Mysterious night of snook fishing on the Manatee River
Night fishing in our local waters is an experience any avid saltwater angler should experience, especially those anglers who like to target snook. Snook, especially big snook, are nocturnal feeders, so there’s no better time to target them.
This brings to mind a recent excursion to check out some docks for big snook in the Manatee River. Buddy Capt. Josh Peurifoy and I had planned this outing based on the moon approaching full and a high tide occurring at just about midnight.
We arrived at Keyes Marina around 11 p.m. to load up Josh’s Pathfinder with our tackle and off we went to cast net some shiners. We figured we could catch bait and reach our fishing destination by midnight, which would be just in time for the change of the tide. Because snook like to feed on the outgoing tide, we timed our evening precisely.
Upon arrival at the bait spot, Josh eased the boat up close to a lighted dock and I threw the 10-foot cast net along the edge.
“I got ’em,” I said.
I could feel the bait dancing in the net through the line. Josh slowly backed the boat away from the dock as I pulled the net aboard and emptied a few hundred perfectly sized shiners into the bait well. I then stowed the net as Josh steered the boat east, toward the mouth of the Manatee River.
We headed past the entrance to Bimini Bay and onward over the Key Royale flats, watching for the red and green flashing lights that mark the Intracoastal Waterway.
The moon was three quarters full, which gave us enough light to see the silhouette of Gilligan’s Island ahead of us. Josh pulled the throttle down as we made our approach and the Pathfinder flew over the shallow grass below us.
As we buzzed east along Seven Pines, we could see the phosphorescence in our wake. Mullet scattered on either side of us, spooked by our presence. We rounded the outflow that drains from Robinson Preserve and cut south, back toward the shoreline to avoid the sandbar to the north. Then, as we approached the Boca Del Rio Marina, Josh adjusted the jack plate and we hopped the bar and headed toward Shaw’s Point.
As we made our way past the eastern-most dock before passing Desoto Memorial Park, we ran close to the shore to see if pompano would skip. That’s when I spotted something in the water.
“Josh, watch out!” I yelled.
Josh saw the figure and cut the boat hard to the left to avoid a collision. We then stopped to see what we had avoided, and we heard a voice yelling to us.
“Have you seen my boat? Hey there, don’t hit my boat.”
To our surprise, the voice was coming from a young boy standing on the sandbar. He looked to be about 10 years old.
“You know, we almost ran you over!” Josh exclaimed.
“I’m just trying to find my boat,” the boy called out.
He was standing in waste-high water and we were able to pull the Pathfinder right up to him.
Before we had time to question him further, he shouted, “There it is.”
Josh turned on his spotlight and, to our surprise, there it was. A small toy sailboat floating a few yards away from us. It looked old and handmade. The boy waded over and retrieved the small vessel.
“I’d sure appreciate it if you could give me a lift back to shore,” the boy said, holding the boat in his arms.
Still in shock from the near collision, we lifted the boy and his boat aboard.
“What are you doing out here in the middle of the night?” Josh asked.
You could sense the frustration and confusion in his voice. The boy didn’t answer. He just sat there looking forward.
I sensed he was scared over the whole ordeal, so I quietly asked him where he lived. “We should get you home to your parents,” I said. “They’re probably worried sick about you. By the way, what’s your name?”
“Asa,” he replied.
As Josh pulled the boat up to the beach at the park, you could see the gumbo limbo trees atop an old Indian mound. As we stopped, I suggested we drop anchor and safely walk the boy home. We could always snook fish later.
He agreed, but before we had a chance to ask where he lived, Asa jumped out of the boat and started running toward the welcome center at the park.
Josh and I jumped out and followed him. We tried to get him to wait. He ran faster, and headed toward the north trail and the nature walk. The faster he ran, the more we gave chase.
Unfortunately, I still had my flip-flops on, which caused me to trip and face-plant right in the middle of the shell trail. I could hear Josh yelling up ahead of me. “Asa, stop. We just want to get you home!”
I stood back up, pulling shell fragments from the palms of my hands, half dazed from the fall. The air was thick and humid and the smell of detritus filled my nostrils. The buzz of mosquitoes was all I could hear.
“Josh,” I yelled, “Where are you?”
In a slightly softer voice he called out, “Up here. Hurry.”
As I rounded the corner of the trail, I recognized where I was. I was approaching the ruins of the old Tabby House that dates back to the 1840s. There was Josh standing in front of the ruins.
“Shhh. Look. There he is,” Josh whispered.
The boy stood amid the ruins holding his toy boat. He just stared at us. The light of the moon shone down on him through the trees, giving him a slight glow.
At this point, I was in such a state of confusion, coupled with exhaustion.
Josh and I stood in the blanket of darkness as the boy looked at us. Then he smiled and ran straight into the bushes. I yelled for him to wait, but he had disappeared. He was off trail now and all we could do was hear branches cracking as he put more distance between us.
Well, we tried once more to give chase but the attempt was futile. Josh was barefoot as I was then, too. I had left my flip-flops back own the trail so I wouldn’t trip again. There was no way to follow the boy without slicing our feet to bits.
The bugs were so thick we were inhaling them with every breath, so we headed back to the boat. We figured the boy must have lived close by and was probably home, scared out of his mind thinking we were trying to capture him.
Exhausted and bug bitten, we decided to head home —snook fishing would wait for another night. Upon arrival at Keyes Marina, we were so tired we didn’t even clean the boat. We emptied the bait well and headed straight for the truck. The drive home was silent.
A few weeks later, my 4-year-old daughter and I visited the South Florida Museum. Isabel loves going to visit Snooty the manatee, and I love learning about the history of Manatee County. After our Snooty visit, we ventured upstairs to the old Florida section of the museum and, as we walked past the displays, Isabel stopped. “Daddy, look at this toy sailboat,” she said.
At first glance, I saw a model sailboat in a glass case. Then, after further inspection, I froze in my tracks. I felt the hairs stand up on the back of my neck as I realized what was happening. It was the boat the young boy, Asa, was carrying that night at De Soto National Memorial. I frantically searched the display case for information.
Finally, I found a small placard that read, “Eva, 1900,” which was the name of the boat. Under this, it stated, “The ‘Eva’ was carved from one piece of wood by Asa Pillsbury when he was a teenager growing up on the Manatee River at the turn of the century.”
I couldn’t believe what I was reading, but there it was. I searched my thoughts but came up with no other conclusion other than I had witnessed something I could not explain.
This being said, if you are out night fishing for snook around the mouth of the Manatee River, keep a watchful eye for Asa and his model sailboat.
Happy haunting and happy halloween, y’all.
Note: Asa Pillsbury Jr. arrived in Manatee County with his father in 1885 from Chicago. They settled in an area called Palma Sola near De Soto National Memorial. As a boy, one of Asa’s favorite hobbies was to build model boats and sail them across the Manatee River. This hobby eventually spawned into a passion, which resulted in the creation of Pillsbury Boatworks. Before his death in 1969, Asa Pillsbury had many other ventures, including creating a bird sanctuary on Passage Key, becoming a game warden there and being an avid conservationist.
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Capt. Warren Girle is fishing offshore for migratory species such as kingfish, Spanish mackerel, bonito and cobia. All of these species are being caught on live shiners free-lined behind the boat. By anchoring and chumming, Girle is starting a feeding frenzy, which in turn, alerts more fish to investigate what is going on. By doing this, he is luring in fish for his clients. Kingfish up to 25 pounds are being caught in addition to cobia in the same range.
Moving inshore, Girle is finding over-slot snook and redfish on the feed. Live shiners or pinfish are providing bites on both species. Although these over-slot fish have to be released, they provide great photo opportunities, as well as fish stories that will be told repeatedly by his clients.
Jim Malfese at the Rod & Reel Pier says keeper-size mangrove snapper are dominating the bite. Pier fishers using live shrimp for bait are catching limits of these tasty fish. Mangrove snapper up to 16 inches are being caught. Pier fishers who target snapper will tell you a snapper that size is not a frequent occurrence.
Spanish mackerel are sporadically biting, although Malfese anticipated the bite to improve over the next few weeks as water temps cool down. Gotcha plugs or speck rigs are producing bites.
Finally, snook are being caught during over-night hours and around sunrise. Most catches are “schooley” snook, ranging 20-24 inches. Fishers with a little determination are catching bigger fish — and the right bait at the right time.
Capt. Aaron Lowman at Island Discount Tackle is fishing the flats with good results on redfish and snook. For both species, Lowman is using live shiners for bait, although when the snook are rallying, Lowman can’t resist casting topwater plugs into the frenzy. Lures such as the MirrOlure Topdog 84MR are producing spectacular surface strikes.
While fishing off the residential docks, Lowman is finding keeper-size redfish, as well as mangrove snapper and flounder. These fish are all being caught on live shiners. For rigging, Lowman is using two techniques. One is a free-lined bait, which consists of just a leader and a hook. The other is adding weight to the same rig to get the bait to sit on the bottom.
Lastly, along the beaches of Anna Maria Island, Lowman is targeting Spanish mackerel and bonito. To find these fish, Lowman scans the horizon in search of diving birds. Once spotted, he motors over and casts baits to the surface-feeding fish.
Capt. Rick Gross of Fishy Business Charters is targeting redfish around oyster bars and mangrove islands. On higher tides, Gross is casting baits under the bushes to find the bite. On lower tides, he’s finding reds patrolling oyster bars for crabs and shrimp. Slot-size fish are being caught consistently on live shiners, although Gross is not opposed to casting gold spoons to moving fish.
Snook fishing aboard the Fishy Business is proving successful. Rallies of linesiders are being caught during fast moving tides on shallow grass flats that are peppered with sandy potholes.
Live shiners sight-casted to fish are being eaten the second they hit the water. Expect to catch a mix of sizes from under-slot to over-slot fish.
Finally, spotted seatrout are still accommodating fishers on deep grass flats in Tampa Bay. While targeting trout, Gross is catching a mix of other species, including mackerel, mangrove snapper, flounder and ladyfish.
Send high-resolution photos and fishing reports to fish@islander.org.