Cockroach Bay: Daytime Saltwater Fishing Thrills near Tampa

  • Speckled Trout, Tarpon, Redfish, Snook, Jack Crevalle, Pompano, others
  • Lures or Live Bait, both work well
  • Lagoon or flats, there are fish in all places here
Trevor Brate with a nice, 19-inch Speckled Trout that fit the 16-20 inch slot limit, taken on a gold Johnson Sprite spoon.

By Forrest Fisher

New to Southwest Florida and only in the wintertime, there is so much to learn about where to fish and what to do. Rod strength, line test, reel size, lure and bait choices, where to fish, a mystery for anyone new to anywhere, but I had one advantage, my nephew, Jeff Liebler, who lives in Florida, had a close friend with a boat and a “best place” to go fishing for a half day: “Cockroach Bay is one of the best places to cast a line in southwest Florida,” said Trevor Brate. ”You could catch a tarpon, snook, redfish, speckled trout, flounder or any of dozens of other fish here too.”

At 25 years young, Brate is the youngest licensed construction contractor in Southwest Florida (A+ Yardscapes / (813) 642-7358), having passed all the exams and certifications, a smart kid, and it shows in his fishing prowess.  “I keep it simple, lures and simple live baits is all I do,” says Brate. “Keeping it simple allows you to become really skilled at simple efficiency and it catches fish, my grandpa taught me that.”

Launching the boat is a 2-man effort to keep the launch moving. The ramp is concrete and solid, though no dock is present.

We launched his 17-foot Grady White right at Cockroach Bay boat launch (near Ruskin, FL), a single ramp in a lagoon-like bay area with no dock – so it takes two to be efficient, one driving the truck to the water and the other in the boat, starting up and beaching the boat on the large sand beach next to the ramp. The parking line with boats and trailers begins at the ramp and goes for as long a way down the single lane road as you care to walk. Once in the water, the tide is a factor for water depth, see the charts, and fishing can begin right in the lagoon or outside the canal that leads to Cockroach Bay and Tampa Bay. In either area, be prepared to hook a fish.

Launched boats are beached after launching to load up and head out, there is no dock at the ramp.

Jeff and Trevor opted to leave the crowd at the ramp and head to the flats. The water was nearly crystal clear with a sight brownish tint and we arrived with an outgoing tide, soon to be a negative tide – it is wintertime, not a good thing by local fishing optimism. It didn’t matter, we were all there to enjoy a few hours of fishing. The cooler was filled with sandwiches and dehydration prevention liquids that had a low ABV rating, if you know the lingo. Electrolyte replacement is important!

Fish can be caught in the lagoon right near the ramp.

Not more than 5 minutes into fishing, the electric MinnKota bow motor moving us around between sand flats and emerging weedbed edges, Trevor yelped out, “There’s one!” His drag was singing a gentle scream tune, testing the 30 pound test braid with flourocarbon leader a bit. About a minute later, Trevor hoisted a silvery, thin-bodied fish with a deeply forked tail fin out of the water, a nice Jack Crevalle, grinning that grin of success, you know “the grin look,” as we looked on and reached for a camera. “Nice fish!” I quipped, “Spoon? I asked.” Trevor was casting a 2/5 oz. gold-plated Johnson Sprite with a red flicker tab on the tail treble hook. “You need that red flicker thing he said, it seems to make ‘em hit it.”

OK, reaching for my backpack with a limited supply of tackle goodies – hey, I’m new at this, I searched for anything gold with a red flicker thing. Nope, none in there. I stuck on a red/white Mirrolure, one of my favorites from way back when at home in New York.  Jeff too, searched out his tackle, nuthin similar. “Got any more of them ‘thar spoons Trevor buddy?” Jeff asked. Without looking, Trevor says, “Nope, just had one.” He was grinning. I saw that. Hey, what are friends for?

The kids let me catch one or two fish too, this one took almost two minutes to bring aboard. Fun times.

Jeff added a plastic tail to a jig and soon after, he was hooked up with a bonnet head shark! WOW! The 3-foot long shark fought so hard, testing Jeff’s 20-pound braid with several runs, but eventually coming to the boat. We released the shark too, though there are some good recipes for bonnet head steaks.

We were now about 15 minutes into the trip and it was already so exciting. I had casted about twice per minute, so 30 tries or so. I reached over to the live bait bucket where we had 5 dozen shrimp that I brought “just in case” the lures didn’t work. Some charters fish with nothing else, some charters fish with all lures, I just wanted to be prepared for the guys, as a guest of this friendship.

So I tied on a size 1 circle hook and weighted bobber, was just about done when Trevor shouted, “Fish on!” Again, his drag screamed and I stood up to get the net, this fish looked like a double rod bend species when I got wacked by the rod and fish coming aboard. “Schllaaaap!” The sound of a loaded fishing rod hitting me square in the shoulder with a fish on makes that sound. Trust me.  I was knocked on my butt, but stayed in the boat. We all laughed. Me too.

Jeff Liebler with a feisty Bonnethead Shark that tested his light tackle to the tune of a screaming drag.

The fish was a beautiful speckled trout, 19 inches of pure energy with soon to be white fillets. It met the 16 – 20 inch slot limit allowed to keep four per day.  Again, on the gold spoon. “Sure you don’t have any more of those spoons Trevor?” Jeff asked again. “Nope,” answered Trevor without looking. Again, the grin. Made me wonder twice now.

That was it, I hurried to hook up a live shrimp to the bobber rig. Slipping the hook right behind the stud above the shrimp’s nose for a secure locking point, I cast out to the edge of a weedbed I could see about 50 feet away. The bobber never had a chance to settle, the line just took off. “Fish On!” I could not believe the power of this fish. My 20-pound braid was wailing a James Taylor tune…Fire and Ice, I think. Indeed, I was dreaming. About a minute later, a 22-inch Pompano came aboard. These saltwater fish really fight well.

Over the next two hours we landed another 12 fish, puffer fish too, several speckled trout, others. These two kids opted to let the “old guy” take the fish home for a guest fish dinner. I didn’t argue.

Trevor Brate and Jeff Liebler, fishing buddies, share the half day of fishing fun before getting back to work.

In just three more weeks, all three of us would be part of a formal ceremony day in a formal uniform suit of the day, Jeff’s wedding! This was sort of a pre-bachelor party fish trip. Jeff and his bride are both outdoor-minded conservationists. I’m so happy for them both to be getting formal about being together for their future.

Fun? Oh my gosh, this was such a great adventure day!

Birds on the Fly…Bang…Puff – Making Powderful Memories

Family Fun at a well-managed Florida Sporting Clay Course.

  • It’s a good idea before heading out – Discuss the obvious. At all times, treat the gun as if loaded.
  • Go over the common rules – Embed them even if you know them. Assure to use the proper gauge and ammo type, check it twice.
  • The shooter sequence  – The shotgun shell goes into the gun ONLY when on a shooting station and you are to fire.
  • A Problem? – If the gun does not fire, point the muzzle downrange and wait for a full 2-minutes. 
Shotgun Fun starts with safety as brothers, Jeffrey and Jonathan Liebler, pack up the golf cart for a day at FishHawk Sporting Clays in the swamp oak countryside near Lithia, FL.

By Forrest Fisher

When my 34-year old nephew, Jonathan Liebler, asked what I was doing the day of the baby shower party set for his beautiful wife, I had a solid answer. “I’m driving your Aunt to your moms’ house for the party, of course.” He replied, “Good, you know I found out that guys are not welcome at those events. I wanna invite you to check out the sporting clay club just down the road from there, are you in? Jeff (Jon’s brother) and I go there often. It’s such fun!” There was so much enthusiasm in his voice! I was blown away by his sheer energy and anticipation. How could I say anything else except, “OK, man, that sounds great!” I was pretty excited.

Registration is required and in just a few minutes, the formality is complete, and shooters are ready to go.
My grandson, Collin, places his SoundGear hearing protection into each ear canal. The cost of these innovative devices has come down in recent years.

Jon went on to explain, “Most folks shoot the usual over-under style shotguns, but any shotgun that holds two rounds can be used. I can’t wait to try out my new Berretta 12 gauge I recently bought, I got it used at a local gun show. I patterned it, and I’m pretty pleased that it seems to shoot well. Jeff is bringing his Mossberg over-under 12, what do you have Unc?” I replied, “Well, I have my favorite Berretta 20, the black onyx model, and my old Ithaca over/under 12 from the 1960s that I gave to your cousin, my grandson, Collin. He likes that gun,  he used it to shoot trap at his old high school trap team league. He got pretty good with that gun, they won the league 1st place trophy that year. You know Collin is with us down here in Florida now.” With excitement, Jon answered, “That’s great, let’s all go together then! And so we did.

When we arrived at FishHawk Sporting Clays in Lithia, Florida, it was about 11 a.m.  Jon and Jeff met us in the parking lot and there was that special, unmistakable, magic of new adventure and excitement in the air. The facility was modern, computerized for initial registration, and fully equipped with golf carts and rental gear, including shotguns, hearing protection, and ammo. In 10 minutes, we were set to go and provided with a trail map of the shooting station layout.  Impressive.

Back to the vehicles to get our firearms and ammo, we all talked about safety first. As we moved from truck to golf cart, we opened the breach of each gun and peaked down the barrel to check for a clear, shiny reflection to daylight at the other end. I picked up Jonathan’s gun and said, “Hey, who cleaned this gun?” My sly grin gave my joking a giveaway. They all laughed. We went over the safety stuff just like when the guys were kids, treating each gun as if it was loaded. We went over the process of shooting, never to load the gun until we were at the shooting station, then finger off the trigger until ready to shoot.  After shooting, eject the spent ammo and move off the station, action open. Of course, eye and ear protection for the full time on the course.

Jonathan prepares to start the round and explains to the rest of us what he expected from each of the clay bird launchers.

When the family boys get together for a day at the shooting range, especially a sporting clay shooting range, it’s going to be a fun time. Especially when it’s a first-time sporting clay experience for one of the guys.  Jon explained the many course options as we headed down the cart trail to the range area. First-time sporting clay shooter, Collin Voss, motions toward the field and speaks to his cousin, “Can we go A then B, real quick?” Bang! Bang! Jon Liebler answers, “Nice shooting bro! You are really picking up the targets so quickly. The hardest thing about having not done this before is finding the targets as they go flying left to right, right to left, straight up and away, straight across and at you, or bouncing along the ground.” Voss answers, “It’s simple. Watch me.” Everybody laughed. Collin continued, “This is awesome fun. I love this sport.” Jon’s brother, 32-year-old Jeffrey answers, “Not bad for a bonehead kid bro.” Collin is just turning 21 this year. Everybody laughs again and the banter game is on.

Each registrant is issued an ID card and this card must be inserted at each shooting station. to turn it on. A central computer counts the number of birds you have used. Then at checkout, course fees apply.

Jon hollers above all the other group shooting sounds in the area, “Let’s go over to one of my favorite stations down the trail here, I think you’re gonna love it.  Jeff and I like this one to see if we are still on time with our hockey reflexes – it’s quick and it’s a challenge for us. See what you think.” Collin grins and gabbles back, “Uh-oh, are you guys setting me up again?”

In all, at FishHawk Sporting Clays in Lithia, Florida, there are two 8-station courses, one 11-station course and one super sporting clay course of 16 shooting stations.  Each station is denoted in a sequence via separately labeled trail marker colors (red, blue, white and green). Easy to follow on foot or in the golf cart. Each station offers from two to four clay bird release platforms. Some stations throw small clay discs (birds), and some toss regular-size clay discs. The type of target bird is noted on a clipboard hanging to the left of the shooter in the shooting platform. Type of small game or bird species. Each target as noted on the clipboard ID is a bit of a surprise. All of them are fun, especially when competition fun grows between family siblings.

Jon hollers, “How many in a row is that Jeff?” Articulate and deadly accurate, humble Jeff mumbles softly, “16, I think.” With a slight grin.

Jon hollers, “How many in a row is that Jeff?” Articulate and deadly accurate, humble Jeff mumbles softly, “16, I think.” He looks over my way with an unassuming grin, whispering, “Thanks for opening the door to all this stuff when we were kids. I remember it like yesterday, we were with my dad way back when at your East Aurora Fish and Game Club in New York. Those days were unforgettable.” I whisper back, “I know I’m getting old when I have to think about when that was.” Jon answers, “You brought me, my dad, and Jeff to the club, opened up the trap range and showed us how to hold the shotgun, aim with both eyes open, then lead the target and squeeze the trigger. You let me hold the release controller and with you holding a single-shot .410 gauge shotgun, told us to stand about shoulder-wide but to stand as comfortable as we could – as if we wanted to jump high and far. Then you said, hold the gun lightly and squeeze the trigger real soft.” I grinned from my heart that time.  Collin jumped in, “I wasn’t there for that, I wasn’t born yet!” We all laughed. “Move over little guy, who’s turn is it?” hollered Jon. Slowing things down a bit, Collin added, “But when you took me there, you placed a foam pad under my right shirt shoulder and said, pull the gun in sort of snug to my shoulder.  When the bird goes up, aim right at it, then squeeze the trigger.” You said, “You’ll get it after a few tries. Don’t worry if you miss it. It takes time. There’s no pressure, it’s just fun. You get to try again and again.” The kids didn’t know that on those first experience moments for them, I had set the machine to throw the birds straight away, making it a bit less complicated to powder a bird. By the time we left, it was a powdery day.

Jeff and I like this one to see if we are still on time with our hockey reflexes – it’s quick and it’s a challenge for us. See what you think.” Collin grins and gabbles back, “Uh-oh, are you guys setting me up…again?”  

As we navigated the well-managed course, there were no two shooting stations alike. The surrounding trees, swamps, ponds, hardwoods, pines, ground cover, and general terrain, were new and different at each stop. The differences changed the target presentation and provided a brand new shooter-view and illusion, a new challenge at each station. I thought the changes were very much like actual dove hunting, rabbit hunting, chukar, or pheasant hunting. Quick reflexes, distance judgment, target speed, and angle of flight adjustments are all required from the shooter.

The best news is that there is no closed season at a sporting clays range. When wildlife hunting seasons do open, the shooting skills of folks that practice on courses like this are better and far more accurate. During hunting season, it’s more fun in the open-season fields and woods. The shooter is trained and confident, and success feels good on the field and, later, on the dinner plate.

Thank you Fish Hawk, and thank you, Jonathan, Jeff and Collin. Was a pleasure and honor to watch each of you guys shoot safely…and so well. Each one of them is a powder-poker. Safe, efficient, accurate and full of fun. At the end of that day, I looked up and said, thank you, Lord.

To learn more about the official rules of sporting clays, be sure to check out this link: https://nsca.nssa-nsca.org/what-is-sporting-clays-2/.