This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 3/17/03
The SMALL Boys Have the BIG Catches this Wonderful Weekend!

John Uman's son displays this awesome trout he landed in the grass flats of Deadman's Bay!!!

Seven year old, Cole Ivan Bentley of Phenix, Arizona, visiting his uncle, Troy Black, pulls in this fighting Spanish Mackerel!

These two boys, Caleb and Clint Williams, had a magnificent day pulling in trout after trout fishing inshore Sea Hag Charters with Captain Dennis Voyles! (Click any photo to see enlarged)

Everyone was fooled by the weatherman this weekend. Thank goodness not too many fishermen paid attention to them. Weather here was beautiful with only a few random shower. The seas remained at 2 foot or less allowing fishing inshore and offshore and producing great results for the 2nd Anual Steinhatchee Community Fishing Tournament.

FISHING REPORT by Capt. Dennis Voyles
Finally, the Sheepshead run has begun. Sheepshead are active on live bottom in 25 feet and at the Steinhatchee Reef (29° 39.48'N 83° 37.49'W). Fiddler crabs, sand fleas and live shrimp are the top producing baits. Several anglers returned to the Sea Hag Marina with Sheepshead up to five pounds. The winner of the Steinhatchee Community Projects Board Fishing Tournament for the largest Sheepshead, Rick Cubbage, of O'Brien, FL, turned in a 6.85 pounder. Please remember that this is their spawning season and if we wish to have our grandchildren enjoy catching large sheepshead, we must practice sportsmanship. The overly generous limit of 15 per angler should not apply during the spawning season.

Inshore fishing is excellent! The trout bite is the best in years and many pelagics have returned. Tom Williams and his boys Clint and Caleb skipped school on Thursday to fish with me. These skilled anglers boated their legal limit of trout in less than three hours. Their catch also included several large Spanish mackerel and an oversized sand trout. The trout fishing is good both north and south of the river. The Williams boys also observed a huge nurse shark cruising the flats. For trout, topwater plugs including the Storm Saltwater Chub Bug, Mirrolure's 5M and Top Dogs, and Rapala's SkittleWalks are working well along with the old standby Cajun Thunder float supporting a 1/4oz jig head with a Saltwater Assassin grub tail in the colors of Chicken Bone, Electric Chicken and if cloudy skies, the Limetreuse and Chartruese Glitter are all working well. Spanish Mackerel are being caught on Spanish Mackerel Rigs made by Fairwaters along with Floreo lures and Got-Cha Lures with the golden and white color hair tail.

Rock Bottom's Tournament Grouper - Chris Williams, Brian Carter, and Phillip Delgado
Offshore, the King Mackerel have returned and some very large fish to boot. I saw three Kings over thirty pounds at the Sea Hag Marina cleaning table this weekend. Trolling for grouper caught fire this weekend as most anglers reported better luck trolling than bottom fishing. Darker colors of the Manns Stretch 30+ plugs dominated most conversations (Black/Chrome, Red tiger, Black/pearl and Purple). The photos from this week tell the "Reel" story. The fishing is great right now so get over here and get on the water.

From Warner Robins GA, Griff Clements Chris
Hancock Dick Daniel Ted Bailey Eric Noles

Grouper caught aboard the Neva-Miss.

This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 3/15/03
TOURNAMENT FISHING by BRIAN KIEL, MEMBER OF GAINESVILLE OFFSHORE FISHING CLUB
On Saturday March 15th, I fished in the Steinhatchee Saltwater Tournament with Bernie Fowler. Our goal was to focus on large grouper and our strategy was to initially troll for a while and then bottom fish. Outfitted with larger gear and heavier tests (80 and 100 lb test main lines) than usual we were going with the big fish big bait theory.

Offshore conditions were ideal with a quartering following sea, 2 ½ foot seas, and an overcast morning. Expecting to be wet all day with forecasted scattered showers there were no thunderstorms nearby. On the way out we stopped in 24 feet and caught a good supply of large black seabass and porgies. Interestingly, it was calmer offshore (1 ft) in 60 feet than it was in 40 feet (2+ ft). After reaching an area of convoluted hardbottom ranging from 60 to 65 feet we started trolling. After an hour of trolling a red & white and a blue back chrome Manns Stretch 30 the tally was two sub-legal grouper (one a small 16" inch red grouper) and one 23" gag (caught on Stretch 30 Loud'n'Noisy). Having a few numbers in the immediate area we expected to do well trolling here but that sure wasn’t the case. We decided to switch to bottom fishing and we went to a proven nearby number in 62 feet. Thinking big baits big grouper we put out two large baits, one a 15 inch black seabass on a suspended dropper rig and a 12 incher-both rigs using circle hooks. We also fished another rod a piece using frozen sardines. Over the next hour we didn’t catch very many grouper and those we did were sub-legal. No takers at all on the big baits. One notable fish however, was my first offshore redfish that went 30 inches and fought noticeably different than a grouper. After a couple of pictures the redfish was released.

We then hit 3 other spots all within 65 feet with similar results; few fish. On a number of occasions we caught small gag that we didn’t even know were on the hooks-it was a pretty soft bite. By noon the bite was almost non-existent and we decided it had to be a “tidal thing”. Around 2:00 p.m. the bite started picking up. I was lucky enough to boat a large gag that took a sardine. We attempted to weigh the gag and discuss whether this was a tournament contender. The scale was bouncing between 17 and 19 lbs. I estimated the gag at 17.5 and Bernie thought it would go 18. Thinking it would take a 19-20 lb grouper to place in the tournament we elected to continue fishing. We moved around a little more and just couldn’t find quality fish. It was a difficult day in my book. Radio traffic indicated that most people were having a difficult time putting fish in the boat too and we were no exception. Fishing the large rods all day long we didn’t get a hit.

Low and high tide was 6:35 a.m (-0.5 ft) and 1:02 p.m. (2.6 ft) respectively. It was 3 days pre-full moon with a moonset and rise of 5:04 a.m. and 3:32 p.m. If you believe in solunar tables this would have explained the day’s poor fishing (I’m still undecided about the solunar tables). Barometric pressure was steady ranging from 29.96 to 29.88 psi. Inshore and offshore water temperature was 69.4 and 67.2 degrees respectively. Water color and clarity looked good but you could not make out bottom in 60 feet. Early in the day there was no surface weeds but later in the afternoon there were clumps of Sargassum and a fair amount of short grass on the surface. We did not see any bait pods.

Ran a total of 78.5 miles keeping 4 gag to 18 lbs. 3 ozs. At the cleaning table all stomachs were empty except two that were bulging with the sardines we had been using. After seeing that our large gag went over 18 lbs, in hindsight I began to think that we should of ran in for the weigh in. With one hour remaining in the weigh in the 2nd place grouper was 16 lbs. It was good to be out on the water again but it was a tough day in the bite department.

I don’t quite understand why the pictures didn’t turn out well (too reflective?) but here’s a couple anyway.
The two pictures are:

18 lb. 3 oz. Gag Grouper (Click photos to see enlarged)

A 30 inch offshore Redfish

Brian Kiel
Steinhatchee Community Projects Board Fishing Tournament 3/15/03
Winners 2003

Chris Williams with winning Grouper. (Click all photos to see enlarged)

Largest Trout	Wade Raulerston, Keaton Beach, FL 6.40 lbs.	$500.00
2nd Largest Trout	Danny Raulerston, Keaton Beach, FL 6.1 lbs.	$250.00
Largest Grouper	Chris Williams, Lake City, FL 20.30 lbs.	$500.00
2nd Largest Grouper	Jessie Miller, Newberry, FL 19.45 lbs.	$250.00
Largest Legal Redfish	Leland Raulerston, Keaton Beach, FL 8.05 lbs.	$500.00
2nd Largest Legal Redfish	Bruce Lord, Trenton, FL 6.05 lbs.	$250.00
Largest Sheepshead	Rick Cubbage, O'Brien, FL 6.85 lbs.	$250.00

Paula Wilkinson, Mark Wilkinson, Phillip Delgado, Brian Carter, and Chris Williams submitted quite a few of the Grouper in the Tournament. Top Grouper weighed in at 20.3lbs.

First to weigh-in a Grouper, Roger Rountree at 15.25 lbs. whown here with Becky and Chase Rountree.
2003 Raffle Winners

How to Still Enjoy a Rainy Weekend at Sea Hag Marina 3/9/03

Chaeli and Chase Splashin' Around in the Sea Hag Marina parking lot. They were as wet as the average fisherman that went out this weekend!
This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 3/10/03
Sea Hag Marina Fishing Report by Captain Dennis Voyles
Two more fronts moved through the Steinhatchee area this weekend bringing with them strong winds, lightning and driving rain making both offshore and nearshore fishing difficult to say the least. The fishing is actually quite good on the rare occasion that the weather allows a boat to go out. Maybe since March came in like a lion it will go out like a lamb. I sure hope so.

Otto Olsen, Hank Purdy, Jape Taylor and Aubrey Williams fished inshore with me last Tuesday in search of some Speckled Trout. Though pestered with threatening weather and strong winds these veteran anglers landed trout consistently throughout the day. We found the most consistent trout bite to be in the three to five feet depths. Color seemed less important than depth but bright colors such as Limetruese, Candy Corn and Chartreuse did very well. I was amazed at the skill level these gentlemen had accumulated over the years and their ability to coax even the most sluggish fish into slamming a lure.

Captain Paul Cronk and I guided the Alan Sims party on Friday. Strong winds and driving rain once again tested our patience and ability. In spite of the horrible weather, we managed to land a very nice bunch of trout. We also caught the first Spanish Mackerel of the Spring. A grub-jig combo fished topless (no float) seemed to work best. There are still no large female Sheepshead being caught in the area. It looks as though the spawning season will be late and short.

King Mackerel have begun to show up in nearby offshore waters. My Saturday offshore party spotted a large group of Kings slamming a bait pod just a few miles from the last marker, and Captain Bill Shearin returned to the Sea Hag Marina with the first Kingfish of the year on Sunday 3/09, a hefty thirty-two pounder!
Offshore action is very good when the weather allows. The Scott Pastor party returned to the Sea Hag Marina with 196 pounds of Grouper and Florida Snapper on Saturday aboard the newly renovated Sea Hag Charter vessel "Miss Chaeli". The Grouper bite was so fast at times Sandy Tengelke landed two keeper Grouper (29" and 24") on one rig. Though we only fished bottom rigs, several fishermen reported excellent results from trolling. I am excited to see the return of some of the pelagic species to the area.
Hey, after such a cold winter you should check the pressure level of your type 1 fire extinguisher. Both of my extinguishers lost pressure and had to be replaced. Also check the expiration dates of your flares, replacement cost is much lower than the fine that could result. Last year I fired one of my old flares over my pasture to see if it still worked, and nearly burned down my whole place. I don't recommend this during a dry spell (or at all actually). Store your old flares along with your new ones in a bag stating the fact that they are outdated because incase of emergency, the extra flares most likely will still fire and can be useful once your legal ones have been shot and have attracted no attention.

Scott Pastor, Marty Counts, Chris Day, Sandy Tengelke, Jared Dominck, and Greg Gatley show their Grouper catch caught in the rain aboard Sea Hag Charter's Miss Chaeli Saturday March 8th. (Click photos to see enlarged)

Sandy Tengelke with two of the larger Grouper caught Saturday.

That's all for this week, get over here and win some of the big money in the Steinhatchee Community Fishing Tournament this Saturday. Remember we will be open until 9:00pm Friday night and will open Saturaday morning at 5:00am if you'd like to beat the rush. We have stocked the store completely full of the newest and hottest tackle items! Also, to alieviate traffic at the Community center, Sea Hag Marina will offer rides with fish to and from the weigh-in site. Good luck, and be safe. Also, we still have one room, the motorhome, with queen bed and pull-out single couch for Friday & Saturday - $59/night. If you need a wetslip for Friday night, please call in advance and make a reservation as we are filling up rather quick!

The Steinhatchee Community Fishing Tournament is this Saturday. You can purchase tickets even on the day of the event at the Sea Hag Marina. The tournament is March 15th and the entry fee is $25 per person. Cash prizes are being awarded for Trout, Redfish,Grouper and Sheepshead. The Optimist Club Tournament is April 12th and includes a $10,000 Tagged Redfish prize. Click Steinhatchee Fishing Tournament March 15, 2003 and Optimist Club Tournament is April 12, 2003 for more information on these tournaments. We are selling tickets for both tournaments in the ships' store. Call 352-498-3008 for more information or to purchase tickets over the phone. we will open extra hours for the tournaments - Friday night prior to each, we will be open until 9:00pm and open the morning of the tournaments at 5:00am.
Email me at askcaptain@seahag.com or visit the Charter website at https://seahag.com/marina2/guides/sea_hag_charters.htm
This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 3/3/03
Sea Hag Marina Fishing Report by Captain Dennis Voyles
Trout season opened with poor weather conditions but good fishing. Most trout anglers experienced very good action once the rain and lightning ended Saturday morning. Water temperatures moved into the mid sixties on the flats and backwaters activating the metabolism of trout, Redfish and bluefish. For the next two months the topwater action will be some of the best of the year. The trout will need to feed aggressively to meet the demands of both increased metabolism and the rigors of spawning.

I tip my hat to Captain Sam LeNeave and his March first clients Chris Jennings and Kevin Folta. These sportsmen enjoyed fast topwater action opening day of trout season, landing several limits of both trout and Redfish. I tip my hat because these fellows released all of the fish they caught (including a six-pound trout) except those legal fish that were deeply hooked or injured. Too many times we measure the success of a trip at the cleaning table, forgetting that the trip and the time on the water is what angling memories are made of, not the meals of fish. Listen to fishermen talk of their trips and you will not hear of how well the fish swam in the frying pan, how he struggled on the cleaning table or sat motionless in the freezer bag. The memories of fishing trips are made from line screaming runs, jumps, blasting a topwater plug and the bonds made by good friends spending a day away from desks and computers and stress. The fish released by these guys can be enjoyed again and again in the future, maybe by you, or me, or our children. Thanks guys.

Offshore grouper action is excellent for both trolling and bottom fishing. Several vessels returned this week with impressive numbers and size. I fished with Alan Carver aboard the Lucky strike on Friday. We found the grouper willing to hit both frozen baits (bottom fishing) and trolling plugs with reckless abandon. We returned to the sea hag with nine grouper (four over twenty pounds) and sore arms. One highlight of the trip was catching nine grouper in nine consecutive casts using a one-ounce Bucktail jig on twenty-pound tackle.
Grouper guru Captain Bill Shearin (Neva Miss Charters) returned with several impressive offshore catches of grouper and snapper this week.

Alan Carver and Captain Dennis Voyles with Friday's Catch!

Close-up of Friday's Catch! Click photos to see enlarged.

These grouper were caught aboard the Neva-Miss with captain Bill Shearin. Shown here are Chris Kimsey, Chris Williams, Keith Kimsey, Tommy Schell and missing from the picture is keith Hubbard.

Talking to several trolling enthusiasts this weekend the color seemed much less important than the depth or speed of the lure. One group of fishermen told me that they had hits on every color that they trolled. Kim Morris battled two huge grouper all the way to the boat on one Stretch 30+ only to have the back hook tear off the lure when the fish was boatside. Maybe Kim needs a double-barreled gaff.

Although I have seen a few pelagic fish well offshore most species have not yet arrived in our waters. As our water temperatures move closer to the upper sixties, both Sheepshead and the pelagic types will arrive. Last year passing Kings and Spanish Mackerel interrupted several of our Sheepshead bites.
Speaking of Sheepshead, the bite has not yet begun, but will soon, and remember that these fish are spawning and the future of the fishery lies in the abdomen of the largest females. The limit of fifteen fish per angler will most definitely come back to haunt us some day in the future.

The Steinhatchee Community Fishing Tournament is just two weeks away. The tournament is March 15th and the entry fee is $25 per person. Cash prizes are being awarded for Trout, Redfish,Grouper and Sheepshead. The Optimist Club Tournament is April 12th and includes a $10,000 Tagged Redfish prize. Click Steinhatchee Fishing Tournament March 15, 2003 and Optimist Club Tournament is April 12, 2003 for more information on these tournaments. We are selling tickets for both tournaments in the ships' store. Call 352-498-3008 for more information or to purchase tickets over the phone. we will open extra hours for the tournaments - Friday night prior to each, we will be open until 9:00pm and open the morning of the tournaments at 5:00am.
Email me at askcaptain@seahag.com or visit the Charter website at https://seahag.com/marina2/guides/sea_hag_charters.htm

This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 2/28/03
From Brian Kiel of the Gainesville Offshore Fishing Club
Fishing with Bernie Fowler and Sanford Boye of Gainesville the plan for the day was to invite home some Steinhatchee grouper. Leaving Gainesville at 5:20 a.m. the day had an ominous start with lightening, thunder, and rain. While fueling the boat in Chiefland we watched in amazement as two women, one of them smoking a cigarette, began checking the fuel tanks with a meter stick. We were happy to get out of there. I wonder what they were thinking?

At the bottom of low tide (-0.6 ft) we launched the boat and headed out to 60 feet. On the way out it was a following sea of solid 3 footers with a few 6-foot swells mixed in. Stopping for bait in 47 feet we picked up some nice 6 to 10 inch sand perch (“squirrelfish”). At the first spot in 60 feet the grouper were cooperative and we put 4 in the box and released two that were 22 and 23 ½ inches, plus a few sublegal groupers. At one point Sanford had a good fish on that didn’t fight like a grouper but was pulling pretty hard and swimming off to the side. This turned out to be an offshore redfish and after lifting it over the gunnel it measured 40 inches. We estimated it was over 25 pounds before we released it after taking a couple of pictures. That was an impressive fish!

Moving to another spot in 62 feet the bite was still a good one. Here we put 6 more gag to 30 some inches in the box, plus releasing 5 legal gag up to 26 inches and a few shorts. On the way to check out a third number we ran over a steep ledge with a sharp 5-foot relief in 60 feet. Anchoring on this we caught some excellent grouper with some of them the largest of the day. At this point Bernie and I had our limit and were just fishing for fun. With 14 in the boat, I caught a nice 30 inch gag which we released. Sanford ended the day with his largest, a 12 pounder (weighed at home) that finished the limit.

Low and high tide was 6:51 a.m (-0.6 ft) and 1:08 p.m. (2.6 ft) respectively. It was 2 days pre-new moon and the offshore tide was running hard in the morning. Barometric pressure was steady ranging from 29.98 to 30.03 psi, winds were out of the northeast and we had whitecaps the entire day. While it was a bit bouncy during the a.m. the seas diminished to 2+ foot by the afternoon. It was overcast the entire day and that probably helped out the bite. Water clarity didn’t look good, as the water appeared gray. The inshore water temp was 64.5 degrees, while offshore the water temperature at 59.5 warming to 60.2 degrees by mid afternoon. We did not see any bait pods but it was too rough to tell. Surface weed was not a problem offshore and trolling would have been fine.

All day long watching the bottomfinder I could never find the grouper although you could see black seabass and AJ returns on the screen. Since we couldn’t see where the grouper were holding on the bottom we ended up anchoring over the best looking structure. It still worked out. Never caught a black seabass (except at the bait stop) or an AJ today. Our best bite was from 10:15 to 11:00 a.m. and from 2:05 to 2:25 p.m. with good water movement. Uncharacteristically, the live sand perch didn’t catch that many fish nor did the couple of black seabass that we used. With a sand perch on the bottom there was a wait of sometimes up to 5 minutes before you had a fish on. What worked well was frozen bait. Most of the fish were all caught on large frozen sardines with the exception of a couple of large gags caught on last years left over frozen blue runners. These runners were about 8 inches and claimed some of the larger grouper. For the most part the bite was a soft one, only a few fish hit hard, and most fish were picked up right away within 15 seconds of hitting the bottom.

Radio traffic indicated a mix day, good for some and tough for others. At least one boat trolling seemed to be doing well. We bottom fished exclusively but it would of been a good day for trolling as at anchor it was a bit bouncy. Sanford had recently moved back from Australia and hadn’t been on a boat for over 3 years. He spent a few times on the deck lying down with an occasional leaning over the gunnel talking to the fish (Ralphhhhhhhhh!!!). He still kept fishing though.

Ran a total of 78.5 miles and ended the day with 1 red grouper and 14 gag, the largest going 15.5 lbs. At the cleaning table 2/3’s of the stomachs were empty but 5 of gag had large 6 to 10 inch fish in their stomachs. Two prey items were lizardfish and two others looked to be porgies. All in all it was an exceptional day offshore-the kind you always look forward to.

Brian Kiel
Attached pictures are (click photo to see enlarged):

1. Sand Perch for bait

2. Nice 40 inch offshore redfish!! Caught on a sand perch.

3. Bernie with a nice 15.5 lb gag

4. Sanford with nice gag sporting a sand perch

5. At the surface……….

6. In the boat. Sanford with another nice gag

This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 2/26/03
Sea Hag Marina Fishing Report by Captain Dennis Voyles

CLICK ALL PHOTOS TO SEE ENLARGED

Grouper From combined charter of Sea Hag Charters and Neva-Miss Charters. Shown here are Sonny Rigdon, Ray Horner, Jimmy Douglas, Frank Smith, Berke Holtzclaw, Captain Dennis Voyles, and Billy Holtzclaw. 2/25/03

Tuesday (Feb 25) Captain Bill Shearin and I fished together with the Jimmy Douglas party, and the grouper fishing was fast and furious. These veteran anglers from Georgia boated 23 legal grouper totaling 231 pounds. All fish were caught in the sixty foot range using frozen sardine and herring. I was not able to count the number of short grouper landed but I would estimate that this group landed over seventy grouper. The winds look favorable for this weekend so far, so get out and enjoy this wonderful resource.

Dr. McFadden fished with Captain Dennis Voyles and Alan Carver aboard the Lucky Strike. It was Dr. Tom McFadden's first offshore adventure. I'm sure he'll be back for more. Dr. McFadden practices in South Carolina. 2/21/03 (Foggy Friday!) 22lb. Gag Grouper

Michael Meyer, Chad White, and friend, Ralph, caught these grouper 2/25/03.

These fine grouper were caught aboard the Neva-Miss on February 24th.

Terry Meyer and Mill Hill caught these grouper on 2/25/03.
They had great success because they were sitting on the dock drinking beers by 2:00pm.

Brother of Terry Meyer, Michael Meyer, and Chad White and Ralph came in a bit later on February 25th but also landed a nice group of Grouper.

Chad White displays a very larger Grouper.

Remember to click photos to see them enlarged!
This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 2/24/03
Sea Hag Marina Fishing Report by Captain Dennis Voyles
The tulip trees in the area are in full bloom, which usually means that it is time to catch huge spawning Sheepshead. So far very few large Sheepshead have been caught, but the movement can happen overnight. Several of our Aqua-Vu camera owners reported seeing large female Sheepshead in the twenty to twenty-five mile area last week, but none of them had shrimp along to test the bite. My guess is that the girls are on the move and will arrive before the next full moon. The new moon is March 3rd and will likely start the annual spawn. However, the weather this winter has been unusual and may continue to challenge even the most veteran anglers as to the movement of fish both inshore and offshore.

This Saturday Spotted Seatrout season reopens. The cold inshore water temperatures will likely find the trout somewhat sluggish. Winter techniques will likely give the best results. Hopefully the bluebird days predicted for this week will warm the water and increase the trout's metabolism. Only time will tell.

Black Sea Bass continue to be the most reliable fish of the winter, biting in depths starting at twenty feet and continuing as far as sixty feet. The large offshore sized Redfish that were hanging around the Sea Bass earlier in the winter have been absent for the most part in February. Last week I watched (through the Aqua-Vu camera) a large group of Sea Bass try to eat a twelve-inch frozen mackerel. Eventually they managed to break the skin and devour all but the head of the bait. At the cleaning table I have found all sorts of things in sea bass stomachs; crab claws, coral, large vertebrae, rocks and even small conch. Most everyone who has caught sea bass has witnessed one holding on to a lead weight all the way into the boat.

Grouper have been interesting lately. Last week we caught a few keeper grouper in forty feet, but the majority of the good fishing was out in sixty feet or more. Trolling produced a few fish but bottom fishing remains the better option. In last weeks taste test, cigar minnows outfished both mackerel and thread herring. I have started seeing sea turtles again as of Friday, so that's a good sign of warmer water temperatures. Friday's sea fog was thicker than sand gnats at a nudist convention, so check the temperature and dewpoint before you leave port. If they are within two degrees of each other you will encounter fog, making navigation without radar very dangerous. Be careful, and enjoy our wonderful resources.

The Steinhatchee Community Fishing Tournament is only a month away. The tournament is March 15th and the entry fee is $25 per person. Cash prizes are being awarded for Trout, Redfish,Grouper and Sheepshead. The Optimist Club Tournament is April 12th and includes a $10,000 Tagged Redfish prize. Click Steinhatchee Fishing Tournament March 15, 2003 and Optimist Club Tournament is April 12, 2003 for more information on these tournaments
Email me at askcaptain@seahag.com or visit the Charter website at https://seahag.com/marina2/guides/sea_hag_charters.htm

This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 2/20/03
Sea Hag Marina Fishing Report by Captain Dennis Voyles
The signs of Spring seem more apparent every day. Most of the watermelon fields look ready for planting, the Red Maples are painting the low areas with brilliant colors and, my favorite, the Eastern Redbud are blooming. Many of the migrating birds have started the first phase of their return to the northlands. Loons, who seemed plentiful this year, have mostly left the local waters to catch the return flight toward their northern nesting areas. Some of the local pastures are beginning to show less brown and more green.
On the water, Redfish have begun schooling in ultra shallow water seeking some energy from the suns warming rays. A few, and I mean very few, Sheepshead have started to show up at the Sea Hag Marina fish cleaning table. Most people who tried the Steinhatchee Reef this past weekend came back disappointed (a gentle way of saying, "skunked"). There were some scattered reports of people with Aqua-Vu cameras seeing groups of Sheepshead farther offshore, so the spawn should start soon. My personal guess is that the Sheepshead need the water to warm up just a few more degrees to kick their metabolism into the reproductive mode. At present the Steinhatchee Reef water temperature is a brisk fifty-three degrees.
The Black Sea Bass are still feeding aggressively in the twenty-plus depths just offshore. These small but tasty members of the Grouper family are a ton of fun on light tackle, especially when you catch two and sometimes three (I have witnesses) at a time.
Offshore, when the weather permits, Grouper, Florida Snapper and Amberjack are spotty to moderately active. Bill Shearin, (Neva Miss Charters) returned both Friday and Saturday last week with good catches of mixed offshore species. The Sea Hag Charters offshore vessel if finally ready for her maiden charter voyage. She certainly turns heads with her sleek lines, new colors and state-of-the-art electronics. If you would like to book a trip with her just call us here at the marina (352-498-3008) and we would be glad to arrange your trip. Offshore trips start at 7:00am and return at 5:00pm. We provide all bait and tackle; you just bring your lunch, drinks and sunscreen.
We have a new e-mail site askcaptain@seahag.com for questions or concerns or fishing tales or whatever. I would be glad to share my experiences and/or ideas with you, or hear yours.
That's all for this week. Get your "honey-do" list caught up so you can get over here and go fishin'

See you on the water.

The Steinhatchee Community Fishing Tournament is only a month away. The tournament is March 15th and the entry fee is $25 per person. Cash prizes are being awarded for Trout, Redfish,Grouper and Sheepshead. The Optimist Club Tournament is April 12th and includes a $10,000 Tagged Redfish prize. Click Steinhatchee Fishing Tournament March 15, 2003 and Optimist Club Tournament is April 12, 2003 for more information on these tournaments
Email me at askcaptain@seahag.com or visit the Charter website at https://seahag.com/marina2/guides/sea_hag_charters.htm

This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 2/12/03
Sea Hag Marina Fishing Report by Captain Dennis Voyles
Just a reminder that trout season OPENS in March. Inshore action has picked up some this past week as the Redfish are responding favorably to the milder temperatures. With inshore water temperatures still below optimum, approach your favorite Redfish areas very slowly and very quietly, as the reds will spook very easily under these conditions. Soft plastic baits will provoke strikes but these fish are still sluggish. Live shrimp or cut mullet strips will generally have better results until the weather fully breaks out of this horrible cold pattern.

The Sheepshead continue to gather around live rocks and manmade reefs but the females have yet to make their debut. I am hoping that these weeks fair weather combined with the approaching full moon will entice the large females to begin their annual reproduction cycle. Last Sunday while twenty-five miles offshore I saw a herd of maybe four-hundred females (using the Aqua-Vu ZT-120 underwater camera) hanging out on a natural rocky area. We were geared for grouper so we could only watch as they milled around below. I though about dropping leaflets down with directions to the Steinhatchee Reef.

The tasty Black Sea Bass continues to dominate most inshore catches, though very few anglers ventured into the weekend's wet weather. Sea Bass will savagely attack most any bait. On light tackle I prefer to use a 1/2 ounce leadhead jig and limetruese grub body. Squid fished on a drop rig or Carolina type rig will produce a fast bite as well. In spite of the increased trapping pressure, the Sea Bass bite seemed very good this winter.

GOOD NEWS OFFSHORE FISHERMEN, here are those three little words that you have been waiting for all winter …TROLLING IS HOT!!! Yes trolling fanatics your Grouper have decided to start slamming large diving plugs again. Last week aboard the Lucky Strike, we boated eight Grouper in less than an hour using Mann's Stretch 30+ lures in the color Red Tiger and Redhead Holographic. What a beautiful sight to see the trolling rods bend down to touch the water. The water offshore has cleared up significantly which I believe is the major reason that trolling has started producing again. This week I plan to pull some of the new (and less expensive) Megabaits 30+ lures. They have several good-looking colors that I believe will do well. Captain Bill Brown and I are trying figure out a way to hook up the Aqua-Vu camera so that we can film Grouper hitting trolled plugs. (Little does Capt. Voyles and Capt. Brown know but there is a special camera unit created to be attached to a down rigger so that trolling gropuer can be filmed) Currently we have three Aqua-Vu ZT-120 cameras in stock at the marina ($419.99) all the SV-120 cameras sold and we have them on order again. Please call if you'd like to purchase one and we will reserve a camera for you.

The SteinhatcheeCommunity Fishing Tournament is only a month away. The tournament is March 15th and the entry fee is $25 per person. Cash prizes are being awarded for Trout, Redfish,Grouper and Sheepshead. The Optimist Club Tournament is April 12th and includes a $10,000 Tagged Redfish prize. Click Steinhatchee Fishing Tournament March 15, 2003 and Optimist Club Tournament is April 12, 2003 for more information on these tournaments
That's all for this week, but remember that sea fog can form quickly and unexpectedly this time of the year making navigation dangerous. Please be careful. Email me at askcaptain@seahag.com or visit the Charter website at https://seahag.com/marina2/guides/sea_hag_charters.htm

This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 2/7/03
Sea Hag Marina Fishing Report by Danielle Norwood

Alan Carver's group of Grouper!
HERE'S A LOOK AHEAD: The Spotted Seatrout season reopens with the first of March. The flats north of the river mouth and east of the Steinhatchee Reef will be producing most of the trout, the large being caught in 6 to 8 feet of water. Another excellent area is the channel just south of Bowlegs Point. To find this area turn south after marker 9 in the Steinhatchee Channel and travel for approximately 7.5 miles. You will pass over a sand bottom, which will turn to a grassy gray color. It is in this grassy color that you want to fish. Try the Saltwater Assassin Sea Shads and Split-tail Shads in the colors of electric chicken, candy corn, and limetreuse along with 5M Mirrolures, Top Dog Lures, and milky white with a red head Long "A" Bomber Lures and the new A-Salt-water Bombers as well. If you are lazy man fisherman as I am (I like to sit back and relax) use live shrimp on a 2/O long shank hook with a 3/4 ounce sliding sinker leader under an Equalizer float. Be sure to throw a Johnson or Capt. Mike's gold spoon occasionally with hope to land a nice Redfish too.

Sheepshead fishing has been slow this year. Fishermen say they can see the fish swimming around but are having difficulty getting them to take a hook. You can expect to catch Sheepshead to best on the new and full moons when the tide fluctuates the most. Sheepshead cling closely to structures so be sure to hunt them down and anchor over them at the Steinhatchee Reef. Use a sliding sinker rig with a 3/4-ounce egg weight and one to two foot mono leader of 30-pound test line. Mustad makes a special Sheepshead hook that does not straighten with the strength of their bite. Try a hook in the range of size 6 up to 1/O. Be ready to set the hook quickly as the Sheepshead is notorious for stealing bait very quickly. Sheepshead love fiddler crabs and sand fleas but may also feat on live shrimp very often.

Start looking for Cobia to hide near structures such as channel markers and pilings. Expect them to approach the boat as well. If you see this fish, try casting a live pinfish in his direction. Some folks use a large bobber to keep the bait near the surface. You may also use a balloon. Cobia are finicky eaters so if the live bait does not work try throwing everything in your tackle box at them. You may be pleasantly surprised. If you are trout fishing, rig a larger pole with a free-floating pinfish (or with a float) and stick it in a rod holder just in case a stray fish happens by while you drift. The Cobia must be 33' in length to keep. Measure from the nose to the fork. They are also excellent to eat!

In March on the Steinhatchee Reef expect to find Spanish Mackerel. For artificials try using Floreo Lures, Johnson Silver Spoons, or tinsel Spanish mackerel rigs. Lures that have shiny tinsel or flowing hair work best for this fish. Troll the just beyond the white water of your wake. You can also anchor up, put out a chum bag and fish with live shrimp. This will also attract Pompano, Jacks, Bluefish, Ladyfish, and many other fun striking fish. Sheepshead fishing has ended now that the water has warmed up. Look to start catching them again in the fall and winter.

Offshore the grouper fishing has been great! The top baits for Grouper are thread herring, Spanish sardines, cigar minnows, and squid. Trolling the Stretch 30+ lures and the Megabait lures are producing larger fish than bottom fishing. The red tiger and the pearl with black back are working best for Mann's. Troll at 3 to 4 knots using a 25lb. or 30lb. test line (I recommend the 30lb.) any heavier and the line tends to pull the lures towards the surface. Also to get the lures to dive deeper, try putting the new braided line (30lb. test to 60lb.) on your reel. Due to the diameter of the line, the drag against the line is less and the lure dives deeper. Since these new braids are more expensive, we suggest putting mono on the base of the reel and attaching the braid midway through the fill. Filling a full reel with braid can cost an upward of $40 to $50 dollars. Currently we stock Power Pro line and will be adding Triple Fish's Bully Braid soon. We have a line spooler in the Marina, so bring your reel and we will spool it for you. Also note, with the new braids, it is important to tie the mono together with a special knot that will hold securely while trolling. Our marina employees can help with the knot tying as well. Just ask.

We've gotten some Aqua-Vu cameras in stock. We have the ZT-120's on back order and will be selling them for $419.99 when they arrive (barring a UPS delivery error we should have 4 units here Friday at 2:30pm - sorry will be MOnday after all!). We got in the SV-120 which is multicolored and has a direction/compass aid so that you can tell which way the camera is aiming (I'm getting request for this so you know which side of the boat to throw the lie out) which is selling for $549.99. We currently have two SV-120's in stock. We expect the ZT-120 shortly (as I noted Monday 2/10/03 at 2:30ish). You can rent a ZT-120 for $25.00 per day and if you decide to buy a camera that day, the rental fee is refunded. Please call ahead if you would like to rent a camera, as we only have two right now, and they are the hottest thing going right now!

Don't forget - Steinhatchee Fishing Tournament March 15, 2003 and Optimist Club Tournament is April 12, 2003. Click associated title above to gain more details such as prizes, ticket price, and rules for each contest. Both should be very fun!