The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper

Vol. 14 No. 47 - September 17, 2014

reel time

Torpedoes in the surf

Reel time

rusty chinnis | submitted

Steve Stanley has perfected techniques for sight fishing for
snook in the surf.

While the dog days of summer can be one of the most perplexing times of the year to find and catch fish, they also offer one of the most exciting challenges-- sight fishing snook in the surf! The fishing offers all of the challenges that fly anglers enjoy. First and foremost there’s nothing quite as exciting as making a presentation to the fish that you can actually see and get a chance to gauge their response to your fly and presentation. In addition it’s easy, involves very little equipment and can be productive most of the day.

Steve Stanley, a local angler, considers this one of the most exciting ways to fly fish and has perfected some techniques that have yielded some impressive catches. Stanley retired as senior vice president of construction for the OSI Restaurant Partners LLC (Outback, Carrabba's, Fleming’s Steak House), lives in St Pete and has a home on Anna Maria Island. Fishing for snook in the surf has been a passion of his for years, and I spoke to him recently about his tackle and techniques.

His favorite fly is tied in the shape of a Deceiver, but contains no bucktail. He substitutes white Marabou for a head and collar, which provides more action to the fly. The fly is constructed with three white feathers on each side, splayed inward; he then adds three to four strands of silver flash. The fly’s overall length is about 2 ½ to 3 inches and is tied on a #2 Mustad 3407 DT hook. He’ll sometimes add plastic eyes which he says give the fly a cool look, but he’s not sure it matters to the fish. Personally, I’m a fan of eyes on flies. Stanley fishes a nine-foot, nine-weight G. Loomis rod equipped with a Tibor Everglades reel. Lately he’s been using Airflo's new Ridge floating clear tip line. He rigs his own leaders 10-foot overall, using a 12- pound class tippet (the weakest link) and a 30-pound Rio flourocarbon bite tippit. Aeroflo’s line has about 10 feet of clear tip and light yellow running line which makes it harder for the fish to see in the crystal clear water we have along the beaches in the summer and fall.

According to Stanley, “It is a big step up from the clear lines; the 20-foot business end is virtually invisible, but the colored section allows me to see the rest of the line on the water. This makes it so much easier to know where the fly is in relation to the fish.” The clear tip also allows Stanley to shorten his leader, making casting in an afternoon sea breeze much easier.

Stanley states emphatically, “There is nothing more exciting than wading in knee deep water, looking for swimming fish, making the cast and getting that aggressive eat!”

He finds the fish eager to feed any time of the day. This year he has found the afternoon bite best followed by the morning. He normally wades in about knee deep (about 2 feet) and looks for movement just outside the breaking waves. When he spots fish, he casts slightly off-shore and ahead of moving fish and strips back so that the fish catches up to the fly as it crosses its path heading toward shore. He knows and has observed the mostly cardinal rule that fish will not eat a fly if it is coming at them.

He cautions anglers to carefully look into the holes that develop at the run outs between the beach and the first sandbar. These areas will concentrate bait and the snook will hold in this deeper water looking for a meal. One of the techniques he uses is impressive and makes a lot of sense.

According to Stanley, “I wait for a breaking wave and cast parallel to the beach just behind the white water. The fish don’t hear the line hit the water, and the fly comes back just ahead of them.”

Stanley fishes almost exclusively on the beaches of Anna Maria Island. He has found snook from Bean Point all the way south to beyond Holmes Beach. The snook should be on all the local beaches, but Stanley cautions, “There are so many folks enjoying the water near Bradenton Beach that I am too nervous to toss a fly around there. As the crowds thin out it should get better.”

He’s also fished the north end of Longboat, going south from the first public access parking lot.

According to Stanley, “It’s been a great summer; I’m looking forward to the fall bait run and thinning crowds. It’s just too much fun to pull a really nice fish out of the shallows behind the swimmers!”

Anglers who want to try their luck just need a seven to nine weight outfit, wading boots (think sting rays), a cap with a dark under brim and a pair of quality polarized sun glasses. Stanley gave one of his flies to Steve Traves at Anna Maria Island Outfitters who stocks them, as well as the Airflo line and all the other tackle you might need.

Traves also will be glad to share information on gaining access to the best areas of the beach. What’s not to like about a walk in the surf with the chance of catching a really nice snook! Grab your fly rod, go for a wade and keep an eye out for torpedoes in the surf.


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