Democrat Fishing Report 2/16/07

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There have been a couple of changes to the format of this page, changes we think you'll like.

For starters, there's a place where you can brag about your catch with space for photos. Also, if you have a question about the outdoors, send it in. Somebody, maybe not me, will have an answer for you.

We also plan on covering more club and small local tournaments. For this we need your input. The intent is to have an interactive outdoors page. Plus, we have an outdoors blog. It'll be a place for all of us to spout off. Just keep it clean, please.

Sheepshead: The bait bandits
Anglers are enjoying one of the best sheepshead seasons in a long time. The fish have been swarming and spawning for more than a month.

That action should continue for several more weeks. And as anyone who's ever fished for sheepshead will agree, they are appropriately marked. They wear the stripes of a thief, a bait stealer of the first degree. The standard method for catching a sheepshead is to strike just before they bite. Until now, that is.

Captain Ken Roy of Crystal River has hit on the secret to catching these striped bait stealers. His method is so successful, the fish actually hook themselves while the rod is in the rod holder.

Capt. Roy's rig is pretty much the standard that all sheepshead fishermen use. He uses just enough weight to hold the bait near the bottom without letting it drift too far behind the boat.

He threads the weight on the line, but instead of attaching a leader, he crimps a Split Shot or similar weight on the line, about a foot up from the hook, to act as a stop for the sinker.

A leader is not needed, since sheepshead have crushing rather than cutting teeth. Not having a swivel and leader to fool with also makes re-rigging easier. You lose a lot of rigs fishing for sheepshead. At the end of the line he ties a special sheepshead hook.

"I generally use a #1-1/O Mustad Sheepshead Hook. These hooks are short-shanked, heavy wire hooks designed to withstand the strong jaws and crushing teeth of sheepshead. I tie the hook to the end of the line with a simple clinch knot," he said.

Here's Capt. Roy's secret.

"I slip a 1/2 -inch length of hot pink or hot orange flexible plastic tubing onto the hook," he said.

The tubing he uses is 3/16-inch diameter, and he says the best source he's found for it is at a toy store.

"I use a kid's jump rope," he said. "They are about 7 feet long, so you have lots of pieces of plastic to use."

This tubing also is available in the form of sunglass holders.

The purpose of the plastic is two-fold. First, it's highly visible in murky water. But second and most importantly, Capt. Roy said it gives the sheepshead something tough to chew on.

Sheepshead nibble on barnacles and fiddler crabs. They nip them off a piling or seawall, crush them, spit out the hard shell and swallow the soft insides. And when sheepshead bite shrimp on a hook, they immediately feel the hook and spit it out just like a piece of shell.

But with the tough plastic on the hook, the sheepshead holds on longer while trying to remove the tubing. Sometimes they even swallow the tubing . . . hook and all. Capt. Roy said many times a fish will actually hook itself. It makes catching sheepshead child's play.

Roy said he always peels his shrimp before putting a piece on the hook. He'll take several live ones and cut them into 1/2 - to 3/4 -inch pieces so they stay fresh. Then he just puts the shrimp on the hook, drops the bait to the bottom and reels up a couple of turns, places the rod in a rod holder and just waits.

Another sheepshead trick he's developed is to add one of his plastic chew-toy hooks as a trailer behind a bass spinner bait. The flash of the blade and bright color of the plastic will draw the fish from quite a distance. Roy said the sheepshead (and triggerfish) will keep nipping at the tubing-covered trailer until they hook themselves.

Contact Captain Ken Roy at captkenroy@earthlink.net.

Apalachee Bay fishing seminar
Team Seatrout Angler of the Year Ty Smith will cover all aspects of fishing Apalachee Bay, including hotspots, fishing patterns, jig and lure selection, etc. The seminar will be followed by a Q&A session. $20 per person at the door. Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Jerry's Bait and Tackle, 664 Woodville Highway, Crawfordville. Call (850) 421-3248 or e-mail TMSeatrout@earthlink.net to reserve a seat.

North Florida Boat Show
If you're thinking about buying a boat, then you don't want to miss the 15th annual North Florida Boat Show Feb. 23-25. The show, in the Civic Center, will feature nearly 300 boats from 13 dealers. On-the-spot financing will be available.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23 and Saturday, Feb. 24; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 25.

Admission: Adult $5; Under 16 free with adult.

Tournament news
T Crappie USA kicks off its 2007 Tournament Trail with a one-day contest Saturday on Lake Talquin. Entry fee for the Amateur Division is $160 per team. The Semi-Pro Division entry fee is $260 per team. You must be a member of the American Crappie Association ($20/year) to participate. A $10,000 payout is guaranteed.

Late registration is at the Collegiate Village Inn, 2121 W. Tennessee St., Tallahassee, from 5-7 p.m. today. A pre-tournament seminar follows at 7 p.m.

The weigh-in site is Whippoorwill Sportsman's Lodge, 3129 Cooks Landing Road, Quincy. Weigh-in begins at 4 p.m. For additional information call 1-888-311-2872, or go to http://www.crappieusa.com.

North Florida Gulf Fishing Club tournament results
January Club Tournament: 1st - Jeff Suber 5 trout 8.35 lbs.; 2nd - Jim Chalkey/John Vickers 4 trout 7.94 lbs.; 3rd - Brian Showman/Cramer 5 trout 7.38 lbs.

February Club Tournament: 1st - Jim Chalkey/John Vickers 1 redfish 3.07 lbs; 2nd - Mark Beckum/Mike Melton 1 redfish 2.93 lbs.; 3rd - Jeff Trent/Chuck Collins 1 redfish 2.78 lbs.

Q&A, tournament or catch
Got an outdoors question, tournament information or an outstanding catch you want to brag about? Send the question, information or catch details and photos to: Tallahassee Democrat, 277 N. Magnolia Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32302. Attn: Sports/Fishing, or e-mail (with photos as attachments) AskMisterMullet@AOL.com

St. Joe Bay
Captain Fred Erickson at Presnell's Bayside Marina and RV Resort said recent warm weather has redfish trickling out onto the flats, but they aren't too willing to bite. The clear water is making them spooky, too. And when the next cold front passes, they flee to the warmth of nearby rivers and creeks.

Bottom line is you have to spend time on the water to locate the fish. But if you do find them, and are patient, you should be able to get a few to bite. Erickson recommends using DOA and Gulp! soft plastics in root beer and shrimp patterns. Live shrimp and minnows are working well too. Top-water lures are producing when you locate large schools of fish (50 or more) milling around in the bay. Some of the more productive areas are along Town Beach, around the fire tower, and west of the state park.

Erickson said the sheepshead and black drum action is very good. Anglers have been catching them on live and fresh-cut shrimp, and on live fiddler crabs. Most of the good catches are coming from around pilings, seawalls and oyster bars on a falling or low tide. On an incoming or high tide, sheepshead are schooling up on flats. Drum also are in the Intracoastal Waterway.

Apalachicola Bay
Rex Pennycuff at Fisherman's Choice in East Point said the sheepshead action has been very good at Bob Sikes Cut and around the pilings on the piers in Apalachicola Bay (the old bridge to St. George Island). Live and fresh cut shrimp and fiddler crabs are the bait of choice. Pier fishermen also are catching scattered redfish and trout.

Redfish, sunshine and striped bass are hitting in the rivers and creeks. He said reduced tidal flows are resulting in short feeding periods. Anglers should anchor up and fish deep holes, waiting for the fish to arrive rather than search for them and risk missing the bite. Redfish are also biting at Bob Sikes Cut.

Surf fishermen on St. George Island are still doing well on whiting, and a few redfish have been taken too. Small pieces of shrimp fished on the bottom is the secret to whiting success.

Offshore, the grouper action has been only fair. Fishermen are catching three or four fish per trip, along with plenty of triggerfish for the freezer. Best action has been in state waters (less than 9 miles out).

Apalachee Bay
According to Scott Paterna at Jerry's Bait and Tackle in Crawfordville, redfish continue to bite in the St. Marks River along the west shoreline above and below Fort San Marcos. Paterna said this has produced all winter.

Jason and Kane Curtin kept two redfish and released four more while fishing there with live shrimp this past week. Anglers fishing from shore at the fort are scoring well too. Again, live shrimp has been the bait of choice.

Another area that's producing well is Stony Bayou.

That's where John Alford decided to go fishing on his birthday. He rode his bicycle along the trail to the bayou and, on his first cast with a live shrimp, caught a 25-inch redfish. That was enough for him. He turned around and peddled home with his catch. Paterna said most of the creeks east of the St. Marks Lighthouse are holding plenty of fish, and Stony Bayou is one of the most productive.

Sulfur Creek is another hot spot. It's just west of the Aucilla River and accessible without going into open water. This is especially important when cold winter winds whip up the bay.

Lake Talquin
Daryl Morris at Talquin's First Cast Trading Post said the crappie action is good. Some of the best catches are coming out of the river in 16 to 18 feet of water. Anglers slow-trolling live minnows and any color small jigs in the Iron Curtin and Williams Landing areas are making the best catches. Fishermen who prefer to drift with live minnows aren't doing quite as well, but they still manage to catch a decent number of fish.

Catfish weighing up to 6 pounds are biting on sandbars. Stinkbaits and live worms are producing best.

Largemouth bass fishing is very slow. A recent bass club tournament only produced seven fish. Bream fishing is slow too.

Steinhatchee
Captain Pat McGriff of One More Cast Guide Service in Keaton Beach said offshore action is good, for those willing to work at it. He led a group of fishermen from Georgia to 14 gag grouper weighing up to 13 pounds, 3 scamp grouper, a red grouper, 4 large black snapper and several mangrove snapper. The fish hit live bait (squirrel fish, porgies, black sea bass) and cut bait (goggleeye, mackerel).

Outstanding catch
SOLUNAR
A.M. cycles P.M. cycles Day Minor Major Minor Major Today 4:10 10:15 4:25 10:45 Saturday 5:00 11:10 5:25 11:35 Sunday 5:50 0 6:20 12:05 Monday 6:45 12:35 7:15 1:00 Tuesday 7:40 1:30 8:10 1:55 Wednesday 8:35 2:25 9:05 2:50 Thursday 9:30 3:20 10:00 3:45 Saturday's tides, 10C