Special to the Eagle While visiting family in Matlacha over spring break young Brendon wasn’t missing Pittsburg at all. He was having too much fun fighting with spanish mackerel in Charlotte Harbor while fishing with Capt. Bill Russell

Finally! A week of warm sunny weather with light winds and air temperatures in the 80s brought a smile to anglers around the Island. Easter weekend was absolutely beautiful as a warming trend has the spring season transition in full swing; it’s a great time to be on the water.

If you wanted fast paced action you had to look no further than Spanish mackerel, they were reported in big numbers in Charlotte Harbor, off the beaches and across Pine island Sound. Each warming day brought larger fish into our waters and in good numbers. We fished several days in the Harbor north of Bokeelia and the action was hot over the incoming tide. There were a good number of boats fishing each day, but it appeared everyone gave each other a little space and made for enjoyable fishing. Some boats were trolling, some drifting and others anchored and baits varied from shrimp, pilchards, pinfish and shiny spoons and lures. This makes for fun fishing as long as everyone shows a little respect for the other boats and uses a little common sense. Similar scenarios also played out near the Passes and on the Gulf side of the Sanibel Causeway.

This was a week were the majority of trout were either large or small. Fishermen report fish stacked up throughout the Sound on grass flats in three to five feet, but most were running undersize. Live shrimp or Berkley Gulp’s under a popping cork and soft shad tails on jig heads provided steady action, but you had to go through a lot of fish to find a limit of keepers. Ladyfish, mackerel and a few bluefish and pompano were also caught with the trout.

Large trout were caught around oyster bars and in potholes in the Sound and in northern Matlacha Pass, with most running over twenty inches. On my boat we did not catch a lot of trout, but they almost all measured twenty to twenty-three inches. We actually worked pretty hard to put more trout in the slot in the cooler over a couple days but found it difficult. We found them on the edge of oyster bars on the top of the incoming tide and falling into holes on the outgoing. With water temperatures rising this week I expect to see a more consistent bite with slot (15-20 inch) trout.

The best red fishing was found on the highs and lows of the tides. On the morning low water kayak fishermen working the shallows of Matlacha Pass scored with fish up to twenty-six inches. They were caught in about a foot of water on live shrimp rigged weed less north of the Bridge. On the high water fish were caught under the mangroves in areas of Pine Island Sound. Most of the Keys south of Pineland are holding fish and also from the power lines up to Blind Pass on the western side of the Sound. Live pinfish, shrimp, cut ladyfish and scented soft plastics were the baits of choice.

Forgot to mention last week that grouper season reopened in state waters on the first of the month. Have not heard any reports of inshore grouper but the near shore and offshore bite was pretty good. Fish were reported within two miles of shore on ledges and rock piles and farther out on ledges and other structure. Some anglers found success trolling a variety of large deep diving lures while others scored by anchoring or drifting with live baits or large jigs tipped with a strip of squid or fish. Mangrove snapper and a few yellowtails were also caught. With the winds finally settling down and the water becoming clearer the offshore bite should continue to improve. Keep an eye out for large (smoker) kings and cobia they should be moving into our offshore waters any day.

After a long winter the weather this past week should have put a big smile on everyone’s face. Even if you’re fishing luck wasn’t the best it felt great just to be out there and soak up the sun and nature at its best. It’s really cool after a week of warm sunny days how our waters and natural surroundings come to life the first of spring. The kids are out of school until next week so load up the family and hit the water, it really is a great time to enjoy a day in the outdoors around southwest Florida.

If you have a fishing report or for charter information contact us at 283-7960, www.fishpineisland.com‘>www.fishpineisland.com or e-mail gcl2fish@live.com‘>gcl2fish@live.com. Have a safe week and good fishin’.