Archive for February, 2010
Kayaking in Heaven
Punta Gorda is an amazing place for kayaking. The Charlotte Harbor area has over 200 shoreline miles of canoe and kayak trails.
At 270 square miles, Charlotte Harbor is the second-largest aquatic preserve in Florida, where rivers meet the ocean and salt marshes, seagrass flats and dense mangrove beds provide nature’s nursery for hundreds of species of fish and shellfish. Birds, turtles and other wildlife feast on all this bounty.
World-class angling has put this area on the map for kayak fishing.
Here, beginners and experts can find the pristine and quiet commune with nature that kayaking offers. Down the hidden coves of Coral, and Shell Creeks, the Peace and Myakka Rivers, around Don Pedro Island State Park, Gasparilla Sound or along the Intracoastal Waterways, up-close wildlife encounters are likely to include swallow-tailed kites, eagles, herons, ibis, ospreys, Roseate Spoonbills, thousands of migratory white pelicans as well as dolphins and manatees. Out on the Gulf, experienced sea kayakers can explore deserted barrier islands with challenging forays into the wind and surf.
Just a little peace of heaven.
Neighborhood Lakes
The weather has been unusually cooler this year in SW Florida.
One way to overcome the cold water and north winds is to find a nice interior lake. Our community has many lakes which are fed from the Charlotte Harbor.
Fish enter these saltwater lakes during a flood tide or tropical storm through a drainage and leveling system.
The tide inlets that feed the lakes have large inlets but very small outlets. Once in, the diameter of the outlets prevents the fish from returning to the harbor. This creates a great opportunity to fish the many types of saltwater fish right in your back yard.
Snook, trout, tilapia, redfish and tarpon as well as many other saltwater species are all familiar targets in these lakes.
Some of these fish can grow to 36″ or larger and they can definitely grow to trophy size.
I had the oppportunity to catch four nice snook.
This is a catch and release fishery. And the only predator to this stock are aligators. But don’t worry, unless it’s mating season, the “gators” are just afraid of you as you are of them.
Live Baiting on Charlotte Harbor
We finally got out on Sunday morning on the Charlotte Harbor. We anticipated a slow day and we got one. Just one day after a large Redfish Tournament, we figured it would be hard to find them.
We loaded Fantasea II with an assortment of gear and headed out in the Peace River.
The Peace River originates in central Florida and feeds the Charlotte Harbor in Southwest Florida. The “harbor is just minutes from the Gulf of Mexico”.
This river and harbor is home to trout, snook, redfish and many of the typical saltwater species.
Our gear and bait of choice would be popping corks, circle hooks with live shrimp.
On past fishing trips to the “Harbor” we were very successful catching nice trout using this same technique.
We fished the Rt. 41 and Rt 75 bridges without any luck. Water temps were in the lower 60s. You would think this water temp is prefect for catching, but actually it’s a little cold for this area.
We tried many pilings and shallow areas. We were looking for any small hole or structure along the bottom that may hold fish. After two hours of fishing, we decided to do a short sightseeing tour, trying to locate a manatee laying up in the warm shallow waters of the Peace River.
It turned out we missed the manatees too but it was just a delightful day on the water.
Slow day fishing only increases your anticipation for your next trip.
More Tournament News
More Tournament photos.
In this picture, we see the team members bringing the catch in from the docks.
Holding tanks used to keep fish alive while they wait to be measured.
Weigh Station – The Redfish must be between 18 and 27 inches. Any fish over 27 in. is disqualified.
The weigh station – all teams are entered in the computer and weight totals are recorded. In this tournament, the average ranged between 5 and 8 lbs.
Winning team with 15.25 lbs.
One exciting part of this tournament is that all fish are released after weighing.
The Redfish Fishery in Punta Gorda/Charlotte Harbor is too valuable to catch them just once. What a great concept.
Tournament Time
We spent the first part of the weekend scoping out the “lay of the land”. Had to find a boat ramp, live bait and places to fish. Over the past month, SW Florida had a severe cold snap which killed hundreds of thousands of fish. So finding a place that held fish would not be easy.
Then we ran into a good and bad situation. We found ourselves right in the middle of the first leg of the 1st Annual Fishmasters Redfish Tournament.
The plus: We know that there are Redfish in Charlotte Harbor. The negative: the redfish will be skittish to any bait after spending time in someone’s fish well.
But this experience was just phenomenal. Crowds, excitement and big Redfish.
Flat boats were everywhere – 54 teams fished this day. What a great day – not to be on the water.
Florida or Bust
We just arrived in Punta Gorda, Florida. With “Fantasea II” in tow and kayaks on top, we are ready to test the waters.
The weather has been unusually cool and the water tempertures below normal.
Looking forward to exploring those hidden fishing spots.
Best in Show
Last weekend we attended the 56th Annual Mid Atlantic Boat show in Virginia Beach. Another great show. This is always a great place to get ideas to better rig up for the coming season. But just sometimes your rig-up just happens to be a new boat to put your old gear in. Not this year but maybe next.
Not Fishing Weather
Weather has not cooperated lately. Last weekend the Outer Banks was hit with a snow storm that covered the roads and beach.
Conditions should improve – hopefully sooner that later.
NCsaltaire 