Coleman Click with his fine catch.
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Fishing is goooooood this time of year! Recently, four members of the Click family and I rode out into the Cedar Key waters to hunt down the wiley redfish and a few of those plump speckled trout swimming around there. There were three generations of Clicks aboard this trip, from Granddad John to sons Barry and Jay and grandson Coleman.
Sometimes I don`t land right on top of them the first stop, and this day was one of those times. The tide wasn`t high enough to creep up to the mangrove keys with oysters all around, so I went way out past North Key and anchored up in 8 feet with a nice grassy bottom. I thought for sure we`d snatch up a few trout there, but we didn`t see a one. Not wasting any time I cruised back toward Cedar Key and stopped in a little shallower water a closer to Deadmans Key. Still all grass bottom. Nothing. The water was not as high as I usually like to approach the edges of the mangrove islands, but I was counting on the numbers of reds swarming these waters at this time of year more than I was relying on the height of the tide. It was just two feet deep when we anchored up on the west side of Deadmans.
Both Jay and Barry caught several redfish just under the legal 18-inch keeper size. Coleman wasn`t too busy up to that point. It slowed up there so we idled towards Seahorse Key and stopped on the way over in a shallow grassy spot and fished for trout. John and his ultralight rod found a 19-in trout, and Jay caught one a might smaller. A few minutes later we`re sitting off the northwest side of Seahorse Key alongside of a long oyster bar on the right of us and clean sandy grassy bottom on our left side. I try to tell my guests not to toss their lines up too far on the bars because they'll get stuck on the sharp oysters and lose the hook, line, and sinker. These guys were throwing baits all over the place and catching redfish one after another. Several real quick just under 18 inches. Then Coleman finally got working on a beautiful 21-inch red. We tossed out on the left side into the grass and caught three trout in the 18 to 20 inch slot. I couldn`t stand it any longer so I tossed out a shrimp beneath a float off the left side and caught a nice 17-inch trout, too. That was the last stop and it was the `glory hole`. What a beautiful cooler of fresh fish we had. 5 big trout and 3 redfish.
When we got back to the dock I loaded the boat up on the trailer and drove over to Old Fenimore Mill where the Click crew was staying. They had rented the condominium `Tranquility,` a beautiful, fully furnished condo with a great view of the backwaters of Cedar Key. I filleted all the fish there on the dock at the cleaning table. Stashed in ziplock bags and upstairs and in the refrigerator. 6 redfish fillets and 10 trout. A real nice haul.
Folks, the fishing is great and I can take six of you out on my 24-ft pontoon boat with everything you need for $300. 4 to 5 hours of fishing these fertile waters. Call me at 352-210-2788 or e-mail me shanadan50@hotmail.com. For some pictures of happy fisherfolks go to inshorefloridafishing.com and check `em out. Capt. Dan | 