by Capt. Matt Mitchell
Big news on the water this past few weeks is that Blind Pass has somewhat reopened. Although the cut through the sand bar on the outside of the bridge is only roughly 20 yds wide, it’s just enough to make the water in there flow again. This little bit of tide movement has done wonders for the fishing in this whole area. Hopefully high tides and west winds will continue to keep this cut growing in size and keep the pass open, as it’s a very important flushing point for the lower part of Pine Island Sound along with Dinkins Bayou and the Roosevelt Channel.
How this opening appeared is kind of a mystery, and one urban legend or story I keep hearing is that guys with shovels did it in the moonlight. All it would really take is a small trench through the sandbar; then, with high tides, wave action, and current, the opening would quickly grow larger. Although I don’t know for sure how it came about, all I can say is I’m happy it’s flowing again.
Back in the 90’s, blind pass was closed for roughly 10 years. Although opening and closing from shifting sands is the nature of barrier island beaches and small passes, the beach berm built on Captiva for flood prevention was a major factor in closing this pass. All the new sand shot up on the beach simply shifted south during our prevailing winter north winds. Basically, when you mess with nature, nothing good ever comes of it.
This Blind Pass area, when open, has strong tide flow and is a hot spot for fishing both from boats and from the land or bridge. With so few land fishing options until the Sanibel pier reopens, shore-bound anglers will be glad to hear that the pass has opened. It’s a hot spot during spring and summer for snook, then in the Fall for redfish, then again in the winter for sheepshead. This narrow cut is a fish highway and a great staging area for a wide variety of fish. As long as the tide is moving, it’s hard to go wrong fishing this tiny little pass.
Hiding from the wind midweek, I tucked in Blind Pass with clients and found non-stop snook action pitching live shiners. Though these snook weren’t trophy fish, it felt good to keep the rods bent in this pass, which I haven’t fished in basically 6 months because it’s been closed. This little pass is near and dear to me as I have fished it since my childhood. Blind Pass is supposedly going to be dredged in 2027, so hopefully this little cut will stay open until the dredging begins for everyone.
