If the fishing conditions of late February and early March were a Perry Mason plot it could aptly be called "The Case of the Missing Water," a 'who done it' and 'where did it go' mystery. This is historically the season of extremely low tides. When the low tides are compounded with the existing northeast winds we have been experiencing, the small creeks, rivers and bays of the back waters look more like grazing land than our usual blue water with fish 'a jumping.'

Pity the hapless angler that runs tight aground on a low outgoing tide and expects the never coming incoming to get him going again.

While it is true that low water can cause boating problems, it also means that the fish have fewer places to hide. Happy is the angler upon locating a deep channel or hole in the backwaters into which the fish have been forced to go by the receding waters.

Remembering the frigid winter we had in February and early March, I'm glad that the water is finally warming up. Southwest Florida, like most of the country, has experienced colder than normal temperatures and most fish, in the cold water, slow their metabolic rate, thus, eat less and minimize their movement, so fishing has been slower than normal for this period. In my area, we finally broke the "70" degrees barrier and the catching has drastically improved. Trout have been the mainstay of action but lately the pompano have been biting as evidenced by these photos.

Michael Hodak was fishing with his dad when he landed this nice pompano.

Michaels' catch

While fishing with Christopher Chambers and his grandfather on the last Saturday in March, Christopher reeled in this pompano along with five others and some good-sized trout.

Christopher's pompano

With the water heating up, so goes the fishing. Tarpon have just started to move in our area so I'm sure that next month's newsletter will have a story about "The Silver King"

LIME, THYME, WINE AND TIME

Place your boneless fish filets in a glass baking dish. Sprinkle the filets with dried thyme leaves. Sprinkle to taste. I personally like an abundance of the spice. Squeeze the juice from a lime over the filets and add a little dry, white wine. Cover the dish and marinate in the fridge for about an hour. Cook by sautéing them in a non-stick skillet with butter and olive oil. Bon Appetit!

I recently read where researchers in Germany have concluded that the risk of heart attack may be as much as 50% greater on Mondays than any other day. Reading between the lines, I propose that it is stress related from work that causes unhealthy lives, which is one more argument for putting that 'gone fishing' sign on your office door.

Well, even though it isn't Monday, I'm going to take my 'precious heart' out for a fishing trip. There's a small creek that empties into a backwater bay that's close by and it's a great place to spend a couple hours hiding from a northeast wind. Wish you could go with me. The tide should turn just about the time I get there.

Remember to always practice conservation by taking only the fish you need and take a kid fishing.
Till next month, good fishing and tight lines,