A Fun Day of Catch and Release

Sunday was a lovely day of catching. My crew Ted and Harold from Ohio just wanted to catch and release a lot of fish. So after loading up with shrimp and pinfish while the winds where still a bit high we moved to one of my favorite rock piles in Hawks channel. Nearly every drop was a hook up with those pesky grouper that are closed being the number one bite followed by Mangrove, Lanes, Porgies, Black tip sharks and mackerel. Several of the Grouper were more than legal length and all were released unharmed.

After about 60 released fish and two fat Mangs kept for dinner we moved to the reef to get a few 'tails for appetizers. While the crew bumped the bottom for Porgies and such I used one of their pinfish rods to check for the 'tails in the slick. What was hooked up was not a 'tail. After several 100 plus yard runs, three trips around the boat and 30 minutes the fish finally was identified as a King Mackerel of about 30 pounds. On six pound test with no leader and a size two hook there was no way we were boating the fish. The crew though had a ball watching the king have its way with me on the light tackle while they enjoyed adult refreshments.

Marathon in the Florida Keys should be your next fishing vacation destination. Join us for charter fishing, fishing guide trips or our fishing 101 so you can fish on your own with better success.

Tight lines,

Capt. Dallas