Kayak Fishing Sanibel Island and Captiva - Snook, Redfish, Jack Crevalle, and Trout - June 19, 2014 - June 22, 2014

A snook from the flats on the Pine Island Sound east of Sanibel Island, FL

I made a kayak fishing trip to the Sanibel / Captiva Island in Florida with my buddy George. Captiva and Sanibel are two barrier islands located off the coast of Fort Myers. Between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pine Island Sound are bayous, creeks, small keys, and passes each surrounded by mangrove shorelines. The bottom is composed of areas of both sand and mud that grow significant grass. It is no doubt a healthy ecosystem with substantial marine mammals as well, such as dolphins and manatees. 

Much of Sanibel Island is protected parkland and development is limited. The combination of these two factors have resulted in very good fish populations of such popular gamefish as snook, redfish, jack crevalle, and speckled trout. We encountered all four species on the trip while fishing off the beach in the Gulf, the backwaters / bayous, and the Pine Island Sound. These four species made for a nice Gulf Coast slam less the prestigious tarpon. 

It was all shallow water sight fishing in low light conditions and the feeding period where the snook and redfish were really aggressive only occurred for a brief time. The fish were wise to our artificial lures but would let their guard down in spurts. The higher water fished better but moving water coupled with low light was the largest factor for success. 

Typical Pre-Dawn Snook

On the first afternoon after arriving, I launched the kayak off the beach to fish the Gulf along a pass but had no success so I changed gears to flsh some backwater flats prior to dark and caught 3 snook in a drain that was pushing out water from a bayou between two mangrove islands on the outgoing tide. A big snook broke my 12 lb fluorocarbon leader against coral which taught me a lesson to upsize to 25 lb. There were reds tailing the flats adjacent to this drain that would not take my offerings. 

On the second day, I slept later and travelled farther into the Pine Island Sound to the scope out the area. Launching at 8 am was too late. I couldn't find any snook or redfish in the backwaters. So, I headed out to the Pine Island Sound to fish the area around the Wulfert Keys for speckled trout and redfish. I found a nice trout on the flats but otherwise saw no signs of life at the keys so headed back in for the morning. In hindsight, I wish I woke up and stopped fishing earlier. Although I found some actively fish feeding in a mangrove cove, the sight fishing was over by 9 am. I believe the fish sought the cover of the mangroves as the sun moved higher. 

My buddy arrived around noon on the second day and we started fishing again around 5 pm. We travelled outside the mangroves and found a oyster bar adjacent to a channel stacked up with tailing redfish in 12" of water. It appears that the reds were rooting out crabs and were very difficult to catch. However I managed a nice slot redfish on a Johnson's Minnow spoon that I quickly released after a picture. My friend lost a very big snook on the flats as well using a Zara Spook. The snook appeared to be in the 30" class. 

The next morning, we launched before dawn and found moving water with snook and and jacks crashing bait between the mangroves and a sandbar pre-dawn and the fishing was excellent. We both caught snook and jacks during the pre-dawn feeding frenzy. Before sunrise, we found 30" snook almost beached in 4" of water. The oyster bar from the night before also produced a nice snook for me. George lost a snook boatside that broke his line that was about 3' long. Overall, it was an excellent morning for snook. No reds during that outing though. 

Redfish were actively

patrolling the flats during

the late afternoon

We had low and stagnant water for our afternoon fishing and both caught nothing nor saw many fish feeding except for some reds near the oyster bar that had produced the prior day, but far fewer than the night before. As the tide tailed out, those fish stopped feeding as well. We headed back in a little bit early. 

The last morning, George made sure we on the water extra early, but the crashing fish that had greeted us the prior morning were gone, and there was only sporadic feeding activity around our usual spots. George hooked into a nice snook that he lost pre-dawn . . . . and then there was a lull. At dawn, the incoming tide started moving faster and water began to flush over the 10" flats, pushing in some baitfish. At sunrise, I caught a nice snook in a drain adjacent to the mangroves on a zara spook which was the start of some epic morning flats fishing for snook and redfish. 

As the sun went higher, predators started feeding heavily on the flats - snook pushing baitfish and reds tailing for crabs. We began to cast gold spoons and got into fish immediately. My first fish was a slot sized redfish that took me on some drag screaming runs in very shallow water, digging in hard like a typical red. After this, the fishing became hot, and I started to get hit or catch a snook on almost every cast for about a half hour. The snook were aggressively feeding in very shallow water. 

The snook were more

plentiful and aggressive 

than the redfish

As the sun got higher, the fishing waned and the bite became slow. I hit our oyster bar one last time, but had no success. By about 9:30 am, we decided to call it a trip. I had one last area that I wanted to fish before going in, and stayed out after George to work this spot. On my first cast, which was near the mangroves, I got hit and the fish started to run hard. As such, I knew it was a big fish and the battle began. First, the fish raced outside towards a sandbar, and I battled him back to the kayak where I went to grab my net, fighting the fish the entire time. But, maybe I fought the fish too hard to keep it away from the sandbar because it turned harder than I could handle towards the kayak and the mangroves. As I got the fish to the kayak, I saw that it was a snook in the 30"+ range and grabbed the net. At this point, the snook turned it up a notch and rolled straight to the mangroves. I've turned big striped bass away from piers and rocks with similar tackle, and initially, I got the snook away from the mangroves, but I couldn't turn this fish on the second run, and she took drag, turned the kayak brought my fishing rod behind me as she ran for the roots where she subsequently cut my 25" fluorocarbon against some coral and barnacles inside the mangroves. After this, I called it a trip. I'm glad I hooked into that snook, but wish I got a picture. It would have been the perfect way to end the trip. But, such is fishing. 

Special thanks to Captiva Kayak Company who outfitted us with great fishing kayaks for the trip. The shallow nature of the fishery makes Mirage Drive-powered kayak less appropriate than normal circumstances. The kayaks we used were designed for fishing skinny water in the flats and held up well. Captiva Kayak Company delivered the kayaks to our cabins at Castaways fully loaded and we fished that area the entire trip. 

We stayed at a cabin in the Castaway Resort. It was perfect for our fishing trip, with access to the Gulf of Mexico, Pine Island Sound, and several different bayous inside both Sanibel Island and Captiva Island. I highly recommend it for a fishing trip and plan to go back in February. 

Sanibel / Captiva is the ultimate in inshore fishing in Florida. The remoteness of the islands keeps the fishing pressure from boats low with easy access to a vibrant ecosystem. I can't wait to get back! 

We rented our kayaks from Captiva Kayak Company in McCarthy's
Marina on Captiva Island. 

Much of our fishing required staking our kayaks and wading the flats

in water 6" deep. 

Typical redfish for the trip. It was the best redfish bite I've experienced
in Florida. 

Nice redfish could be found in the late afternoon and early monring

near oyster bars and on the flats. 

An early morning redfish on the Sanibel Flats. 

As the tide rose, redfish pushed bait to the very edge of the flat in 

inches of water. 

Snook could be found on flats adjacent to mangroves during low 

light periods with moving water. As the sun became higher in the

sky, they moved deep into the mangroves. I lost some snook to 

the mangroves and coral.