Nov. 3, 2012: Wow, a good fall season, and now some boat work.

TARPON FISHING AND FLATS FISHING:

September was good fishing on the flats and back country. We caught some nice, big tarpon on the fall mullet run. The snook and redfish were not as good this fall in those areas I catch the big tarpon, but the snook and redfish fishing has been very good around the Flamingo area. So we would hit them on the way out or on the way back depending on the tides. The redfish fishing has been very good this year. There have been lots of redfish on the flats and the channels around the islands can be as fast as you put a bait in the water. They are the first fish to make a great comeback after the big blast of cold we had here 3 years ago this winter.

The snook are also making a big comeback this year too. FWC should be opening up harvest for our area next year, Sept. 2013 for any of you all wanting to take some tasty fillets to the local restaurants next year. It’s possible they could open it up the first of the year I think I remember reading.

Permit fishing on the flats was good this fall too. Now we have had our first cold front, so as long as the water stays over 70 degrees permit are around. That also applies to bonefish, but they are making a slow comeback. They are around though, just not in the numbers like they used to be.

OFFSHORE FISHING:

It has been a typical fall year, with the muttons and groupers on the wrecks and edge of the reef. We have caught some nice fish this fall, muttons especially. Also the vermillion and yellow-eye snapper have been good too. These are fun because we can catch them on lighter tackle and catch 2 or 3 at a time on the multi-hook rigs we call “chicken rigs.”

We have caught some nice cero mackerel while fishing for sailfish. These are some of my favorite fish to catch while live baiting on the surface. They are a great surface bite, sporty fight, and great eating – cooked anyway. All the local restaurants will cook your catch, and any left over makes a great fish salad or fish dip with crackers for the rest of your trip. Just think of the envying eyes on the airplane as you break out your own fresh fish dip and crackers on the way home.

The blackfin tuna has been very good at times this fall, but the sharks where horrendous too. One day we hooked up over 20 nice tunas (10 – 20 pounders) in like 45 minutes of fishing, but only got one to the boat. The sharks were so bad they were all around the boat almost within reach. We would get one blistering run, then CHOMP! It was exciting hooking up doubles every time, but we finally had to give it up. It was just sad to let the sharks get them. One of my friends had the sharks biting the trim tabs and propeller.

There were some good days dolphin fishing too with fish up to 20 lbs. Either they would be around a piece of debris or a turtle, or a frigate would be following them. They were not out far either some days, just 300 – 400 feet deep. There can still be good dolphin fishing, but everyone is waiting for the sailfish to show up. Now since we have had our first cold front, it will be turning on any day now. This time of year here in Islamorada is when you can catch a number of small sailfish in the 20 pound and under size.

SPEAR FISHING:

We had some great days shooting hogfish, mangrove snapper, just legal grouper, cero mackerel and trigger fish. I got a nice 5 pound hogfish, that was 24″ overall (19.5″ to the fork). Also I saw some big grouper to 35 pounds but just could not get close to them for a good shot. Had a few shots at 15 pounders, but they were long shots and just missed while the grouper just started to move and shooting with cover through sea fans etc. makes for tough aiming. But the groupers were there. One day on one dive I saw 25 to 30 groupers, with 1/3 being legal size, missing 2 groupers through cover on the long shots and chasing a few others never getting close enough. One was a +30 pounder I’ve been going back to, and he is a sneaky guy. Very elusive, but that is what makes it challenging. If it was easy, what would be the big deal then. That is why I do not chum them personally. The challenge to slip up on them is where it is at for me.

We shot some nice ceros while free diving on the edge of the reef in 60′ water. You do not have to go anywhere near the bottom, just less than 30′ at the maximum. These cero mackerel are a great fish to target. They are hard to approach, usually a long shot, hard to hit because they are skinny and do not give a big target top to bottom. And unless you get a lucky kill shot, they are a good little fight at the end of the shaft. I had one I was cautiously bringing up and allowing to fight the spear so not to have it yank the barbs out of its back when a 30 pound black grouper darted 30′ off the bottom lunging at it – WOW, that was impressive! He tried to eat about a 5 pound cero mackerel. We could not find where that grouper disappeared to. That would have been a great fish to spear while free diving 55 feet, wow!

You never know what will happen next out here on or in the water, that is exactly what I love about this job and life. This reminds me of another encounter I had this summer while doing a solo drift dive a 100′ down. The PUCKER FACTOR was high, but tolerable! Yes it was a shark encounter, pretty big Bull Shark! This was an email to 2 dive buddies and their sons.

I dove the rubble one day alone with my buddy driving the boat and it was murky water 30 – 50′ visibility. I did not want to go because of the “murk”, but I had seen a +30lb. grouper a couple times the preceding weeks. So the current was to east on surface, so I jump in on the west side to go with the current and on the bottom I got current going against me to the west – bitch, another thing I do not like about the rubble.

I get down there fighting the current, bad visibility, sweating in my mask, all by myself when behind and underneath about 15′ a 350lbs. bull shark goes flying by me quite fast with pectoral fins half way down. Shit this boy is fired up, and as I watch him go off to my left to circle around, another 350lb. bull goes flying by me following that bull shark – double SHIT! It peels to the right. Then I look back at the other as it’s coming back again, same speed, distance and attitude – shit. Find the other, same thing: close fly by. And again, both again make separate close “swim by” amp’d up – shit.

At first I slowed down my swimming but kept my depth and direction the same. I could keep my eyes on them, because they were below me about 15′ and their circle would go down current of me and pass just under me. Each time they would go underneath me their circle would be farther behind me, like broadening their search pattern for scent behind me. Thank God I had not speared a fish yet. They passed me each one 4 or 5 times fast, but never got at my depth or made a move up for me, and never really got closer than maybe 12′ under me. But that was 8 or 10 passes that was a little nerve wracking. At the end, I could see them out way in the distance zigzagging back and forth, until they disappeared. I kept swimming a little more and looking to make sure they left then I made a slow assent and brief safety stop.

I decided to keep swimming, almost ignoring them instead of confronting them or changing my profile to how they were checking me out. I was ready to poke them in the snout with shaft, but I had no time to put power head on. I’d like to have a fast way to put a power head on. I found out later that a friend had speared some fish there right before I got in the water myself. So they were there looking around for those fish.

Thought I’d tell you this so you have a little more knowledge on what they might do if you see them. Most bull sharks I’ve seen always split after they see us or me, like they’re scared. But they were 100 to 130 lbs., not 350 pounders. We have even speared fish after seeing smaller ones not to be bothered after or on accent.

That is why I have included this little story in my report, to educate anyone on the behavior of bull sharks. The more you know the better you’ll be anywhere in the world while diving.
 

August 26, 2012:  What a season it has been!

Wow, I cannot believe I have not done a fishing report since April. Sorry guys, I know a lot of my clients like to follow what we are up to down here in Islamorada, Florida Keys. It certainly is not because there has been a lack of fish; it’s because I’ve had no time between the fishing charters.

I’ve got a lot of photos and cool HD videos I want to put up in a few weeks. I have dramatic videos of night tarpon fishing, and some interesting spear fishing. Once I master the editing program I hope to get more up.

“TO BE or NOT TO BE” a HURRICANE, ISAAC:

Here I sit during the “Hyped Up” Tropical Storm Isaac, which has given me time to finish my seasonal fish report. Once again the “Over Hyped Media: National and Local” was at it again trying capture and maintain viewers by having reporters everywhere reporting on the first breezes and sprinkles. Ever notice how the networks depict the whole cloud mass in “orange and red” like it’s some “Super Storm from Hell?” Ever look on the actual satellite where the only orange and red are the squalls in the feeder bands and around the center, and the rest is green and often large areas of no rain?

For days and days they play the “fear factor” and the storm is just getting formed up hundreds of miles away. It’s all about the “Almighty Dollar” and keeping one vegetating on every next word and new nothing video between all those advertisements.  It’s like “Waiting for Godot!” Just like my “Waiting for Hurricane Wilma” story about fishing on Fri and Sat. before Wilma hit early Mon. morning (story). Again for this storm, we were out on a scuba spear fishing trip (making money) this past Fri. before Isaac hit Sun. morning. (story)

The mainstream media networks are not only a disgrace as news services, but are “despicable” (I have many other adjectives for them). Not just because of their agenda and deception, but their “sensationalizing and exaggerating” costs me thousands of dollars every fall since hurricane Ivan. Before I had a thriving fall business. But ever since the two years of Ivan and Katrina, every year they are predicting another “record hurricane season” and “over playing” every tropical system. Just think of all the money that is lost in fall tourism from South Padre Island, TX all the way up to Virginia Beach, VA.  It could be billions of dollars, probably more than all the hurricane damage collectively each year. It’s absurd. Even a wealthy Canadian client admitted how friends asked: wasn’t he worried about hurricanes while fishing in April? Think of that, it’s even effecting our business outside of hurricane season! Despicable is not a just word for the media, and they wonder why they are loosing viewer-ship and readership.

If Isaac did hit directly, it would be a minimal hurricane 1 or worst 2 (like Wilma), but it was under Haiti, disorganized by the mountains and it still had to go over Cuba which would continue to hold its strength and organization at bay. Now we had the necessary precautions done: boat out of water, orchids put away, damageable items in open carport were stored inside. But we did not shutter up the house! Our house went through H. George before we bought shutters, but we have them ready if need be and we always plan enough time to evacuate. This was going to be like a long summer squall. By my estimates it was not going to be more than 40 to 60 miles an hour if the path stayed on track, which the NHC forecasters have that down pretty good.  

TARPON FISHING:

It was another great year tarpon fishing in Islamorada, FL Keys. It was good all the way into the second week of Aug. Jason Gardner and his friend Judy caught 2 big tarpon out of 4 on with another strike or two on a short full day on Aug 14th because we got chased off by evening thunderstorms. The tarpon weighed around 90 lbs. and 75 lbs., which are good sizes this time of year. The next evening we did not get a bite, but it could have been because there were some scientists surveying the bottom possibly with a strong sounder they were dragging all around the area. That was the only difference between each day.

A couple weeks earlier we had some great tarpon fishing in the end of July, having multiple hook-ups on half day evening trips. One afternoon we caught 3 tarpon out of 7 hooked up (lost a big tarpon in the pilings) and had 10 or 11 tarpon hitting our baits – all in a half day sunset trip. The next trip we caught a 105 tarpon and a 70 pounder along with a 20 pounder plus a few other hits, again in a half day trip. In 4 trips we had caught a dozen tarpon and had over 20 hooked up, all in half day trips. They were from 105 lbs. down to 20 pounds which is when the small ones start showing up around mid July. They are fun, we just use smaller tackle, # 20 test.

Another highlight was fishing a Palola worm hatch with fly rods from my 23′ Sea Craft with Rick Ovalman and his sons, James and Peter. We hooked 3 tarpon in half hour of casting. Rick fought a big tarpon, (over 100 lbs.) for half an hour until it broke off on the bottom. James then jumped an 80 pound tarpon off, and then he hooked and released a 40 pound tarpon on fly. It fought real hard for a 40 pounder. I got some video I’m going to work on editing soon, but I got to learn the new programs.

OFFSHORE FISHING:

We have had some good wreck fishing this past June and July, and good reef fishing. Art Lance and his wife came back again for a couple days fishing. They wanted to catch some eating fish the first day which they did: mutton snappers up to +10 lb., red groupers up to 15 lbs., yellow eye snappers, and vermillion snappers. The next day we tarpon fished.

I’ve had a number of other groups wreck and reef fishing catching nice mutton snappers; black, gag, and red groupers; big yellow jacks; tunas; big jack crevallis; cero mackerels, mangrove snappers, bigger lane snappers (my favorite to eat), and porgies. I’ll post some photos soon.

The dolphin fishing has been pretty good of course, but the tunas were very small the first part of the season this year. Some blue marlin have been caught, and there has been some nice swordfish caught in the day and night fishing is still good too. I’m looking forward to finally getting rigged up for this, day time swordfish fishing. I’ll be rigged up with a LP electric reel used as the down rigger, and a stand-up 50 rod for the swordfish fishing. I’m also looking forward to doing some deep dropping. I’ve caught some nice fish with a good friend the last couple years, and this is a great way to put some great eating fish in the box between dolphin fishing in the morning and afternoon.

I’m one step closer to getting an old LP electric reel rigged up. The other day I finally jumped the connections to my skiff battery and a “jump start” battery (it’s a 24 volt reel that requires a slave battery), and it is in good working condition: motor and reel. So I will be wiring up my boat for this 24 volt reel designed for a 12 volt system. How the hell is that?

This reel is designed for a 12 volt system but to run on a 24 volt set up for more efficient draw of amps. The reel uses 4 wires, 2 for each battery. The second battery is a “slave battery” not hooked up to the ground of the ship’s system. The slick aspect to this reel is, when the switch is not engaged it is charging the slave battery from the outboard 12 volt system back through the switch. When the switch is engaged, the batteries are operating in “series” – 24 volts. I do not have to bring a slave battery on board. My second bank consists of 2 big gel cells wired “parallel.” What I will do is put 2 big on-off switches between the terminal connections. In the off position, the second battery will be isolated from the boat system and functioning as a “slave battery.”

BACKCOUNTRY FISHING:

The snook and redfish fishing has been very good back in the Everglades National Park. Scott Coleman and his son came down for some fishing. The second day we got chased around by the weather, but we still managed to catch big redfish and snook. Felix Abiada and a friend came back to fish with me, but instead of tarpon they wanted to test their casting on the flats. After looking for permit and bonefish in the morning (right off the bat we had a shot at at a big tailing permit), we went looking for redfish. On the fourth spot we found them, and for 2 hours they cast at singles and doubles catching just one. But it takes a well placed cast, and we saw 50 to 70 redfish, and some big trout too on the edges of the flat. Gale Porter and his sons, Gale and Griffin got into some fun snook fishing and caught the biggest snook they have ever caught, around 10 pounds. Before the sharks showed up, they were biting as fast as you could throw a bait in the water.

Scott Coleman and his son went permit fishing and tarpon fishing the first day. Because he wanted to do both in the same day, the tarpon were not biting during the day in the morning, but his son caught a big barracuda which all boys love catching. Then we went looking for permit on the flats. First couple spots were empty, but we had tough visibility with overcast skies. Then we hit a flat where every 10 minutes we found a tailing permit or two, no more. For two hours we fished tailing permit, some up to 30 lbs. with big forked tails sticking out of the shallow water. Bill just could not get a good cast off, but he was caught by the thrill of sight casting for tailing permit.

SPEAR FISHING:

We have had some good trips. Adam Smith and his friend from Jacksonville wanted to learn how to find and catch lobster, and fish a little if we had time. I showed him the variety of places to catch lobster: grass ledges, creeks, and patch reefs. We got 11 lobster, one below our limit which is good for beginners. Then we went out and made 2 drops and caught 2 nice muttons which made for a feast for royalty.

John Porter came down to lobster and spear fish a little. He wanted to show his step daughter’s boyfriend about spear fishing. he did not feel well most of the day, but was in the water most of the time helping catch lobster. They got some nice lobster, big ones too for the Keys. I wish I had my underwater camera for videos, because the water was gin clear and shallow where they caught 6 big ones. John speared a black margate which fired the girl’s boyfriend up. We then fished a little and caught one mutton, a hard fighting bonita, and missed a few other bites.

George Morissette and his friend Evan came down to do a little spear fishing and lobstering while scuba diving. George was experience spear fisherman with scuba but from 9 years ago and longer. He sent me some awesome photos of big grouper, snapper, and lobster he’s gotten off Melbourne, FL. But he wanted to spend time in shallow water (30′ – 40′) re-familiarizing himself with the gear and scuba while looking to spear some fish. Evan had never spear fished before. My buddy Brett was the dive master for the trip, certified Evan for Nitrox, and he shot a couple fish for their pot.

It was rough, 16 – 18 knots ENE, the Fri before TS Isaac hit us on Sun. morning with numerous squalls coming through, but we made a day of it while most of my buddies where putting their boats up. We dodged a few lightning storms between dives, and the chop was not a problem getting into the boat. We just tied the tanks off on a rope and drifted them off then pull them in after getting in.

George nailed a nice cero mackerel, but beat himself up a little about missing some snappers. Evan shot his first keeper hogfish and porgy. Brett shot a few mangrove snappers. George started feeling sick, so we could not fish; instead we started moving in shallower. We stopped at one lobster spot and they got 3 keepers. Then we wrapped it up on a nice big coral headed reef with lots of fish, but no lobster, but George said his kids would love that spot. So they had a good day despite the conditions, most people would have never gone. I did not force them, I gave them the option even if we ran out and it was not doable, just pay me for the gas used. They had a full 8 hour day, 3 tank dives each, and a nice bag of fish and 3 lobster tails – all 1.5 days before TS Isaac hit.

Easter Morning, April 8, 2012:   Fishing has been “Great!”

With the mild winter, the tarpon have shown up early, in big numbers – and they are biting! One day we released 5 tarpon for 8 on and had at least 15 tarpon smashing our baits. That was with Rick Rosenbloom and his 8 1/2 year old son Eli along with Rick’s father-in-law Ernie. Elie hooked his own tarpon, and he caught the first one, about 75 pounds. We got some good pictures I’ll post soon. Largest one we released was around 110 lbs., and we lost another at least 130 lbs. Rick and Ernie had a double header on of a pair of 50 pounders, but Rick’s came unbuttoned and we caught Ernie’s. It was spectacular because for a while we could not keep a bait in the water more than 5 minutes without getting a bite – big explosions on the surface.

I like to show every angler how to hook all their fish no matter what we are fishing for: tarpon, sailfish, slammer dolphin, big mutton snapper, giant amberjack, bonefish, permit, snook etc. The thrill of hooking your own fish, feeling that bait get so nervous, then getting the bite – nothing compares! Plus this truly is the foundation of “sport fishing” – hooking your own fish!

My view on sport fishing, and how I help my anglers get involved and learn how to be better sport fishermen:

Sport fishing is not just reeling in a fish, like on so many charter boats around the world when the mate hands you the rod with the fish on – “it is not sporting!” I also teach you many other fine aspects of fishing so you can handle your own rod throughout the day: 1) how to fight the fish most efficiently, 2) how to deploy your bait in the current, 3) how to put your live or dead bait on, 4) how to tie knots, 5) how to read current, rips, depth by site, edges of reefs, depth sounders marking fish, GPS use – anything or any question that will help you be a better sport fisherman.

It is also one reason I do not use “circle hooks” (unless legally required – which is a farce) – it is not “sporting.”  There is no “challenge” hooking a fish properly (ethically) in the mouth with a “proper drop back” whether with live bait or dead bait. All you have to do is let the fish eat the bait “deep” then reel slowly allowing the hook to slowly come back up and hopefully find its place in the jaw bone – “not sporting and minimal skill required!” Second, once the fish is hooked, it can never throw the hook. Bowing to the tarpon, which I recommend for all jumping fish, is not necessary (unless your using light leaders). Again no skill is required to keep the fish on – “not sporting!” Third, you will miss more fish with a circle hook because it can miss the corner of the jaw bone – it’s a predictable percentage – “not sporting!” However, when using “J-hooks” there is a big difference between a good angler and a novice in 1) hook-up ratios, and 2) in hooking fish “ethically” (not gut hooking it) which applies to many different species. It is the captain’s responsibility to coach a novice when to reel so the sport fish is not gut hooked.

I say the circle hook is a “farce” because I find more snappers and groupers gut hooked since having to use them in the Gulf as mandated by “our all knowing NMFS.” The circle hook is not the solution, and when gut hooked or gill hooked it is a lot harder to remove. However, I do see the reason billfish tournaments went to them. It is solely to keep the “unethical tournament fisherman” from gut hooking their billfish, which is the highest percentage of hook-up with J-hooks. I remember fishing the storied Costa Rican sailfish tournament that caught like more than 1500 sailfish, I tied for 3rd, but for 4 days after the tournament we saw dead floating sailfish. The anglers would drop back for 30 seconds, some sailfish would come up jumping being gut hooked and they were still dropping back. I could not believe it. It was horrible. It was the last time I fished that tournament, and the Tamarindo charter boys refused to fish that tournament for years just due to that. They had become staunch believers in lures, just to eliminate the possibility of gut hooking, which was a good decision then. This was the late 80’s. So circle hooks are good in this respect. However, in all the live bait and dead bait fishing I did over the years I would say less than 5% were gut hooked, and I say that that still applies to my J-hook fishing today. Plus if a fish is gut hooked, just cut the leader. I once caught a small kingfish with 9 long shank hooks in its stomach, and it was in perfect health. I once fished for Flash Clark, who fished years in Australia. When they killed a grander, they would dig the broken off bills of other billfish out of the stomach lining of those big fish. I think he told me once he got over 30 bill tips out of one fish. They would keep jars of them. However the fish get hurt when gut hooked and when the mate pulls hard on the leader to quickly release the fish, often trying to break the knot instead of gently leadering the fish up to cut the leader close to the fish.

Enough of the rant; back to the report. We have caught amberjacks up to 70 lbs., tarpon up to 120, double header redfish while sight casting, mangrove snapper up to 5 lbs., nice meals for 6 adults of average snapper, big cero mackerel, and now that the vermillion snapper are open I’m looking forward to stopping off for that, maybe tomorrow.

However, the tarpon are here, and I’m really looking forward to the back to back trips of thrilling tarpon fishing. And the dolphin are here too!

Feb. 12, 2012:

We just got back from our annual vacation and I’m looking forward to getting back on the water. Tomorrow is my first day of three booked this week. I will get back to how the fishing is. My friends say there have been some sailfish around, the kingfish are biting, amberjacks are showing up, and snappers on the reef are biting. So there is plenty to do, what my clients want to do I’ll find out tomorrow. Then we have a couple days flats fishing.