Anna Maria

[seachaser]

Just booked my yearly snook fishing trip and June 1 thru the 8th we will be down. We will be stay in Cortez at a house with a dock so the yak will get lots of use and the beach will be walked every morning. I have never fished here before so any info would be appreciated. I did Treasure Island 2 years ago and Marco last year so I’m very comfortable with the beach fishing but yak I’m not sure where to head to. Thanks

 

[FloridaFF]

The southern side of the pass in Cortez (the Gulf side of the bridge) usually has snook. South of the pass beachside are some seawalls on the beach that hold fish wadeable or with a kayak.

 

[Lilly001]

The mangrove area just south and east of the Coast guard station is known as “the kitchen”. You could easily survive by just fishing that area. Just be aware of the bums living on the derelict boats anchored in the area just off of the ICW.
The area by the pass (Longboat pass) on the ICW just to the north of the Sheriff’s office docks is also very good.

 

[Lilly001]

I used to fish that area very successfully with a shrimp under a cork with a little weight or 1/4 oz gummy jigs in a root beer and / or gold color. Find grass and fish just above it. A pinfish or small lady fish under a float trailing behind the boat will often give you a pleasant surprise.

 

[seachaser]

Thanks guys we are staying in a house real close to the coast guard station. I’m have Looked on google earth trying to find the seawalls
but can’t find them.

 

[notnksnemor]

The mangrove area just south and east of the Coast guard station is known as “the kitchen”. You could easily survive by just fishing that area. Just be aware of the bums living on the derelict boats anchored in the area just off of the ICW.
The area by the pass (Longboat pass) on the ICW just to the north of the Sheriff’s office docks is also very good.

Wow.
Never equated bums with Anna Maria.

 

[seachaser]

I think I found them not to for from the pier?

 

[Lilly001]

Wow..
Never equated bums with Anna Maria.

Full of them. They cause problems in Bradenton Beach.
They used to take over the public restrooms in the mornings.
The police may have addressed it by now.

 

[Use Enough Gun]

For the yak , look into the Manatee Ave bridge going over to Holmes Beach . The area in the SE corner of bridge area has some good potholes to fish .
Also as others have said , shrimp under a popping cork . I have also had good luck with the Mirro Lure MirroDine .

 

[Use Enough Gun]

Not to be a chatty Kathy , but for the first hour of daylight and last hour of evening , I love a top water ChugBug . Trout and snook will hit them hard . I have a tray full of ChugBugs . Once fished Charlotte Harbor with a guy who went there almost every weekend , his boat and tackle , we caught trout up to noon on ChugBugs. That got me hooked , pun intended .

 

[slow motion]

I have no insider knowledge of the area. I've fished around Sarasota a bit while visiting my sister. Seems mangrove snapper are fairly plentiful. Tasty too. Not a snook I know but good table fare. Please keep us informed on your trip. We love to hear your experience and pictures are awesome too. Good luck.

 

[Lilly001]

For the yak , look into the Manatee Ave bridge going over to Holmes Beach . The area in the SE corner of bridge area has some good potholes to fish .
Also as others have said , shrimp under a popping cork . I have also had good luck with the Mirro Lure MirroDine .

The area north of the Manatee ave bridge on the west side of the ICW is known as Anna Maria sound.
It’s mostly grass flats 4-10’ deep.
It used to be full of trout if you fished just above the grass. Follow the wind and drift side to side. The boat traffic is mostly through the ICW so you don’t get waked to much.
It’s been a few years since I fished the area, but I did fish it a lot.

 

[slow motion]

The area north of the Manatee ave bridge on the west side of the ICW is known as Anna Maria sound.
It’s mostly grass flats 4-10’ deep.
It used to be full of trout if you fished just above the grass. Follow the wind and drift side to side. The boat traffic is mostly through the ICW so you don’t get waked to much.
It’s been a few years since I fished the area, but I did fish it a lot.

Did the extreme red tide from a few years back affect that area?

 

[Lilly001]

Did the extreme red tide from a few years back affect that area?

I have not fished it since that debacle.
I’ve been fishing mostly fresh water the last 10 years or so.
The salt is so hard on your equipment and the fresh water fishing is often (in the case of the red tide) better.

 

[Use Enough Gun]

The extreme Red Tide of 2018 greatly effected the area south of the Cortez Bridge, mainly Sarasota Bay , especially south Sarasota Bay. I was blessed to have a condo on Sarasota Bay for 13 years and a Whaler on a lift. We could catch trout 300-500 yards from the condo regularly . That changed after 2018, well respected guide Shawn Crawford at the time said fishing south of the Cortez bridge was a waste of time, things were bad but rebounded in Sarasota Bay around 2022. North of Cortez bridge was not near as bad.

enjoy and give us a report. Stay safe.

 

[seachaser]

Thanks for all the info and I will most definitely will post how things are going when I’m there.

 

[FloridaFF]

One additional option is corking pinfish for tarpon running down the beach. Longboat Key is a great area to catch the mighty tarpon. Fish the sandbar troughs off the beach with dead shad on the bottom or cork pinfish.

 

[seachaser]

Will definitely try that option.I have caught tarpon to maybe 40 lbs but lost some reel big ones early on after a jump or 2.