Snook are probably the most pursued, but least caught gamefish in Florida waters. They have a disposition very similar to a largemouth bass, but are much faster and more powerful. Snook are wary, shy, smart, tricky, finicky, and probably most other adjectives you can think of would also be accurate in describing a snook. They are the grand masters of the art of escape. They learn their environment quickly and will use oyster covered mangrove roots, pilings, stickups of any kind, oyster bars, and even their own razor sharp gill plates to cut your line and gain freedom. They are also leapers, and are masters at throwing the hook during the jump. Although they don't have teeth, and have a mouth which is, in fact, very similar to that of a bass, they will quickly wear through the toughest of leader materials with their extremely abrasive mouths. By now I think you're probably getting the idea.....you have to be a skilled angler to have much success with snook on light tackle.
Snook will eat just about any kind of bait you can imagine. For pure fun and excitement, nothing will get your adrenilin flowing like a snook blasting a topwater plug or a live shiner clean out of the water. But, as crafty as we claim snook can be, they have one serious weakness; they're suckers for live pilchards. They just can't seem to resist, and for this reason most of my guide trips are done with this live bait. There are many small baitfish available in our local waters that look alike to the untrained eye. There are pilchards, greenbacks, threadfin herring, and so on, that are all genericly know as shiners, or whitebait. But, when you hear a guide mention shiners or whitebait, he's talking about one thing; pilchards.
Snook are a year-round resource, but depending on the time of year they can be plentiful or hard to find. During the summer months from about late May through September, snook can be found in great numbers in the passes and along the beaches. They are there to spawn and are usually full of roe. Typical trips this time of year will yield 30 to 60 snook per morning, sometimes many more. The primary factors are number of anglers, their skill levels, and the weather.
With the coming of fall snook begin their trek to their winter haunts, the creeks and rivers that offer protection from cold, harsh weather. For most of the fall they'll be on the flats around the mangroves and oyster bars on the high tides, and in the potholes on the low tides. Fall brings low tides that are below the Mean Low Low Water level. As the tide sweeps the water off the flats, many of the fish drop off into potholes, rather than into the deeper waters of the bay. These potholes are sometimes surrounded by water so shallow that many conventional flats boats can't get to them. The BarHopp'R can! When you find a pothole full of fish, it can mean some very fast action. Interestingly, fish seem to be social creatures, and will assemble in the potholes by species. That means that if you find a hole with snook, it will tend to be mostly snook, or a hole with reds will tend to be mostly reds.
The first cold fronts of winter, which don't usually come until late December in southwest Florida, will push many of the snook into the creeks and rivers where they're relatively safe from all but hard freezes. It is said that snook often have to go as much as two months without eating during the winter, because there is a definite shortage of available food. For this reason, snook can be suckers for lures during the cold months, but the presentation must generally be much slower than it would be when the water is warm. Winter snook will not expend much energy to run down a meal, because they don't have it to spare!
As spring warms the waters of the flats, snook move out of the rivers and creeks and start the cycle all over again. They've been laid up all winter, and you can bet they're going to be lean, mean, and hungry fighting machines. All you have to do is find them, and that can sometimes be difficult. In the end, though, patience, experience, and live shiners usually pay big dividends. Having said all this, it becomes obvious that snook tend to be migratory, however, it is also known that some of the snook population is resident; that is, they find a home and stay there year-round.
Snook are very tropical creatures. So much so that some scientists say it's curious that we have snook in Florida waters at all. But we do have them here, and they roam to about the Clearwater area on the west coast. They are more plentiful as you head south, and Pine Island Sound, the waters of Sanibel, Captiva, and North Captiva, offers some of the best snook fishing to be had anywhere. If you've never been snook fishing, you owe it to yourself to arrange a trip on the BarHopp'R on your next visit to the area.
 |
[Site Index] [Highlights] [Capt. Butch Profile] [About the Boat] [Kayak Fishing] [Testimonials] [Booking Tips] [Weekend Policy] [Great Rates] [What to Expect] [Cheap Accomodations] [Send Email] [What to Bring] [Directions to the Ramp] |
[Snook] [Redfish] [Tarpon] [Trout] [Jack Crevelle] [Tripletail] [Customer Tales] |
[Fishing Reports] [Articles] [Newsletters] [Angler of the Month] [Angler of the Year Awards] [Manatee Zones] [Tackle Service Center] [Cool Fishing Stuff For Sale] [Hot Links to Cool Sites] [Send Email] [Back to Home] |
OTHER FUN STUFF TO DO![Shelling & Sightseeing Trips] [Dolphin/Manatee Watch Trips] [Lunch & Bar Hopping Trips] |