Snook Under Dock Lights a Prime Option

SALTWATER SCENE

With water temperatures on the flats hitting around 92 degrees, the nighttime bite is a good option, according to Capt. Andy Cappar. Although snook are out of season, targeting them for some catch-and-release action around dock lights can be productive. Snook have spawned off the passes and beaches and slowly have begun to move back into the bays. Some bigger linesiders will come into the bays by November and the snook move into the backcountry for warmer, protection waters during the winter.

Capt. Andy Cappar said trout also are biting well in the mornings, and redfish are starting to school in bigger numbers.

SOMETHING TO TRY

If you fly-fish, now’s the time to do so. Bait is small and there are many fly patterns to match the glass minnows that are around. Target some of the docks back in Perico Bayou and the Intracoastal Waterway in Cortez. If fly-fishing is not an option, try to get some small mullet, said Capt. Cappar top snook-fishing live-bait option. Pinfish are easy to get, but do not work as well at night, Cappar said.

CAPTAIN’S TIP

Cappar said on Thursday there was a big school of redfish by Tidy Island, not far from Longboat Pass.

THE GUIDE

Capt. Andy Cappar of Reel Native Backcountry Charters can be reached at 941-232-2974 or 941-279-0517. Web site is http://reelnative.net