help finding redfish

[FloridaSnookHunter]

im new to this forum and would like to say hi to everybody.

I live in the Pine Island area and am a veteran fisherman. I started fly fishing a couple years back. ive been fishing this area for at least 10 yrs. and in all my travels and days on the water i have never seen any Redfish on the grassflats or tailing redfish on the flats in the Pine Island Sanibel area. I would really like to catch one on a fly but ive never seen any.

If anybody that lives in the area that would like to share some info on where I might be able to see some reds on the flats I would be very greatful. I made another post of this but I put it in the wrong spot.

thanks

[Seth]

Pine Island Sound is one of the country’s premier redfish destinations, but there is a lot of pressure and the fish there are super spooky. You can check with Lee Island Outfitters in Fort Myers or the Bait Box on Sanibel for more in depth info, but some of the areas to try are the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River, MacKeever Keys along lower Pine Island, Buck Key near the south end of Captiva, Foster Point on North Captiva and Panther Key near upper Pine Island. Pine Island Sound's mangrove shoreline on the west end can be most productive. As a seasoned angler, you probably know that in the mangroves, the high end of an incoming tide and the beginning of the outgoing are productive. Also, on the flats the lower end of a fast incoming tide, when reds move up into the shallows to chase baitfish. I have not been there in about a decade, so I hope this helps. I always went out with a guide my father used. Good luck.

[FloridaSnookHunter]

OK

thanks seth, sorry for the late reply, I will mark those spots on my map and give them a go. sounds like a very good starting points. I have also heard the the reds are highly pressured in this area. I bought a push pole to be extra sneaky that way if i do find an area that holds reds in the shallows I can sneak up within casting range without spooking them off.

I posted this and totally forgot to subscribe.

[Seth]

The redfish are heavily targeted in that area. This is why you have to be very stealth and persistent. Let me know how it goes for you.

[FloridaSnookHunter]

The redfish are heavily targeted in that area. This is why you have to be very stealth and persistent. Let me know how it goes for you.

I've read magazine articles about when the Reds are up on the flats from Chino island on up the east side of pine island shoreline flats, the Reds are just as easily spooked as a heavily targeted area of Bonefish. Maybe one day when I get weeks at a time on the water to study and spot Reds and be able to predict when they are up on the grassflats I maybe able to get one on a fly. I just dont have the time right now. As a weeked angler I think chunking peices of ladyfish up to mangrove shorelines in matlacha pass or potholes up by Ussepa Island would be a good way to target Reds on the weekends and be successful. I hate burning 50 bucks worth of fuel and not catching anything LOL. The east side of pine island shoreline is a huge area with lots of grassflats and oyster bars. I believe if I was going to get one on a fly that would be my best bet and the areas you mentioned.

[Gary S. Colecchio]

I started fly fishing a couple years back. ive been fishing this area for at least 10 yrs. and in all my travels and days on the water i have never seen any Redfish on the grassflats or tailing redfish on the flats in the Pine Island Sanibel area.

North end of Ding Darling.

Ice Cream Bar.

[slamer]

Where ever you go, get there before sun up.Reds will tend to stay down after sun gets up over the trees. Use soft plastics first (gulp shrimp rigged weedless), then later net up med pins. snip tails, use on float. cast to pot hole edges.If you are in the right area, and quite you should see tails at first light. Later in the day cast to the trees. Good luck

[dusktilldawn]

Call Sean Mcquade at 813-789-6948. He'll get ya years ahead of the learning curve. My last trip with him was monday. We caught 16 reds. 3 Snook and 3 trout one was 26 inches. Oh and we did it in 2 hours after work.
I used to target Snook and catch a few reds, but now that I fish with Sean I target reds almost exclusively and usually have alot of success.