# My First Gulf Coast Experience



## MarkDido (Jul 6, 2003)

I live in Orlando, but I have been planning to get over to the Gulf side of our beautiful state for long time.

I left Orlando at about 2:00 pm, and elected to run out to the West Coast on US 50 instead of messing around with I-4. Once past Clermont, US 50 is a smooth, fast ride out to I-75. The only really bad traffic I hit was about 5:00 where I-75 and I-4 merge. Lots of construction so it's pretty messy.

While crossing the new Skyway Bridge, my partner states; "now what are them boys doing on the fishing pier with a boat", Sure enough 2 guys with a CC were on the pier fishing for bait. They were pulling them in hand over fist, so naturally once we got on on the fishing pier, we stopped about 50 feet in front of them. They were chumming up the water near one of the pilings with something that looked like damp oatmeal. Sure enough I dropped a sabiki rig over the side and we had a livewell full of pinfish and grunts in no time.

I was surprised that the pier was not all that crowded for a Friday night. Several people I spoke with said the fishing had been pretty slow the last few months. 

One thing I did notice, was that there were a few people out there who tied up several hundred feet of pier by putting up "strap on" rod holders on the vertical pier supports. Not to bitch, but I can see where this would present a problem / cause some heartburn when the bite comes back and the pier fills up. 

Fishing was very slow. Aside from the baitfish, which were plentiful and easy to catch, I pulled in a small dogfish and a Lane Snapper. 

We stayed on the pier till about 5:00 am and then drove over to Ft. Desoto. Neither of us had even been there, so we wanted to get there early and check it out.

You get to Ft. Desoto by jumping off I-275 just before the Skyway and following the signs. You drive through some pretty high-priced real estate on the way to the park, and there is a .50 and a .35 cent toll booth on the way there (getting out of Ft. Desoto is free.)

I was surprised that being a State Park, that there was no entrance fee. You just pay those 2 small tolls and drive into the park.

Follow the signs and you will find a 500 ft. pier that sticks out into the Bay. A little further down the road and you'll find the 1000 ft Gulf pier

We watched the sun rise, but having been up for almost 24 hours, neither he nor I were planning on doing a lot of fishing. At about 7:00 we decided to leave the pier, and about 1/2 way back we noticed a gent pulling in some slot Spanish. The rig he was using had a 3 oz egg weight, and about 8' of line terminating in what he called a "Wee Willie" or "Wet Willie" lure. It was in the shape of an elongated triangle, with a single hook attached. The technique he used was to toss it out, let it sit on the bottom for about 15 seconds, and then start reeling for all he was worth. He said that the Spanish follow the lure up off the bottom. Must work well for him, because he walked off the pier with 9 slot Macs.

All in all a very productive and educational day


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## SaltyDog (Jul 13, 2004)

Sounds like you had some fun and learned lots. By the time I get back down in January you'll have the area all figured out

How much for guide service these days?


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## cocoflea (Aug 1, 2002)

the board is still new and we have or first report that is Great


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## MarkDido (Jul 6, 2003)

*Skyway / Ft. Desoto Update*

Concerning my post above.

Ft. Desoto is a county park, vice a state park, hence the free access.

The "Silly Willy" lures that the folks at the Ft. Desoto Gulf pier were using is a knockoff of a Clark Lure. The difference being the Clark has a built in swivel, and a red bead. 

The folks using the "Silly Willie" were tying them on with a Rapala knot, to allow the lure to twist. I don't think this is necessary with the Clark because of the built in swivel.

A co-worker and I are heading out to Mosquito Lagoon this Thurdsay morning. I'm going to give those Clark lures a workout.


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## sandcasting (Jan 25, 2003)

mark--
i hadn't been able to check the board in a while, and as i headed past the skyway friday night on my way offshore, i wondered if you had made it there. sorry to hear the fishing wasn't spectacular. glad you checked out ft. desoto. i really like the gulf pier. the rig you described is a standard mac rig over here, although some go with as much as 20 feet between the egg sinker and the spoon. the faster you reel the better. if you make it back this way sometime maybe we can meet. the mackeral are pretty hit or miss from what i can tell right now, but in a few more months they will be thick. last october was good.


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