Reason for celebration and doing so by taking a sunset sailing cruise!

I know it's not quite fishing, but another life long Capt. friend invited me and a friend out on a 40ft. Irwin double mast sail boat!  Thank you Capt. Debbie VanSkiver Taylor & husband Jason Taylor for the sunset cruise! Yes, this Capt. is not all about fishing all the time!  

Enjoy the beautiful Tampa Bay sunset!

Fighting the unexpected Hammer Head Shark!

We started the day off at the Ft. Desoto boat ramp. The date 10/12/10 at 1515. We were headed out into the Gulf of Mexico via Bunces Pass to a near shore artificial reef "Egmont Key Reef" N27 35.00'  W82 44.60' just south east of a barrier Island known as Egmont Key Island at the mouth of Tampa Bay!  This Island is the last land mass till you get to Mexico and separates the gulf from the bay!  We were set up with medium tackle rods: Penn 309 level winds with 20lb. test and grouper rigs with a no. 5 circle hook and cut lady fish!  I scale down my tackle for near shore grouper!  If you are wondering what is involved in a grouper rig please see the link I provided below!  I hit the reef just as the incoming tide was starting and we got quite a few grouper to the boat!  Most were between 18 - 22 inches and just under slot size, to small to make a meal so back in they went!  The bite  had slacked off and then all of a sudden my rod bent over and the drag started screaming!  The fight was on and a nice size Hammer Head shark was the prize at the end of the battle!   This explains why the Grouper bite suddenly shut off!  Those fish did not want to become that sharks next meal! I provided a video of the battle, catch and release of the shark!  ENJOY!

Grouper rig link!

The Tarpon Man Strikes

June 09 2010


The targeted species "Tarpon"  The day started at 1500 by cruising for pass crabs in Bunces Pass.  I like netting crab there while the tide is at a stand still and it keeps me off the Tarpon grounds out by Egmont Island.  Once we got our live well filled with pass crabs, we motored out of Bunces Pass and into the Gulf of Mexico and made our way to the North East side of Egmont Island.  The tools of choice I use when "drifting" for Tarpon:  Shimano Bait Runner 6500 with a 9ft. Shakespeare Ugly Stick with 50lb. test Power Pro with 100lb. fluorocarbon Leader.  #7 Gamakatsu circle hook. and a live pass crab!  The out going tide was just picking up and after several passes in front of the island "drifting" I got my first hook up and only hook up for the day!   The battle lasted for a good 20 min.  with lots of drag screaming, rod bending, Tarpon leaping action! Unfortunately when I got the Tarpon by the boat and reached for the DNA test/research kit to scrape the fishes jaw for some samples, that Tarpon did a nasty head shake.  Yep, she was gone!  She put up a good fight though!

http://research.myfwc.com/features/view_article.asp?id=26602                above: The Tarpon DNA link and what it's all about!


Egmont Key Island link with great photos of the Island and light house!
http://www.beachhunter.net/egmont_key.htm

A great organization, Egmont Key Alliance! Dedicated to the protection and preservation of Egmont Island !  I am on the board of this organization so for more info. Email me or become a member!
http://egmontkey.org/

Fishing Ponce Inlet!

I left early from St. Petersburg Fl.  to head over to my sisters condo on the beach at Ponce Inlet Fl. 11/27/09  The 2 1/2 hour drive to the Atlantic was nice, not much traffic!  I figured it would be hell getting over there due to it being the day after Thanksgiving!  I had packed my surf rods and tackle.  I would be teaching both my sister and her boyfriend how to fish!  Since they made their move to Florida a couple of months prior, my life long hobby peaked their intrest and I was happy to oblige.  After studying tide charts, solunar tables, & calling local tackle shops the day before to find out what was chewing, the game plan was set.  We had about a 45 minute window around 2:00pm when the stars would allign that day.  I set everyone up with a  basic surf fishing rig for pompano and whiting, as well as some of the other species. While many people use this two hook rig, I usually just use one. I haven't ever felt that I was at a disadvantage with only one hook. I usually use the smallest pyramid sinker that will keep the rig on the bottom with my line tight enough to feel a strike. With the jetty beside us and the Ponce Inlet Light House behind us we started soaking baits!  Of course I gave them casting & reeling lessons prior to this!  The choice of bait, frozen shrimp!  I told them the bite might be tuff due to a nasty cold fron that blew in the day before.  I was right, it was cold,blowing, and ruff surf.  This makes for newbies a tuff time decerning a bite!  Karen, my sister ended up with a very large pin fish, her boyfriend a seagull, "yes, we handled with care" and myself a 20" spanish mack!  The bite lasted for only about 20 minutes. However, we still had a great time and that to me is what fishing is really about!  Yes, they enjoyed themselves so much that they want to go fishing again!  http://www.ponce-inlet.org/

www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=365

Meeting Guy Harvey at his studio in Grand Cayman!

On my latest trip to the Caribbean I stopped off in Grand Cayman Island. Grand Cayman is where artist Guy Harvey has his store & studio above the store. Guess who I saw comming through the back door? Yep, Guy Harvey! He was nice enough to let me come upsatirs to his studio, take some pictures,sign some artwork, and let me hang out for a while! Topic of discussion, "farming" not fishing! Guy was facinated about me spending a great deal of my youth on a farm and how a farm operated. You would think saltwater fishing would have been the topic. Very humbled and all around great guy! It was a blast and a surprise to meet him! The meet & greet was the highlight of the trip for me!

http://www.guyharveyinc.com/

Fishing Report 9/11/09

     I hit the water today at 0530 at the Ft. Desoto boat ramp. My targeted species, trout and reds. The flats around the San Christopher Key area only produced a 12" trout that was caught on a DOA glow shrimp using 10lb. Power Pro line. The flats were showing no signs of activity as the sun came up. The out going tide was starting to pick up at this time. I tried the flats along the Sunshine Skyway Miesner bridge span east and west side to no avail either. Not much in the way of bait fish or birds for that matter. The wind had picked up and was blowing about 15knots. So my last stop for the morning was the flats intersecting Bunces Pass and the Skyway Channel. On the NW of Tarpon Key area the wind was blocked by the many mangroves and I came up on a school of reds. A few nice slot size fish could be seen along with a about 30 to 40 smaller reds "shorts" tightly schooled. They were very "spooky" I am sure it was do to all of the boat traffic over the labor day weekend. I spent about an hour trying to get them to chew and used everything in my tackle box, they just would not take. At times like this you feel like getting out the cast net!!!
     I finally gave up when the tide quit running and headed back in for the day. I talked to some other anglers back at the boat ramp and they did not have much luck either that morning! Sometimes you have days like this on the water. Glad I at least landed 1 fish and did not have a trip where I did not catch anything. As they say, "The worst day of fishing is better than the best day at the office"!
http://www.fun-florida-getaways.com/fort-desoto-ramp.cfm
http://wikimapia.org/832548/Pinellas-East-West-Channel-ICW

Early childhood memory!

     One of my first memories as a child was sitting on the knees of my Great Uncle Bob Alexander and letting me pretend to man the helm of his new 1975 Penn Yan 24' Fly Bridge Sport Fisher in Fort Meyers, FL. That day, the whole family got together and went fishing. Even at three years old I can remember bits and pieces of that day. Years later, my mother had told me that was the first time that I went saltwater fishing.  

     I spent the early part of my chilhood growing up in the Old North East in St. Petersburg, Florida at 305 8th. Avenue North East. In the late 70's, downtown St. Petersburg was more like a ghost town, even the historic Vinoy hotel was in ruins with windows busted out and what not. St. Petersburg at that time was a quiet retirement community. The St. Petersburg Pier was my first official fishing grounds. The pier was a couple of blocks from the house and where I got "hooked" on saltwater fishing. My father Jim Sorah and my uncle Steve Sorah would take me fishing at the St. Petersburg Pier as much as possible. My Uncle Steve played a big part in getting me started, he was the fisherman in the family. He spent alot of time with me at the St. Petersburg Pier, and then every once in a while would take me to the Fort Desoto beach/flats, Redington Long Pier, and the Treasure Island Causeway. He taught me the basics on a Zebco 202 that he gave me. I enjoyed fishing so much that when I was six my father converted a 3 wheeled bike into my fishing cart. Dad had put a few rod holders in the basket on the back of the bike along with a live well and battery. It also had a place for my tackle box and lunch box. I thought I was "big time" riding that bike to the St. Petersburg Pier. I am sure I was quite the sight with fishing tackle in tow, pedaling an oversized bike with the biggest grin a six year-old boy could make! The rest you can say is history!

    I moved back to St.  Petersburg, Florida in 2000, the primary reason for moving back was of course, "fishing"! Although much of the scenery of downtown has changed for the better, the fishing has remained the same...."fantastic"! 

    I created this blog to share my fishing adventures and involvement with fishing and conservational organizations that I belong to. Also in this blog I will include helpful links on fishing or related fishing issues regarding Florida; specifically, the Tampa Bay area. I will also occasionally touch on issues pertaining to the National scene as well.


                                            Tight lines everyone and enjoy the blog!
                                              Michael J. Sorah "The Tarpon Man"

http://www.stpete-pier.com/adventure.asp
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/tpasr-renaissance-vinoy-resort-and-golf-club/
http://www.beachhunter.net/redington_long_pier.htm
http://www.pinellascounty.org/park/05_Ft_Desoto.htm
www.edwardringwald.com/PinellasBridges/TreasureIsland.htm

Click on view larger map below to see my early childhood home at 305 8th. Ave. Ne. St. Petersburg Fl.
Also use the map to explore the Old North East and downt St. Petersburg Florida.


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