Finally, some fish are returning!
- Prof. Salt
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Finally, some fish are returning!
I went offshore January 30th when we had a nice weather window but the few fish at the rigs were very tight to the structure and kept breaking me off. Current was strong and I came back to shore in about four hours.
February 17 gave us another chance, and a few of us headed down PINS to a structure hoping to find the early returners. We did find fish, but they weren't quite right. Aside from a nice blacktip shark that came in without incident, nearly every other fish I hooked was bitten off by one of the millions of spanish macks that were around. I would cast out, hook a smack, and another one would eat my swivel and cut me off. I donated four spoons and five shallow diving lures to this mayhem before trying for snapper on the bottom. Here I would get a bite, start wrestling them off the rocks and the smacks would bite me off again. I totally ran out of baits and leaders due to those silly smacks biting everything that moved. I think maybe a drug runner dropped a large shipment of crack in the water and the smacks got totally lit. Seriously. I can't wait for the kings to show up and eat a few of these gangsters and get them back in line. I like the brutal but dependable offshore scene. The anarchy we saw last week was just nuts!
I've also been learning a new skill during the off-season. I bought a flyrod and have paddled up river five times with it to practice my casting skills. So far I've caught almost 600 fish with it ...it helps a lot that the white bass spawn is going hard, and I know a spot or two that allow me plenty of practice. Anyway, my plan is to get comfortable with how it works and how to play fish on it so that I can take it offshore and hook into some speedy fish. That should be fun video, even if I do wreck the fly outfit.
Not a long report, but I knew everyone would want to know that the fish are working their way back up the coast as you read this. It won't be long until we can catch 'em right here at home!
February 17 gave us another chance, and a few of us headed down PINS to a structure hoping to find the early returners. We did find fish, but they weren't quite right. Aside from a nice blacktip shark that came in without incident, nearly every other fish I hooked was bitten off by one of the millions of spanish macks that were around. I would cast out, hook a smack, and another one would eat my swivel and cut me off. I donated four spoons and five shallow diving lures to this mayhem before trying for snapper on the bottom. Here I would get a bite, start wrestling them off the rocks and the smacks would bite me off again. I totally ran out of baits and leaders due to those silly smacks biting everything that moved. I think maybe a drug runner dropped a large shipment of crack in the water and the smacks got totally lit. Seriously. I can't wait for the kings to show up and eat a few of these gangsters and get them back in line. I like the brutal but dependable offshore scene. The anarchy we saw last week was just nuts!
I've also been learning a new skill during the off-season. I bought a flyrod and have paddled up river five times with it to practice my casting skills. So far I've caught almost 600 fish with it ...it helps a lot that the white bass spawn is going hard, and I know a spot or two that allow me plenty of practice. Anyway, my plan is to get comfortable with how it works and how to play fish on it so that I can take it offshore and hook into some speedy fish. That should be fun video, even if I do wreck the fly outfit.
Not a long report, but I knew everyone would want to know that the fish are working their way back up the coast as you read this. It won't be long until we can catch 'em right here at home!
- TX-Matador
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Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Well done Prof! That's a nice stringer of whites.
Have you ever tried a heavy fluro in that situation? Say, 50# fluro for those smacks. I wonder if that would catch at least a few of the small ones. The line may be too big, and scare away the bite. I'll be interested in your opinion.
Have you ever tried a heavy fluro in that situation? Say, 50# fluro for those smacks. I wonder if that would catch at least a few of the small ones. The line may be too big, and scare away the bite. I'll be interested in your opinion.
- Prof. Salt
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Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
One of the guys in the group was using 80# Momoi Diamond Presentation fluorocarbon (the super hard stuff) and was getting bit off too. I had never seen the smacks acting that crazy - usually they'll bite a silver swivel but leave the black stuff alone. I was using the tiny SPRO #8 and it didn't seem to help. When the smack's predators show up it should restore some balance to the mix. Until then it might be dicey trying to get anything through them, lol. Sometimes I would be sitting in 55 feet of water and the dragonfly screen would be one solid mass of fish from surface to bottom, and you could look over the side - it was solid fish. I did manage a few smacks with one going 27 inches, so at least I went home with dinner. Lost two snapper that felt really solid, but after a few seconds of tug-of-war they got bit off at the swivels too.
Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Good time to go spear fishing .
- kickingback
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Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Cool report Prof! I missed your posts. I see a very nice crappie on the stringer there. Nice! They are the flounder of fresh water to me. Yummy. Heading to Somerville soon to catch a few. Hoping to get to PINS sometime this week as well. Will report.
Welcome back!
Welcome back!
- Fishtolive
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Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Thanks for the report and update , Prof.
Cannot wait for the kings come back to play.
Cannot wait for the kings come back to play.
Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Me thinks we are in for a lot more of Professor's reports. Just waiting for Tinh to hook up with Kings off the Port A jetties.
- Prof. Salt
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Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Won't be too long, Tom. Usually the jacks sharks and smacks have a few weeks on their own and then the kings show up. I hope the winds aren't as bad as last year; this could be a really long season if we aren't blown off the water too much!
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Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Nice report.
Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Nice. Thanks.
Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Good looking whites.
Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Hey prof have you ever tried fishing an Albright knot to eliminate the swivel between your mono and wire leader?
- Prof. Salt
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- Joined: Mon Aug 08, 2011 9:23 pm
- Location: Corpus Christi - or paddling over the horizon
Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
That's exactly the kind of thing I'm thinking about now. For trolling I need the swivel to be ...a swivel, lol. But for casting or vertical jigging I think an Albright might work nicely.
Or I might put a swivel attached to the lure end and tie the wire to the main line for a clean opposite end. Lots of options are opening up, so I think some experimentation will be in order.
Or I might put a swivel attached to the lure end and tie the wire to the main line for a clean opposite end. Lots of options are opening up, so I think some experimentation will be in order.
Re: Finally, some fish are returning!
Yeah prof, I was thinking of running an open ended single strand wire leader with a skirt followed by a swivel/clasp at the end. Slap the j hook with trebles onto the clasp. And then Albright directly onto the main line. I've been trying to think of ways to knock it out like running hollow braid and splicing mono into it but that wouldn't leave much line capacity. I purchased a few wind-on leaders to experiment with them. I guess we shall see how it all turns out. Hopefully the season gets here soon, I'm itching to get out and see what this year has to offer.