Fishing

[sweet]

I have guests arriving in the 3rd week in May at my Destin home
I need to know where the best place to fish for them. What is running
And where the can dock there boat
Thanks

[aquaticbiology]

how big's their boat? (makes a huge difference)

for smaller boats there's always destin city park and for bigger ones the marina next door to it (sorry don't know the name) seems nice, but i've never parked up at either one

surf fishing sounds fine but if i had a boat down there right now i'd go looking for cobia (if they're still around) or pompano

remember all the fine stuff about seaworthiness and fishing limits

have a good safe time and don't end up on the news

[redfisher]

Sorry to keep asking, but has the pomp fishing picked up in the last few days/week?...thanks, Red

[aquaticbiology]

dunno - storms and high gas prices pretty much kept me away last weekend - been saving up for the gas and along with my fishing buddy we almost have the 300 bucks required to fill up both the boat and truck for a weekend trip

we shall soon see what the future holds - usually see some pompano while trolling down the 'rut' (the deep water between the first two sandbars) looking for yummies - i'll let you know what i see

[Smiling JOe]

http://sowal.com/bb/gallery/files/2/1/6/P4280013.JPG

Caught last week in East Bay.

[florida girl]

Richard Davis at 835-0128 does river tours, and he knows where the fish are biting. He has the Marsh Hen that seats 7, and has been doing it for years.

[aquaticbiology]

got here (st andrews bay - west point) yesterday am - beautiful!

going clockwise again - thought it was bombs at eglin but was 'thunder beach' - 40 billion harleys in pcb!

lots of crevalle jacks and a few scattered cobia, and dolphins show up every time you start catching bait and chase the fish off

odd, but there were more pompano in the bay (near the pilings, feeding on last years' hurricane-blown-in stuff that's now living in the sandy flats) than in the surf line - i caught 4 nice sized pomps on tiny green live shrimp, and the biggest redfish i ever saw busted off a 50# line like it was rotten twine but 2 of his smaller companions hit on soft shell crab lures the very first cast

yesterday was a good day

stayed in the playground last night for the first time in ages, then moved behind the island this morning as the playground smelled like pee - they really need some toilets on shell island

this morning it smells funny outside (not the papermill either) and is scuddy with an onshore wind from more west than south

still deciding if we should hoist anchor and go outside up to Destin pass, but radar says storms coming, so we may just stay put and work the giant redfish until the storms get heavy then head back up to west point and pull out - hate to go back a day early but the deep freeze is almost full from just yesterday's action and straight line winds suck

maybe i'm just homesick

[aquaticbiology]

ok, we're back home and here's the fishing report

st andrews bay - 5/6 - 5/7

pompano - 4 - in the bay flats and the pass where there is a lot of shoaling right next to really deep water - hitting on small live grass shrimp (there were no live sand fleas available due to beach renourishment or whatever) - 20# mono and a pomp rig with 2/0 red circle hooks

red drum (redfish) - 3 - also in the bay, right out from the pompano, but in the deep water only (probably feeding on what was fleeing the pompano action), on small live soft shell crabs and soft shell crab lures on 50# mono tied directly onto a 4/0 offset shank hook in black or brown or the lure - had a hit or two on a chrome spoon but not as convincing as a crab lure

stingray - 1 - amongst the redfish (threw it back)

yellowfin tuna - 3 pounds - cardena's (does it still count if you buy it?)

that's it, but the freezer is full

checking out the rocks with the big light in the marina area of the bay right after we arrived to pull the boat out i saw a whole bunch of trout (my first time seeing bay trout! and i thought about you redfisher!) and a ton of the rusty colored squid (big ones), a small starfish but only one sea urchin, and the tubeworms were feeding like crazy so that's a good sign - lots of oysters and sea squirts on the pilings, and that's a good sign too

[redfisher]

outstanding...

[BeachSteelers]

Hey Joe whats a good way to cook those spanish?

[aquaticbiology]

split and fillet the fish just to remove the head, backbone and innards and wash the remaining two halves really well in fresh, potable water

now here comes the controversies:

in my mind there is absolutely no cooking method whatsoever for fresh fish except grilling on real charcoal (even if its raining), so, on with the menu

skin on or off?

i prefer leaving the skin on, both for the holding-together effects on the grill and also for the special taste treat the deeper you dig into the flaky, tender, drawn-butter-laden flesh

brown flesh layer on or off?

if you leave the skin on, you automatically leave the brown layer of flesh that's under the skin on, and it can be a bit bitter, but, for me, that's the cherry on the sundae - think of all those vitamins

marinade or not?

some folks like to ruin the exquisite and delicate taste of a ritcheous fish by placing it in a marinade overnight - phooey, gross and yecch (shiver!) - the fish's taste is the fish's taste and to smother it in something else is a sin against the departed spirit of the fish

that said, there are many flavor-enhancing brush-ons while on the grill, such as:

papaya to add sweetness to balance a fish's sourness

balsamic vinegar for acid balance to remove bitterness

juice of a lemon, or the rind of a fresh orange right off the tree, for sourness to balance sweetness and releasing the aromatic oils in tuna

garlic oil (heated peanut oil mixed with garlic powder if you don't have the real thing handy) to give an extra boost to shrimp and fish - never use butter or marjorine - solids have too low a flash point so they burn and leaves that tell-tale gross odor on the meal

drawn butter, or the middle liquid oil in a small pan of melted real butter (never marjorine - too low a flash point and also congeals on the fish as it cools - yeech!), wait a bit for things to settle down from the melting, then skim off the butter fats floating on top, and pour off the middle layer of oil into a dipping bowl, but stop before you get to the solids at the bottom and what you have in the dipping bowl is drawn butter - adding anything to the drawn butter like herbs or spices is also, in my mind, a grevious sin

mesquite or not?

i feel that real mesquite wood sticks placed on top of the grill prior to cooking is mandatory for all florida fish - never put mesquite in the fire, because the oils just burn up and are wasted, you want the sticks to heat up and throw their oils all over the grill and fire and release the wonderful aroma

note - the faithful old mesquite tree in destin park that was the source of so many wonderful memories of delightful cooking smells and tastes is gone now - succumbed to the greed of some jerkoff who took the whole freaking tree and robbed everyone else who knew what it was - i've even heard it was removed by the state as non-native, and that is absurd as it was growing there before i was born

to cook a fish is art, to catch one is skill, but to create one is divine - respect the fish and prepare it with the dignity it deserves

[kurt]

Great thread y'all - keep it up and we'll have to start a fishing forum. :clap_1:

[kathydwells]

WOW...aquaticbiology, what a great reply to this thread. I learned alot by reading this. I had alway's heard of and eaten drawn butter, but I just thought it was the whole stick of butter melted...thanks for the education. Of course, it made me very hungry for some really good grilled fish. :biggrin:

[aquaticbiology]

a long time ago my girlfriend back then showed me how to make it - she had worked in a resturant kitchen - they used to make a little coffeepot looking thing for resturants with a spigot in the middle for making a bunch at a time

[BeachSteelers]

Much Thanks Aquatic for the helpful hints. Kurt I say start the fishing forum. And for the Spnaish Macks... watch out... some of yins and not gettin thrown back.

[catweazl_2000]

nice thread, very educative indeed. I had my doubts about the charcoal that you can buy with mesquite in it . once it is burning nothing gives a special flavor only ash and (streamy)smoke. Now I know what mesquite is good for.
I'll look around to see what the actual tree looks like.

We where amazed by the skills of a Kentucky friend who made the best tequila shrimps and garlic shrimps I ever ate on the campfire. If you read this Bill, thanks again!

Kurt, I am all in favor for a fishing department on this site!!
Grtzz,
Henk

[aquaticbiology]

we're back as well

boat trip report - may 18, 19 and 20th - me, the ball and chain, mickeyt (fishing buddy) and his wife and their snot nosed brat

put in at west bay as usual and went clockwise (st andrews bay, pc pass, offshore, destin pass, east through intracoastal canal)

wind was a bit wild - high tide simply had no fish but a lot of june grass (also known as 'snot', for it is a glutinous algae that covers everything dragged through the water, like a trolling lure, with a green yecch) - bay was great where the water was ripping as low tide approached and the snot went back out to sea

caught a whole bunch of bluefishhttp://www.landbigfish.com/images/fish/LBF_Bluefish.jpg
and a few spanish mackerel http://www.landbigfish.com/images/fish/spanmack.jpg
on the bay rips where the water was churning and the seagulls and pelicans were feeding

offshore, there were snapper galore on the way out and back, but no wahoo, and we spent a heck of a lot of gas getting there for nothing since that's what i wanted

choc bay was full of goodies at low tide

got some more croakers in the canal

that's about it

[catweazl_2000]

Yeah, june grass is the most horrid thing if you try to fish from the beach. First 3 days I was @ grayton the water was mainly clear. I was in business, hanging out burning my feet terribly in the sun and catching a few fish in the meantime. day 4 I caught the monsterredfish and there was some junegrass on the line.
The next day I get in the water cast out far and I discover that I can throw away about 100 yards of line because it snapped when I tried getting the endless amount of junegrass of. I reeled the rest of the line in by hand to throw it in the bin and find a 15 inch catfish on the hook. All the junegrass made it impossible to notice the fish at all.
From that day on we walked past the junegrass to the sandbank and did baitcasting from there for three days and did not get a single hit. I enjoyed the dolphins jumping up out of the water more then a yard high and the sunrise when in the sea.
Next time better I suppose. I started saving...
Greetings,
Henk

[aquaticbiology]

i'm glad you had a good time!

we (probably) won't be going back until september due to the summer gas prices, the snot, the afternoon thunderstorms, the hurricaines and the oppressive summer humidity and heat

i've put the boat in the big lake up here to let the freshwater work its magic on the engine and all the metal that's been exposed to saltwater and i'll (probably) just leave it in until september - be sure to soak your rods and reels, and anything else metal, totally in fresh water (bathtub works great, just soak them all night long, then disassemble, clean, re-string and re-grease) - you'll be amazed how much sand, snot and other junk, like tiny shell pieces, come out when you open them up

it's been fun, the freezer's bulging and gas is already starting to spike for memorial day, so see you guys in september!

http://sowal.com/bb/gallery/files/2/0/5/0/goodnight.JPG

[beachdawg]

Whats the best bait (live and fake) to use to Catch Spanish Mack? Also what pound test?

[chrisv]

I always catch them using clark spoons or other silver spoon type lures. Sometimes I'll add a red bead or two just above the spoon, but when you find a school of spanish, they'll hit just about anything. I also catch them on plugs and topwater lures.

Minimum 40lb test flourocarbon leader material, I'll even use steel leaders if the lure is a pricey one. They is some toothy critters. I'll use 10- 12lb mono on the spool, and a 6-7 foot medium-light action rod makes for a fun fight. With spoons I use a ball-bearing swivel to keep the line from twisting.

Troll to find the spanish, then cast into a school. Lots of fun. For even more fun, try a fly rod.

[beachdawg]

I have a 10' rod and reel and want to surf fish next month for pompano and whatever else I might be able to catch on a 12 pnd test. Any help with or suggestions would be great thanks. I have bought a few minnows and fake sand fleas and jigs. Do any of these work?

[catweazl_2000]

I have a 10' rod and reel and want to surf fish next month for pompano and whatever else I might be able to catch on a 12 pnd test. Any help with or suggestions would be great thanks. I have bought a few minnows and fake sand fleas and jigs. Do any of these work?

I recommend to buy frozen(real)sandflees. They work well even after a day on the beach, frozen again and used the next morning they produced me a 35 inch redfish. Even some pompanos. I also got one in on a pearlcolored 3 inch shad on the tophook of my pompano-rig.
I would not try artificial if you can get the real deal.
Succes .
Henk

[BeachSteelers]

Try some gold spoons for the Macks beachdawg. But use a heavy leader or wire but they seem to notice wire leaders.

[beachdawg]

Where in Grayton do you get the sand fleas? How many to buy? And also (sorry im new to this) but the leader? How and how much do you use for mackeral or any for pompano and redfish? Ive only really ever fished on a pond so im trying to learn.

[SlowMovin]

You really don't need the leader for pompano or redfish. Spanish, though, are toothy with sharp fins & tail and can cut the line...and you may stumble across a king while fishing for Spaniards. I have not tried it personally, but I suspect PowerPro or one of the other new super-braids would make a good leader. Forty-pound test in a braid is only about as big around as 10-lb mono, plus it's harder to spot in the water. If you use wire, go with black. Also use black snaps and swivels. They will strike at anything silver or shiny.

We often have very clear water here, so the fish can see everything.

I've gotten away with catching Spanish without a leader from the pier, but the pier puts you at a higher angle than a boat or surf-fishing.

With Spanish small lures, fished fast usually do better than large or slow--IMHO.

Live baitfish free-lined or under a popper can work wonders.

[beachdawg]

With my rod limited to 20 pnd test... Can I catch spanish Mack? or am I limited to pompano and reds?

[SlowMovin]

You'll be fine. I usually only use 15-lb test and a black wire leader..if I use a leader at all.

Truth is, Spanish are not hard fighters. They'll pull for a minute or two then kind of just give up.

[Smiling JOe]

http://sowal.com/bb/gallery/files/2/1/6/IMG_5889.JPG

http://sowal.com/bb/gallery/files/2/1/6/IMG_5903.JPG

http://sowal.com/bb/gallery/files/2/1/6/IMG_5910.JPG

Local fishing scene from Jun 3 2006