John Preeg: Alberto wreaks havoc on fishing

There is not too much to report this week. A few people fished on Saturday before conditions deteriorated.

Sunday, Monday and Tuesday were complete blow outs, and even though it cleared on Wednesday, the winds continued to blow, and most offshore boats stayed at the dock while backwater anglers fished in mud.

Before the storm, both the inshore and offshore fishing were quite good, and it will not be long before conditions return to normal. Alberto was a relatively mild storm, and although the nearshore waters were stirred up, they should clear quickly, the bait will return, and the snook will be jumping in the boat by Saturday. At least that is what I was told by a few guides who had previously mentioned that they were not booked this weekend.

-- NAPLES — Capt. Tommy Robinson’s last trip was on Saturday morning, and he said by noon the wind was blowing forty knots, and the fishing was poor.

On Friday, however, Robinson fished an afternoon/evening trip with the Fan Depot “boys”, and they landed four legal red grouper, and a half-dozen mangrove snappers, and a 52-pound amberjack. Earlier in the week, Robinson said that the mangrove snapper and cobia fishing had been very good, and his catch included a 50-pound cobia that was landed on just 12-pound test line.

Robison reported that the waters were very dirty on Wednesday, and probably would still be stirred up this weekend. That means that the grouper fishing will probably be poor, but the snapper and cobia fishing should be very good.

-- MARCO ISLAND/TEN THOUSAND ISLANDS — Capt. Stacy Mullendore fished on Wednesday after the storm and said that the waters were very dirty on the outside and the bait was gone, but the fishing on the inside was not that bad. Mullendore managed to catch some finger mullet for bait and caught eight snook up to 33-inches.

Mullendore said that before the storm, the snook fishing was excellent. Snook of all sizes were being caught along with an occasional redfish and trout.

-- EVERGLADES CITY — There were not many people out on the water by Wednesday when I wrote this article, and Capt. Shane Miller said water conditions were very poor. The water was dirty and the bait gone.Miller, however, was optimistic. He expects the bait to return along the shore as soon as the surf subsides, and the snook should be very hungry after fasting through the storm.

-- WIGGINS PASS — Capt Larry Regienczuk fished Estero Bay on Thursday and Friday before the storm and said that the fishing was excellent. He fished with Bill Hickman and on Thursday, they landed four redfish plus a dozen snook with two in the slot. On Friday, Regienczuk boated another 20 snook plus a tarpon.

Regienczuk said that last week the bay was very clear, and there was bait all along the beaches, but he assumed that that all changed this past weekend as Alberto scooted by. It will probably be Sunday or Monday before the water regains its clarity.

-- FRESHWATER — This past weekend’s rains were not enough to significantly raise the water level, but there was enough rain to start the waters flowing, according to Jess Edwards of the Golden Gate Tackle Box. The water temperature has dropped, and the increased oxygen has made the fish more active. Bass and snook are biting out around the Big “T’, and panfish are being caught in the Seven Lakes area as well as around the weirs in the Golden Gate canals. Live baits are best for the bass. Worms work well for the panfish.