It was a great week of snook fishing on the outside with lot of wonderful folks. It gets brutally hot out there this time of year, but the high speed action can make you forget your radiator is boiling over!

First up was Steve Rekowski, his son Derek, and their 16 year old friend Pete. We left the dock at seven o'clock and headed for the Hump for bait. It didn't take long before we had a good mix of shiners and pinfish. We were off to the beach!

Once I had the boat in position, we had a pretty good bite. This was the first time for the boys to do this kind of light tackle, salt water fishing, and they had their trouble getting in the groove. Steve dialed in pretty quickly, and put 10 snook in the boat to 5 pounds. The boys were a little slower to catch on, but still boated 5 snook each. They also caught a beautiful mangrove snapper that went about three pounds. We ended a fun morning of fishing with a great lunch at the Waterfront.

Tuesday and Wednesday were booked with Eric Wickstrom, of Purcellville, Virginia, and his good friend Ron Robertson. I knew from his emails that Eric was pretty wired for these two days, and couldn't wait to get him and Ron out there on the fish.

We left the ramp Tuesday morning in total darkness, headed for the Hump. We caught big, beautiful snook sized shiners there, and were off to the beach. We had a good bite. If Eric and Ron had caught all the snook that smashed their baits, they would have put up some spectacular numbers. Although Eric missed lots of fish, he did pretty well on the new technique. He boated around a dozen snook. Poor Ron didn't fare so well that first day, and only boated 4 snook. I didn't know it until just recently when Eric emailed me, but it was Ron's first saltwater fishing experience. He just didn't take these mean old snook seriously enough. But, by morning's end, they had boated 16 or more snook, 2 trout, and a mack. It was just dress rehearsal for Wednesday!

Wednesday morning! I couldn't wait to get Ron and Eric out there. I knew they'd be ready to put a butt-whipping on those snook! And they were. After beautiful bait at the Hump, once again, we were off to the races. I wasn't worried about Eric, but I wasn't sure Ron had gotten the routine figured out the day before. Turned out they boys were ready for combat, and they put at least 30 snook in the boat, about equally divided. Eric tangled with a huge snook, but predictably, lost his first battle with the Stickness Monster. The boys lost at least another 30 snook, which believe it or not, is above average on light tackle. You see, many of the guides that fish the beaches in the summer do so with fairly heavy gear. Most of the time, we're using 8 or 10 pound test tackle in the heavy cover, and if an angler can bat 500 (1 of 2 landed), that's about as good as you can expect anyone to do. Those fish are fast, tricky, and powerful, and will cut your stuff off in a heartbeat! 500 is great! I'm sure we were all pleased with the results of the second day, and we topped it off with lunch at the Green Flash, on Captiva.

I have to tell you readers that the Flash is no Waterfront. It has a fantastic view across the Sound to Pine Island. Everyone in the restaurant has a view of the water. The building is laid out with it's length along the water, and the seating is tiered like an auditorium, so everyone can see the water. The fact that the building is way up on stilts really adds to the view. The food is good, but not up to the quality of the Waterfront in St. James City. Portions are much smaller, and prices are much higher, as I suppose should be expected on Captiva. But, it's a great place just the same. From the guides' point of view, it has one serious defect. The Waterfront feeds the local guides for free, as long as they are with customers. That's great for business, and fantastic for us guides, as practically every guide stops there with regularity. I asked about a similar deal at the Green Flash, and was told that there would have to be a conference with the owners, and then we'd see. Come on, you restaurateurs out there! Us guides can bring you lots of biz! I don't think there's a better waterfront restaurant in southwest Florida than the Waterfront Restaurant, but having the option of something different once in a while would be nice, especially when you're fishing near there, anyway!

It had been a great week thus far, but Thursday was the best day for me. You see, I had Danny and Ally Earnest, of Atlanta, Georgia, and they were honeymooners. I'm pretty much a sentimental fool, and love to be a part of the beginnings of a new couple's life together. Danny and Ally are a fine looking couple, and both love to fish! They're a good looking couple, too, and Ally is pretty as a picture.

We headed to the Hump, where Ally quickly assumed the duties of "master baiter", skillfully chumming the bait to the boat. It didn't take long before we had a well full of pinfish and shiners, and were off to the beach. Folks, I've got to tell ya, we had a blast! We had an incredibly good bite! Even with all the missed fish, the new Earnest family put 34 snook and 2 trout in the boat. I figure they're going to be real hard to beat for the June 2000 Angler of the Month Award. Predictably, Ally managed to outfish Danny by a couple of fish. But, I got such a charge out of Danny, who was literally shaking with excitement at all the snook action! His adrenaline level was waaaaay up there! We ended what had been a perfect day at the Waterfront Restaurant. Dan and Ally fell in love with the place, and told me that it was the perfect end to what had been a perfect end to their honeymoon. Now, folks, it doesn't get any better than that for the guide! I'm hoping that will be just the first of many trips in the coming years with Danny and Ally.

Well, there you have it. I took Friday as a scheduled day off. It was a great week, indeed. It's hard to imagine it getting any better, but you never know what next week will bring.

Note: Those of you who have trips booked in the future, or who may want to book, should note my new phone numbers. Home/office is 239-628-3522, and the new cell phone number is 239-633-5851.