Capt. Cappar Suggests Top-Water Plugs for Gator Trout

Capt. Andy Cappar said anglers can target some whopper trout in shallow waters of Sarasota Bay, right where bars drop off into deeper water. Cappar likes to throw top-water plugs such as the MirrOlure 7M series or the MirrOlure MirrOmullet during the first three hours of daylight.

“The bays are full of trout right now,” Cappar said. “I went last week on a scouting trip to check and see what’s going on and we caught between 20 and 25 trout – six of them went 21 inches or better.”

Cappar said snook are in the same areas. He said about have of the snook have darker bellies, an indication they just came out of the backcountry, while others remains on the flats, evident by their silver bellies.

Cappar does not think last week’s thunderstorm will mess up fishing.

“The only thing I’m worried about is runoff clouding the water up,” he said. “For the most part it shouldn’t be bad.”

Capt. Andy Cappar can be reached at 941-232-2974. His website is www.reelnative.net.