New boat Sea Trial

Just back from a sea trial, now I'm more confused. Drove a 26 Pangler around in Islamarada. The boat was powered by a 225 Merc four stroke, had roughly 75 gallons of fuel and two guys around 200 pounds each. The boat's ride was really nice, it gets on a plane in a heartbeat, will plane at 2500 RPM and was very dry for a center console and it was surprizingly stable. I didn't take a GPS, but in the corner she made an easy 45 Knots and at 4000 RPM she pushed 30 knots. The low plane at 2500, was close to 20 knots, but the low plane is a bit deceptive. There was no real bow rise getting on a plane, it just got there! That was pretty impressive. So I like the basic lined Panga concept. The fit and finish was typical of a production boat, nothing bedded so there are rust tracks, adequate but not impressive. The tee top was nice and should last, the leaning post with rocket lanchers and cooler storage beneath was well made. Wiring was above average quality and the instruments well laid out and all analog which I prefer.

I was a bit disappointed with the quality of construction. There were numerous gelcoat chips in the hull, a lot more than I would expect for boat with thirty hours serving as a demo. I have owned Anglers in the past and never seen chips like this. With Anglers use of foam to reduce flex as well a provide floatation, I was surprised at the chipping.

Big draw backs for what I do, charter fishing, is there is no easy way to install a leaning post live well. Installing a live well at the transom looks good, But the extra 240 pounds in the rear will make it a wet footed boat with three guys fishing in the back. There is very little storage, no fish box just an anchor locker, Cooler storage under the leaning post, a small area under the console seat and a small area under the console for batterys, life preservers, flare box and maybe some foul weather gear. The boat looks very roomy, but add a fish cooler, a bait cooler, your tackle bag and a live well. Things will get a bit cramped. So to make it really fishable, (at least to my standards) I need to have a custom fish box built for the bow area that would double as a casting deck, use the storage under the console seat for a bait cooler, the space under the leaning post for the drink cooler and go with a much smaller live well.

So if any of you Pangler owners that live bait for tarpon and also like to bring home a mess of big cobia, dolphin, grouper etc. would like to comment, I would appreciate the input.

A Ribbon of Silver

I was at The Tackle Box today talking to Capt. Dave about the Florida Bay happenings. We made some plans to swap a few numbers, my Cobia spots for his Mutton spots. Our talk about the Bay reminded me of a trip I had a few years back. It’s kind of hard to convince people just how good the Mackerel fishing really can be. This might help.

This was a trip in March of 2003. The guys I had on the boat, wanted to learn how to fish the reef and a little offshore. After catching all the tails they wanted, we drifted fish just off the reef in 125 to 150 feet. The drifts produced a few King Mackerel, not big 10 to 15 pounds and we played with some little Tunny. It was nothing all that spectacular just a pretty good day of fishing. After we had burned all chum, I pointed the boat back to the barn.

As I slowed the boat down in front of the marina, one of my crew mentioned that he would like to try for a Spanish mackerel in the bay. Not having anymore chum, only one ballyhoo and about 5 Tunny strips, the prospects weren’t all that exciting, but we had a little more time. We ran 7 miles north just past marker 16. The sun was just perfect in the west, the water gin clear and I spotted a ribbon of silver in the water. After stopping the boat I told the crew to bait and up and pointed to were I wanted them to cast. As soon as the baits hit the water, all four were hooked up on Spanish mackerel. We boated all four, all dead on five pounds, a few minutes later. My crew hadn’t realized until the fish struck what that silver ribbon was, a solid wall of Spanish mackerel. I‘m not good at estimating something like this, but about 25,000 fish is my guess.

Maybe that will give doubters a little better understanding of why the Mackerel fishing can be so good.

Going to sea trial the new boat tomorrow, so until then,

Tight Lines

The Macks are Back!

The front did its job and moved the Mackerel in close. About seven miles back in the bay is a great place to start. The big ones, over seven pounds, are a little way off, but plenty of 3 to 5 pounds are here now. Cobia are still a little further back, but that could change today. Decent size Mang’s around two to three pounds and still a few Seatrout.

The season has arrived. Good reports of Sails and Mackerel on the ocean side too. Most of the sails have been on trolled baits, but the live bait charters are gearing up in earnest. Deep drops are producing good size Muttons and fair numbers of Grouper. No offshore reports because the wind has been a little high. I expect good numbers of Black fin tuna are waiting for snack, along with a few scattered, Dolphin and King Mackerel. Check out my Mackerel posts on tips for the Spanish, or come on down and book a trip or two.

The past few days I’ve been working on getting the new boat for the backcountry charters, so I haven’t been out, most of the info was courtesy of Native Sun and Adios Charters. Hope to have the new boat running in a couple of weeks so get ready for some great fishing!

Tight Lines

Florida Bay Mackerel Fishing

Revised 11/26

Winter Mackerel fishing in the Florida is pretty simple. Get about 8 to 10 miles out in bay in 10 to 12 foot off water, chum like crazy, use wire leaders and catch fish. Okay, I’m done.

Well, maybe there is a little bit more.

If you are in Marathon, 8 to 10 miles north is a good area once they show. If you are in Islamarada, you should head west of Springer Bank. If you are in Big Pine, head north through Spanish Harbor towards the Contents Keys and about three miles further north. You can catch them closer in and further out, this is just the normally productive area.

Pick you area and start chumming. When I’m on the reef, I’ll normally use a larger mesh chum bag. Back in the Bay I use a medium or small mess bag. I want the scent more in the Bay attract mackerel and enough bits to keep the bait fish happy. Once you start chumming you should see a lot of baitfish pretty quickly. Pin fish first normally, then jacks (blue runners and/or Crevalle) and if you are half way lucky, Ballyhoo. All of these can be caught on a small size 6 or 8 hook with a tiny piece of bait, and you should stock your live well.

The Jacks make great shark bait, snip the tail off and balloon them back. They also make great strip bait. Fillet them and cut the fillets in ½ to ¾ inch strips. The ballyhoo is great as live, dead or chunk baits. Use the pinfish as live bait, but if you run low on strips, they work too. I normally take one or two, dozen live shrimp to get things started and a few live crabs, in case something interesting shows up.

I’m not going give away my secret numbers, so I’m sending you guys to a general area. I will go to, well, just a little more special areas. These areas might have a few keeper Grouper, bigger Mangroves, and about a billion times more Cobia, than you’ll see. Other than that it’s the same kind of thing.

You will wire rigs, Mackerel have sharp teeth, you need wire rigs or long shank hooks. I make my on wire rigs, two types for Bay Mackerel. One is very light, size 2, 3407 Mustad, size7 swivel and about 6” of number 2 wire. This is for light currents so the weight of the wire doesn’t take you in the grass. The other is size 2/0 Mustad 3407, size 7 swivel and about six inches of number 4 wire. These are for the bite! I use size seven swivels for two reasons; first the reduce the chance of the bait sliding up the line after a strike – second, if you thread one rig’s hook through another rig’s swivel, you have a stinger rig. If your bait slides up your line, another mackerel will probable cut your line. The stinger rig is great for double hooking ballyhoo. Have a couple dozen of each minimum before you head out. Tying wire rigs with mackerel slime is almost impossible. Use a proper haywire twist on the rigs, meaning don’t cut the tag, twist and break the tag. This is bloodless so you won’t cut your hands on your wire leaders. A snake-er gaff is perfect for handling the mackerel. It has a 1 ½ to 2” gap gaff hook and a long, light fishing pole handle. Make your own, if you like, but they cost less than 20 bucks.

With any Mackerel, a fairly light drag is required with these small hooks. About 3 to 6 pounds is all you want. Set too tight, you’ll have a lot of pulled hooks. The light drag just adds to the fun. Some of the Spanish you can hook are over 10 pounds, lots of fun on light tackle. But bring a little bit heavier stuff for other fish you might encounter.

Once the bite starts, you’ll find that Mackerel love a moving target. Cast your strip baits back in the slick and let them drift a bit. Then jig them a few times and reel them back to the boat. If the Mackerel are way back in the slick, rig up a fairly heavy spoon and cast that back to them. Reel the spoon in fast to tick‘em off and draw them closer to the boat. If they are in the area, you’ll get them going. Throwing spoons the whole time is fun, but costly. You will lose a lot of lures if you catch a good bite. Spanish aren’t the sharpest tacks in the box when they strike, they will miss short and miss long, and snip your lure off. I’ve seen a dozen Spanish miss a spoon on one cast. It’s pretty comical.


If you like fly-fishing, a fairly large, Clouser-minnow, yellow or blue and white or Hell Just Put One In The Slick, it will work quite well. Remember to use a few inches wire leader. Tie the fly to the wire using a haywire twist and the fly to a mono shock leader with a dog knot If you don’t know a dog knot, use a Albright knot. Same deal as with the strip baits. Cast out, let it drift a little, twitch a little, then strip fast a few times. If you don’t hook up, repeat until you do. A nine-weight fly rod is recommended, just because of the wind you’ll probably be fighting. When you hook up a big one, get ready for some great runs.

Other critters that may show are Cobia, Sharks, Snapper, Grouper, Seatrout, Pompino, Permit, Ladyfish, Bluefish, Cero Mackerel, King Mackerel, Tarpon and Goliath Grouper. Other than that it’s pretty much just Spanish Mackerel you will encounter. I mentioned that I take a few crabs for interesting fish. I think Permit and Cobia are kind of interesting. Oh, those live pinfish drifted back, can get nailed pretty hard, as will as live or dead ballyhoo.

If you get some big spinner sharks it’s a blast. You will need a special leader set up or heavier tackle to bring one to the boat. First, you will need a super strong hook. A 4/0 to 7/0 super strong works great. Second, two or more feet of number six or heavier wire. Third, enough 60 to 80 pound mono, to complete your 20 foot total length leader for less that 30 pound main line or 25 feet for 30 pound and heavier. Finally, 10 feet of double line for less than 30 pound main line or 15 feet for 30 and heavier. Why, because these fish spin like a top when they jump, wrapping a lot of the leader around them. As the Spinners twist and turn, they will stress the heck out of your rig. I’ve hooked spinners that would push a buck-fifty plenty of times and lost a few they might have hit 200 pounds. I normally balloon one of these rigs way back in the slick.

Best Months: January through March

Tight Lines

Fishing the Florida Keys - How To

I'm going to start posting a few how to articles on fishing the Keys. Don't expect every Captain down here to agree with everything I write. There is more than one way to skin a catfish. Some thing that are fairly common,I don't do. Sand balling is one. I have ways to product the same kind of results without trashing the boat. The methods I use follow the KISS principle, Keep It Simple Stupid. They work for me. When they quit working I'll change.

If you are new to fishing in the Keys you may want to buy copies of a couple of Vic Dunnaway's books, Complete Book of Baits, Rigging and Tackle and Sport Fish of
Florida. Vic knew his stuff. I use his UniKnot every trip.

I have one blog post, The Art of Yellowtail Snapper Fishing, all ready. I will revise that a little because it was for Octobert and November when I really nail the flags, every day tailing is a little different but not much.

Florida Bay for Mackerel will be next. If I get around to it, Basic Bridge Fishing, from a boat that is, will be next. Anyone that disagrees or has any input, feel free to comment.

Tight Lines

Up Coming Tournaments

There are a few fishing tournaments coming up in the Middle and Lower Keys that are a lot of fun. Pay outs are low, but if you get into the Calcutta, you can win some cash. The first one is the Captain Leon Shell Memorial Billfish Tournament, February every year. This is an angler tournament, $75 to $100 per angler. You get a nice captain's bag and a great meal at the awards banquet. Most Sailfish normally wins the over-all, tuna, dolphin and wahoo have divisions as well.

For a complete listing of all fishing tournaments the Florida Keys, check the Weekly Fisherman link on blog side bar. If you want to fish any of these tourneys, leave a message and I'll get you a list of local captains you may hook up with.

Want a World Record?

Small Permit - I normally don't take these fish, they're more valuable swimming

Had a couple of people this week emailing me about trying for a world record Permit. This isn't the time of year. July and August is the best bet where I fish. This is when the big girls spawn on the wrecks. Getting one to boat ain't easy. See Fishing the Florida Keys - the Gulf Wrecks. I can put you on world class Permit, but you have to catch them. If you want a world line test record of any kind, try Spanish Mackerel and Lady fish. Late December to March is a great time to try. Female or junior anglers on fly rods have the best shot. Don't count on setting a record though. They're world records for a reason!

Tight lines,
Captain Dallas

Fishing the Florida Keys - Fishing Report

The wind kicked up the last couple of days so there aren't many reports from off shore. Before the blow everywhere was pretty hot. I expect the same after the front passes through. A couple of bigger boats did get out and got their butts kicked for a fair catch of Black fin tuna in the 8 to 12 pound range. No dolphin reports.

Reef catches of yellowtail and muttons are pretty good but the tide will run against the wind for half your day. So check the currents close before planning trip. A few tarpon are being jumped here and there but the action is far from hot. There should be plenty of big lanes, mangs and a few keeper grouper on the hawk channel rock piles. I'll try to get out there around Turkey Day to catch a few.

Cobia and a mixed bag of mangroves, seatrout, bluefish and a few mackerel in the bay. This latest cold front should move the mackerel and more cobia a lot closer this week. The macs and cobia I've seen have been 16 to 18 miles north west of Marathon. This week I should see them about 10 to 14 out. Not much info from the flats guys over the weekend. I didn't have a trip due to inebriation. If you plan to fish, do the Duval crawl after the trip. I lose a lot of trips to Duval street!

More people are showing up with the cold front too. I'll have a lot more info from the local captains, if they can remember where they docked their boats. Some haven't been out in a month.

Happy Turkey Day and Tight Lines

Dallas

Fishing The Florida Keys - The Marathon Hump

The Marathon Hump is 27 miles South East of Marathon. This hump or mound rises from 1150 feet on the east side to 410 feet at the top. When the gulf stream current is flowing, large eddy currents form, forcing bait to the surface. On a good day, hundreds if not thousands of terns will feeding over schooling Black Fin Tuna and Dolphin crashing bait. The hump can be magically alive with fish or dead, depending on the current and the bait in the area. Sunday, it was alive.

Live bait can be the key to catching fish at hump sometimes, but I have great luck trolling 4" to 6" lures here. Twenty or more Black fins in the 10 to 30 pound range, dolphin to 50 pounds and the occasional bill fish. The largest Black fin I've boated at the hump was 35 pounds, but we have been spooled a few times. I'm a light tackle kind of guy and thirty pound gear isn't all ways enough. It's not that thirty isn't heavy enough for the fish, it's thirty isn't all ways heavy enough for the fish that want to eat your fish. So you may want to use fifty pound gear at the hump.

Pulling a big lure on the shot gun line is a good idea. Marlin, Makos, Wahoo and bigger Yellowfin tuna, like eating Black Fins. They don't always want to play, but the hump is a great place to hook a fish of a life time. A few miles south of the hump is the wall. Here the water drops to over 1000 feet. A great place to dust off those big marlin lures and see how they work. If you find birds working, get ready for just about any pelagic you can imagine.

On the way out and back in your in prime fishing grounds. I normally run and gun until I'm about two miles from the hump. On the way, I'm watching for birds, floating debris and bait sprays, that tell me fish are close. There have been a few trips we didn't make it to the hump because of all the fish we found on the way out. Pick a good day though, the seas at the hump can be brutal with a east wind over 18 knots. I shoot for 5 to 10 knot forecast winds on a hump trip, but will consider a 10 to 15 day. Over 15, forget it. There is too much other good fishing out of Marathon to risk your gear on a sixty mile round trip in a washing machine.

Until next time
Tight Lines

Fishing the Florida Keys for a New Boat

It's boat shopping time again. Time for one of the two happiest days in a boat owners life, the day he buys and the day he sells. The reason is that the fishing competition in Marathon is changing. More captains are moving into larger sport fisherman and high end charters. The fishing is just too good down here to neglect the backcountry and bay wrecks. So I'm looking at 24' to 26' panga style open fisherman. These are clean enough for fly fishermen, not much foul their fly line and big enough for four anglers, six in a pinch with the 26 footer.

The fuel economy is the main draw these boats have for me. Every charter down here has a fuel surcharge built in right now. I hate that nickle and diming tactic. With one of these pangas, its $350 for a half day and $550 for a full day. No extras, no add ons, just get in the boat and go! The pangas have a high bow flare so just about any day is fish able. Tarpon trips, bay wrecks, gulf wrecks, offshore for sailfish, the panga is a good all around boat for this area. I haven't decided on which manufacturer yet, but I'm getting closer. When it gets real close, I'll post pictures and let you guys help me decide.

If you want to get in on a great investment click here for details.

The Fishing Reports is like this. All the Blackfin Tuna you want at the Marathon Hump along with good numbers of school dolphin and a few gaffers. Cobia still in the bay and mackerel are showing but agood way back to the north west. Lots of bait in the area of the 57 10 and further west. A few sails off the reef, but most of the action I've heard is closer to Aligator light than Sombrero. Tails, Muttons, Grouper and still good numbers of Mangroves on the reef.

Lodging and Vacation Package Information

Click here for more information on Charter, Dining and Lodging in the Marathon area.

Fishing the Florida Keys - The Gulf Wrecks

The wind is still blowing so I guess I'll have to talk about one of my favorite fishing areas, The Gulf Wrecks. Most of these wrecks are WWII merchant ships sunk by german subs. These wrecks are loaded with a variety of fish. One trip, a lady angler called it her fishing wet dream. Guess she kinda had fun! Most of the time the action is non-stop if there is a little current. I've only had two trips out of about 100 that was boring. That's fishing though, even on the slow trips we hooked a few big fish.

Fishing the Gulf wrecks can be a challenge. Since the ban on Jewfish (Goliath Grouper), these big fish have made a big come back. Some on the wrecks have dozens of Jewfish over two hundred pounds. Getting a keeper grouper in the boat is almost impossible. The Jewfish are really thick. If you want to catch and release one of these monsters think big. Four to six pound live baits and 100# test or bigger gear. Delicately adjust you drag with a hammer to around fifty to eighty pounds. Then be careful what you wish for, these guys are brutes! In the side bar, the fish laying on the deck is an approximately 275 pound Goliath.

On one charter we have great visibility and saw a squadron of six Jewfish between 150 and 600 pounds follow a big blue runner up to the boat. It was a pretty awesome sight. Big bull sharks and hammerheads are all over these wrecks as well. So any fish you hook has to run a gantlet of monsters to make it to the boat.

Along with these monster preditors are world class permit. If you don't know what a permit is, it's a pompano on serious steriods. We have boated plenty permit in the thirty to 45 pound range on the Gulf wrecks and lost plenty of bigger ones to the wreck and the predators. It takes a bit of trickery and luck to have a shot at a potential world record permit.

Timing is the first part of the process. The school of permit move around the wreck. If you wait until they are down current from wreck before you cast, you have the best shot. Having the boat between the wreck and the school helps too. This allows you to herd the fish a little. If the angler bears down on the fish when it moves towards the wreck and eases up when it moves away, you can get a hundred yards of clearance. This tactic cuts down on the Jewfish problems. Believe me, a six hundred pound jewfish will inhale a 50 pound permit given a chance. This doesn't solve shark problem.

Another trick for sharks requires another boat fishing for permit on the same wreck. Wait until the other boat is hooked up before you cast to the school. Then the first fish hooked has the highest chance of a shark attack. It's best to coordinate this tactic before you start or large egg sinkers may start flying your way. This worked real well on one trip, but for the other boat. I had a male angler and the other boat had a female angler. Their boat landed a fish just over 50 pounds on twelve pound gear. We were shooting for a 36 plus pounder on six pound test and didn't boat a one out of 10 hook ups. Guess that's why it's called a world record. The best bait for the big permit is a live big blue crab. The bait shops call these tarpon crabs. Three to five inches across from point to point is my preferred size, Without claws by the way. Drill a 2/0 to 4/0 hook into the shell about 1/4" to 1/2" from the base of the point. This keeps the crab nice and lively. My leader is normally 5' to 10' of clear mono or florocarbon normally 20# to 50# test. The shorter leader makes it easier to sight cast to larger fish. Unless you're pretty sure you have a world record, take picture a let her go. The big ones are females that are nice to have around, if you like fast permit action.

If you aren't into world class permit as much as dinner, chum fishing is your best bet. Use a lot of chum to lure the snapper closer to the suface. Once they are up, free line bait strips or live bait to the school. A tight drag is a must to keep the hooked fish out of the Jewfish zone. Keep a crab or big live shrimp ready for cobia that will normally show. If the cobia fight on the surface you have a great chance of boating dinner. Don't get greedy though if you don't mine. One or two cobia are plenty and it gives the next guy a chance at dinner too.

Live white bait or rigged balleyhoo in the chum slick will product spanish mackerel and king mackerel along with cobia. A foot or so of number 4 wire leader is required for the mackerel and the cobia don't care if you use wire or not. Tuna, mainly little tunny with a few blackfin aren't uncommon. Late spring to early summer is best for the permit, with winter a spring better for the kings and cobia. There is a big overlap on the wrecks though so any day can be productive. Pick a calm day for your trip, with winds under 10 knots if possible. If you want to book a trip or just shoot the breeze, leave a comment.

Until next time, tight lines.

Captain Dallas

Florida Keys Fishing - When it Blows It Sucks!

Lost two trips this weekend to the weather. Heck, it's only blowing thirty out of the northeast! Seams all my old customers have taken to wearing skirts. Well I guess it's time for a quick fishing report and some reminiscing.

The report is the fish are here, the fishermen aren't. Great mixed bags are back in the bay, snapper, grouper, cobia, jewfish, big mackerel and the usual suspects. The flats have slowed down with the temperature drop, but will pick up around the next moon. Sailfish, tuna and still a few dolphin offshore. Reef fishing is good, with Yellowtail, mutton and mangrove Snapper cooperating nicely. Grouper fishing has been a little slow, but that just because I haven't been out there charter fishing. I have a few little fishing holes that are hot this time of year. So put your pants back on and let's go on a little fishing charter.

Now let's reminisce, This time three years ago I had a mate Chris (last name with held because I'm brain dead), that I was training. We had a charter with two really nice older gentlemen that had been planing the trip for a bunch of years. After saving they finally came up with enough money to come to the fabulous Florida Key and go on a once of a life time blue water big game fishing safari. One of the gents want to go sailfishing, the other wanted grouper fishing. That's doable out of Marathon, but a little tough on a half day charter.

I told the guys we would try a little sailfishing on the way to one of my grouper hole off Bahia Honda. Thirty minutes from the dock, we crossed the reef and I spotted a Frigate Bird pounding the deck. I put the Topaz in the corner and told Chris to get ready. We were loaded for bear, a couple hundred big lively pilchards in the bait tank. Running to the Frigate, I was seeing single and double sailfish in the water. I started thinking I was nuts passing these fish, but I wanted to see what that bird was on.

We finally caught up with the bird and it was worth it! I told Chris to flip a bait in the water and backed the boat down on nine sailfish balling a school of cigar minnow. As I counted the fish out to Chris, who had never caught a sail, much less seen this many balling, got a touch excited. The first bait, he cast so hard it came off the hook and went about 40 yards straight up in the air. I shook my head while he watched the bait go up, stop, and fall back in the cockpit. Then he got a big dip of pilchards and dumped them on the deck. Manage to corral one and flung that bait off too.

I climbed down out of the tower, baited another rod and flipped it in the water. As I handed the rod to the closest angler, I told him to close the bail and catch a fish, then climbed back in the tower. Chris, by this time, managed to get two more baits in the water with baits still on the hook. Now we had three sailfish on and only two anglers. I told Chris to just stick the third rod in a holder and help the anglers. These where slob sailfish and we were fishing 20# spinners with only 8 foot leaders, so it took a while. The first fish came to the boat about 45 minutes later. Chris billed the sail like a pro and posed it with the angler while I took pictures from the tower. They released the sail and after a few hand shakes and pats on the back, Chris put that rod in a tower holder. I mentioned to Chris that it might be a good idea to hand the angler the other rod. Now we are back to two sailfish on. We managed to boat all three, but the camera ran out of film after the second.

I called down from the tower to see if they want to go grouper fishing now, but my bottom fisherman decided that sailfishing was OK after all. I the next hour, we boated one more sail, a couple of big jack crevalle and jumped off three more sailfish. Then it was time to head back to the dock. Chris mentioned mounting a sail or two to the anglers. At the dock, the angler that had boated three of the four fish asked me if it was worth mounting. After mentioning to him that three slob sailfish in a half day was a bit better than average, sailfish the size we boated are a bit rare and that he may never get a chance to repeat a trip like that he got a mount.

I could not hear their conversation driving from the tower. Chris told me that there was to be three anglers but one of their friends had died a few months earlier. They were just going on about how he would have loved that trip. By the way, that's Chris on the right.

Fishing the Forida Keys - No Sexy Fish Today

The crew I was going to take out didn't make it. They had BOAT issues. Boat is an achronym, Broke Or About To. After you find that out, Break Out Another Thousand. I was looking forward to fishing with them. We have caught a lot of sexy fish together, sailfish, Dolphin and big boys like sharks and jewfish. I wanted to take them out for Cobia, grouper and a few sharks, but next time I guess. Ended up crabbing with my buddy Jimbo instead.

We moved a few traps and pulled 160 stone crab pots. The current was all screwed up, so it was no fishing vacation. Any day on the water is a good day though. Got a little more money in my clothes and learned a little more about the crabbing industry. After running go fast fishing boats, a 10 knot crab boat takes a little attitude adjustment. Besides being slow, she handles a lot different than most boats I've driven. I'll get use to her though, just a little more time at the helm. Anyway, about 70 pounds of stone crab claws wasn't bad for a few hours work.

Hopefully, I'll have a better fishing report for you next time. It's going to be wet and windy for the next couple of days, but Saturday and Sunday should be fishable. If not, I may have to break out the guitar and and write some more blues tunes.