11-17-2002, 03:35 PM
There’s not a lot to report but fortunately I ran several trips early in the week. Bottom fishing under the Stuart and Jensen Causeway bridges has been extremely active with nice sized mangroves, snook, black drum and jacks pounding shrimp on trollrites. Trout fishing remains hot, with several over 5 lbs. released. DOA shrimp top the bait list.
We managed to boat an unexpected tripletail (#76 for this year) weighing 12-1/2 lbs. I haven’t really been targeting the tripletail since October, so I doubt that I’ll reach my 100-fish goal this year. It’s always a nice surprise to run into that rogue fish that hasn’t headed offshore yet.
Haven’t fished for Spanish this week, but definitely gearing up for winter hoping to run many “mac” trips this season. The Spanish have been spread out in the surf and river and there were several reports of good catches last week in the Inlet and Hall’s Gate on outgoing tide. With this cold front pushing through on Sunday, look for an increase in the pompano action. Gulfstream, redfish and shrimp jigs in the grass or nylure jigs from the “quarter” bridge work great. For those die-hard pompano anglers fishing with sandfleas in the surf, try this method of storing your bait. Simply freeze them in a Ziploc bag. When you are ready to fish, put the sandfleas in a Tupperware container and sprinkle rubbing alcohol on them. This keeps the fleas crisp and retains their natural color. Once the fleas hit the water, the alcohol dissipates and you’ve got excellent looking bait. The old method of boiling them softens the shells and changes the color. Give the new method a try and let me know your results!
Capt. Bob Bushholz
http://www.catch22fish.com
(772) 225-6436
We managed to boat an unexpected tripletail (#76 for this year) weighing 12-1/2 lbs. I haven’t really been targeting the tripletail since October, so I doubt that I’ll reach my 100-fish goal this year. It’s always a nice surprise to run into that rogue fish that hasn’t headed offshore yet.
Haven’t fished for Spanish this week, but definitely gearing up for winter hoping to run many “mac” trips this season. The Spanish have been spread out in the surf and river and there were several reports of good catches last week in the Inlet and Hall’s Gate on outgoing tide. With this cold front pushing through on Sunday, look for an increase in the pompano action. Gulfstream, redfish and shrimp jigs in the grass or nylure jigs from the “quarter” bridge work great. For those die-hard pompano anglers fishing with sandfleas in the surf, try this method of storing your bait. Simply freeze them in a Ziploc bag. When you are ready to fish, put the sandfleas in a Tupperware container and sprinkle rubbing alcohol on them. This keeps the fleas crisp and retains their natural color. Once the fleas hit the water, the alcohol dissipates and you’ve got excellent looking bait. The old method of boiling them softens the shells and changes the color. Give the new method a try and let me know your results!
Capt. Bob Bushholz
http://www.catch22fish.com
(772) 225-6436