When it comes to the National Marine Fisheries Service and the South Atlantic Fisheries Management Council, I just can’t find anything positive to say… It’s more along the lines of National Marine Fisheries DIS-SERVICE and the South Atlantic Fisheries MIS-MANAGEMENT COLLUSION. All of which is overseen by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or NOAA, to which it is commonly referred. More realistically, it stands for No-ah, you can’t keep that fish. Or, No-ah, we are not for the sale of domestic seafood and we will not stop until all seafood in the US will be farm raised crap or imported junk! Or, No-ah, we will not stop until every US commercial fisherman is on the unemployment line! Apparently it’s ok for foreign countries to overfish every fish possible so that they can ship the cheap imported seafood into the US, while the US fisherman can’t even keep a fish with an obviously strong stock like the red snapper. The irony would be comical if the situation were not so threatening to the livelihood of so many fishermen and their families. The other aspect that’s about as funny as a kick in the junk is the negative impact on the entire recreational fishing and tourist industries, from hotels to equipment manufacturers and retailers to the angler who can’t keep enough fish to feed a family of four. The whole situation is just a giant steaming pile of sh#%!!

Now, you may be wondering why I’m so wound up this month… Besides the obvious grouper and snapper closures and the various fisheries dis-services being puppeteered by the enviro-nazis, I had the “privilege” of attending one of the SAFMC scoping meetings. “Scoping” is a very interesting choice of words because these meetings are very similar to a doctors appointment that us guys over forty years of age have the “privilege” of enduring and I’m not talking about the simple turn-and-cough. The is a very apropos analogy because the fisheries services and the environmentalists are both a cancer that is going to kill a very viable and sustainable industry. The bottom line is that by the time the council has these “scoping” meetings, they have already made up their minds as to what they are going to do. You better get acquainted with their “preferred alternative” because somewhere it is already set in stone! The “scoping” is just the warning to take your pants down and get ready…

Again, “Sorry Mom”. I better go ahead and put the soap box away before some guys in black suits and dark sunglasses come knocking at my door.

But really, there’s still the old kingfish! There still around, they’re fun to catch and you can still keep them. Last month, the kingfishing was pretty much off the Richter Scale. The main concentration of fish was located on 8a reef, but there were some fish scattered on Cris Benson and from the Lumps down thru Pelican Flats. The fish were averaging about twelve pounds, but there were some fish caught over thirty and up to almost fifty pounds. In addition to the kings, there were some dolphin, cobia, blackfin tuna and sailfish. The problem with the fish other than the kings was the sheer number of kings made it hard to get a bait to anything else. When the kingfish are schooled up in these large numbers, they are very aggressive.

The key to the kingfishing this month will be water temperatures. If the temps stay above the 70 degree mark, the fish might just stay right where they have been. If so the fishing will be red hot just like last month. Once the fish are located, you shouldn’t have to do anything other than drift dead sardines on stinger rigs. If you want to see some really crazy action, stop and get some threadfins or greenies on the way to the reef. Be careful though, you may just have a king jump right in the boat. If you want to target some of the other pelagics,  try slow trolling outside the schooling the kings. Try fishing a half mile or more away from the schools so your bait will have a better chance to find a dolphin, tuna or sail. Your best bet for the cobia on the reef will be the cobia swimming up to boatside while you’re drifting, so have the jig rod handy.

As far as trolling goes, the water has been good in as far as 70 feet. There have been numerous sails jumping from just offshore of the reef on out. There have also been scattered dolphin and wahoo starting in as close as 75 feet. If you’re planning to troll ballyhoo, make sure and start outside the kingfish grounds as they will eat you out of ballyhoo in a hurry. Try fishing some naked ballyhoo on the flat lines. short riggers and around the teasers for the dolphin and sails. Use the ballyhoo combined with lures on the long riggers or downriggers for the wahoo.

Personally, I don’t think Mother Teresa would have the patience to go bottom fishing right now… But, if you think you can stand throwing back grouper and snapper all day for a chance to keep an amberjack, be my guest.

Once again, it’s “Take the Council Fishing Month”, so do your part.. Return trip optional of course…

See ya on the pond!!!

So much for the kinder, gentler resolution… But really, am I the only one that is chapped about not being able to keep red snapper? Am I the only one that thinks that the four month grouper closure is bull sh#%? Let me let you in on a little secret. Grouper don’t spawn in January and February, they migrate.. to Florida’s coastal waters. They start staging for the spawn in March and spawn in April. The fish show up here in late December and leave to go back to the Carolinas before the May 1 opening. The real reason for the closure is to keep more of the quota in North Carolina where the fishing industry has support from their Government Representatives. I’m not saying that there shouldn’t be any closure, I’m just saying that they had it right with the previous two month closure commercially with recreational fishing permitted.

The moral of the story is as follows… If you want to bottom fishing for the next four months, you might as well have somebody hit you in the head with a bat and hope the state of unconsciousness brings delusions of a fishing vacation where you can actually keep what you catch. Sure, you can still keep amberjack, triggerfish and various snappers other than red snapper, but just go ahead and try. Head out to 27 fathoms to try fishing for amberjack, you will end up catching nothing but 10# to 20# snapper and 15# to 25# grouper all day. Try fishing inshore for triggerfish, mangrove and lane snappers, good luck getting your baits through the seabass and red snapper. Hello bat, hello cranium. Honestly, it’s like a swift kick in the wedding tackle. If you do happen to be the catch and release type of fisherman, it’s Utopia.

The good news is that, although they were a month late, the Kingfish have finally made their appearance. Also good news is that the fish seem to be running bigger than usual. More good news is that they seem to be fairly plentiful, with fish being caught from Cris Benson thru 8A and down thru Pelican Flats. Need more? There’s been a fair amount of blackfin tuna and cobia mixed in with the kings. The catch here is that it’s tough to get a bait through the kings to the other target species. It’s a great problem to have, because the king bite has been absolutely blistering. They have been biting so good that most people have been drifting frozen sardines from a dead boat not even trolling. The mackerel have been averaging ten to fifteen pounds, but there have been numerous fish caught in the thirty to fifty pound range. The tunas have been chunky too, averaging near 25 lbs. Not that there’s much need, but if you really want to catch live bait, there has been some threadfin in the vicinity of the bight and the surrounding shoals.

As far as trolling goes, the sailfish bite has been pretty strong. There have been floppers (sails jumping lazily, landing on their sides) seen in as close as 70ft, but most of the trollers have been focusing outside the 100ft mark. There’s also enough dolphin and wahoo around to keep the trolling interesting. The blackfin tuna will also keep your on your toes. For the ‘fins and sails, you will want to troll naked ballyhoo rigged on monofilament leaders. Fish these rigs close to teasers and boat wash for the best result. For the wahoo, troll lures with ballyhoo or strip baits rigged on wire leaders. Fish these rigs further back on the outriggers, shotgun and downriggers. Although the tuna will sometimes bite the usual spread, you may want to add a small bubbling lure or chicken feather lure to the options. Also, if you see working birds or jumping tuna, you may want to try chumming as you may be able to attract the fish right to the back of the boat. If you succeed in chumming them to the boat, the tuna will hit a variety of freelined baits from frozen sardines to cut bait to live bait.

Whatever you do, get out there and enjoy it. Feel free to take a SAFMC member out with you, return trip optional…

See ya on the pond!!

After finishing my short introspection I deem myself not ready for the rubber room. But still the fact remains, all good things must come to an end. I am, of course, referring to the fact that grouper season will close for four months at the end of December and that’s a fact. What sucks is the fact that the fishing is about as good as it gets right now. What really sucks is the fact that the weather won’t let us get to the fish. What really super-sucks is the fact that when you get there, there’s so many red snapper, you can’t hardly get a bait through them to get to the grouper!! You want a really big, giant, humongous, tremendous, steaming pile of suckdom? It’s called the National Marine Fisheries Service!! The American red snapper is, without a doubt, the healthiest stock of the snapper/grouper complex. Why can’t we keep any? I’m glad you asked.. Because the Enviro-Nazi terrorist groups are running the NMFS, that’s why! Jane Lubchenko, the head of NMFS is one of the PEW environmental group’s former minions. How is it that an Enviro-Terrorist like Lubchenko can end up running America’s fisheries? A little help from our old friend Murphy and a ton of money from Big Oil funding the environmental groups. Which brings me to the biggest head scratcher… Why are the parties responsible for the world’s biggest environmental disasters the ones that are funding the enviros who are running the Marine Fisheries? Call it the shell game, three card monte, a magic trick or whatever the hell you want. The American fisherman and those that enjoy wild caught American seafood are getting screwed. Pretty soon, the only thing we’ll be able to eat will be imported seafood and farm raised tilapia! And by the way, tilapia is not seafood, so stop calling it that, it’s farm raised crap! Get out and help the fight. If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem!

Wow, a month and a half off and a couple of cold fronts and my flip flops turned into soap boxes! No need to call the authorities, the antenna tower was actually my duck blind.

The bottom fishing in November was honestly awesome, unfortunately the weather only allowed us to fish a couple days out of the month. Most of November the swells kept the water pretty stirred up, but towards the end of the month things started showing improvement. Should the weather pattern actually reach some semblance of normalcy in December, It could be one to remember. Depending on water clarity, the grouper fishing could start in as shallow as 75’. In the 75’ to 140’ depths, there should also be a decent shot at some cobia too. For the amberjack, they will likely be concentrated from 170’ on out to the cones and deep wrecks. Live bait should be the bait of choice and the bigger, the better. I’m not at all kidding when I say that the snapper have become quite a nuisance. If you just wanted to catch and release, it would be no problem to catch 10 to 20lb snapper all day from 90’ out to 180’. With the larger live baits, there’s a better chance of getting the bait through the snapper to the grouper and amberjack.

The reef bite for kingfish was non-existent last month as the water out past 120’ resembled that of a mud puddle. Much like the bottom fishing, the kingfishing will be dependent on the water clearing up. Once the water on the inshore reefs cleans up, there should be a large influx of the migrating kings. Mixed in with the kings, there should be bonito, a few blackfin tuna and cobia and a scattered wahoo. The live bait will likely be tough to find so the next best thing will be slow trolling frozen Spanish sardines with king busters or strip baits behind sea witches. You may want to troll spoons, plugs or strip baits to locate the fish and then switch over to the spinning minnows. Once the fish are located, the action should be fast and furious.

I know the broken record is getting old, but the trolling was shut down last month by dirty water too. When the Miracle of 505 Glenn Cheek Drive hits in December, the fishing could be magical. The dolphin and sailfish should still be fairly reliable and there should be enough blackfin tuna and wahoo around to keep things interesting. I would suggest trolling in the clean-green water for a little bit on the way out. There have been a fair amount of Sails, phins and a few wahoo caught in the green stuff from 120’ out the edge of the stream and the blue water. Fish a combination of naked mono-rigged ballyhoo and wire rigged bally/lure combos to keep a variety in your spread.

Get out there and get ‘em before Murphy or NMFS gets you!

See ya on the pond!!

Speaking of risk, return, trade-off, it’s getting to be time to start watching for those afternoon boomers. If you’re gonna be fishing out in the deep blue, keep a close eye on the weather or plan on getting back home in the mid-afternoon. Either way, don’t forget the foul weather gear.

The best option with the least risk for weather ruining the day will be fishing the beach. This time of year, the near shore waters like the bouy line area and waters within 5 miles of the beach can offer both excellent action and close proximity to safe areas when threatened by inclement weather. Live bait has been relatively easy to come by and is a necessity for beach fishing. Sometimes the action will be in the immediate vicinity of the bait, sometimes you may have to move a bit farther offshore to find clean water. Once the right area is found, you can expect to catch kings, cobia, jacks, tarpon, bonito, sharks and barracuda. Just slow troll the pogies on stinger rigs and get ready for some fast action. In the event live bait cannot be found, dead sardines with dusters may entice some action, but not nearly as much as the live bait.

If you’re a bit of the gambler type and would like to take your chances offshore, this month, the returns could definitely outweigh the risks. By the looks of things, the spotty trolling in May should continue into June.Though a little hit or miss, there were some pretty nice dlophin caught last month. Not a ton of really big fish like years past, but some quality animals. I’m not sure why, but I have a feeling that we should see some decent trolling for at least the first part of this month. Hopefully, along with the scattered dolphin, we will see a few more wahoo and sailfish than we did in May. The standard ballyhoo and ballyhoo/lure combos should adorn the trolling spread.

As far as the bottom fishing goes, I’m not sure what to say except “HEY NOAA, LET US KEEP SOME F#$%ING RED SNAPPERS, YOU A-HOLES!” It’s sad to say that NOAA has successfully turned the American Red Snapper into a nuisance fish akin to a remora. At least some of our representatives and legislators are finally coming around and putting their foot down on Jane Lubchenko’s neck. For the first time in a while, there’s a glimmer of hope that we may be able to keep red snapper in the not so distant future. In the meantime, we’ll just have to keep weeding through the trash to catch a few grouper and amberjack.

Speaking of grouper and amberjack, the bite in May was what I would consider middle of the road with the ajs biting a bit better than the groupers. If the water would warm up a bit, the action could heat up right with it. From what I’ve seen on the bottom machine, I think there are a fair number of fish out there, but the cool water is preventing them from feeding heavily. When conditions do improve, I would expect to see some excellent action. Live bait should work well, but be sure to stock up on larger baits as the endangerd snapper will likely eat many of the smaller ones. Dead bait and vertical jigs will also take their fair share of fish too. Most of the bottom action will be from the 23 fathom ridge on out to the deeper waters.

Make sure to pack the foul weather gear and get out there and get em!

See ya on the pond!

There may also still be hope for more cobia in April too. As I sit down to write this column (late on the deadline as usual), there’s a strong current pushing the cold water south, back down the beach. This could prolong the cobia run well into April if this cold eddy stays around for a bit. Fortunately, it happened just as the fish seemed to be making the move north around the Cape. There also seems to be more manta rays than ever this year and the south current could keep them here too. The trick will be finding the 68 to 72 degree water with weed edges, rays, bait pods, color changes, free swimming cobia and/or any combination of the latter. Jigs have been working well, but when the fish get snooty, a frisky live bait should do the trick.

Another bright spot last month was the early arrival of some dolphin. The size and numbers were nothing crazy, but it’s aweful early to start seeing them… Could this be a big year for the phins? Being slightly gravity challenged, I’m not going to go out on the limb just yet… I’m just saying that I’m cautiously optomistic.

The strong south current that may help the cobia fishing is not exactly what a dolphin fisherman wants to see, but there is a silver lining associated with the cold green water.. Somewhere offshore, there should be a pretty amazing edge where the southbound green water meets the warm blue water of the northbound Gulf Stream. This could be a troller’s dream if things line up properly, but keep in mind that theory is not always reality. When you do find the Yellow Brick Road to troller heaven, have some ballyhoo rigged on mono and some rigged with lure combinations. Along with the dolphin, there should be a pretty good chance of a sailfish or wahoo too.

But wait, there’s more.. As if all that hope and promise wasn’t enough, the kingfish showed up on the reef again. Toward the middle/end of last month, there were several days that the kings were as good as it gets on Pelican Flats. The only problem is the influx of cold green water will likely shut that bite down for a while. But, when conditions improve on the inshore reefs and wrecks, look for the kings to fire right back up. The live pogies have been relatively easy to come by, but spinning minnows will do the trick in a pinch.

I really should be more careful, this article sounds way too optimistic. I guess I better prepare myself for the taste of flip flops and the look of donkey ears…

See ya on the pond!!!

3/8/11. Left Port Canaveral with a crew of five to go cobia fishing. Fishing was awesome! We ended up catching our limit of ten that averaged out just under thirty lbs. Released several 20 plus pounders too.

3/9/11. Had a crew of six on this day of cobia fishing. We managed to catch our limit of twelve fish and released several that were keeper size. The average fish that we kept was near 25 lbs. Almost all were caught fishing manta rays.

3/13,14/11.  Fished both days with a four man crew. We managed to catch a limit both days with a pretty decent average size. Still havn’t caught a “gift certificate fish” in the Sunrise Marina Tournament!!

3/15/11. Just myself, Jeff Thummel and Jeff Mayhew today. Fished the beach off Patrick AFB and managed to catch a few nice fish. A couple of the cobes were a bit over forty lbs.

3/16/11. Same crew of myself, Jeff and Jeff.  Fishing was red hot late in the day. There were freeswimmers and rays everywhere! We easily had our six fish limit with the average pushing 30 lbs.

3/17/11. Fishing was a little tough for us today.. We ended up catching the six we could keep, but it was a struggle. Several of the fish were 36″ moidels with a couple of 30 to 35 pounders.

3/18/11.  Crew for the day consisted of myself, Jason Hedman, his son Joe and Joe’s buddy Logan Scrach. Trying to avoid the crowd fishing the beach, I opted to try further offshore. As luck would have it, we found a few rays and had them all to ourselves! Young eyes combined with good casting allowed us to catch a limit fairly easily. I think Joe and Logan caught most everything that day!