of the year for bookings.  Daily thunderstorms as well as warm water temperatures have made the fishing a little challenging the last few days. However, we have been having some action with the snook and redfish.  The later which seem to be making a stronger appearance than the previous weeks.

There continues to be loads of pilchards along our beaches which is not the norm for this time of year.   Just one toss of the cast net is producing enough bait for the morning trips.

Snook action has been okay, with most of them in the 20 to 24 inch range.  The larger snook have been hiding lately.  Most of the snook we caught last week were before 10:00 in the morning.

Tides have been favorable for redfish,  with high tides during the mid morning hours.  We are catching keeper reds on every trip.  Although not schooled up as I will expect in about two weeks, they have been reliable targets.  The usual jack crevalle and plenty of mangrove snapper are in the mix as well.

Sharks are still in the program, although I found the action a bit hit and miss the last few days.  I can only blame it on the slower tides and perhaps the heavy runoff from the rains over last weekend.  We are getting some hookups, with a couple of good ones boated last week.

Here is a shot of your captain trying to figure out how to best get the hook out of a sizable lemon shark last week…

August 7, 2012

The hot weather has continued here since my last report with just a bit of relief with some brief afternoon showers.  Water temperatures have now spiked to 90 degrees on the area beaches making for some lazy fishing action overall.  Not to say that we haven’t had some great trips with some big fish caught in the last week, but the window of feeding action is short.  The best action has been at day break and around sunset.

Snook action remains pretty good in the passes with a lot of small fish schooled up and gorging themselves on the millions of small bait fish that have been gathering there.  It has actually been hard to catch them at times as they are so committed to the micro baits that they are even ignoring our offerings of flies, plugs and small live pilchards.  I have some good success last Friday evening with local angler Doug Poe and a couple of his friends however.  The three found plenty of snook cooperating in the Rookery Bay area before sunset releasing dozens along with some fiesty jack crevalle.

Tarpon made a good showing for us during the full moon phase last week.  I had clients jump a number of fish on several trips using DOA Baitbusters on light spinning tackle.  We managed to boat a fish of 40 lbs. on Friday morning followed  by a great catch on Saturday by a female angler.  24 year old Maddy Werner of Ft. Lauderdale hooked into a big tarpon on her third cast as the tarpon were in a sunrise feeding frenzy.  A long battle followed with the fish taking us nearly two miles offshore.  After two hours, Maddy finally had the big fish boat side.  We estimated the fish to be in the 115 lb. class.  After a quick photo opportunity, the fish was released and an exhausted Maddy celebrated a great catch!

This morning, I fished a four hour shark trip with Frank Thomas along with his son Peter, both visiting the area from London, England.  We got our fill of action starting with a bull shark in the first five minutes.  The action continued throughout the morning with a total of eight hookups and five big sharks boated.  Two of the sharks were big lemons caught by Peter that ranged 150 lbs. of bigger!  That is a full morning of pulling on some big fish!  We are fishing in the shallow bays for these sharks in less than 5 feet of water!  Great summer action.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

July 30, 2012

Boy, the heat is on here in SW Florida!  The daily rain showers that were so numerous a week ago have subsided temporarily and water temperatures have spiked to 89 degrees along area beaches and well into the 90′s in some of the shallow backbays.  This pattern reinforces the need to get out early for the best action.  While this is by far my slowest time of year on the water, anglers willing to give it a go have been rewarded with action with tarpon, snook, redfish  and plenty of sharks.

Tarpon action has been a sunrise event here lately.  There are some large resident fish along the outside beaches right now and they will take artificial baits pretty well just after sunrise.  The key is to get out early and catch the short window when they are active before they move off to deeper water and lay low for the rest of the day.  DOA Baitbusters as well as various plugs and plastic swim baits get their attention.

Snook continue to be strong in area passes.  Again, first light of the day brings action with lures, but later in the morning live baits are about the only thing that they seem interested in. I have been easily catching hoards of sardines with a cast net along the beaches.  They are plentiful enough to allow a little “live chumming” to get the fish worked up.

Redfish in the 20 to 24 inch range are still working the shallow bays particularly at high tide.  Live and cut baits cast close to the bushes and in under cut pockets are catching the most fish for us.

Sharks continue to be abundant in the back bays making easy targets for those that wish to tangle with big fish.  The sharks we have been catching are lemon and bull sharks averaging 5 to 6 1/2 feet.  A piece of cut jack or ladyfish does not last long lately.

On one recent outing last week, I fished with Jerry Borian and his son, Pat from Chicago.  Jerry had contacted me a month ago expressing his lifetime goal to hook into some decent sharks.  I told him it should not be a problem this time of year and we scheduled the trip for last Tuesday.  Within  minutes of putting the baits out, Pat was hooked into a solid 100 lb. lemon.  We decided to wrangle it on board for a couple pictures.  By the time we had it released, another shark was hooked up and Jerry boated his first shark, another lemon about 80 to 90 lbs. For the duration of the 4 hour trip, we had steady action hooking into a total of 7 for the morning.  Mission complete!  Here of Pat and Jerry with a couple of their sharks before releasing them…

Get out there early, beat the heat and enjoy some great summer fishing!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

July 23, 2012

The fishing has really been interesting here in the last week with a great variety of species caught for this time of year as well as some more trophy sized snook released on recent trips.

We are continuing to have our share of thunderstorms lately as is the norm for July and I am cautious about the deadly lightning associated with these isolated storms.  We have had to make a run for it on a couple of occasions, and I have lost a couple trips due to weather as well.

When we are out, anglers are hooking up with plenty of snook early in the morning with lots of small fish near the passes now and some big post spawn females showing up in some of the deeper backcountry channels.  Several fish from the 35 to 39 inch range have been released on a few trips.  Large live baits such as thread herring are taking the large fish while smaller pilchards and artificial lures are getting the bites from the smaller snook.

Redfish were active last week and while not schooled up, we were able to pick up a good number of them as long as we kept on the move and made good casts into key pockets along the mangroves.

The sea trout have surprised me this month.  Normally I do not run into many this time of year, but my anglers have been catching some giants frequently while snook fishing.  All of the trout have been in the 22 to 26 inch range and are wide spread from the passes to the backcountry holes.

Last Tuesday, I fished with Mike Milano from Lola, Wisconson.  We dodged some heavy thunderstorms all morning long, but managed a great trip!  Mike and I released 6 snook in the 30 to 35 inch range at the first stop.  We also picked up several nice mangrove snapper in the 12 to 15 inch range and two large trout 22 and 24 inches.  At high tide we moved to shallow oyster lined shorelines and picked up 7 redfish averaging 21 inches.  Several big jacks were also in the mix to keep Mike busy all morning!

I spent Friday and Saturday with an enthusiastic group from Savannah.  Chuck Hazel, Chase Paterno and Thomas Milleran were here for their first taste of snook fishing in SW Florida and the snook did not dissapoint!  They hooked and released countless fish in the two days topped off with Thomas’ 35 incher.  The trio also found some large seatrout, jack crevalle and goliath grouper all willing to give a tug.  We caught fish on plugs, flies as well as live bait during the two days.  Great action and some fun guys to share the water with!

Here is Thomas with his largest snook ever…

- Capt. Todd Geroy

July 12, 2012

Big snook have been the main attraction this last week, with several fish ranging to 20 lbs. being caught and released on charters.  We have been targeting them in deeper channels in the back country.

Baby tarpon have also continued to provide action in the back bays.  They are taking the same live baits as the snook, but also taking soft plastic baits, plugs and flies.  Baby tarpon are ranging from 13 to 30 lbs.

Matt Cantine released ths baby tarpon on July 11, 2012

     I have been surprised to be catching large trout in the channels this time of year.  All have been on the large side from 22 inches to 26 inch monsters.  We have taken a few home for dinner and they are still holding roe, as they had back in late May and June.  Anglers are only allowed one fish over 20 inches per trip, but with the size they have been running it only takes one to make a couple of servings.

Sharks are also in abundance right now as usual for this time of year in the backwaters.  Large bull, lemon and blacktips are easy targets for those looking for a tug of war!

I have been catching thread herring for bait using sabiki rigs (hook and line).  There have also been plenty of smaller pilchards available along the beaches and one shot with the cast net has been loading up the bait wells.  The smaller baits have been best for more action with trout, smaller snook and mangrove snapper, while the large baits are the key for larger species.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

July 3, 2012

Well the weather finally settled down form Tropical Storm Debby last weekend, the water cleared up and we are back in business on the waterfront.  Fishing has been decent with plenty of snook and an influx of baby tarpon action in the backcountry.

Sunrise is the time to get snook action right now as well as the strong outgoing tides in the late afternoon.  I worked Gordons Pass this morning at first light with plugs and found the snook quite cooperative.  We did not run into any of size, but there was plenty of action with the small ones. Later in the morning after collecting a net full of lively sardines, we hooked into a couple larger snook in the 15 to 20 lb. class in heavy cover.  The big snook quickly had their way with us, breaking off.

The recent rains have helped to concentrated the baby tarpon in the deeper backcountry areas.  These are my favorite fish to target in the mid through late summer months.  They take a variety of artificial baits and are a great target for fly fishermen.  We are finding them rolling just off shorelines in shallow bays that are adjacent to deeper channels in the back.  Casting near rolling fish with soft plastic baits, plugs or flies will draw strikes from these wild little fighters.  They range in size from 5 to 25 lbs.   Here is a photo of my son, Ben with a nice little tarpon he caught on fly this morning…

An early start is key to success this time of year with water temperatures pushing 90 degrees by afternoon.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

June 27, 2012

I am sorry to report that I have not been on the water since last Thursday due to the impact from Tropical Storm Debby.  Since last weekend, we have been experiencing torrential downpours, winds gusting to 45 mph. and wide spread coastal flooding though out the west coast of Florida.  Needless to say, nobody has any business being out there in a boat right now.  The waters are very turbid and it is likely that there is not much fishing action anyway.  I have spent the time to do some much needed repair and servicing on my rods, reels and boat.  I expect things to settle down sometime this weekend and plan on hitting the water hard next week.

Before the blow, we were having great success catch and release fishing for snook.  The bite was especially strong during the evening outgoing tides.  I had a return trip with brothers John and Dave Haschek along with Dave’s son, Curtis.  We fished through sunset and had constant action with the snook.  The largest was a 33 incher caught by Curtis.  We stopped the action for just a minute to take a shot of the three happy anglers! 

I also found some slot sized redfish along the islands at high tide.  We took them on both live and cut baits.  Most are running from 21 to 24 inches.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

June 19, 2012

Fishing has been strong here for the last week with catch and release snook fishing still being the main attraction.  We are catching plenty near the passes with plenty in the 22 to 26 inch range as well as some fish to 38 inches mixed in as well.  Live baits are taking the biggest numbers, but flies and other artificial baits are also effective. Typical for summer time, the bite is best in the early morning and then again later afternoon before sunset.

Redfish have shown up in decent numbers with the strong tides associated with the new moon phase.  High tide is the best to catch them under the flooded oyster lined shorelines.  Breezy conditions and very high tides have made for challenging casting, but a good cast getting the bait under the bushes will result in success.  Live sardines, herring and cut ladyfish are all working well.  While the reds we have caught have all been “keepers” in the 21 to 24 inch range, clients have been releasing all.

I have been fishing several trips in the last week with brothers John and Dave Haschek along with Dave’s 9 year old son, Curtis. We have enjoyed catching some nice snook as well as a few nice redfish.  Here is Dave with his first snook, a 12 pounder released Friday.

Enrique Gomez of Miami, brought his two sons over to fish on Fathers Day weekend.  Kyle and Christian had a great morning of fishing with plenty of snook, redfish and jack crevalle to keep their lines straight!

We are expecting a tropical system to move over the area starting later today.  The forcast for the next few days is for rain and some windy conditions.  Hopefully we can still get out and enjoy some fine fishing for the remainder of the week.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

June 7, 2012

I’m finally getting around to updating my “weekly” fishing reports.  I have really been slacking off for the last month, but I promise to get back in the swing now.  I have been on a bit of a marathon of trips for the last two weeks fishing every day as well as most evenings.  I am now taking a few days off for some service to be completed on my motor and to get my tackle into shape once again. The remainder of June is quite busy for me although my schedule is starting to break up a little.  This is a good chance to get a fishing trip scheduled on my calendar and take advantage of some great summer fishing with few other boats on the water!

The weather pattern has been very unusual here for the last two weeks straight.  Westerly winds have made for some challenging trips off the coast to gather live baits for my trips.  On a couple of occasions, I have not been able to make it out of the pass at all with heavy seas.  We have been under a continuous blanket of clouds with scattered showers all of this week.  It has been nice to keep the air temperatures down as well as cooling the water down 5 or 6 degrees.  Water temperatures in the bay last week were reaching 90 degrees in the afternoon!

I must admit that the tarpon fishing this season has turned out to be a huge disappointment.  After a strong start in the early spring, most of the concentrations of fish seem to have migrated through the area already.  With the westerly winds for the last 12 days, we have not had any opportunities to fish off the beaches where we normally find them schooling this time of year.  I have found some smaller tarpon in a few of the shallow bays and managed to hook up with one perhaps about 30 lbs. on a Lucky 13 plug yesterday.  Hopefully things will settle down here in the next week or so, but heavier rain and breezy conditions are predicted for the next few days.

Last week, I fished five consecutive days with long time clients Martin Marlow and his two sons, Josh and Bruce.  These hard working anglers make an annual fishing trip to Florida and really hit the snook hard.  This year was no exception with the guys releasing at least a couple hundred snook including fish ranging to 42 inches.  Several nice redfish and big jack crevalle were also released during the week.  We used a variety of baits including live sardines, thread herring as well as plastic baits and flies.  I must include this picture of Martin, not with a fish but in his full mosquito gear.  Yes, it does get buggy here in the summer, but there are ways to keep them under control!

Snook are staged in the passes and around any nearby structure such as docks and fallen trees on the shoreline.   The snook are not in great abundance in the back country right now as warm water temps. and their annual spawning activity has driven them towards the outside.  Redfish are being caught along with the snook and most reds have been running in the 23 to 26 inch range when we find them along with a few oversize fish.  Here is Tim Thomas with a 13 lber released yesterday…

- Capt. Todd Geroy

May 22, 2012

We’re nearing the end of May and summer is definitely settling in here in SW Florida.  Fishing patterns have made the transition to better action early and late in the day as opposed to all day action.  I have adjusted my trips accordingly, running morning half days, returning for a siesta and heading back out in the late afternoon to fish through sunset.  While there have been a few trips that found the fish a little challenging, we have caught some good numbers of snook, large sea trout and a few redfish along with some big tarpon hooked and several large bull sharks released.

A majority of the snook have moved from the back bays towards deeper water in the passes and along the outside beaches.  At daybreak, they are feeding well taking flies, lipped plugs as well as the usual live baits.  Most of the fish we are catching are in the 22 to 26 inch range, but we have also had run ins with some bruisers over 15 lbs. and running to 20.  Unfortunately, many of the big ones have been taking advantage of many anglers by running them into the heavy cover and breaking our connection.

I fished several trips exclusively for tarpon in the last week, and while we were able to get on a few fish, they were not in large concentrations and bites were hard to come by.  We did manage four hookups with large fish, but none boated.  I feel the warm winter we experienced, brought many fish through the region early.  Hence, we are not experiencing a heavier run.  There are still fish out there, but it may take a serious commitment to get hooked up.

Sharks are in abundance in the backwaters as usual for this time of year.  We boated three large bull sharks from 5 to 71/ 2 feet on one evening trip a few days ago.  I really enjoy watching anglers battle these bruisers of the shallows!  They provide a great alternative to the menu of species and give a great challenge to anglers despite their level of experience. We are targeting them with cut bait and fishing in shallow inshore bays.

Lastly,  I am still catching some beautiful sea trout in some of the deeper holes in area passes.  Several of these fish are running up to 25 inches.  That’s a giant trout in our area!  Here is a shot of Jay Sandza with a 25 incher caught last week…Plan your fishing early and late to beat the heat and enjoy some great May action.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

May 13, 2012

I admittedly have been on a little bit of a hiatus in the recent week or so, not updating my report.  I have been very busy, transitioning into my summer schedule by adding evening trips as well as fishing during the day.   It has left me a little tired and short of time recently.

We have had some great action in the last week with countless snook boated and released as well as some good redfish and trout action.  Live bait has been plentiful and always takes plenty of fish, but we also mixed in some flyfishing and found some snook willing to take the feathers.

Monday morning, I fished with Monday regulars John and Nancy.  They had no trouble getting plenty of snook to the boat for release.  Nancy tore them up all morning with live baits as did John, but John also took several fish on fly.  We also boated numerous redfish along the way. We started the morning in Gordons Pass with the first snook of the day, a ten pounder caught by Nancy.  Here is the couple with her fish before it’s release…

As I mentioned, I also fished evenings through the week and found the sunset snook bite to be on fire!  Each evening trip out enjoyed catching countless snook as well as some big jack crevalle.  We also encountered a few tarpon of all sizes, but did not manage any hookups.

Thursday morning, I fished with brothers Jack and Bill Forte’.  We kept busy all morning long releasing a bunch of snook and slot sized redfish.  Some of the best action the brothers have had in recent months of fishing.

Friday, I spent the day with Mike Jimenez and son Michael (20) of Miami.  I had not seen Mike in over 15 years.  We enjoyed catching up on our lives while the two boated some nice redfish and snook throughout the morning.  A couple reds made it in the box for dinner and Mike released this 29 inch beauty caught tight to a shoreline in Johnson Bay…

In the afternoon we located a school of huge sea trout near Capri Pass in 25 feet of water.  Some of the fish were giants, all running from 19 to 25 inches!  We caught all we wanted, keeping our limit before packing in the day and heading to the Snook Inn!

Happy Mothers Day!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

May 2, 2012

Fishing action picked up by the end of last week after a late season cold front managed to stir up the waters and shut down the action for a few days.  Monday and Tuesday of this week brought the same system returning back as a tropical low, with high winds and plenty of rain.  Despite the conditions, we did fish through it and had some great action with plenty of snook and redfish.

On Monday morning, I fished with John Wadja and Carl Rhodes for a half day morning trip.  We put up with plenty of showers and very windy conditions throughout the morning. The gentlemen were rewarded with some solid action and boated and released numerous snook to 29 inches as well as six redfish.

The afternoon trip was with veteran anglers John and Nancy Poffenberger who also put up with squally weather and winds gusting to the 40 mph range.  We released countless snook throughout the afternoon with Nancy releasing a nice 10 pound fish.  John caught a slot redfish that was invited home to dinner along with a nice flounder donated by Nancy.  Later in the afternoon, Nancy hooked into a monster redfish that I would guess was approaching the 40 inch range.  After a lengthy tug-of-war, we discovered that the fish had run through a random submerged branch laying on the bottom far off the bank.  As I was making an effort to move the boat close to the obstruction and free the line, the fish surged and managed to break off.  Leaving us a little disappointed by not giving us an opportunity to shake fins with it and get a picture, it is now just another story!  We’ll be back next Monday for another shot at it!

Tarpon fishing has been put on the back burner temporarily as the weather just has not cooperated for us to get out on the open water and look for them.  I intend to dedicate some time to them in the next few days as conditions are now improving.  I’ll keep everyone updated on the activity.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

April 25, 2012

While we have had some wonderful fishing here in SW Florida so far this spring, I wouldn’t be honest if I did not admit the last several days have been extremely tough on the fishing scene.  A strong weather system moved through the area last weekend bringing (much needed) heavy rains and strong on shore winds. (not needed)  With that, the waters became very turbid both outside and in most of the inside bays and has really shut down the action temporarily.  However, it should start rebounding by late in the week.

Before the weather change,  my anglers were enjoying the continuation of good action on snook with a few fish caught in the 15 pound range as has been the norm this year.  Plenty of big snook also showed their might by parting their anglers connection to them through the heavy cover!   There continues to be numerous snook in the 20 to 25 inch range all over the place to provide good action.  Live sardines, threads as well as streamer flies and various soft plastic baits are all catching fish right now.

Redfish have been available for my anglers mainly on the higher tides along mangrove edges, especially those with submerged oyster bottom.  The higher the water, the better the bite has been.  The tricky part is getting good casts far enough under the cover for the fish to find the baits.  It is definitely a game of skill to get to them!

Yesterday morning I fished with Steve Henderson under conditions that were far from favorable.  Our plan was to fish with live baits for snook and tarpon, but with the rough, muddy water, no bait was available and conditions just were not good for that plan.  We resorted to fishing with jigs and soft plastic jerk baits.  On Steve’s third cast in a remote backcountry hole, he connected with a very feisty 31 inch, 10 pound redfish.  We assumed perhaps that this day might turn out pretty good after all, but worked hard the rest of the morning catching only a couple of sea trout and some small snook.  We found some larger snook laid up around cover, but could not get their interest with the artifical baits.

Here is Steve with a hefty 31 inch red caught on a jig and released on April 24, 2012…

Hopefully, next week will bring a more optimistic report.   The weather pattern is expected to get back to normal and the fishing should break loose again!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

April 15, 2012

Okay, I’m a few days late on my “weekly fishing report”.  To my defense, I have been very, very busy and with the Easter holiday last weekend, well I just did not get around to it.  With that said, despite some very stormy and windy weather late last week most of my clients have been able to hook into plenty of fish and a few have either had their personal best catches and possibly the catch of a lifetime for many anglers. Large snook, redfish and plenty of tarpon are all in the offering right now!

Snook continue to please this captain and many clients with too many releases to count on several trips and a few notable catches in the 12 to 15 lb. range.  We are taking snook all over the back bays as well as near the passes.  As usual they are crushing live sardines, but are also being caught on soft plastic “jerk baits”.

We have caught plenty of redfish as well, with most landing within the slot of 18 to 27 inches.  Some over slot reds have also been caught and released.  High tide is the time to get them, and a well presented bait or jig tight to the mangroves will get results.  Most are being caught along south facing banks that have plenty of oyster growth along the bottom.

I have been spending more and more time focusing on the many tarpon that are now settled in the back waters as well as migrating along the outside coastline.  We have had numerous hookups so far with a few fish boated.  Along with the tarpon, plenty of shark action is to be expected and they have not let us down.  Lemon sharks to 250 lbs. as well as bruiser bull sharks and speedy black tips have often given us more than we bargained for.

Noteworthy catches the last week were Chris Jeneatte with sons Joel and Jake.  They caught numerous snook including a 15 lber by Chris.  Jake boated a 6 foot lemon shark and Joel provide dinner with a couple of mid slot redfish.  Here is Chris’ biggest snook…

Bob Maynes released his personal best snook of 14 pounds along with others and slot redfish…

Mike Mans showing off a giant sea trout caught on Tuesday morning 4/10…

Jake (10) and Luke(12) Spegal and their dad Dave had a great afternoon on Tuesday 4/10.  the trio had their fill of action with the snook, redfish and some giant jack crevalle.  Luke caught his biggest snook ever, a 12 1/2 lber!  Here’s Luke and his catch…Jake followed up with a huge 13 lb. redfish with a great cast way under the mangroves at high tide!…

Dave and the boys caught several more nice redfish and took a couple home for dinner.  Jake and Luke with 23 and 26 inch reds…

Today I took Mike Mastellone and son Michael (15) on their first tarpon fishing trip.  Beginners luck prevailed as young Michael hooked into the fish of a lifetime.  We were fishing in a shallow bay near Marco Island and after spotting several tarpon working in the area, Michael was tight to a giant fish which gave a tough battle for over an hour and 45 mninutes.   Michael managed to bring the huge fish boatside for a few photos and a release.  I estimate this fish at over 160 lbs, possible in the 170+ range.  It measured out at 7 feet long and had a girth of about 40 inches!  Not bad for his first tarpon!  I’ll have more pictures available in my next update.

Thursday afternoon I fished once again with Luke and Jake Spegal, this time along with their grandfather Dick DeRoberts.   The group released numerous snook throughout the afternoon and Luke once again raised the bar by catching and releasing this 15 lb. snook!…

It’s time to get out an try for your fish of a lifetime!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

April 1, 2012

Last week started off challenging after a bit of a blow as a weak front moved through last Sunday.  Waters were muddy for a couple of days but by the later part of the week, the fishing action exploded with quite a few nice redfish and snook boated as well as several hookups with big tarpon.

Thursday morning broke loose for the Forte’ brothers who are regular on board the “Intowishin”.  Bill and Jack enjoyed a school of feisty reds running to 26 inches while casting live sardines into a remote pocket along the mangroves.  The reds were even striking baits right on the surface beside the boat!  The guys also had plenty of snook in the mix to keep rods bent.  Here is Bill with one of the redfish caught…

Rob Barber and sons Jake,15 and Mark,17 had a great afternoon trip on Friday while releasing numerous snook, redfish and big jack crevalle.  The action was non-stop as they released fish after fish after keeping a couple of nice reds for dinner.  We topped of the afternoon with a few minutes spent to try for a hookup with one of the big tarpon that are in the bays right now.  Within 10 minutes, Mark was tight to a 100 lb. silver king which put on a great arial display before spitting the hook!  That’s tarpon fishing!

Great tides are coming up this week, and I have another full week of trips lined up.  I am expecting some great catches in the backwaters of Naples and Marco Island!

Capt. Todd Geroy

March 25, 2012

Another busy week of 10 half day trips back to back!  While we had some great ones, I wouldn’t be honest without saying that it was probably the most challenging overall in quite some time.  Very strong tides  (extreme high) along with some stiff southerly winds from mid-week until the weekend made us really work for results on a couple of outings.  Even the best trips didn’t come easy.

We did find the snook pretty cooperative throughout the week, with some really nice fish caught on live bait ranging up to 13 lbs.  I found snook schooled up near Little Marco Pass as well as throughout the backwaters in Rookery and Johnson Bay.  Naples Bay also has loads of active snook right now, but heavy boat traffic has been hard to deal with. MIke and Jill Dyer put a hurtin’ on a few early in the week.  Here’s Mike with a nice one…

One of my long time anglers, Bob Messey caught and released this snook after a lengthy battle through an entanglement of flooded mangroves…

Although not really schooled up, there are still some very nice trout in the backcountry channels and are taking live pilchards freelined in the current.  Chumming with live baits seem to get them going.  The trout we caught last week were in the 18 to 23 inch range.  Here is yours truly with 7-year-old Tanner Noethling.  Neither us us could be more thrilled over his trout catch!… Redfish were caught through the week with the afternoon high tides bringing the best action.  Super high tides later in the week made casting challenging, but those who could get baits under the flooded cover caught some nice slot sized reds.  Dan Masservey and son-in-law Robert caught several beauties on Friday afternoon along with plenty of snook.

Tarpon are here, although I still have not invested much time for a hookup.  Along with the tarpon, there are plenty of big sharks such as bull, lemon and blacktips.  Catching these bruisers right now is just a matter of commitment.

- Capt, Todd Geroy

March 18, 2012

Another full week of 10 trips behind me and another busy week ahead!  We had some great trips out on he backwaters last week and caught everything from tarpon, snook, redfish and large seatrout to loads of hefty jack crevalle.  Weaker tides later in the week made the bite a little slower for a couple of days, but we managed to end the week with a flurry of action Friday afternoon.

Monday afternoon I fished with Eric Stone and his son Mitchell, 14 from Tampa.  The fishing action proved hot and heavy throughout the afternoon with numerous snook and redfish boated as well as plenty of hard pulling jack crevalle.  We were fishing with live sardines in the Johnson Bay area when Mitchell hooked up with a beautiful juvenile tarpon, Mitchells first!  The fish made some strong runs against the light tackle as well as displaying some great acrobatic jumps. After a few minutes Mitch had the fish boat side and we quickly retrieved the hook, snapped a picture and released it back into the water.

Right away I knew that with the tide we were fishing and the skill level of the anglers, that Mitchell was well on his way  to a Grand Slam (releasing tarpon, snook and redfish on the same trip).  While Mitch and his dad had caught a few snook before, Mitch had never caught a redfish.  We kept working pockets and it wasn’t long before he got what he was after.  Although not the largest redfish we boated that afternoon, along with the tarpon and several small snook, it did complete his first Grand Slam.  But I was not completely satisfied.

I moved across the bay to a quiet cove where I had several large snook hookups on recent trips.  I directed Mitchell to cast into a deep pocket on his first cast.  The line tightened almost immediately  and Mitch was hooked into what to many would be the snook of a lifetime!  After a 10 minute battle along the mangroves of the shallow bay, We were rewarded with a 15.5 lb. snook!  Again after a quick photo the fish was quickly returned to the water to fight another day.

Here are photos of Mitch’s Grand Slam fish…

Friday afternoon, I had repeat client Ted Neftling and his son Tanner, 7.  We had fished a year ago and had a fabulous trip with nonstop action for both.  I was a little worried about the weak tides putting a damper on our action for this years trip. While we had to fish with great patience, the two had another great experience with some large sea trout to 23 inches, with a couple invited home to dinner.  The snook did not disappoint either, with both Ted and Tanner boating several nice fish each.  And lastly there were some fiesty jacks around to fill in the gaps between other fish.  It is rewarding to see a young angler like Tanner light up when catching a fish and spending time with his father in the outdoors!

Plenty of large tarpon are in the area right now as well as plenty of large bull, lemon and blacktip sharks.  I have not invested any time trying to get hooked up in the last week, but they are out there.  I hope to give them a shot soon.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

March 10, 2012

Last week brought some great catches aboard my skiff the “Intowishin” despite some very challenging conditions early in the week with high winds, extreme tides and dirty water.  Persistence prevailed and several trips enjoyed some fishing action for redfish and snook that is as good as it gets!  Sea trout, pompano and some big jack crevalle were also in the offering.

One trip of special note was Thursday morning.  I took Margaret Smith and her daughter Marge from Lookout Mtn. TN.  Margaret, her late husband, family and friends have been fishing with me for about the last twenty years and we always have a great time together regardless of how the fish are biting.  On this trip, Margaret announced that she was celebrating her 80th birthday!  We headed into the creeks of Johnson Bay with a very low incoming tide and enjoyed non stop action with redfish and snook and trout all morning long.  The highlight of the morning was Margaret boating and releasing a 13 lb. redfish after a lengthy tug-of-war under the mangroves and all around the boat.  We snapped a quick picture and proudly released the beautiful fish.

That afternoon, I fished with regulars Tom Iverson, Jay Sandza and Bob Potter.  With the full moon spring tides flooding the mangroves, accurate casts were necessary to present the baits far into the pockets and over hangs of the shorelines where the redfish and snook were feeding.  The seasoned anglers prevailed and as heavy rain showers moved in on us, they boated fish after fish all afternoon with and equal mix of slot sized redfish and snook.  Tom Iverson also boated a noteworthy trout of 25 inches, his biggest trout ever.

Friday afternoon, I fished with Michael O’Hannon, his father-in-law Scott and 7 year old son Sam.   Extreme high tides made casting to the right spots very challenging, but they enjoyed catching some nice redfish, snook and sea trout along with jack crevalle and a couple monster fish that made their way into the cover to escape us.  Young Sam is a very enthusiastic fisherman and I must say he can cast and fight strong fish better than many adults I have fished with!  We had a blast watching him cast, hook up and fight some nice fish to the boat and then commenting on the catches with great excitement and satisfaction!  It was a great afternoon with great people and seeing little Sam light up when he caught a fish made my whole week!  That is what it is all about!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

March 4, 2012

Fishing the backwaters south of Naples last week started out pretty decent early in the week with quite a few snook being released as well as some good catches of sea trout, pompano  and a few keeper redfish.  By Wednesday however, as the moon reached the first quarter phase, we were dealing with one tide days with zero water movement.  It really shut down the fishing for several days.

We did have some success with the pompano throughout the week.  Using shrimp tipped jigs, we worked clear water channels outside the passes such as Hurricane and Capri and had good success with many of these tasty fish caught.  There were a few spanish mackerel and bluefish mixed in.

On Thursday afternoon, I took solo angler Joe McGurrin out for a shot at some big tarpon with the fly rod.  With slightly less than favorable conditions due to breezy conditions and muddy water in the shallow back bays, I poled Joe across the bays to sight fish for “laid up” tarpon.  While we did  find several fish in one clear patch of water and had several opportunities to present  the fly to single fish as they floated motionless just under the waters’ surface.  No bites, but some exciting moments of anticipation!  We moved on later to catch and release several reluctant snook on spinning  tackle.

We had some run ins with some huge jack crevalle during the week.  Several were caught on light tackle running up to 15 lbs.  Although not a fish for the table, they will really provide a battle even for seasoned anglers.

Here is Wayne Kargher with a handful of big jack crevalle from a trip last week… 

- Capt. Todd Geroy

February 26, 2012

We had another great week of unseasonably warm weather in SW Florida and with water temperatures reaching 75 degrees in the backwaters, my anglers made some great catches.

The main event has still been the numerous large snook that have been available and challenging my anglers on most every trip lately!  We have been hooking up with them along the shallow mangrove shorelines as well as some of the deeper back country holes.  Live sardines (pilchards) are the bait of choice.  While some of these hard running bruisers have beat us up and escaped, we did catch and release some big fish running to 15 lbs!

13 year old Phillip Henricks released this 10 lb. snook…

Mike Dyer released a 34 inch, 15 lb. snook…

Jill Dyer followed Mikes catch with a 35 incher…

A reoccurring topic of discussion onboard in the last year has been regarding the current moratorium on the snook imposed after the massive kill during the severe cold weather of 2010.  While the population of snook seems to be on the rebound in my waters with so many quality fish being caught now, there is still a noticeable lack of fish in other areas, especially further south.  I believe that the moratorium should continue for at least a two more years or until there is an obvious recovery throughout the region.

As far as our local population of snook, I explain that it would be easy to quickly diminish the stocks as they are very territorial.  During a single week, I usually run 10 trips, if we kept a limit of 1 fish per angler per trip… Well you can do the math.  We would quickly destroy this great fishery.  For now, let’s enjoy catching these prized gamefish and continue to release them to thrill another angler!

Redfish made a strong showing last week as well.  With the new moon, strong high tides drove the reds to feed along the flooded mangrove shorelines during the afternoons.  With the high water, casts had to be right on the edge of the bushes and into narrow pockets.  Good casts were often rewarded with some nice keeper sized reds.

We also found some nice trout in some of the deeper backcountry channels.  Along with them, schools of big jack crevalle and lady fish are keeping lines tight.

It’s time to get out there and enjoy some great spring fishing!

Capt. Todd Geroy

February 19, 2012

I am home this morning after a 6 day marathon of 11 half day and one full day trip last week.  I can’t say that the fishing last week didn’t have a couple ups and downs, however we had some very strong fishing all week long with a variety of fish available.  Water temperatures early in the week had dropped over 10 degrees from the previous week after a strong but brief weekend cold front came through. This put the fish in a definite winter pattern for a couple of days.  We changed our tactics and caught up to a dozen different species on trips early in the week.  By mid week, we were back into some big snook along with jumbo trout and some decent redfish!

I left the dock Monday morning with 39 degree air temperature, bundled in several layers.  George Martuccio and his wife braved the chill and once the sun started to warm things up, George was kept busy catching just about every species that swims in the back bays.  Several large black drum were boated along with big sheepshead, seatrout, snook, flounder, snapper, goliath and gag grouper to name a few!  We used both live shrimp and jigs tipped with shrimp.

By Wednesday,  thing started to warm up a bit.  I found plenty of pompano biting near the outside passes as well as some very nice sea trout in the deeper backcountry channels.  Kent Middleton and his son-in-law Rocky found plenty of the previous as well as a beautiful 30 inch back country snook caught on a jig by Rocky at the end of the day!

Here’s Rocky with his snook…

Thursday morning I threw the cast net and easily loaded the boat with several hundred lively pilchards.  Both trips found some eager snook running up to 29 inches as well as a few redfish and sea trout.  Pompano were still active in the Hurricane Pass area on the afternoon trip.  Jigs tipped with shrimp produced the pompano action.

The week of trips was capped off Saturday afternoon with long time client Buck Bowen accompanied by his daughter Kerry Poole and grandson, Sam.  11 year old Sam can really handle a rod and reel and really got a work out all afternoon as the trio enjoyed non-stop action with redfish, snook and big sea trout.  I don’t know how many fish they boated, but it seemed that there was at least one if not three fish on the line all afternoon!

Several trout boated were ranging to 19 inches, with Sam boating the largest trout I have seen in a while.  The fish measured 25 inches and weighed in at just over 5 lbs.  Here is Sam with his giant specimen…

Several giant snook were also hooked and dominated us under the mangroves before Sam came through and muscled a 32 inch beauty to the boat!

Here is a thrilled Sam with his big snook before release…

I have another full week ahead of me with eager clients looking for some of the best fishing SW Florida has to offer!

Capt. Todd Geroy

February 12, 2012

I fished a solid week of 10 half day trips last week and dealt with a myriad of weather conditions as it seemed to change each day, sometimes throughout the day.  We also had some very good trips throughout the week although on a couple, the fish just weren’t cooperating at all.  Anglers aboard my boat caught everything from some trophy sized Snook to Redfish, Sea Trout and Pompano to big Sharks and even one brief hookup with the first Tarpon of the season!

Snook fishing really picked up last week as the water temperatures reached 74 degrees in the back waters.  I had several guests boat beautiful Snook ranging to 14 lbs.  Usually unheard of during the month of February.  We also boated and released plenty of smaller Snook along with them.  Live sardines have been plentiful and I have been cast netting them fresh each morning by the thousands.  The Snook eat them like candy!

Here is a photo of Jay Sandza with one of several that he and Tom Iverson battled on Wednesday afternoon…

Sea Trout fishing was good on the afternoon outgoing tides.  We caught some nice Trout on live sardines in some of the deeper channels well inland.  They ranged in size from 16 to 22 inches.  Chumming with live baitfish got them worked up.

Redfish were scattered more than I expected.  Usually the high tides that accompany a full moon such as last week bring my favorite conditions for finding them schooling.  We did have some success, catching some nice keeper sized fish; however they were not schooled up.  We kept on the move targeting key pockets along the mangroves at high tide and managed some quality fish.

I continued to see more large Tarpon moving into the back bays.  On Friday mornings’ trip, we decided to spend the last hour trying for a hookup.  We found a few fish working in a shallow bay but were not able to get the Tarpon to bite our allotted time.  We did hookup to a big shark that took us on a SW Florida sleigh ride for a while!  It ended up biting through the 100 lb. monofilament leader after giving us a thrill.   On the afternoon trip with another group, we gave it another shot.  This time we did manage to put a 100 + lb. tarpon in the air for a few jumps. The first hookup of 2012! And it’s only the first week of February.

Capt. Todd Geroy

February 4, 2012

With temperatures running 10 degrees above normal for the first week of February, we enjoyed some great fishing all week.  Warmer weather brought the return of the bait fish to the area and with them we experienced some fishing opportunities that are more like mid March or April.

Early in the week, we experienced a couple of back to back days that brought some of the best Redfish action I have seen since perhaps November.  Using jigs and shrimp, Terry Hopkins and his daughter Kelly had a great morning of Redfishing.  The two caught and released over 30 redfish, most of them running from 18 ½ to 24 inches.  Along with the reds, they also caught several Flounder and some nice Sheepshead.  We were fishing in the remote creeks of Johnson Bay.

Here’s a photo of Terry and Kelly with one of the many Redfish they caught…

I was able to easily cast net loads of pilchards for bait for the remainder of the week.  With water temperatures running up to 73 degrees, Snook were eager to eat them up and several trips caught and released as many as 20 Snook to 28 inches. There were also some hefty Jack Crevalle around to keep us busy.  We also caught plenty of Sea Trout in the 15 to 19 inch range on the live baits.  A little live chumming got them in the mood.

With the warm weather, I am now seeing some big Tarpon moving into the area.  I witnessed several large fish free jumping just off shore while I was catching bait.  I have also seen Tarpon starting to “lay up” in some of the shallow bays near Marco Island.  I am dusting off the Tarpon gear this weekend, and preparing to perhaps give them a shot this week.

January 29, 2012

Warm, spring like weather moved in last weekend, causing water temperatures to spike 9 degrees in just a few days.  I must admit that the sudden change in the weather pattern really threw this guide for a loop as the schools of fish that were holed up during the previous cool week moved out and scattered.  The ups and downs of winter time fishing can be frustrating but within a couple days, I was cued in on other action and we had a few really productive, fun trips.

The schools of Trout that we were catching during the last cool spell seemed to completely relocate onto shallower flats in the back bays as well as toward the outside passes.  We had the best luck drifting the flats while casting jigs in about 3 to 5 feet of water.  Once a fish was hooked up, we would stop the boat and fan cast the area.  There would usually be several other fish in the immediate area before we would repeat the drifting process.  We took a few Pompano along with the Trout.

As the water warmed up, I did experience an increase in the Snook action.  We took several nice Snook to 27 inches during the week.  Most were taken on live shrimp pretty far inland in some of the more remote bays.  Don Tilton fishing along with his wife, Denise found this fine winter Snook hiding along the cover of the mangroves…

By mid-week, searching for alternatives, I had ventured out along the beaches and encounter mobs of Bonito (False Albacore) crushing the bait fish just off shore.  I had several trips where we worked the schools of the great fighting fish and enjoyed some fast paced action with these speedsters which ranged from 6 to 10 lbs.  These members of the tuna family are aggressive feeders taking artificial baits and flies well.  They are capable of blazing runs sometimes peeling 100+ yards of line off the light, 10 pound tackle.

Thursday afternoon, Jay, Tom and Kim wore them out while boating and releasing upwards of thirty fish in a few hours.  The trio of anglers had several occasions where they were hooked up on three at a time.  I would get into the action and hook a fourth to add to the confusion, ending up putting my rod in the rod holder to keep the fish on while assisting with landing their fish!  What a fire drill!  We later moved inland to one spot where they continued to catch several redfish. Here is the crew with one of their triples…

Another shot of Jay casting into the feeding frenzy of birds and Bonito!…

Robert Johnson also enjoyed the hard running Bonito on another trip…

-Capt. Todd Geroy

January 21, 2012

Another very busy week brought plenty of good fishing aboard my skiff, the “Intowishin”.  Several trips experienced some great Trout fishing mixed in with just about every other species that swims in the back waters.

A cool start to the week pushed all kinds of fish into the deepest holes and channels in the back bays.  While several mornings were a little slow to start, action got going as the sun warmed things up.  Live shrimp worked well on the schooling Sea Trout as well as jigs tipped with shrimp.  The Trout ranged in size from 15 inch keepers to some 23 inch beauties!

Other species caught along with the Trout were Sheepshead, Pompano, Black Drum, Gag Grouper, Goliath Grouper, Bluefish, Snapper and Redfish.  Mixed bag fishing at it’s finest!

On Thursday afternoon, I fished a half day with longtime clients Mike and Jill Dyer and their friend Diane Angelico.  The trio really put a hurting on the Trout and Sheepshead catching countless fish of both species during a non-stop afternoon long bite!  The trout were all legal size with the largest measuring 23 inches caught by Jill.  Sheepshead were running to about 2 1/2 pounds.  Most of the fish were released, with just a few taken for dinner.  Most fish were caught on live shrimp, however tube jigs tipped with shrimp also worked well.  We fished all afternoon in just three holes in the Rookery Bay area!

Next week brings great tides as well as a great weather forcast.  I’m looking forward to another busy productive week!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

January 14, 2012

Redfish and Sea Trout continued to be reliable catches aboard my skiff the “Intowishin” last week.  My anglers enjoyed nice catches of each with many fish released and a few invited back to dinner!

Trout are being caught in many of the inside channels on 3/4 ounce jigs.  Any type of plastic grub tail will draw strikes.  My “go-to” continues to be a 3″ Berkley Gulp shrimp.  These baits are scented throughout and are very effective without having to tip the jig with shrimp.  Most of the trout are running 15 to 16 inches and we also caught a few pompano mixed in throughout the week.

Redfishing was best during the higher tides in the afternoons last week.   We targeted edges of oyster beds and shorelines with shelly edges.  Live shrimp rigged with a small split shot was the bait of choice.  Some decent sized sheepshead were caught in the same spots with several of them running into the 3 lb. range. We also encountered quite a few flounder and mangrove snapper.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

January 8, 2012

The first week of January brought the coolest weather so far this season with low temperatures at night near freezing and highs during the day only reaching around 60 degrees for several days.  Clients canceled morning trips all week and rescheduled on afternoons or later dates to avoid the chill.  High winds from the NW on Tuesday blew red tide inshore causing a rather massive fish kill in Naples Bay and surrounding waters. It did not have any affect on the waters from Rookery Bay south.

I did fish afternoons from Wed. through Fri. and although the mid week was on the slow side, Friday broke loose!  With Sea Trout season open, I took Dave Fruend and his friend John Henchen out to hopefully provide a fish fry.  The duo easily caught their limit and released at least 60 others in two stops.  Pompano also showed up for dinner.  We caught all fish in the deeper channels in the Rookery Bay area on jigs.

Tides were slow last week, but are picking up for the next 5 days or so with today (Sunday) being the full moon.  Negative low tides in the morning this week should really bunch up the fish in channels and holes in the most remote backcountry areas.  This is usually a great scenario for catching schooling Redfish as well as large Sheepshead and Black Drum.  Of course the trout don’t have much choice other than to drop into the channels and bunch up too.

I’m looking forward to some milder weather this week and with a busy schedule ahead, some great January fishing trips!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

January 1, 2012

We rolled out of December and the end of 2011 with some good fishing trips last week in the backwaters of Naples and Marco Island.  Redfish head lined some of the best trips, but we also had some good fishing for a mixed bag of Sea Trout, Pompano, Bluefish, Sheepshead and Mangrove Snapper.

A strong cold front came through on Tuesday afternoon bringing a chilly morning on Wednesday with a low in the upper 40’s.  On Wednesday morning, I fished with Sam High who is a dedicated 20-year-old Pennsylvania angler.  With a blow out low tide, I ran far into the back country with Sam and fished some deeper ditches and runoffs in the creeks in the Rookery Bay area.  Using Berkley Gulp shrimp on a ¼ ounce jig head, Sam and I worked over Redfish after Redfish.  Sam boated upwards of 25 of them with several fish running between 27 and 30 inches.  All fish were  released.  We also found a few Snook and Trout in the mix.

As the week progressed, the weather warmed back up and tides weakened.  We ended up having to work a little harder for results, but still found Redfish cooperating along shallow mangrove points.  Live or cut shrimp with a small split shot did the trick.  Many of the Reds are running in the “keeper” range from 19 to 23 inches.

Pompano are Trout have also been reliable targets.  They have been schooling in the outside passes near Marco Island as well as some of the inland channels with good tide flow.  Channels adjacent to shallow flats are particularly good.  3/8 ounce jigs tipped with shrimp and fished across current are working well.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

December 18, 2011

Last week brought some incredible weather and fishing that was unlike our normal December pattern.  More large Snook as well as plenty of Pompano and Redfish kept rods bent and clients smiling on every trip!

With water temperatures in 70 – 72 degree range, I was able to easily net loads of sardines each morning.  We caught some really nice Snook for this time of year with them as well as Redfish.  The Redfish also fed well on shrimp and jigs as did the Pompano.

Wednesday afternoon, I fished with regular client Dave Fruend and his friend Mike.  The duo easily boated a limit of Pompano before moving on to catch and release a bunch of Snook to 28 inches and slot Redfish!

Thursday morning, Bill Forte’ boated and released a 13 pound,  32 inch Snook which is a rather fine catch for mid-December!  The afternoon trip was spent celebrating Mike Maxwell’s birthday along with his son Shane.  We hit the Pompano hard at the first stop and moved on to a frenzy of redfish action the rest of the afternoon, boating upwards of 25 Redfish with about half being slot sized.  Snook to 28 inches were also in the mix.  Happy Birthday Mike!  Here’s a picture of Bill with his beautiful December Snook…

Friday brought more of the same action on the morning trip, capped of in the afternoon by Bob Messey and Mike Mans tearing up the Redfish boating and releasing about 30 to 23 inches on the 4 hour trip!  Here’s a picture of Alan Novick with a 22 inch Pompano on Friday morning…

The Pompano are working the outside passes south of Keewaydin Island.  Surgical tube jigs have been working well, tipping them with a small piece of shrimp seems to get a few more bites than without.  They are running from 13 to 22 inches.  Both incoming and outgoing tides have been good as long as the water is moving.

The Snook and Redfish are hitting in the larger bays such as Rookery and Johnson between Naples and Marco Island.  Incoming tides have produced the best results with the Snook and high tide has been the best tide to catch the Redfish.  Live sardines as well as shrimp are both equally effective.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

December 11, 2011

We had and interesting week of ever-changing weather conditions to deal with last week.  From slick calm days with highs in the 80′s to cool, breezy days where the jacket was kept on for most of the day.  All followed up with some rainy periods towards the end of the week.

Fishing the outside passes early in the week brought good catches of pompano and trout on jigs tipped with shrimp.  Way too many lady fish were sometimes in the mix, but guaranteed that the rods stayed bent on nearly every cast in some cases.

I also continued to net live sardines early in the week.  Although the action with them seems to be tapering off a little more each week as the snook start hunkering down with the shorter days.  We did catchsome decent numbers of snook, but most of them were small fish in the 18 to 23 inch range.  Plenty of big jack crevalle continued to fill in where there was a void of snook action though.

Redfish were a little hit and miss with some slot sized reds caught on each trip, but not running in schools of any significance.  We took redfish on live sardines, live shrimp and jigs.  The best action was on the low morning tides late in the week when they were concentrated in deeper holes and run offs near shallow bars.

My boat is down for maintainance the next few days, but I will be back at it hard by the end of the week.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

December 4, 2011

Fishing continued to transition here this week as the inland waters cooled a little as a result of a cool front moving through early in the week. With onshore winds, unfortunately we were also affected by a red tide algae bloom along the coast and throughout the inland waters.

Despite the less than favorable natural events and some weak tides, we had some pretty decent trips last week, I wouldn’t be honest if I didn’t mention that a couple trips turned out to be more challenging and a bit under par!

Early in the week it was quite obvious when we were fishing water that was within the red tide bloom. Lack of any life such as birds, baitfish, mullet and bites in some areas prompted a quick move further inland where we found plenty of activity with redfish providing the most action.

Tuesday afternoon I fished Dave Fruend and friend and caught some nice slot redfish using both jigs and shrimp. We had steady action all afternoon boating about 15 reds mixed in with a number of small snook and some mangrove snapper.

On other trips, I found sea trout schooled up in some of the channels mixed in with pompano and flounder. An interesting note… several flounder boated this week were absolutely choked on dead needle fish that apparently were victims of the red tide and had sunk to the bottom. The flounder were jammed with these often with them protruding out their mouths when we caught them.

The winds are now easterly and should help to push the red tide bloom offshore. This accompanied with stronger tides during the upcoming week should help the fishing really perk up!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

November 27, 2011

Another busy week of good fishing in SW Florida.  While the wild snook action of the last few weeks slowed down a little, we still caught quite a few nice snook up to 30 inches as well as a great variety of other fish willing to stretch the lines!

Beautiful, warm weather was enjoyed throughout the week and with that,  the snook that were previously stacked up on backcountry points seemed to scatter back towards the gulf more.  The passes were holding a lot of snook as well as some banks just inside.  I also saw quite a few along the beach of Keewaydin Island as I ran the length of it one morning.  Live sardines continued to be the sure-fire way to the best snook action.

Redfish were also reliable catches with most of them being keeper sized fish from 20 to 24 inches when we found them.  Casting tight into pockets on windward shorelines with the live sardines took some nice fish.

Amongst the other varieties of species available last week were pompano, flounder mangrove snapper, sea trout and bluefish.  We also had more action with big jack crevalle than I have seen since the cold weather fish kill of 2010.  Some of these jacks are real beasts, running over 15 pounds.  Pound for pound the strongest fighters in the water!  Thanksgiving morning Tom Ennis of Orlando caught numerous snook and some big jacks.  Here is Tommy with a 15 pounder after a long battle on 10 lb. test line…

Friday morning I took out Matt Skidmore, 16 and his cousin Carson, 15.  They are amongst the third generation of the Skidmore family with whom I have fished with since 1984.  They had expressed interest in trying some fishing for big sharks on this trip.  I normally don’t target them this time of year, but with the warm weather I though we had a good chance.  The sharks did not disappoint as we had run after run even hooking up to a double.  The boys boated 2 nice bull sharks and topped off the action on a 6 1/2 foot black tip that had to weigh 110 pounds.  The shark took us over about a mile across the bay and was finally brought to the boat for a release after a 50 minute slugfest.  We then proceeded to smaller quarry, catching several snook, jacks and mangrove snapper before the morning was over.

The Gilbert family fished downright windy conditions on Friday afternoon and found the redfish obliging.  Barritt, William and Thomas caught several mid slot sized redfish as well as snook to 30 inches,  mangrove snapper and sea trout.  The key to the afternoon was casting deep under the cover along the windiest shorelines.  Tricky casting, but they were rewarded with some quality fish.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

November 20, 2011

I am enjoying a morning off after a non-stop run of back to back days of fishing for the last 3 weeks.  I have been extremely busy and with the exception on only one trip which was a little off, the fishing has been nothing but great. As usual, November has not failed to satisfy my clients as we have caught a wide variety of species throughout the week.

We are still enjoying the great run of big snook in the backcountry with number of 30 to 38 inch fish being caught in numbers like I haven’t seen in nearly 20 years!  And these are backcountry fish folks, not in the passes or around docks where most people expect them.  This report will be photo rich in order to back my claims of all who joined the 30+ inch club the last week.

We are taking the largest snook on live sardines.  A little live chumming gets them going.  Once a fish or two are hooked, the snook often go into a frenzy providing fast action and multiple hookups.

Honorable mention this week has to go to my group from last Friday afternoon, Nov. 18.  Bob Messey, Tom Iverson and Jaye Sandza have been regulars aboard the “Intowishin” for years.  They enjoyed some of the most explosive snook action they have ever experienced as we sat in one spot for nearly three hours and battled big fish after big fish,  hooking up with numerous snook from 30 to 38 inches with Bob’s 17 lber being the largest.  There were also some HUGE jacks in the mix with some of them running to 15 lbs!  There were several times where all three anglers were hooked up at once!  All four of us were literally exhausted by the end of the trip!  All fish were caught on 10 lb. test spinning tackle!  Here is Bob with his trophy catch…

Tom Iverson with a 32 incher…

We also had some good redfish fishing in the afternoons on the higher stages of the incoming tide.  We targeted some of the south facing points of Rookery Bay and found 20 to 23 inch redfish cooperating.

Pompano were also making a good showing on several trips near Hurricane Pass as well as Capri Pass.  We took plenty of keepers on surgical tube jigs cast along the transitions of the numerous sand bars in the area.  Incoming tide seemed to bring the best action, but we did catch a few on one stop when the tide was outgoing.

Rounding out the action this week, we also found quite a few nice sized sea trout in some of the back country channels.  We also took these on jigs.  It is closed season on these tasty fish, but it is good to see them showing up and adding to the great variety.

Here are some happy anglers with some of the many large snook caught throughout the week…

Andrew Hartline…

Michael Morris…

Tom Watts…

John Henchen…

Great tides are coming up during the week of Thanksgiving.  I am looking forward to another busy week and some more great fall fishing!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

November 12, 2011

Wow, I can go on and on about the great fishing we have had here in the last week.  I can honestly say that I have not seen snook fishing in the backcountry this good since perhaps 1989.  I have been fishing two half days daily all week and with the exception of Friday after a cold front moved through, EVERY trip scored on numerous snook in the 28 to 34 inch range.  Friday’s weather change put a damper on the snook action for me, but a great redfish bite made up for it!

On Monday and Tuesday, I had a great time fishing with three couples sharing split day trips both days.  Monday morning, I had the ladies followed by the men in the afternoon. The following day, we reversed the schedule.  All trips were super productive with all anglers catching a bunch of snook from under the bushes.  Plenty of them were around the 30 inch range, testing our tackle and skills.  Lynne McNabb caught her very first fish ever kicking off the first morning with a beautiful 29 inch snook.  Kerry Oswald and Laura Ryan also got their share of the action!  The second day continued to be solid with plenty of nice snook, redfish big jack crevalle and even a  6 foot bull shark boated by Lynne.  Great fun with a group of enthusiastic anglers!

The snook have been taking live sardines and with the passing of a strong cool front on Thursday night, I was not able to get into the gulf Friday morning to net live bait.  Instead, I decided to run Bob Maynes and his buddy Mike deep into the back country on a negative low tide to some remote holes in search of redfish.  We were rewarded while casting jigs as the guys caught a mess of slot and over slot redfish on nearly every cast in one spot.  We continued through the morning catching more reds at several spots.

John Poffenberger released this nice snook last Wednesday…Not to be out done, Nancy Poffenberger with another nice one…Fred Smith shows off a beauty from Thursday…

The snook have been taking live sardines and with the passing of a strong cool front on Thursday night, I was not able to get into the gulf Friday morning to net live bait.  Instead, I decided to run Bob Maynes and his buddy Mike deep into the back country on a negative low tide to some remote holes in search of redfish.  We were rewarded while casting jigs as the guys caught a mess of slot and over slot redfish on nearly every cast in one spot.  We continued through the morning catching more reds at several spots.  Mike and Bob show off an over slot red caught by Mike friday morning…Friday afternoon, I took Bob Messey, Jay Sandza and Tom Iverson to chase more redfish.  We released quality “keeper” sized redfish all afternoon, again most of the fish were caught on jigs with a few caught on live shrimp.  Tom with a nice one…

I am on my way in a few minutes for another morning of redfishing.  Although a cool 50 degrees,  It should warm up nicely after a brisk boat ride.  I am anticipating some more great fishing today!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

November 5, 2011

I’m taking the morning off after a very busy week running double half day trips daily.  I will be heading out this afternoon to fish again on this beautiful cool November Saturday!

My clients enjoyed a very productive week on the water despite dealing with some heavy winds the first few days.  Snook were particularly active with Wednesday bringing the single best snook day I have experienced since last spring.  Redfish were a bit scarce early in the week, but by Friday morning the tide and conditions were more favorable and we had great success.

Live sardines took most of the snook, but a mix of live bait and jigs with Gulp shrimp tails worked well on the redfish.

Wednesday morning I fished with old clients Dave and Wayne.  They found the snook very hungry and boated at least 50 fish to 29 inches during their 4 hours on the water.  They hooked snook on nearly every cast at several stops!

My afternoon trip Wednesday was with one of my great lady clients, Dorrie Barton fishing solo.  On her very first cast, she hooked and boated her largest snook ever.  It weighed in at a solid 19 lb. and measured 41 inches!  The bite was on all afternoon, and we continued to catch and release at least 30 more fish including several in the 27 to 32 inch range!  Here are some shots of Dorrie with her snook…

Dorries biggest snook ever! 41 inches, 19 pounds

That’s over 80 snook released in a single day!   Unbelievable!

Friday morning I fished with veteran anglers Ann Dunlap, Alan Novick and his wife Betty.  We have fished together for at least 25 years and Friday was the single most interesting, productive trip ever!  Calm conditions and higher water in the morning seemed like a great opportunity to find the redfish feeding.  We ran to the Johnson Bay area and free lined sardines along the flooded shorelines.  The slot reds obliged at every stop as well as snook, big jack crevalle and even a nice 20 lb. class juvenile tarpon.  Betty hooked up to a giant snook in shallow water that I would estimate at about 18 lbs.  As the fish neared the boat it decided to release itself politely returning our hook!  But only after giving all of us a thrill with a showy fight!

The great fall fishing continues!  November is very busy with only a couple half days still available.  It’s time to grab the last dates and get in on the action!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

Oct. 28, 2011

Well, I’m back on the water again after a well needed, short vacation with family to West Virginia and home through the Blue Ridge Mountains.  While I was away last weekend a fairly strong cold front came through the area and really stirred things up for a few days.  I am happy to report that on my guide trips the last two days, fishing was back to normal and we had some great trips.

Tarpon are still blasting through the mullet schools around the passes especially early in the morning and late in the evening.  Yesterday morning, I headed out in the dark to load the bait well with live mullet before picking up my clients.  We were able to hook into two big tarpon within the first hour of fishing.  Both fish managed to throw the hook after some wild jumps.

We moved on to the back country to target snook and redfish.  With a strong falling tide, the snook were very cooperative and we found them biting at nearly every stop.  They ranged in size from 18 inches to a couple 30 inch plus fish that managed to either spit the hook or chew through the leader.  At least 20 fish were hooked and released.

To my surprise, we did not hook a single redfish which has not been the norm lately.  They just didn’t seem to be biting in the areas that I expected them on that low water.

Today, I fished the afternoon with repeat client Robert Johnson of Naples and his lifelong friend Kelvin Byrne from Chicago.  We picked this afternoon in particular to coordinate with the incoming tide and high water which make up my favorite combo for redfish and snook.  We hit the backcountry with live sardines and found a ton of action.  The gentlemen released fish after fish all afternoon with both redfish and snook equally active.  Kelvin topped off the afternoon with a beautiful, fat 36 inch snook that weighed in at 14 pounds caught against the mangroves on 10 lb. test line!  Great job guys!  Here is a shot of Kelvin (left) and Robert with the fish before release…

A 14 lb. snook from the Naples backwaters. Oct. 28, 2011

-Capt. Todd Geroy

Oct. 15, 2011

I have always said that October and November are probably my two favorite months to fish the backwaters of SW Florida.  If you aren’t on the water this month enjoying the action, you are REALLY missing out!

There are a variety of species in the waters right now, especially redfish, snook and tarpon and they are feeding heavily all day.  We are coming off a full moon which produced strong tides all week.  I fished throughout the week having great success with the redfish and snook during the high tide stages.  Using live sardines for bait, we fished flooded pockets and points along mangrove shorelines and found schools of 18 to 24 inch reds eager to feed.  Plenty of snook were in the mix ranging from 18 to 26 inches.

On Wednesday afternoon, I took out one of my longest standing clients of 29 years.  Jack and his daughter Dorrie absolutely hammered the redfish and snook all afternoon.  We only moved the boat about 4 times and found eager fish in every spot.  I would estimate that the two boated and released 35 to 40 redfish and snook in four hours.  They also invited a couple of nice slot reds home for dinner.

Thursday I took two of three generations of the Smith family from Chattanooga whom I have fished for many years.  Patton and his 8 year old son, Patton enjoyed a busy afternoon reeling in many redfish, snook, flounder, snapper and hefty jack crevalle.  Little Patton is quite the angler and had a blast as he caught and released a bunch of fish as well as providing plenty of fish for a fish fry!  Here is 8 year old Patton with one of his redfish…

Our fall run of tarpon are still very active around the passes and along the beaches where there are heavy concentrations of bait fish and mullet.  Yesterday, I took Naples resident John Suddeth out for a shot at a big sunrise tarpon.  We arrived to the spot at about 7:00 to find the fish in a feeding frenzy and by 7:05 John was hooked up to a big, 95 lb. Silver King!  An hour later the fish was brought boat side for a couple pictures and a release.  John’s first tarpon ever and a great catch for any angler!  Here is a shot of John and I about to release the tarpon…

Capt. Todd and John Suddeth with a 95 lb. tarpon before release. Oct. 14, 2011

- Capt. Todd Geroy

Oct. 9,  2011

Another great week of fall fishing for my anglers in the back waters of SW Florida!  Although we had downright windy conditions all week, the action with snook and redfish was reliable.

The fish especially the snook are definitely starting to move further into the back bays and we found them actively feeding along the windward shorelines and points.  The fish are ranging in size from 20 to 30 inches.  The snook population seems to be recovering very well from the wide-spread fish kill we experienced two winters ago.

There are still plenty of redfish in the area although tides early in the week weren’t favorable as strong outgoing tides and strong east wind forced water out quickly.  The redfish were roaming open water where they were less vulnerable.  The last couple days have brought more favorable high water and the redfish have made a reappearance.

Yesterday I fished with Michael Morris and his buddy Butch Lee for a morning half day. The duo really got into the snook at the first few spots hooking dozens and boating some nice snook to 29 inches.  We also found quite a few redfish all morning.  The reds all were running 18 inches.  Not big ones, but great fun to catch.  Plenty of jack crevalle joined the party for some hard pulling action.  Here is Michael with a nice 29 inch snook before release..

-Capt. Todd Geroy

Oct. 2, 2011

Wow!  What a day we had today!  The first “cool” front of the season eased through last night bringing cool , breezy weather to SW Florida.

I headed out for a morning half day with Bobby and Gary who are repeat clients from Atlanta.  The two were rewarded with a virtual slay fest with a variety of species caught and released including over 40 snook, redfish, flounder, gag grouper, mangrove snapper, plenty of jack crevalle and a tarpon for Bobby to top off a his first ever Grand Slam!  Here is a photo of Bobby with a 34 inch snook he released this morning…

October and November are by far my favorite months for easy fishing for a variety of species.  Large migrations of bait fish head through the area and everything that swims seems to get active and feed all day long.  It is not unusual to hit schools of snook and redfish and accumulate numbers like this mornings anglers.

I am also starting to see the arrival of pompano in the area.  Although I have not stopped the boat to try to catch these delicious scrappers yet, I have been “skipping” them behind the boat as a traverse some of the inshore bays.  Catching them is just a matter of trying but we have been busy with the snook and redfish on most trips recently.  I’ll probably be giving them a shot this week.

I am looking forward to a busy week and more great fall action.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

Sept. 23, 2011

Redfish continued to get most of our attention in the last week.  They are still abundant throughout the backwaters of Naples and Marco.  We are having success with them on both high and low tides and with both live baits and jigs.

The redfish are ranging from 18 to 30 inches with most half day outings boating 20 to 30 per trip.  We are also finding some snook in the mix, although the majority of snook remain towards the outside passes right now.  They should start moving into the back in a few weeks as the waters gradually cool more.

There is a large abundance of bait just off the beaches right now with acres of sardines, pilchards and herring migrating into the area.  I have seen plenty of spanish mackerel working them along with some bluefish and ladyfish.  Bonito should not be far behind.

Shark fishing remains great in the back bays with a nice 6 foot blacktip boated the other day after just 10 minutes of waiting.  The scrappy shark at a blue runner used for bait.

I fished with a group of guys from Atlanta for an afternoon half day recently.  We started off with live bait and caught several fish, but the bite just didn’t seem to be on.  We changed to Gulp shrimp imitations on ¼ oz. jig heads and started picking the shorelines.  That was the ticket!  The trio got into the reds and boated a number of them up to 29 inches.  Here is a shot of Dave with a big red we released…

Yesterday, I fished with Naples resident Jim McCann and his buddy Tim Scott.  We had very high water all morning and the reds were way under the bushes.  Using live pilchards under a popping cork, we managed to float the baits under the bushes and boated well over 20 reds to 27 inches.  There were a few snook to 25 inches in the mix as well as snapper and jack crevalle.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

Sept. 15, 2011

We have continued to have a redfish “bonanza” this week with schools of fish scattered all over the backcountry areas as well as in the passes.  Bait is plentiful in the form of pilchards and it has been no trouble netting plenty anytime.  Snook are providing steady catch and release action with lots of fish available in the 20 to 25 inch range.  A few larger snook are in the mix.  The strongest concentrations continue to be near the “outside” in the passes.

There are also plenty of tarpon in the passes right now ranging in size from 30 lbs. to over 100 lbs.  The best action has been right around sunrise and late in the afternoon on the falling tides.  They are busting schools of mullet as well as small bait fish.  DOA Baitbusters, and lipped plugs are getting the bites as well as live baits.

My wife, Kerry and I headed out the other morning for a few casts at sunrise and she hooked up on a 40 lb. tarpon on her very first cast using a small Bomber plug on a light rod intended for snook.  We went for a SW Florida sleigh ride for 40 minutes before realizing that the fun was over with this fish.  She put maximum pressure on it and performed a “break off release” so we could get back to the short window of action while it was hot.  We got back to the spot and released several snook before heading home.  All before 8 o’clock in the morning!  A great way to start the day!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

Sept. 7, 2011

September has arrived, and with it we have seen some of the heaviest rainfall of the season.  Several days in the last week were a wash out with bad weather, but that has cooled the water at least 10 degrees.  This is good!  When I have gotten out, the redfish have been very cooperative.  This is even better!

In the Naples-Marco backwaters we are enjoying some great fishing for redfish right now.  They are running in size from schooling fish in the 18 to 21 inch range to some 30 inch bruisers.  We are catching them on everything from flies and jigs to natural baits such as shrimp and shiners.  High tide is bringing the most action as the fish move up towards the mangrove edges to feed as the water floods.  Accurate casts along or under the bushes will produce quick results if the fish are in the area.  On the lower tide stages, they move out to the channel edges where there are some good opportunities for sight fishing as they cruise in the shallows, waking and sometimes tailing.

On Sunday Sept. 4, I fished with my long time angler/friend Doug Poe.  We worked shorelines in the Rookery Bay and Johnson Bay area with 1/4 ounce jigs and really wore out the schooling reds.  We also released several snook.

This morning, I fished with George and Vicky Shuert of St. Louis.  The couple also caught plenty of reds from 16 inchers to the 30 inch range.  We used a variety of baits from shrimp and shiners as well as jigs.  Here is a picture of the happy couple with a nice red from their trip…

This is also the time of year when I get to enjoy a little fishing on my own.  Here is a photo of your captain from a day off with my fishing buddy Capt. Rob Walczak last week.  We were fishing in Everglades National Park.  We found plenty of happy redfish in super shallow water from 6 inches to 2 feet deep.  Here, I am showing an example of the full range of redfish available.  It is good to see the up and coming farm team mixed in with the big leaguers…Another decent fish caught on the same trip on fly…

We are just entering the prime time for redfish in Southwest Florida.  The action should only get better in the next month and continue through November.  Get out and get ‘em while their hot!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

August 26, 2011

Fishing action has been on an upswing from a few weeks ago when the summer heat was limiting action to strictly a sunrise and sunset bite.  We have had plenty of rain in the area that has helped cool the inshore waters just enough to make the fish a bit more active.  The live bait has also come back in better numbers and are considerably larger than previous weeks.

The snook fishing has been decent in the passes and along the outside beaches.  We have taken quite a few on plugs, swim baits and flies as well as live pilchards.  I have been doing some sight fishing along shallow edges as well as along the beach and getting plenty of shots at fish ranging to 27 inches.

I spent one morning with fly fisherman Art Nudell of NY, NY.  Art hooked and released several snook to 26 inches using Clouser Minnow patterns as well as a small white streamer.  We found waves of snook in Gordon’s Pass at sunrise gorging themselves on baitfish schools.  They were selective about what flies they took but after a few changes, we found a little Clouser did the trick.  Later in the morning, we were able to sight fish at low tide along some mangrove shorelines and sandy beach areas and score with the white streamer fly.

The high morning tides this week have been just the ticket for catching a few redfish.  We had success with schools of lower slot redfish along flooded mangrove shorelines and oyster bars using live baits.  Several upper slot fish in the 25 to 27 inch range were mixed in.  Once the tide drops for an hour or so, the fish seem to drop out and the bite is done.

I just received some outstanding photos taken by client Paul Tennyson last week.  He was on the camera while his partner Joe Riggi fought and boated a large tarpon on an evening trip mentioned in my last report.  Paul was able to capture some outstanding jump shots I would like to share…

My shark fishing expeditions have continued to be popular and we are having success on each trip.  Andrew Walton of Toronto fished solo on Wednesday morning.  He found himself hooked up on a 6 foot lemon shark within the first ten minutes of having baits in the water.  He had numerous runs and brief hookups for the next couple hours and boated a second lemon of about the same size.  The action slowed after the tide turned as if someone turned off the feeding switch.  We had a great time with these hard fighters.

Andrew brings a feisty shark along the boat…

With the great popularity of my summer shark trips, I have decided to continue to offer a nice discount for half day shark excursions past the August deadline and offer the savings until Sept. 15.  I recommend getting on the schedule soon, as I am getting busy and there are only a few more weeks left to take advantage of the offer!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

August 16, 2011

I have been fortunate to have kept pretty busy with trips the last week considering that this is generally my “slow” month.  My anglers have found a variety of species taking our offerings giving a taste of  a little of everything that the back waters of Naples and Marco have to offer this time of year.

I have been having decent action with the snook first thing in the morning and just before sunset.  They are taking the usual live bait offerings as well as jigs and soft plastic swim baits.  During the mid day hours they seem to just lay low, ignoring just about anything you toss their way.

We are also having some success with the redfish.  Although not in the numbers we will expect to show up next month, I can usually get my clients hooked up on several lower slot fish if not one or two upper slot or over sized reds.  High tide continues to be the most reliable for numbers, but low tide is offering some opportunities for sight fishing to cruising and waking fish as well as a few tailing fish.

Paul Tennyson and his friend, Joe Riggi fished two consecutive half days with me this week.  Last night,  Joe battled a large tarpon in the 100+ pound range to the boat for a release after a 45 minute tug-of-war.  The pair also boated several nice snook ranging to 27 inches on artifical lures.  With low water and slick overcast conditions, we were able to ease along a couple of  shallow shorelines taking shots at several redfish we found tailing and waking in skinny water. Paul placed a perfect cast with a soft plastic swim bait to one waking redfish this morning and was rewarded with an 8 lb. 27 incher on light spinning tackle.  Here is a Paul and his red before releasing the fish…

We ended the trip spending the last hour trying to hook up on one of the sharks patroling the shallow bays. Paul topped off the morning with a 6 foot lemon shark release.

On another trip last week, Joe and Robin Koziol from the Portland, OR area spent the morning dodging the numerous strong thunderstorms while on a shark fishing trip with me.  We had numerous hookups, somehow pulling hooks on at least 6 before Joe and Robin boated both boated nice lemon sharks.

Joe’s shark at boat side…

- Capt. Todd Geroy

August 6, 2011

The “dog days” of summer are here, and I must be honest in my report by saying the fishing can be a little hit and miss in August.  Hot air temperatures bring hot water in the shallows and that can make the fish a bit lethargic.  But there are some decent fish around and the have to eat sometime!  I have been fortunate to have been busy this week and some anglers have been rewarded for their efforts by some fine catches.  Unfortunately, a couple of great days were followed by frustration where we couldn’t seem to find fish feeding anywhere!

We are finding a few decent snook cooperating as well as some slot sized redfish and mangrove snapper for dinner.  Small pilchards have been easy to net for bait and are bringing the best action.  High tide has been the most productive as the fish move up under the bushes seeking shade from the hot sun.   Some of the deeper runs of water with good tide flow also are providing cooler refuge for some fish.  Evenings have been most productive especially when following a decent bout of afternoon showers that cool things down.

One morning last week, I once again had 12-year-old Tommy Ennis of Orlando on the bow.  This time he was joined by his mother, Lisa.  We had an enjoyable morning with Lisa boating and releasing her first snook, a 10 pounder.  That’s the way to get introduced to snook fishing!

Tommy was treated to a “first” also, with his first tarpon ever a beautiful juvenile fish caught under the mangroves.

He followed up by releasing a 9 pound snook after a lengthy tug-of-war with the fish running far into the bushes at high tide.  Tommy kept the power on and prevailed.

One evening shark outing produced three 5 foot bull sharks and a large lemon shark pushing 250 lbs or so.  The inconsistencies of the week followed us on another shark trip the following morning where we only drew one short lived hook up.

The bottom line to fishing this time of year is that you don’t know if you don’t go.  Patience and persistence can be rewarded.  I am counting down the days now until one of my favorite months to fish in Southwest Florida, September.

-Capt. Todd Geroy

July 28, 2011

Aboard the “Intowishin” in the last week, we have continued to find snook cooperating both on live baits and plugs.  No monsters boated this week, but good numbers of smaller fish in the 18 to 25 inch range.  The best action has continued to be early morning and late evening and we caught most of them within a mile or so of the gulf passes.

Redfish seem to be getting a little more organized, with several trips scoring on schools of fish running just into the slot size.  High tide seems to be the best.  We are catching them on small live pilchards, cut bait and “Gulp” shrimp rigged on a 1/4 oz. jig head.  Young angler Tommy Ennis of Orlando boated and released this 7 lb. redfish as well as over 15 snook on Wed. evening…

Don’t forget to take advantage of the special rate for shark fishing trips offered through the end of August!  They are always willing opponents.

July 20, 2011

Inshore around Naples and Marco Island, I am having great success with the snook for the last week. Leaving the dock in the dark most mornings to hit the lower Naples Bay and Gordons pass area for the sunrise bite.

We are catching as many as 20 snook in just 45 minutes at first light using 3 inch lipped plugs along the shorelines. A cast tight to the cover and retrieved at a steady, moderate  pace will draw the strikes. Most of the snook are in the 18 to 23 inch range, but we are also catching a few mixed in around 28 to 30 inches. A great way to start any day!

Last Saturday the 16th, I fished the annual Gator Club fishing tournament benefiting the UF School of Construction. Veteran tournament anglers Tim Rushing and Doug Poe were my partners. We had a great day placing 3rd, missing 1st and 2nd place by just a few inches. We boated lots of nice snook in the morning highlighted by Tim’s 40 inch, 20 lb. snook which was by far the largest in the tournament.

Unfortunately, we were unable to find any sizable redfish, although we did manage to fill our card with schooly sized reds.

The bottom line is we had a great time fishing together as always and the tournament raised a lot of money for it’s charity.

Here is a shot of an excited Tim with his monster snook…

Yesterday, I took out Mike Milano from Lola, WS. We enjoyed the early action as we both released snook after snook on plugs. As the sun came up, we headed south down the beach and rounded up several dozen live thread herring to fill the baitwells. We headed to a “honey hole” where Mike continued the action with several nice snook to 30 inches along with some nice gag grouper running right at 24 inches. All fish were released. We had a great morning and headed in as the sun heated up.

This is a great time of year to get out early, beat the heat and catch some great action!

Capt. Todd Geroy

July 12, 2011

With mid-July approaching, we have been trying to “beat the heat” by scheduling fishing trips early in the morning and late in the evening. The afternoon showers have been getting in the way of some of the evening trips however.

Snook remain to be the primary targets. Sunrise brings a short flurry of 20 to 25 inch fish feeding heavily in the passes. We have great success with small lipped plugs as well as flies that resemble the tiny bait fish that the snook are focused on. Once the sun is up, soft plastic jerk baits and 1/4 oz. Gulp jigs are taking a few fish on well placed casts along the mangroves.

I have also been having success lately on larger snook in the 15 lb. range using live baits such as thread herring and white baits. Moving water is the key and most are being caught along shallow edges adjacent to deeper channels in the backwater areas.

Redfish have made a good showing the last couple weeks with several trips scoring on numerous fish running just in the keeper slot size. We have taken almost all of the reds on live or cut bait at high tide along south facing mangrove shorelines that have plenty of oyster bottom. A well placed cast right on the edge or deep in a pocket is critical for success right now.

Here is a picture of Felice Domingo with a beautiful 14 lb. snook we released this morning…

I am still having great success with the inshore sharks when we want some big action. They are mostly bull and lemon sharks running from 75 to 250 lbs. All are caught in the shallow bays minutes from the dock! Great fun for teenage kids or anyone who wants to get a workout on some hard pulling fast running fish!

I am running special shark only 4 hour trips from now until the end of August at a great discount! Please give me a call or email me for more information and hours available.

-Capt. Todd Geroy

July 5, 2011
With the summer rains now more of a daily event, the fishing has started to make a bit of a transition in the backwaters of Naples and Marco Island.

On a trip last week, we were delayed by some heavy rains in the morning.  After a late start, Dave and Rick Shields of Toronto found the redfish very active.  We filled the baitwells with loads of small baits with a 1/4 inch mesh cast net.  These small baits were just the ticket at high tide as the duo enjoyed boating 15 or so redfish along with numerous small snook, big jacks and flounder.  It has been a couple of months since I have found redfish schooled up.  The reds were in the 17 to 19 inch range.  Not biggies, but plenty of action on a soggy morning.

Today I fished with long time client Jim Cober and his buddy Kurt Smith, both of Dallas.  Jim and I have fished numerous times over at least 25 years.

We had a beautiful morning with a nice breeze, partly overcast, strong outgoing tide and two bait wells packed with lively baits.  The perfect lineup for an epic day on the water this time of year.  Well, we hit spot after spot with out a touch, even hitting a couple of spots that hold loads of snook this time of year with no results!  Every now and then Mother Nature and the fish Gods throw you a day like that just to keep you humble. Not a quitter, I just kept trying.

At the very last stop, I found a huge school of snook shoaled up along a shallow edge.  There were at least 100 fish visible just sitting on the bottom. Many of them were large females that appeared to be upwards of 20 lbs.  We presented cast after cast to them with no results.  Jim and I were reflecting to past successful trips and noting that we had never experienced anything like this one.  We decided to pack it in and just as Jim started to reel in, the line screamed off his reel.  For some reason, a nice snook had decided to reward our patience and took the bait.  The fish made a blazing long run along the shoreline, and after a lengthy battle, Jim boated his biggest snook ever.  We snapped a couple pictures of the 13 lber and after a couple minutes of reviving beside the boat, the fish slowly went back to the school.  Here’s Jim with his well earned snook catch…

All things considered, we had a very enjoyable morning together.  While catching loads of fish is great, the other enjoyable part of fishing is just sharing the outdoors with great people who appreciate being out there.  After all, tomorrow is a new day!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

June 25, 2011

With water temperatures now at 89 degrees on area beaches, it is making an impact on the fishing action here. The trick is to get out as early as possible.

One thing that has been affected directly is the bait fish population. Most of the white bait and thread herring schools have moved offshore to deeper water. I have had to work a little harder to load up for each days trip for my bait anglers.

Once we have the baits on board, anglers have been enjoying some furious snook action at least until mid morning when the sun starts heating up. The fish then seemingly go on “siesta” until going on a short feed in the evening. During the week we hooked several snook approaching or exceeding 20 lbs. only to have them escape by cutting us off in the mangroves or fraying leaders with their raspy mouths. That’s the way it goes some times and that’s why those get big! We still enjoyed some epic battles with the bruisers.

We also found some nice trout cooperating along channel edges while snook fishing. These were large fish, some of which were in the 20 to 22 inch range.

I ran several trips in the last week or so where we also targeting sharks along with the other species. Summer is shark time aboard the “Intowishin” and I love to watch my anglers battle these big fish! We had no trouble boating several bull, lemon and blacktip sharks ranging from 75 to 200 lbs. We are hooking them on cut jacks and mackerel in the back bays.

On one recent trip, Todd Rounding, Ron Petnuch and his son Ryan released countless snook and large jack crevalle before moving on for a couple hours of shark fishing to round off the trip. We ended up hooking up with eight sharks and boating two lemons, and two blacktips. Ron boated an estimated 100 lb. blacktip after a 250 yard blistering run that totally emptied the reel in seconds. Great hot weather action! All sharks are released.

June 11, 2011

The summer heat is on now and so far we haven’t had much relief in the way of afternoon showers.  The weatherman promises that the “rainy season” is right around the corner.  Until then, we continue to work the water in the morning and evening to beat the heat and have the best fishing action.

Snook have continued to dominate the fishing scene and as is usual for this time of year, my anglers are catching good numbers of them including some fish approaching the 20 pound mark.  Live baits are providing the most consistent action, but we have also had some luck with soft plastic swim baits and flies as well.

I fished with Naples resident Jim McCann a few days ago, and he boated  a beautiful 18 lb. snook on light tackle after a scrappy battle from under the mangroves.  Jim and sons Jimmy and Mike boated several other nice snook as well as some hefty jack crevalle.  Here is a photo of Jim’s big snook catch…

We are also still having some luck with a few redfish scattered along the same areas as the snook.  They are running in mid to upper slot size (25 to 27 inches) when we find them.  Yesterday I fished a half day with Tyler and Elizabeth Rounding.  The couple caught and released countless snook and large jack crevalle along with redfish.   Here’s Elizabeth with a nice backcountry redfish…

We have also been having plenty of encounters with some large bull and lemon sharks when ever we want to tangle with a monster.  My clients recently have not been targeting tarpon, but there are some fish being hooked up in the area especially at sunrise and sunset.  All it takes is some commitment.  I continue to have a busy schedule for the next week and look forward to some more great summer action!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

June 5, 2011

I finished another 6 day run of steady trips yesterday and am going to spend Sunday giving the boat and gear some well needed TLC and get ready for the upcoming week. The weather has been warm here with no rain the last seven days heating up the water and making the fish a bit lethargic through the mid day hours.

For the most part, the fishing action has definitely made a shift to better bites early and late in the day.  Although we have been finding the snook stacked up mid-day, they only seem to feed for an hour or two daily.  Despite that, I had several really nice fish boated and released last week including a 13 pounder caught yesterday.  Most of the snook are in the passes or along the outside beaches now, but we proved that there are some big fish pretty far inland too.  My anglers have been taking most of them on live sardines however the larger fish have been caught on bigger baits such as thread herring.  Here is a picture of Joe McGuire from Oxford, AL with one of several snook he hooked near Marco Island on Memorial Day…

Yesterday, I took out  Rich Housh and Jim Todd of Naples for the morning.  Jim boated and released his first snook ever, a 13 pounder!  Here is Jim with his great catch…

I managed to sneak in a single cast on a trip the other day and was rewarded with a 34 inch 14 pound redfish.  I really don’t get to catch too many myself these days!  There are a few nice reds around, but they hit and miss lately.  A bait cast far under the bushes at high tide is the key to getting the bites.  Here is a shot of yours truly…

The tarpon have started showing up in better numbers than previous weeks and we have been spending a little time on some trips sight casting to the small strings and pods that are migrating through.  Most of the fish are moving in shallow clear water off the beach and it take a very well presented bait at a straight on angle to get them to bite, but we did manage to hook up a few nice fish the last couple days.  June should bring plenty more opportunities for anglers to get a chance at the Silver Kings.

-Capt. Todd Geroy

May 28, 2011

Well, sometimes the best laid plans just don’t play out the way you like.  That is the reality of the guiding business and fishing in general.  While you can never guarantee anything in the fishing world, sometimes you try your best to make it happen and it just doesn’t.  That has been the experience with the tarpon in the last week or so.  I usually don’t have any trouble getting on schools of big fish this time of year, but for one reason or another they seemed to be on hiatus in our area last week.  We are coming off of a quarter moon phase making tides run slow last week but with the upcoming new moon, I expect a stronger run after Memorial Day.

I did have success with a couple of groups of fly anglers last week.  We did a lot of sight fishing along the beaches casting into the many schools of snook cruising in the shallow, clear water.  We took quite a few fish on the beach as well as around the passes at sunrise and sunset as well as around the lighted docks in the bay at night.  Most are eating small, white flies and other bait fish imitations.

Blackwell Smith and his cousin David Patten came down from Chattanooga for a few days of fly fishing.  We had several enjoyable trips and released quite a few snook.  Here is a shot of Blackwell and his wife Dana enjoying my version of the summer Naples nightlife with a typical snook caught on fly after dark…

George Maggini came down from Cincinnati with some fishing buddies for a few days of fishing at the end of the week.  The group took quite a few snook on fly as well as bait and while we did find a few baby tarpon in the backcountry, we did not succeed in any getting bites.

Friday evening, George boated and released this beautiful redfish deep in the back country… (Notice the frost damage on the mangroves in the back ground from the winter of 2010)

We also took a several other redfish in the last week.  We are finding them along the mangroves and while not schooled up, they are running from 24 to 30 inches when we find them.

-Capt. Todd Geroy 

May 15, 2011

Fishing the inland waters of Naples and Marco last week, we enjoyed some great catches of a variety of different species of fish.  The focus of the weeks’ trips was action fishing and we found plenty.

I fished another trip with the Hotchkiss family with Paul and Tracy aboard last Monday evening.  With Paul completing his first “Grand Slam”, boating snook, redfish, trout and tarpon all in the same trip.  We absolutely tore up the snook in several spots releasing countless fish up to 30 inches.  Tracy boated and released a beautiful 26 inch gag grouper in the mix of snook action.  Paul went on that evening to release several upper slot redfish along with some smaller schoolies as well as trout and some bruiser jacks.  After sunset, we found more eager snook and some baby tarpon feeding in the darkness where Paul managed to complete his grand slam with a 32 inch tarpon on light spinning gear.

The rest of the week continued to have great snook action particularly early in the day.  The action seemed to slow later in the morning as the sun heated things up.  We also dealt with some very high tides later in the week which made it difficult to present baits far enough under the cover to get to the fish.

I fished Thursday morning with a local father, son team for tarpon.  We worked the outside beaches from Naples down to Marco and we were a bit disappointed not to find more fish on the move.  Conditions were good with calm, clean water but we were only able to find scattered single fish and had no luck getting baits in front of them.  Before the trip ended, I decided to stop on a little piece of bottom structure just offshore.  We boated spanish mackerel to 7 lbs and a couple 3 ft. silky sharks followed by a 15 lb. jack crevalle.

Friday I fished with Terry Hopkins and Lionel Smith of Naples.  We started out looking for the tarpon for the first hour or so with no luck once again.  We moved into the back and found a frenzy of snook hitting on nearly every cast.  As the tide got higher, the fishing slowed down a little, however the gentlemen continued to catch several more snook, redfish and big jacks throughout the morning.

I got word from a buddy that the tarpon really turned on later in the day Friday.  It is still early in the tarpon season, and I am sure we have a lot of good days ahead.  It is nice to have the option of other species to make the trip.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

May 8, 2011

I had another full week of trips out last week aboard my skiff the “Intowishin”.  We targeted everything from snook and redfish to tarpon and sharks with some degree of success with all.

My trips early in the week found snook very cooperative particularly in the mornings with several fish pushing around 30 inches and loads of fish released in the 20 to 26 inch range.  We continue to be having great success with live baits such as pilchards (scaled sardines). There were a few slot sized redfish mixed in with the snook on Monday and Tuesday as well as a few trout and flounder.

I took Dorrie Barton of Naples out Wed. afternoon and she boated some nice seatrout for dinner followed by a snook blitz hooking fish after fish from 22 to 29 inches on nearly every cast.  She completed the afternoon by boating and releasing a rare and unusual looking tarponsnook.  The tarponsnook is one of the four or so species that are found in our region.  Dorries fish is one of only three I have ever caught.  Here is a shot of Dorrie with her unique catch…

There were plenty of tarpon off the beach here early in the week as well.  Wed. night brought  a weak weather system which produced a swell making the water a little rough and cloudy near shore putting a damper on the action for the last few days.  We did jump a few fish early in the week but no success getting one to the boat.  Things have settled down this weekend and it looks like the tarpon fishing will be back to normal in the upcoming week.

Paul and Tracy Hotchkiss from Calgary are long time clients/friends of mine.  They are in town with their 11 year old daughter Olivia for a two week vacation.  We scheduled a couple backwater trips while they are visiting.  My wife and I shared dinner with them one night last week and Olivia brought up that she really wanted to catch some sharks.  I knew just how to accomplish the mission!

We headed out Wednesday morning for a half day starting with some fast action with snook, grouper, snapper and jack crevalle.  Then it was off to conquer the shark fishing!  I ran to a large shallow bay where we chunked some of the jacks we caught earlier and set up shop.  As we waited for the first shark, we were spotting plenty of tarpon of all sizes rolling around the boat.  I really thought we were going to hook one, but they were not interested.  I threw a plug in front of several but got no interest.  Then I spotted the first shark.  A quarter mile away was a huge dorsal cutting the surface of the glassy bay.  The shark slowly zig zagged  its way across the bay towards our boat.  We watched it for 10 minutes or so before it finally came in range and we tossed a bait in its path.  The bait was immediately consumed and the game was on!  Paul hung on as the brute took us on a sleigh ride across the bay.  I left one of the baits dragging behind the boat as we pursued Paul’s fish and it wasn’t long before another bruiser picked up the bait and Tracy was hooked up too!   Paul’s fish was on a slow steady course while Tracy’s screamed drag making long fast runs and circled the boat.  We finally got Paul’s in first and it was a behemoth lemon shark at least 8 ft. long.  I would estimate the weight between 275 and 300 lbs!  We cut the leader and continued to follow Tracy’s shark which turned out to be just slightly smaller, probably about 250 lbs!  We got more than we bargained for on that morning!  Way to go folks! 

- Capt. Todd Geroy

April 30, 2011

Last week’s trips focused on action fishing.  I didn’t have any clients especially interested in targeting the tarpon that were such a fixture the previous week.  We did quite well on catching and releasing quite a few snook on live bait however.  The largest of which went about 28 inches.  We also found redfish to 27 inches on a couple trips mixed in with the snook as well as the ever present fighting jack crevalle.

Once again this week I fished with John and Nancy Poffenberger wha o have been on fire lately.  They continued their string of successful trips with a multitude of snook releases as well as a couple redfish to 27 3/4 inches.

I fished a couple trips with Pat Thompson last week.  On the first trip, he fished with his friend Mike.  The two released quite a few snook and several schoolie sized redfish.  On the second trip Friday morning, Pat’s son Matt came over from Cocoa Beach to join him.

As a mild front passed through that morning, we found that the snook bite slowed a bit.  While we did catch several, we could only seem to get one fish per spot usually on the firs cast before the rest would catch on to us and lock their lips shut.  The guys expressed some interest in trying for something big such as a  tarpon or shark since the snook action was spotty.  We moved to a bay near Marco Island where I had great success last week with big tarpon and sharks.  We fished chunk baits for a half hour with only a couple tarpon sightings near the boat and not a bite.  I moved to an area of Rookery Bay which I refer to as “shark alley”  it is not only a great spot for big sharks, but holds plenty of tarpon as well.  We immediately started sighting big tarpon rolling all over the area as well as near the boat.  Within minutes Pat was hooked up to what turned out to be a big lemon shark that I’d estimate between 175 and 200 lbs.  As Pat worked his big fish, Matt also hooked up to one that might have been even bigger for a double hookup!  Matt’s shark made some short runs around the boat and then began a long blistering run across the bay before biting through the double line above the leader.  Evidently it had swallowed the entire length of leader.  After a half hour tug of war, Pat finally brought his shark along side the boat where I was able to hold it by the boat for some pictures before release.  A great morning with two great guys!  I am waiting for the pictures from Pat, but here is Matt with a typical snook he pulled out from the mangroves yesterday…

The upcoming week(s) are slammed busy with many trips focusing on tarpon.  While we have had some unfavorable winds for fishing the migrating fish just off the beaches this week, the winds should be more favorable after this weekend.  I am looking forward to starting May with more good fishing.

- Capt. Todd Geroy

April 23, 2011

While I must say that we have had some great trips on the water in April, this last week was the most solid fishing we’ve experienced this spring.  I ran 11 trips in 6 days and can report that all of them enjoyed great fishing action.

Tarpon are all over the area and most trips dedicated at least some time for a hookup with everyone at least getting to jump at least one and up to 5 “silver kings”.  We are finding plenty of big fish along the beach as well as in some of the backcountry bays.  I am missing the baby tarpon that I usually into this time of year.  Unfortunately, they have not made much of an appearance since last years winter fish kill.

The most noteworthy tarpon catch of the week has to be a triple digit fish caught yesterday afternoon by 10 year old Isabella Forte’.  She is the granddaughter of one of my bi monthly clients and comes to visit and enjoy the fishing every spring.  Isabella is no bigger than a minute, but is already an accomplished young angler with great catches of snook and other species on previous trips.  This year with the tarpon action so reliable, they decided to dedicate the afternoon to do battle with a big one.  We located pods of northbound fish just off the beach within minutes of our search and within 10 minutes “Izz” was hooked up!  She fought the fish hard for nearly an hour and with a little help next to the boat from her dad Rich, her fish was brought along side and released!

On the same trip her sister, Mary Kate 13 later boated two lemon sharks of about six feet long each and hooked up on another big tarpon which ended up spitting the hook on a jump.

The snook fishing is fantastic right now, and will likely continue from here on out.  I would estimate that we caught and released well over 100 fish this week.  Most are running in size between 22 and 28 inches.  Great fun on light tackle!  There are some over slot redfish scattered around the mangroves mixed in with the snook.  While I am not finding them schooled up, we released several during the week from 29 to 35 inches.  There are also plenty of hefty jacks around looking for a tug of war.

Sharks are also an easy target, with lemon and bull sharks providing action every 15 minutes when also tarpon fishing with bait in the back.  We boated several this week, including an 8 ft. 200 lb lemon caught by Alexandria Forte’ on another of the Forte’ families outings on Thursday morning.

Now is the time to get out and catch the fish of a lifetime!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

April 16, 2011

Water temperatures are now in the mid 80’s and the inshore action is starting to evolve into a pattern more typical of May or June.

Tarpon are all over the Naples and Marco Island area now and we have been hooking fish from 30 lbs. up to 100 lbs on most trips that attempt to get a hookup.  There are still fish in the shallow inside bays as well as some migrating pods showing up just off he beach.  We have success with cut baits on the inside and sight casting to pods on the outside as well as drifting live baits in their travel lanes.  By yesterday, the water near the beach had turned very clear, making the northbound schools easy to see.  Donna MacDonald battled her first tarpon, a 100 lb. class fish yesterday.

Shark action remains very reliable with bull, lemon and blacktip sharks all over the backcountry bays. They always provide hard fighting action anytime.  Rick MacDonald boated a big blacktip yesterday that probably weighed in over 80 lbs.

More and more of the snook are moving out towards the passes and beaches now.  They are still scattered around the inside islands and bay, but not quite as concentrated as a couple weeks ago.  While we did not have very many large fish caught this week, some trips released as many as 25 fish with a couple fish going 30 inches.

I fished with Redsnook tournament director Wayne Meland and Dave Rowe last week and the two boated and released countless snook.  We started on the beach and worked our way inland into some of the most remote creeks catching fish after fish all morning.

Bob and Rick Messey had the same results with the snook, but also mixed in a few slot redfish and seatrout.

I am looking forward to another busy week sharing our great spring fishing!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

April 9, 2011

Wow, we had a rough start to last week starting with the winds picking up Monday afternoon only to be followed by a brief, but strong frontal system that flew through here mid day Tuesday bringing some really gusty winds.  The waters near Naples ended up really stirred up, shutting down the great bite that had been going on here recently.  Wednesday, I was scratching my head, wondering where did all the fish go? Don’t they have to eat sometime? And what in the world I was going to have to report this weekend if this keeps up?

Fishing what it is, I am happy to report that we ended the week with some great action releasing plenty of snook and finding some nice schools of trout as well as some bruiser jack crevalle to stretch the lines!

On Monday, I fished with weekly client John Poffenberger and his good friend Mike Milligan.  The two caught some real decent trout to cover dinner for a few nights before we moved on to the action department for the rest of the morning.  John and Mike pitched live bait around the bushed and some oyster bars, boating and releasing a bunch of snook.

A couple of sketchy days of fishing followed, but started breaking loose by Thursday.  Both trips caught scores of snook mostly on live baits.  Gordons Pass proved its fame as a snook factory by producing fish after fish in a seemingly all day bite.  Waters on the inside bays were showing signs of cleaning up a little, buy we did not find too many fish willing to feed there.

Friday was back to normal.  I fished the morning with Bob Mason, a winter resident from Toledo along with his son David, from Brooklyn.  We started the morning with some snook action, with both guys releasing several nice fish in Rookery Bay.  David capped it off with a beautiful 26 inch redfish.  We decided to try the sea trout for some table fish and were rewarded with a great bite, limiting out on fish from 16 to 20 inches.

Friday afternoon, I had a return trip with a family from Columbus that I had fun with last December.  Dave Spiegel brought his boys Luke, 11 and Jake, 9 out for a little spring break action.  These boys are fishing fools!  They have spent almost every minute of the week fishing from the dock where they are staying, catching all kinds of fish.

With a well full of live sardines, the boys scored on a bunch of nice snook along with some big jack crevalle dragging the little guys around the boat numerous times.  Great going guys!

-Capt. Todd  Geroy

April 1, 2011

I’m wrapping up another busy week and 14 straight days of fishing without a break.  Many of the trips were with regular clients who had grand children and families visiting from the north for spring break.  Timing was good for them this year as fishing has been good providing many of the kids some great catches.

Snook fishing is very good right now, fish being caught just about anywhere we present a live bait.  They are wide spread throughout the backcountry with quite a few ranging near 30 inches.  I am very happy to see them in so many spots this spring compared to a year ago.  I anticipate the population is going to make a nice recovery from the massive fish kill last year.

On Monday, I fished with longtime client Nancy Poffenberger along with her son Dwight and 10 year old granddaughter, Amy.  This was Amy’s first fishing trip here and she amazed us with pinpoint casting skills!  Her first snook was a nice 28 incher.  We enjoyed continuous action with snook and redfish the whole trip with the largest red being a 26 ¾ incher.  Great going Amy!

Chris Jenatte brought his teenage boys Joel and Josh down from Indiana for their annual spring break fishing trip and got their fill of the great spring action.  We started with some strong snook action along with some large jack crevalle.  Mid morning we decided to try our luck with the big tarpon that are in the area.  We saw quite a few fish in a couple of spots and Joel got a thrill hooking up with one of the largest fish I’ve had hooked in the last year.  I would estimate the fish at 160+ lbs.  The fish put on a show for us before landing on the line after a jump and breaking off.  That’s tarpon fishing.  We left the tarpon with a half hour remaining for the trip and fished one last stop where all three guys hooked up on redfish on every cast.  Chris boated a nice 26 incher to cap off a great morning.

Strong winds Wednesday and Thursday put a little damper on the action, however we did manage to find fish on the four trips I ran those days.  Steve Rogers brought out his grandsons on Wed. afternoon for their first saltwater experience and they boated several nice snook and several slot redfish.  Connor boated a nice 27 inch snook on his first cast!

- Capt. Todd Geroy

March 26, 2011

We enjoyed another week of beautiful south Florida spring weather.  While the fishing action was a little up and down compared to the previous week, my anglers still enjoyed some good action on most trips.  All in all we are enjoying opportunities to target just about any species with some success.

We continued to find large trout in some of the backcountry channels as well as near the outside passes.  Most of the fish are running 17 to 23 inches.  They are in full spawn right now and many are as chubby as they can get.  We are taking most on live sardines or shrimp free lined in the current.  They do not seem to be responding well to artificial baits right now.   Charlie Reid of Greensboro, NC and his buddies caught a mess of these fatties on Tuesday along with pompano and whiting.

On a of couple trips, we jigged some outside channels and managed a few pompano, although they do not seem to be in schools right now.

In the back bays, snook fishing continues to be reliable although the bite on some trips last week was affected by some weak tides resulting in some hit and miss action.  The afternoon high tides seemed to be the best especially just as it started out.  We caught several redfish on the afternoon trips as well, with some falling nicely in the slot.

Tarpon and sharks continue showing up in the area.  I did not spend much time targeting them with my trips, but did jump one and caught a few bodacious lemon sharks easily pushing over the 200 lb. mark.  One was caught on Thursday morning after an hour long battle by Bill Forte’

Tarpon were showing in the passes early last week when the tides were stronger feeding on the schools of mullet flushing through on the out going tide.  A buddy of mine managed multiple hookups on several attempts.  Tides should get favorable again by mid week.

-Capt. Todd Geroy

March 19, 2011

Where do I start this week?  We have truly had some exceptional trips this week.  The honest guy I am, I admit that one out of the ten for the week didn’t pan out as planned.  But, that’s fishing sometimes.  The others were some of the best of 2011 so far.

I’ll start with a snook report.  I am happy to say that there are plenty of nice fish showing in some backcountry areas where I really have not found good numbers since the fish kill of 2010.  We caught several fish this week from the 29 to 34 inch range along with countless numbers of the common 20 to 24 inch fish.  Most were caught with live white baits but we also had good luck with them on a fly trip on Thursday morning.

I fished with Andy and Brian Roettger on Thursday morning with intentions of fly fishing for some of the laid up tarpon that have been showing up.  We were disappointed to have a northerly breeze which put the fish down making them impossible to sight fish to.  Although we saw several rolling in pretty close range, we really never had any clean shots.  I promised that we would dedicate an hour at the end of the trip to try to get some snook action or bend the rod somehow.  We moved to a bank where I had been having some action during the week and both guys caught a few snook and trout on a white streamer.  Taking turns between fish, Andy laid a nice cast under the mangrove overhang and a large snook inhaled the fly instantly!  The fish made a hard run under the cover, but managed to turn it and after a tough battle, Andy boated a nice 32 incher!

We also had some amazing trout fishing this week.  Several trips got into schools of large spawning fish.  Most of them ran between 18 and 24 inches!  We caught them free lined live baits.  On Wed. afternoon,   Ted Noethling brought his 6 hear old son, Tanner out for Tanners first fishing trip.  We made two stops all afternoon and one of the two of them were never with out a strike of a fish on.  They wore out the snook, big jacks and sea trout!  After a few hours, Tanner announced he might be ready to head in because he had already caught “a million” fish.  It did seem like a million!  Way to go Tanner!

We have quite a few big tarpon in the back country now.  I did hook up with a couple this week, but none boated.  Large sharks are also dominating the same spots.  Cut bait such as lady fish and jacks don’t go long without a bite.  On yesterday morning’s tarpon trip, we hooked 5 bull and lemon sharks to 200 lbs. less than 4 feet of water.  A couple of kayakers paddled up to us to ask what we were fighting.  They inquired “what are you catching?”   When I said it was a shark, they asked “what, 1 or 2 footers?”  I said, “No it’s about a 7 foot bull shark”,   Those guys couldn’t paddle out of there fast enough!  Great fun!

-Capt. Todd Geroy

March 12, 2011

Again, I have had a busy week fishing double half days each day with the exception of Thursday afternoon which brought welcome rain to the area along with a not so welcome cold front.

Redfish continued to be the dominant target aboard my skiff, the “Into-Wishin”.  We had strong incoming tides early in the week which flooded the mangrove shorelines drawing scores of redfish to feed along the roots and oyster bars.  We fished with a mix of shrimp and whitebait with equal results.

While the high water made for some very tricky casting, especially on the windy days  (of which there were several) a well presented bait deep under the overhangs or in a pocket was greeted by fish most of the time.  Most of the fish were just under slot size of 18 inches, but several fell nicely into the slot.

Dave Fruend and Mike Johns of Naples were out Tuesday afternoon and boated redfish what seemed to be continuously all afternoon.

Snook fishing slowed a little last week as a mild front last weekend cooled the water back down into the upper 60’s from the 73 degree water we had been spoiled with.  Although we had to work a little harder for the bites, we did catch and release a fair number of them by the end of the week.

Late Thursday morning, we were driven to the dock by a strong squall preceding a cold front.  White out rain and wind gusts to 50 mph. cut our trip a little short, but not before the Forte’ brothers hooked several snook and bruiser jack crevalle.

Here is what Thursday morning’s squall looked like as it was bearing down on us…

March 6, 2011

Although it has been really windy the last week, fishing has been literally about as good as it gets this time of year!  From snook to redfish, pompano, trout and mackerel down to large sheepshead, tripletail and some hard fighting jack crevalle to top it all off.  We have been finding large numbers of each species on many trips.

I have been very busy fishing double half day trips for the last six days and we really had some great catches over the week.  The hardest part was trying to decide what to target.  On most trips, I managed to move around and give a taste of everything we have to offer

There was a ridiculous number of pompano in Gordon’s Pass earlier in the week.  On the incoming tide you could catch them continuously if you wanted bouncing tube jigs on the bottom.  Unfortunately, it didn’t take long to attract a huge fleet of anglers and with that were many displays of poor etiquette.  Our routine was to get there early in the tide and quickly catch our limit and then proceed on to other spot where we could fish alone.  I also found good numbers of pompano along some of the many groins along the south Naples beach as well as along the sandbars near Hurricane Pass.  There were some giant sheepshead to 7 lbs. mixed in as well as some nice sea trout.

In the back bays, we are still enjoying some great snook action using live sardines.  We are releasing as many as 20 on some trips and have had fish ranging to 29 inches this week.  Redfish cooperated on several trips as well, with high tide producing the best action along the windward shorelines. We took them on shrimp, sardines and jigs.

On Monday,  I enjoyed a morning with Terry Hopkins and his daughter Kelly.  They released countless snook and some large jack crevalle and managed some nice pompano for a gourmet dinner.

Tom Iverson and Jay Sandza fished Wednesday morning and wore out the pompano, trout and sheepshead before we moved on to catch 7 redfish and a couple snook before the trip was over.

Friday afternoon Bob McClure and his buddy David found several schools of redfish eager to please.  We released over 20 reds in a couple of hours.

-Capt. Todd Geroy

February 25, 2011

The weather in SW Florida has been phenomenal this week, and we have continued with our annual spring time transformation.  Heading out in the dark each morning, I have been cast netting loads of scaled sardines (aka. pilchards, white bait, shiners) that have moved in recently. I have been out daily with two half day trips each day and with the live bait, most trips have been scoring on the first big numbers of snook of the 2011 season.

While I did experience a couple of trips where we struggled a bit, several trips caught as many as 20 snook up to 25 inches.  We also boated redfish, pompano, seatrout, spanish mackerel, whiting, jack crevalle as well as big bull and blacktip sharks for those looking for a heavy weight battle.  Some big tarpon are in the area and we have made two attempts at a hookup in recent days, so far with no luck.

I shared two trips this week with Dr. Bill Palmer and his son Dave from Omaha, NB.  They caught most all of the previous mentioned species as well as enjoying a taste of an all out snook blitz early this morning while boating around 20 fish in the first two hours of the trip.

The warming trend is forecast to continue into next week and the fishing should continue to be improving.

-Capt. Todd Geroy

February 20, 2011

We enjoyed  a beautiful week of weather in SW Florida last week and as the weather got a little warmer each day, I started noticing some definite signs that spring is just around the corner!

We continued to have large catches of redfish on several trips, releasing as many as 30 fish on some.  While I did not find the larger fish of last week cooperating, several of the schooling fish did measure in over the 18″ lower slot limit.  We are now catching more snook with some frequency in the same areas as the redfish.  I am catching most of these fish on shrimp cast into “pinpoint” honey spots along the mangroves.  I did not spend much time trout fishing, but can confirm that most have moved out of the back bays now and are starting to school close to the gulf and passes.  Very strong tides last week dirtied up the water in several areas that we target the trout and I found they just didn’t respond well to our offerings, although we did find a few nice ones.

I am seeing tarpon in the area on many trips while traversing the bays.  They are laying up in shallow water 2 to 3 ft. deep, warming up on sunny days.  Most years we start having action with them by the end of Feb. or at least the first week or two of March.  I’m looking forward to the opportunities to put some clients on big fish!

Saturday morning the 19th I fished with Tom McCarty and his two grandsons Jack (8) and Brian (10).  This was their first experience fishing the backwaters.  The boys managed about 15 redfish as well as snook, sheepshead, snapper and the usual ladyfish.  They kept busy, catching about 30 fish total.  We brought home enough fish for a substantial fish fry,  plus the boys topped of the trip teasing the many pelicans at the dock.  It is fun for me to share my world with young people for their first time out!   Here are the boys with double redfish they caught…

February 11, 2011

Wow!  I had a full week of fishing last Monday thru Friday.  We dealt with a spectrum of weather from strong winds on Monday, a chilly day Tuesday, a warm spring like day Wednesday, a mix of fog and steady rain on Thursday and Friday. We also got on some really good fishing on several trips!

Wednesday, I took out one of my regular local groups, Bob Potter, Jay Sandza and Tom Iverson.  The gentleman really hammered the redfish boating at least 30 fish in a half day.  We had several slot fish to make dinner and Mr. Potter capped of the trip with a beautiful 9 lber which we released.  Bob also caught a nice 19 inch trout.

Thursday afternoon, I fished for the first time with Don Tilton who winters in Marco Island.  Again, we clobbered the redfish hitting fish after fish at nearly every stop.  The last stop was loaded with reds ranging to 27 inches!  All were released to be enjoyed on another trip.

Friday, both half day trips endured lousy weather with soaking rain, fog and chilly temperatures.  Both trips scored on a variety of species including plenty of schoolie redfish, sheepshead, trout, snook, snapper and whiting.

Special thanks to Larry Benner who lent me his rain jacket for the afternoon after my zipper broke of on my own.  I wouldn’t have fared too well the rest of the day!

February 2, 2011

A new month has started and we seem to be starting a possible transformation to a more “spring-like” weather pattern.  Yesterday I found the water temperatures that had been having a hard time breaking 60 the last couple months was up to 65 to 68 degrees.  This change occurred since Sunday.  We are forecast for a fairly warm week ahead with the tail end of the blizzard dying out north of us.  I wouldn’t be surprised to see water in the 70′s by next weekend.  While it seems like transition times like this would make fishing better, it can actually be harder to find schooling fish as they are often starting to roam around more while moving out of their deeper winter hangouts.  We tend to move around more trying to cover as much water as we can on a trip.

The warm up should bring some of the snook out of their hiding places speeding up their metabolism making them feed more. We might also see some big tarpon showing up in some of the larger shallow interior bays, “laying up” near the surface on calm sunny days.  It is not unheard of to hook the first “Silver King” of the year in February.  We’ll keep our fingers crossed!  On the other end of the spectrum, a warm February can also shift the action for other species to the outside passes.  Big sheepshead, trout and pompano should start getting very active in the channels and deeper edges near the gulf.

Fishing action right now has transformed a little since the last report.  With the warm up, the redfish that had been schooling so well in the holes seem more scattered.   I am still catching several each trip including a few up to 7 lbs, but have to move around more and usually only finding one or two on a stop.  Sea trout are still hitting on the edges of flats along with whiting and sand trout.  Live shrimp rigged with a small split shot are taking most of the redfish while jigs are taking most of the trout.

January 19, 2011

Another week has flown by with some good catches despite some big variations in weather conditions and water temperatures.  I fished with brothers Bill and Jack Forte’ last Thursday with air temps in the 30′s in the morning.  We started a little late at 10:00 and fished for about 3 1/2 hours.  We boated upwards of fifty redfish to 20 inches as well as a bunch of sheepshead up to 4 lbs!   We only stopped in three spots within 1000 ft. of each other the whole trip.  Most were caught on cut shrimp and some on jigs tipped with shrimp.

Today,  I fished two trips.  The afternoon was spent with Bob Messey and Bob Karn from St. Louis.  They share birthdays one day apart from each other and usually take an annual trip on this date to celebrate together.  We started out strong for the first couple hours with at least a dozen redfish up to 7 lbs.  all caught on shrimp in some remote back country pockets.  Then a heavy fog bank rolled in off the gulf and blocked all of the sunshine.   For some reason, the bite stopped then.  They did end up with some nice fish for dinner as well as plenty of bent rods and laughs.  Another great day to be on the water in Naples!  Here is a shot of Bob Messey with one of the reds this afternoon:

January 12, 2011

Fishing action has been a bit more “hit and miss” the last couple days since the recent warmer weather.  Last Thursday morning, I fished with one of my veteran tarpon anglers, Ann Dunlap and her friends Alan and Betty Novick.  We had nonstop action with lots of redfish including a 25 incher hooked by Betty.  Some nice sized sheepshead were mixed in with the redfish.  They also boated about 15 trout to 18 inches along with whiting, flounder and the usual ladyfish.  We used both jigs and cut shrimp.

I fished several more trips both morning and afternoon since last Thursday and unfortunately, the action slowed significantly from Sunday until today.  Last night, a strong cold front moved in overnight bringing strong high pressure that along with a stiff north wind blew a lot of water out of the backcountry.  These fronts often concentrate fish for us by driving them into the deeper pockets where they are eager to feed.  That was the case this afternoon when I fished bi monthly clients Jay Sandza, Tom Iverson along with a new friend Kim Shugbern.  We fished with Gulp shrimp on  jig heads and they laid into a bunch of redfish  releasing over 30 up to 20 inches.  We only moved the boat about four times within a half mile and had constant action. Good fun on a chilly afternoon!  Stronger tides building with next week’s full moon should help the fishing become more consistent.

January 5, 2011

We are finally getting a break from the cooler than normal weather patterns of the last month.  Water temperatures are now in the low 60′s.  Trout season opened on the Jan. 1 and my anglers that wish to catch them to take home are not having any trouble getting their limits while releasing plenty more.  The larger ones are running to 19 inches and are hitting shrimp tipped jigs in channels adjacent to flats.  Against the mangroves, school sized reds averaging 17 inches are still abundant for plenty of action.  I fished a half day trip last Sunday morning with the Dave Spiegel and his boys Ryan (8),  and Josh (9).  The boys really tore up the reds, boating nearly 50 along with sheepshead and some nice trout.  Those little guys could really fish!

December 27, 2010

This morning brought temperatures of 39 degrees.  I ventured out with Jim Chisholm and his daughters Katie and Kelsey from the Boston area.  Loaded with a couple blankets and several layers to fend off the 30 degree wind chill, we made a total of 3 stops and enjoyed plenty of action.  They boated 25 or so redfish as well as trout, sheephead, snapper and a few ladyfish.  The bite was a bit sluggish early and seemed to get more active mid morning as the sun warmed things up.  Water temps. were 55.5 to 57 degrees.  We are expecting near freezing temps. tonight followed by a nice warm up for the remainder of the week.  Trout season opens Jan 1.  for those looking for a few good table fish to take home.

December 21, 2010

Fishing action has continued to be strong despite cooler than normal temperatures the last couple of weeks.  Water temps today were ranging from 56 to 59 degrees in the back bays.  I have seen a couple of dead fish which probably gave in to the cold water.

I fished two trips today with Dave and Jim’s morning being the highlight of the day.  We had extremely low water with the full moon phase and found a great variety of fish on most every stop.  We skimmed far into the back and fished the deeper channels and holes where the fish were practically land locked and concentrated.  Plenty of schoolie redfish to bend the rod, as well as some nice sheepshead for the table.  Ladyfish and some beautiful seatrout were released.  We used both jigs and cut shrimp with equal success on both.

December 6, 2010

Chilly temperatures in the last week have not slowed the great bite down that we’ve been enjoying for the last month.  Most trips are catching as many as 30 or more “schoolie” sized redfish along with a few slot sized reds in the mix.  Some of these have been as large as 27 inches.  Pompano are showing up in their usual winter haunts as well.  We are catching nice keepers any time we try by working jigs in some of the deeper inland channels.  Trout are also showing up in good numbers in the same areas.  Snook are still a little scarce in the backcountry as a result of last years cold and fish kill.  However, there are still plenty to be caught in the Naples Bay area around docks and some of the shoreline.  More cool weather on the way this week should push even more fish into the backwater areas.  Looking forward to a productive week.

Bi-monthly client Jack Forte’ with one of a bunch of redfish that he and his brother released on a cool day in the last week.

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Another very busy week brought plenty of good fishing aboard my skiff, the “Intowishin”.  Several trips experienced some great Trout fishing mixed in with just about every other species that swims in the back waters.

A cool start to the week pushed all kinds of fish into the deepest holes and channels in the back bays.  While several mornings were a little slow to start, action got going as the sun warmed things up.  Live shrimp worked well on the schooling Sea Trout as well as jigs tipped with shrimp.  The Trout ranged in size from 15 inch keepers to some 23 inch beauties!

Other species caught along with the Trout were Sheepshead, Pompano, Black Drum, Gag Grouper, Goliath Grouper, Bluefish, Snapper and Redfish.  Mixed bag fishing at it’s finest!

On Thursday afternoon, I fished a half day with longtime clients Mike and Jill Dyer and their friend Diane Angelico.  The trio really put a hurting on the Trout and Sheepshead catching countless fish of both species during a strong afternoon long bite!  The largest was a Trout measuring 23 inches caught by Jill.  Most fish were caught on live shrimp, however tube jigs tipped with shrimp also worked well.  We fished all afternoon in just three holes in the Rookery Bay area!

Next week brings great tides as well as a great weather forcast.  I’m looking forward to another busy productive week!