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I was meeting btbrich at BA-16 today at noon to start off Shark Week and see if we could welcome come to TKF!

I sort of knew we were in trouble when I passed the auto dealers across from Almeda Mall as the flags just were flying a little too much.



But I had been on the road for about an hour and a real man doesn't turn back.

Got to BA-16 and they had graded the entrance and you could have made it in a motorized scooter from the Scooter Store. But the surf was way more than predicted.



I unloaded and started loading my yak for launching and btbrich shows up. We launch and after getting through the surf, we go out about .65 of a mile and anchor up. I don't know how deep as I chose not to bring my FF. But where was the single digit winds the predictors promised?



We fished for about 2-3 hours and only were catching gafftops and hardheads...........so we moved and anchored up where even though the water was rough, we could see plenty of bait fish hitting the surface and the pelicans were feeding all around us. It was a still a little rough, even for btbrich!



After catching about 6 gafftops, finally I get a decent run on my reel and make a hookup on what seems like a good fish. But no, it was a little shark about 3.5 ft.



I try to hold him and get the hook out and he thrashes free and fall into the kayak. I quickly yanked him out with the rod and decided cutting the hook was far more intelligent than retrieving my hook.

Back into the water you go!!!


and that was about it. I think btbrich had a good day on gafftops. We stayed until about 6:30 and at least the wind finally laid, a little. Enough to make the surf re-entry doable. Frankly, it was so slow, I would have come in earlier except for two major things, negotiating the surf and negotiating the commuter traffic through town.

Not a good catching day but one advantage of wind is you stay cool. When I started for home the temperature on Galveston was 87°'s.

Sharks are out deciding what to do about the debt ceiling....

Odd because this is the month where we start slaying them. Hoping to find them at the DP this weekend. I'm off fri-sun.

At least you gave it a good run.

Next time.....

I can't believe after all the grief you've given me you finally pulled a shark up in your lap.

Sorry to hear about the bad day. It's sure been a weird year for fishing.

bigfost wrote:I can't believe after all the grief you've given me you finally pulled a shark up in your lap.

Sorry to hear about the bad day. It's sure been a weird year for fishing.

Well, I didn't exactly pull him up in my lap..............I had my hand around him and was holding him preparing to take the hook out and he did a small shark flop and landed in the cockpit of the kayak, not in my lap but somewhat near my feet. Luckily, I still had my rod in my hand and I quickly hoisted him over the side and back in the water and guess what, I got to catch him a second time.

This time I cut the leader.

Mythman wrote:

bigfost wrote:I can't believe after all the grief you've given me you finally pulled a shark up in your lap.

Sorry to hear about the bad day. It's sure been a weird year for fishing.

Well, I didn't exactly pull him up in my lap..............I had my hand around him and was holding him preparing to take the hook out and he did a small shark flop and landed in the cockpit of the kayak, not in my lap but somewhat near my feet. Luckily, I still had my rod in my hand and I quickly hoisted him over the side and back in the water and guess what, I got to catch him a second time.

This time I cut the leader.

..................didja scream like a little girl....????

Gafftops, hardheads and 1 hammerhead! Not a bad day as said above you got to take the ups with the downs = balance!


mike no kayak?



see you all soon!

btbrich2110 wrote:1 hammerhead!

I'm still learning and not real familiar w/ ID-ing sharks, but is that really a hammerhead or perhaps a bonnethead?

**meant to add a congrats on the nice catfish meat haul, Rich!

Rich,
You sure you didn't get that hammerhead out of a Simpsons Comic strip/

He sure resembles them!!!

How do y'all cook gafftops and hardheads?

-Insert plank joke here-

laxhuskie9 wrote:

btbrich2110 wrote:1 hammerhead!

I'm still learning and not real familiar w/ ID-ing sharks, but is that really a hammerhead or perhaps a bonnethead?

**meant to add a congrats on the nice catfish meat haul, Rich!

The bonnethead shark or shovelhead, Sphyrna tiburo, is a member of the hammerhead shark genus Sphyrna. The Greek word sphyrna translates as hammer, referring to the shape of this shark's head - tiburo is the Taino word for shark.

when I looked it up I does seem to be a bonnethead still learning also!

WAIT A MINUTE! Did I just read that Mythman was involved in a semi-lap dance I'd pay to see that!!!

Rich...that sure is a lot of gafftops bait or table fare?

great catch on the sphyrna tiburo....

LOOKN4REDS wrote:WAIT A MINUTE! Did I just read that Mythman was involved in a semi-lap dance I'd pay to see that!!!

I have free tickets...front row seating

rod dawg wrote:Rich...that sure is a lot of gafftops bait or table fare?

great catch on the sphyrna tiburo....

I was using for bait and hoping I would need to use them but the sharks must have been following the shrimp boats its that time of the year again!

Sorry I didn't get out with you guys. I need to get out again soon. Glad ya'll caught some fish!!!

Thanks for the report! A 'little' bumpy out there!

Cadiyak Sam wrote:How do y'all cook gafftops and hardheads?

I got a couple of 3# gaffs last trip BTB, just filleted them out like I would a trout or redfish, skinned them, and gave them to my father in law that loves catfish

i wouldve thrown up in those conditions ! better luck next time

Were the shrimp boats working, Mike or Rich? Did you use your Mackerel chum Mike? Thinking it may take considerable chum to lure back a few catch-able fish if the shrimp boats have recently dumped their excess catch.

Iyakalot wrote:Were the shrimp boats working, Mike or Rich? Did you use your Mackerel chum Mike? Thinking it may take considerable chum to lure back a few catch-able fish if the shrimp boats have recently dumped their excess catch.

Yea the shrimp boats were out deep, then they looked close, then they were gone?? Im sure that didn't help.

I only remember seeing three shrimp boats and they were at least a mile or more from us at their closest point. To be honest, I am not sure I could blame them for a lack of shark catching success.

I was surprised that at the lack of shark activity we had. As said above, I chose not to take my FF so I don't know how deep we were fishing but if I remember correctly 1/2 mile out there is about 15-17 ft.

We did move in closer and seemed to have more activity but still it was littler fish...........even the slimers.

For some reason, I am just not catching the quantity of fish, this year, that I think I am use to. Don't know if it is me or the sign of the times

This story is from the Galveston Country The Daily News. It just seems more than a coincidence that shrimpers were present this trip and our Mattie trip and the fish were not. For what it's worth. Interesting read anyway.
Tom
http://galvestondailynews.com/story/245034
Good action near shrimp boats
By Joe Kent
Correspondent
Published July 18, 2011

Last Friday, the 2011 offshore shrimping season began.

While the opening of the season is a boom to shrimpers, it always is a welcomed event for offshore anglers.

Each year, shrimp boats from all over the Gulf Coast converge on the offshore Texas waters and spend days, actually nights, dragging their nets for shrimp.

The fleets of shrimp boats drag their nets at night and often well into the morning, then anchoring and culling their catch before retiring to their cabins to sleep during the heat of the day.

It is this early-morning event that offshore fishermen wait for and try to time their arrival at the point the shrimpers dump the by-catch overboard.

When all of this bait, including small finfish, crustaceans and other marine life, is dumped overboard, the water usually boils with activity as fish go into a feeding frenzy to take on an easy meal.

Fishing boats motor up to the stern of the shrimp boat and toss out their baited lines and normally it is just a few minutes before a ferocious strike takes place.

The fishing always is best for about an hour or so following the by-catch dump.

Early in the process, fish are concentrated close behind the boats; however, as the morning progresses, they can be found farther behind, sometimes as much as a quarter-mile or more from the boats.

While the most fish will be there in and around the dumping, lots of fish, particularly ling, will hang around the boats all of the time while anchored.

Shade is part of the reason and the other is there tends to be continuous droppings from the nets that are hanging out of the water.

Just about every species of pelagic fish can be found around the anchored boats.

King, ling, Dorado, sharks, bonito, Wahoo and sailfish.

Natural baits tend to work best; however, there are many boats that just troll around the shrimp boats.

Trolling allows you to cover more territory faster and once a strike occurs, the odds are a concentration of fish is close by.

At that point, some of the trolling boats switch to natural baits and drift the area where the strike occurred.

Today, the Gulf Shrimp Fleet has shrunk in numbers from that of the 1980s and early ’90s.

The culprits have been high fuel prices combined with low shrimp prices triggered by imported shrimp.

Also, hurricanes have done their part as well to reduce the fleet.

If you make it out for the first time, be considerate of the sleeping crew and captain.

They work hard at night and need their sleep during the day.

To get your catch in the Reel Report, phone Capt. Joe Kent at 409-683-5273, or send an email to reel.report(at)galvnews.com. There’s no charge for this service.