Fishing Reports
2006
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Florida Fishing Report/ Bone fishing Charter

 
I had a chance to fish in Key Biscayne over the holidays with my long time charter guide/ friend Joe Gonzalez on the Funny Bone. The night before we were supposed to fish a cold front came through and it rained all night. Joe called in the morning and asked if we still wanted to fish and I said absolutely and we put on the rain gear and met Joe at the ramp. We tried for Tarpon at Government Cut 1st but no fish. Headed to the west side of Key Biscayne by Turkey Point power plant. It was cloudy but no rain and it was mirror flat. Found 5 or 6 schools of 20 to 50 bone fish over the next few hours. It was a blast. Later in the day moved to the flats closer to the ocean and caught more bones. We ended up with 5 fish landed on light spinning tackle (all tagged and released), pulled the hooks on 2 more and I had several other shots in the morning but could not connect.
 
The other thing we did was to drive to the Keys and hand feed the Tarpon at a place called Robbie's. These are wild Tarpon that congregate around a small lagoon. You pay $4.00 to walk out on the dock and feed them a bucket of frozen bait. It is a blast and if you get close enough to the water they will take it right out of your hand (last year one swallowed my arm up to the elbow). I attached a couple of pictures of David feeding the fish. The white fencing keeps the Pelicans from taking the bait but the tarpon swim underneath and all around the docks.

           

       

Fishing Report 12-17-2006
December Gulf stream Trip

 Had a great trip with a father and son from Wilmington on Sunday. The weatherman was very kind with flat seas all day. We ran 40 mph out and back. The water temp at the break was 78.5 with blue water but for some reason the fish had shutdown. The wahoo bite has been good a couple days earlier but not today. Talked to a lot of boats with no strikes. We had a couple of cut offs in the morning and cover a lot of ground. Finally, we had a nice Mahi hit on a weed line but threw the hook at the boat. Later we had a couple of bonita hits and then the strike we waited a long time for. The long rigger went off and the line peeled off then a couple of white water head shakes and more line went off the spool. Ran him down and then at the boat he start with more head shakes. I stuck him green with the 10 ft gaff and he wrapped it around the boat. The fish ended up on the deck but the gaff looked more like a C-shape than a gaff. We had a few more hits for the next hour but couldn't keep the hooks in the fish. Headed back around 4:00 to a flat calm sea. Although we did catch a lot of fish the Wahoo weighed in at 49 lbs. In addition, we must have seen at least 25 turtles at the stream and a few porpoise on the ride in.

  

Fishing Report 12-10-2006

 Took advantage of the great weather yesterday and did a little bottom fishing. I also brought the Bluefin gear just in case. Went to the School House to try to jig up bait for grouper fishing. We found large schools of Spanish sardines and while we were jigging up bait we noticed a large splash in one of the bait schools. Then the Bluefin started crashing the bait and it looked like hand grenades going off. We saw 3 come out of the water and they ranged from 100 lbs to over 300lbs. We put out the big rods and trolled for a couple of hours but not hits. It was worth just seeing them. Headed out 30 miles and bottomed fished. The bottom fishing was good but we worked hard moving around. It wasn't the slay job of a few weeks ago but we ended up with 2 large gags 20 lbs, 5 keeper Reds 8 to 10 lbs, and 12 grunts/snappers and 1 large AJ. We also had another 6 short Reds. The ocean was flat but cold on the way in and we ran 45 mph.

Fishing Report 8 Nov 2006

Tournament Report Fall Brawl 11-05-2006 We fished the last tournament of the year on Sunday since the weather was supposed to be better but as usual the weatherman was wrong on both days. Winds were NE 15 to 20 with 4 to 5 ft seas. Caught plenty of blues for bait and headed to the Horseshoe. Had plenty of action but all were small fish for a while. Then we started getting hits on 2 to 3 lb blue fish but couldn't keep the hooks in them or they were biting through the mono ahead of the leaders because the blues would run forward when the kings hit them. The best we could do was a small 9 lb fish but David won 3rd place Jr. Angler which says how bad the fishing was for everyone.

Fun Fishing for Grouper 11-11-2006
I went fun fishing with a couple of Friends on Reel Adjustment Captain Chris Branco/Carlton Clark. We had a blast with one of the best grouper bites I have been on in a while. Final count was limits of gags (6 fish over 90 lbs total weight) and 9 Reds (over 75 lbs total). We also had plenty of throw backs and a 7 ft Tiger shark. Needless to say if you want to catch grouper now if the time give me a call.
 

   

 

Tournament Report - Wrightsville Beach KMT

We fished the WBKMT on Saturday. This was a captains choice tournament and you could fish Friday or Sat. As it turns out the weatherman was wrong both days as usual. Friday it blew hard SW and Sat we woke up to NE winds 15 to 20 and the seas built all day 5 to 6 footers. Fished around the Cabbage Patch. We had a few small fish and large Spanish in the morning. We did catch about a 20 lb fish and then around 2:30 we had a large fish come through the baits. It was one of the best strikes this year. We watched him swim by the short baits several times surfing the large waves. Then he turned around at max speed and skied out of the water with the bait hanging out of his mouth. He stripped 400 yards and we ran him down in the large seas. I quick gaff shot and in the bag. We finished 7th place 32.1 lbs out of 168 boats. Dave won 3rd place SKA Jr. Angler and another plaque for the wall.

Fishing Report 10/22/2006

Had a 3/4 day on Sunday and the wind was still blowing hard out of the NE. Headed to the Dredge wreck and started fishing. We had lots of action for a while and ended up with 7 nice kings. Moved out to the School House area and found acres of Bonita on the top feeding. We hooked and very large king while I was dropping back a bait but a 300 yard run and he bit through the wire leader. We had a lot of strikes with Cudas and AJs but couldn't get anything to the boat. We did have plenty of action. By the afternoon the seas were calm and we headed back at 40 mph.
 

Fishing Report 10/15/2006

Took my son David and a friend Rob on a bottom fishing fun trip on Sunday. The weather was nice with a light NW wind in the morning. Went to the 23 mile area and anchored right on the ledge loaded with bait. The grouper did not want to cooperate but Rob did manage to get 1 nice 13 lb gage. We had a few more bites that broke us off. Then the long line with a small pogy started screaming and David took the rod. After the 2nd time the fish almost dumped the spool it was obvious this was not a king. The fish took a long run on top and David worked him back to the boat. I got a good look as it came to the boat around 30 feet down and it was a very large Yellow fin tuna. Unfortunately, he also saw the boat and headed for the horizon. We were about to drop the anchor and my small #4 treble hooks finally straightened out. This was the one that got away. Moved off shore a few miles and still could not find any Gages that wanted to eat. We did find a good bit of small kings but the Cudas ate them before we could get them in the boat. Moved out to a 33 mile area and had good action on the Red grouper but most were shorts. Rob did battle with a monster AJ that we took a couple of pictures and released. David had a nice Cobia to the boat that spit the hook just out of gaff range. Headed back to the inlet in flat calm seas. The water temp at 33 miles was still 79 degrees.

Fishing Report 10-05-2006

 We did a little pre-fishing before the US Open KMT. Headed down the beach to Southport and the river channel. Caught monster pogies around Bald head Island and starting fishing around the old Sea buoy area. Had a fish on in the 1st 5 minutes and we stayed busy until we left. Final count was 7 nice kings and 1 large Spanish. We probably had 30 strikes with fish skying on baits and cutting pogies in half. It was typical fall fishing at Southport when the fish are in the channel.

Fishing Report US Open KMT (Friday/Sat) There were well over 300 boats signed up to fish and I think most fished the River channel area. We had a good 2 days of fishing with lots of action. We caught bait both days early which was a accomplishment the 2nd day due to the weather. The biggest fish we weighed was 26.45 lbs which put us in 40th place. Respectable but not the 3rd place we finished last year. With everyone fishing the same area it was the luck of the draw but there were plenty of nice fish caught. I think there were over 20 plus fish over 29 lbs.

The fall fishing is starting to heat up and the grouper should be moving in around 20 miles. We may try a fun trip on Sunday for grouper stay tuned.

   

Fishing Report  1 Oct 2006

Fished with Captain Mike Jackson aboard the "Liveline"  along with Jeff Pittman and Bill Hicks on this beautiful Sunday. We left the dock about 0730 and had our lines in the water soon after that. Lots of bait around the artificial reef we fished and soon hooked up with a nice cuda. It was straight action after that, several Kings, cudas, lots of AJ's and even a nice dolphin which we lost after displaying some great tail dancing. Tried for Gag Grouper but only minimal luck on that. One thing about the Captain, he is a true professional, and you are treated like royalty aboard  his boat. All you have to do it sit back, relax and catch fish. Thanks again Mike, and we hope to see you again soon .

   

 

Wade Moore
nccoastalfishing,com

Fishing Report 9/24/2006
Had a full day and the winds would not let up. The swell dropped a little over night so it was better than Sat. Went to Carolina Beach and found the shrimp boats and caught 2 sharks pretty quick. Decided to head offshore and stopped around 12 miles but the water was still off so we moved out to the School House area. The winds still blew 20 mph but the seas stayed around 4 ft. We had lots of action all day. We had 5 or 6 king strikes but were only able to get 1 full king in the boat. The baracudas ate the rest. We had 2 teenagers get eaten next to the boat and a cuda almost jumped in the boat while trying to eat a king, in fact he got me wet with the splash. The king we boated was 25 lbs a nice fish. Then we started getting double headers on large cudas. We hooked over 12 large cudas and 3 were eaten by sharks next to the boat. It was a cool site watching the cudas get eaten by a large shark. We did weigh in one for a citation 27 lbs and released others in that same size range. Final count was 3 kings (2 were 1/2s), around 12 cudas lost count and a nice AJ.

   

   

Fishing Report 9/23/2006 
 Had a 1/2 day trip on Sat and the weatherman did not help. The winds blew 15 to 20 SE with a large swell. Had a father and 2 young men from Raleigh. Tried for sharks off the beach but no shrimp boats working so no sharks. Headed out to a 5 mile wreck but the water was off and no bait. Went out to the 10 mile rock area and trolled downwind due to the large seas. Go a little busy around 11:30 when the feed time was predicted. Ended up with 2 decent kings and a couple of sharks.

Tournament Update Atlantic Beach KMT

We fished the Atlantic Beach KMT last weekend. My normal crew couldn't fish so we teamed up with the Reel Greedy Team, Randell and his father George and myself and son David. We fished aboard Randell's new 35 ft Scarab with triple 250 Yamaha 4 strokes. I was glad to be on a bigger boat on Friday with 6 to 8 footers on the east side. The fishing was very tough with the east winds and full moon. We managed a 26.25 lb fish that finished in 7th place out of 350 boats. There were only 52 fish weighed in the 1st day and 40 the 2nd day. We had 4 fish in 2 days over 20 lbs but couldn't get the winner. My son David caught the Jr Angler fish and won 1st place in the tournament and 1st place SKA Jr. Angler. Had a great time despite the rough weather and slow fishing.

Fishing Report 9/3/2006

Had a 1/2 day with a group of guys down from Conn. The weather was nice with just a SW swell left over form the storm. Headed out 20 miles to try to find clean water off shore since inshore was still cloudy from the storm. Stopped at the Schools house and the large pods of bait were gone. The AJs were hungry so we got our morning work out. Everyone caught at least one and we lost a few in the wrecks. Had a couple over forty pounds and they gave a great battle. Tried to do a little slow trolling around the wrecks but even the Baracuda were not interested. Moved over to some ledges and had a late season Cobia around 20 lbs eat the long bait. He did a lot of jumping and head shaking and finally threw the hook close to the boat. The water is still green and murky form the storm, hopefully it will clean up over the next week.
      

    

Fishing Report 8/28/2006
 
Had a great trip with a father and son from Minn and uncle from Charlotte. The weatherman was correct for a change with light South winds and seas. Headed to Carolina Beach inlet to work around the shrimp boats to start. Most had went in early but we did catch a double header before the last boat went in the inlet. Released 2 75 lb Sandbar sharks. Went off shore to the Dredge wreck but the weed was impossible. Moved off shore to some 20 mile ledges and found a great weed line at around 18 miles. Fished for about 1 mile but no action. Started fished the live bottom/ledges with schools of bait on top but no action. Finally, the down rigger went screaming off and we had a nice king hooked. Unfortunately, the Cudas ate everything except for the head before he came to the boat. This was a good mid twenty lb fish. Moved over to the School House with large pods of bait everywhere. The Cudas were hungry. I lost track of how many we hooked but at least 10 to 12. We did have 2 more king bites around the bait but only managed to get 1/2 of a teenager in the boat and the Cudas got the rest. Also caught 2 Mahis and saw a Sailfish killing one of the pogies I through over board when changing out the baits. Over all a lot of action and fun to watch the action around the bait schools with packs of 15 to 25 Cudas working the bait.

  Nicks Mahi caught aboard Liveline Charters 

 
 

Tournament Update FLW 2nd NC Divisional KMT 8/19/2006

 
We fished the FLW divisional tournament on Saturday. The weather was good and we caught plenty of bait early in the ocean before check out. Checked out and headed out the River channel towards the Cabbage Patch on the east side. Unfortunately, we had 8 to 10 large Spanish in 30 minutes with no King bites. Moved over to the 30/30 area and could not fish due to the scattered weeds. Tried another off shore spot with the same results. We caught one small fish before headed back across the shoals to find cleaner water. Started fishing the Cape Fear River channel for the rest of the afternoon. A few fish we caught early (including the 1st place fish) then at around 4:30 with 30 minutes left to check in the bite turned on. There were 8 t0 10 fish caught over 20 lbs in 20 minutes. We had the short bait go off and smoked 300 yards off the reel. Got him back to the boat and with about 15 feet to go the hooks pulled during one last boat run. Immediately put out the baits and the short bait got crushed again but the king cut the mono above the leader chasing the bait. That's tournament fishing. We weighed in our very small fish for points and we are in 29th place going into the last tournament.
 

Fishing Report Saturday 8/20/2006 

Had a return group from NJ and the weatherman did his normal report. The predicted light SW winds turned into 10 to 20 and then into 15 to 25 by the end of the day. Started the day 10 miles out of Wrightsville beach but the weeds and wind made in hard to fish. We decided to run to Southport since the bite was so good yesterday but what a difference a day makes. When I turned the corner at Baldhead in the channel the wind was blowing 15 to 25 with 6 to 8 footers in the channel. Moved over to Youpon reef and caught a nice king and a couple of other strikes and a small Black tip shark. Moved out to the river channel but the water was dirty with no kings and bait. Finally, jumped the shoals to the Cabbage Patch and caught 2 more teenagers in just a few minutes then the wind picked up and the weed moved in. Made the long run back to the inlet. We tried hard for a few kings but the weather/weeds did not help.

Tournament Update 8/5/2006 GE/Corning Industrial KMT

 
The weatherman was nice again with calm seas and light SW winds. Headed offshore to the 20 mile ledges we did good on Tuesday after catching a couple live wells full of pogies at the Carolina boat basin. We fished around schools of bait on top only to find Cudas, Mahi and AJs but no kings. Headed over to the 30/30 and fished a short time and caught a couple of big Spanish. Then moved over to the area closer to the shoals with lots of life. Had a lot of short strikes on the long lines due to large Spanish and clear waters. Missed a couple of good king strikes. Finally, late in the afternoon the down rigger went off with a nice high teens fish. We also had a 12 ft Tiger sharks chase the short bait with his whole head out of the water. Then we had a large schools of bait balled on the top with hundreds of large Spanish crashing the boat with 2 Tiger sharks running through the middle of the bait. This was one of the coolest things have seen in the Ocean. We stuck it out all day and finally with about 20 minutes left to fish the long line went off. The fish did not make a long run but saved plenty of energy for around the boat. She was a pain to get a gaff into but finally I got a shot just in time because when I pulled her over the gunnels the hooks were out. She weighed 29.25 lbs and we ended up 1st place GE and 2nd place overall in the tournament. Not a bad follow up after winning the tournament .

Fishing Report 8/1/2006

 
What a difference a week makes and the weather was perfect with a light west wind. Last Tuesday fished all day with slow action today the opposite. By 6:00 AM I had 200 large pogies for bait with 1 throw. Picked up a group of 6 staying on the Beach. Headed to Carlina Beach to try to catch a few sharks behind the shrimp boats to start. I was not disappointed. 1st drift a double header. We caught 6 in the less 1 hour averaging 50 to 100 lbs. This a lot of fun on 50 lb tackle so give me a call if you are interested. After everyone had there morning work out we headed off shore to the 30/30 ledge. The water was a little green and not as nice as Saturday. We did catch a nice Mahi 15 lbs and 3 very large Spanish mackerel 5 to 6 lbs. After a few sharks I trolled down wind and finally a king bite. He blistered 350 to 400 yards and our Lady angler did a great job angling the mid 20 lb fish to the gaff. Finally decide to move off shore a little to find cleaner water. Stopped at some 20 mile ledges and while dropping back the short bait it was eaten. Another long run 400 yards and after a 20 minute fight I thought we had a 40 lb er when I looked down in the water. This was the longest fish but with no girth I have seen this year but still a mid 20 lber. Then the bite was on for about 45 minutes, I could only get a couple of lines in the water before a drag would start screaming ( I thought it was Sept except for the 90 degree heat). We caught 5 kings all from the high teens to the mid twenties. By far the best king bite of the summer as far as size of the fish. A great day and the final count was 6 kings, 3 large Spanish, 2 Mahi, 1 Bonita 20 lbs (not sure why he was in 82 degree water) and 6 large Sandbar sharks. A very busy day.

   
 

Greater Wilmington KMT Tournament Update
7/28/2006

 
Once again greeted with SW winds 15 to 20 mph for a tournament morning. Seas were 3 to 5 ft and it is amazing what you can get use to and consider it not too bad. Headed out 22 miles and caught a lot of Cudas, small kings and Mahi but no good kings. Moved over to the 30/30 later in the day but not much action from the kings. The high light of the day was my son David catching his 1st Sailfish. He hit the long line and made a big circle around the boat but we still didn't know what it was but once we ran it down I looked 30 feet in front of the boat and saw him lite up blue. He finally figured out he was hooked and the fight was on. He jumped at least 20 times ripping drag. David did a great job angling him to the boat in 20 minutes. A quick measurement 65 inches ( large Sail for around here) and few pictures and he swam away to fight another day. Unfortunately, the best we could do with the kings was 11 lbs not a good tournament day.

 

  
 

Fishing Report 7/25/2006

 
Had 2 1/2 day trips with one in the morning and one in the afternoon. The morning was cloudy and the bait at Wrightsville Beach had been chased off by porpoise so we ran to Carolina boat basin and caught 2 live wells full of large pogies. Headed offshore around 12 miles and 1st bait in the water was hit by a Barracuda. Brought him to the boat and released around 20 lbs. We had a little man 8 years old on the boat and he started feeling bad. We headed back to the inlet to try to fish in a little calmer waters. Started fishing around the shrimp boats for sharks and it didn't take long. We had a double header and off the to races. These were 5 to 6 ft sandbar sharks which are a lot of fun on 20 lb tackle. Ended up with 4 sharks all around 75 to 100 lbs. Tried the 5 mile artificial reef with only one run off that missed the hooks. Couldn't find a king mackerel.
 
The afternoon trip we headed out to the 20 mile ledges that we had been doing very well at for kings and Mahi. The water turned dark blue at about 16 miles with lots of scattered weed and flying fish. Worked the ledges and the School House and only had 1 small Mahi and a couple of nice Cudas. Once again could not find the action even the schools of bait around the wrecks would not hit the Sabiki rigs. Ended up moving back inshore and caught a few sharks and a couple of very large Cudas that went airborne to throw the hooks.

This was one of those days that leave you scratching your head. I tried every trick to get a king to eat but nothing. Not sure if the front that stalled off the coast shut them down but hopefully they will decide to eat again soon.


 

Tournament Report : 7/22/2006 King of the Cape, South port NC

As usual on tournament morning we were greeting with 15 to 25 mph SW winds. Caught bait in the dark and headed out Carolina Beach inlet at sunrise. Started off shore and decide to fish the inlet for a while. Made a few passes around the inlet and sea buoy but no action or bait. Decided to head offshore and pound our way out to the 30/30 area. The 1st 6 miles were not too bad but it got worse. Started fishing around 9:00 and had some action. A lot of cut offs and small fish with sharks mixed in. Finally, caught a teenager but the winds never let up all day. A small school of fish must have moved over the ledge because we had multiple hits but they were only 4 to  lb fish. At around 2:30 I was changing out a short bait and dropping back a fresh pogy when the line started screaming off the spool. The fish took a lot of line but saved plenty for around the boat. Finally got the gaff in him after about 15 minutes and took a few pictures and iced him down. The fished weighed 26.05 lbs and good enough for 9th place out of 121 boats. David won the Jr. Angler award and 1st place SKA Jr. Angler. he also won the youth cast net contest (3rd year in a row, he has a bigger collection of nets than me). Overall a great tournament and Jerry Dilsaver does a outstanding job putting it together.

       

Fishing Report 7/19/2006

 
The weatherman was right for a change with light winds and seas. Headed out to the 10 mile area with 2 gentlemen from St. Louis. Found lots of bait but only 1 shark. Next we went to the School House and found the same bait everywhere but no fish. Even the AJs would not take a bait. Went to some ledges at around 20 miles and the 1st line in the water was eaten on the way out. We had a good bite for a while with double headers of Kings and Mahi. The bite eventually slowed down but we had strikes every once in a while. A small King was cut in half by a Cuda at the boat so we feed him the other half and the fight was on. Had a good day with plenty of action, final count was 6 Kings, 2 Mahi, 1 Cuda, 6 or 7 Sharks and at least 12 cut off and spit hooks.

     

Fishing Report 7/17/2006

Had a late season Gulf Stream trip with 6 young guys from the Wilmington/UNCW area. The 1st 40 miles out was nice but the NE winds picked up the last 20 miles. Started trolling in about 140 feet of water but the weed was impossible to fish. We fought threw the weeds and started catching small Mahi. Eventually had all the lines get hit and we brought the whole school in behind the boat. Started catching them on light tackle as quick as you could put out a line. Headed out to the drop and deeper water with a few more Mahi hits. Could not locate the larger Mahi and trolled south from the Same Ole area to the Steeples. The weed was the biggest issue all day but when we weren't around the weed no strikes. Over all a great day with lots of action just a little slow in the middle of the afternoon. Fished until 5:00 and headed in at 40 mph.Final count was 17 to 20 small Mahi and played with a couple of Dolphins at the end of the day next to the boat.

FLW North Carolina Division Tournament Update 7/15/2006

We fished the 1st of 3 NC Divisional FLW King Mackerel Series tournaments on Sat. This is limited to 100 boats and a different way of running a tournament. We enjoyed the change and had fun. We were greeted to 15 to25 mph winds Saturday morning. We checked out as boat #85 and headed up the river to Carolina Beach inlet. We already caught bait in the dark so we didn't have to get bait with a lot of other boats. Once we cleared the inlet we decided to make the run to the 30/30. This was not a fun ride for the last 10 miles. Finally arrived a the ledge and had hook ups immediately unfortunately we caught 2 6 lb Spanish. Finally the down rigger went off and caught a small king. At the time I didn't think too much of the fish because he was only about 10 lbs. The wind picked up and slow trolling was impossible. We anchored with most of the other boats fishing and started chumming. As usual we were greeted with a 6 foot Tiger shark who eventually ate 2 baits. He was fun to watch because the waves were so big when he would chase a bait to the top he would come 1/2 way out of the water. We stuck it out all day and started slow trolling once the waves dropped to a 4 to 5 ft. There were only 3 boats left at the ledge a we watch the 1st place fish get caught a few hundred yards away. Made the run back to Southport and weighed in our 12 lb fish. I was very surprised to find out we finished 18th out of 100 boats. This goes to show you what the weather can do to shut down a king mackerel bite.

Fishing Report 7/11/2006

 Had a great group from Pittsburgh, Pa with a father a 2 sons. The weatherman was right for a change with light winds and a SW swell in the morning. Started at the 10 mile area and had a Mahi and a large 6 lb Spanish. Then headed to the School House to see if we could get a couple of AJs for the guys to battle. Arrived to find large schools of bait getting hammered but found a large school of Devil rays (close cousin to the Manta Ray) chasing the bait. I have never seen this before. Went off of the bait schools and the medium line started screaming. It took 400 yards of line and stayed on top like a large king. I was very surprised to see a Ray on the end of the line after a 20 minute battle. He was very cool with dark black/purple coloration. This was a 1st for me. Took a few pictures and cut him loose. Could not get the AJs interested but did catch 3 nice Cudas. Moved over to some other ledges and had plenty of action with small Mahi and kings. The fish of the day was caught by Ben and was a nice 27 lb king that smokes the reel. Final count was 6 kings, 6 Mahi, 3 Cuda, Lots of small sharks and one 5 ft Ray.

       

Tournament Update Got-Em-On Carlina Beach KMT

 Fished Sunday 7/9/2006 The weather was OK but not the lights winds expected. It blew NE all day. Headed out to some ledges outside the 30/30 area but only Mahi action. Moved in to the 30/30 area around 9:30 (found out later that the 1st and 2nd place fish were caught at the 30/30 before we arrived). Had a lot of action all day but a lot of short strikes due to the clear water, I think. We did catch a 21.9 lb fish another 2 20 lb fish and 5 nice Mahi (which would have been great if were weren't fishing a king mackerel tournament). David ended up with 3rd place SKA Jr. Angler and we finished 1 place out of the money.

Fishing Report 7/3/2006
 Had a opportunity to do a father/son trip today so we headed to Frying Pan Tower to see if we could find a African Pompano for David. Unfortunately they did not want to cooperate but everything else did. We had action all day and lots of fun. Released around 15 to 20 kings all very small 7 to 10 lbs but good action. Had a double header of Mahi, 6 to 7 AJs and the big fish of the day was the 1st line in the water. This was the largest Cuda I have seen, David did a great job landing the beast. He jumped 6 or 7 times and fought hard for 25 minutes. We took a few pictures (no way for David to hold it so we took on one the deck with him) and measured him before we released him. He was 58 inches long with a 28 inch girth. I would estimate him around 50 lbs.

   

Tournament Report Jolly-Mon 6/25/2006
Fished the Jolly Mon on Sunday and the weatherman change the forecast as usual from 10 to 15 to small craft over night. Caught bait around Carolina Beach and headed to Lockwood Inlet so we could run to the Jungle area. Came out the inlet to 4 to 5 footers but ran 30 mph to the Jungle. By the time we started fishing the winds had picked up and rain showers surrounded the area. Decide to anchor up and chum because slow trolling was impossible. We caught 3 small fish and then had a 10 to 12 foot Tiger start hanging around the boat. After he ate my 3rd king rig I decided to have some fun. I tied on one on my heavy shark leaders on a 6/O with 50 lb test. Rigged up a fresh dead pogy and waited. It didn't take long before he returned and I feed him like a dog 2 feet from the side of the boat. I set the hook and it was on. He tried to head shake the hook out around the boat for about 25 seconds and then decided to head for the horizon. I fought him for about 10 minutes but he started heading towards the kings lines out the stern of the boat so I broke him off. This was the 2nd largest Tiger I have seen in NC. Not a great start to the tournament season. You have to take the good with the bad.

Fishing Report 6/24/2006
Had a return trip with some of our troops from Bragg. A great group of guys that come out to have lots of fun regardless of whether the fish cooperate. Left the inlet and headed towards the shoals. We had a very large swell and a little SE wind. Fished at the 30/30 area hoping to find cleaner water and some action. There were plenty of tournament boats fishing but the action was slow. We did manage a couple of decent kings and had a nice 25 lbs Cobia. Also a couple of sharks to break up the slow action in the middle of the day. Moved over to the Dredge wreck to find it void of life. It is amazing what a east wind does to the fishing.

Fishing Report 6/22/2006
Had a full day trip and the weather was perfect (I thought). The seas were flat and the winds light but from the east. Tried several spots from 18 to 25 miles with no results. The ocean looked sterile. Not bait on the ledges and no fish. Finally, ran off shore around 35 miles and found some activity with a large school of Spanish feeding on bait. Finally, the prop wash bait got hit with a nice king and he was off to the races. We had a few more hits and kings and then the down rigger went off smoking into the distance and going off shore. After about 15 minutes our nice king became a snack for a very large shark. The angler tried to fight the shark on 20 lb tackle and after a very long battle he broke off. Late in the afternoon around 4:00 the bait came back up and we got on a pretty good king bite for about 30 minutes. Not a action packed day but when I got back to the dock and heard how bad everyone from the Gulf stream to inshore had done I can
 see why we had to work so hard.

Fishing Report 6/18/2006

 
Had a 1/2 day trip with a father and son from NC. Caught plenty of live bait and headed out the inlet to be greeted with flat calm seas and no wind. Headed out to the 23 mile area and 1st trip over the ledge we caught a 16 lb Cobia on the down rigger. Caught a few smaller kings and while bringing one to the boat a school of AJs followed the king to the boat. Dropped over the heavy rods and hooked plenty of AJs. Took a few pictures and released them. Finally, moved away from the area after everyone had their morning work out with the AJs. We had action all day and final count was 6 kings (2 nice fish 15 lbs and 25 lbs), 5 small Mahi, 1 Cobia, lost count on AJs and had about 10 to 15 missed strikes or hook pulls on small Mahi. At the end of the day I emptied the live well and about 50 pogies were following the boat for cover and a king hit the prop wash bait sending pogies everywhere. (I wish I had a picture) Over all a great day with plenty of action.

   
 

Fishing Report 6/16/2006

 

Fished a 1/2 day trip with a group from West Virginia and Florida. The weather was great for a change with light winds and seas. Headed out 18 miles to the School House area trying to find clean water. Due to the rain and wind from the storm the ocean was a mess. 1st trip over the wreck we caught a 25 lb Cobia on the down rigger. Had a few other strikes but very slow with almost no bait on the wrecks. Went to some 20 mile ledges and caught some small kings but had a lot of short strikes that missed the hooks. Went back to the wrecks and played with the AJs until no one wanted to hook another fish. The hardest fighting fish in the ocean even on heavy tackle. Ended the day with a nice Cobia hook up on a king rod. Unfortunately we lost him at the boat due to a equipment malfunction. 25 minute fight and he was 35 lbs plus. He will be around for the next trip.

   

 

Tournament Update 6/14/2006 Tail walker Offshore Challenge Georgetown, SC

 Traveled to Georgetown, SC for our 1st tournament of 2006 last Wed afternoon. Set up to do a little pre-fishing and bait scouting Thursday morning and was greeted with SW winds 15 to 25 mph and 3 to 5 ft seas. In addition, there was no bait around the inlet. The discussion around the dock the night of the captain's meeting was the lack of fish around Georgetown and no bait. Checked out Friday morning and headed north based on some information that there was some bait 20 miles north on the beach. We ran with 6 other boats for 30 plus miles and never saw anything on the beach. We decided to play hero or zero and head to the Cape Fear River channel to find bait and try to catch a big fish in the channel. We made the very long run and finally caught bait offshore of Bald head Island. We fished the channel and managed to catch a 54 lb Cobia. We fished our way south the rest of the day looking for a king. Day #2 started like the previous 2 days looking for bait. We got lucky working with some other boats and found 1 school of pogies in 25 ft of water south of the inlet. We fished an area around Cape Romain shoals. Had some good action in the morning and manged a 19.87 lb king. Not a money winner but in the top 30. Almost all of the money fish came from Charleston. However, we did have the largest fish in the tournament with the cobia and won the bonus cobia money.


 

Fishing Report - Gulf Stream 5/28/2006

 We had to push Saturdays trip to Sun due to weather. The ride out Sunday morning was OK with a SW swell and NE winds 10 to 15 mph. Started another of the Same Ole where we did good on Thursday but the water has changed color to a mixed green with a 3 degree temp drop from Thursday. Worked the area hard and only found 1 small Mahi. According to the radio/charter fleet everyone was having the same problems. We worked to the South all day from 150 feet out to 600 feet but could not find the concentration of fish. Finally found a afternoon bite after working 20 plus miles to the South on the break. We had our best action after most of the other boats had left for the day. 180 feet of water seemed to be the depth and we had doubles on a few times and hooked a trailer on the spinning rod. Final count was 12 nice gaffers and one small king. Pulled the lines in at 4:45 and ran 40 mph back to the inlet. Not the best day but hard work and perseverance paid off.
 
 
Fishing Report In-Shore 5/29/2006 Ran a 1/2 day inshore trip looking for Spanish and kings. Started the morning looking for Spanish on the beach and had steady action in for a couple of hours. Ended up with 15 Spanish and decided to move off shore a little to look for some kings. The weatherman did not help with NE winds 15 to 20 mph with 4 footers. Caught a few sharks on live bait and moved back to the inlet looking for a Cobia since the weather was getting worse offshore. As soon as the lines were out the medium line went off  with a good run. It turned out to be a 5 lb Spanish. Over all a good day with plenty of action


 

Fishing Report 5/25/2006 Gulf Stream

 We took a shot and went to the stream even though the weatherman said it was going to blow in the afternoon. He was right for a change and it was SW most of the day and by 3:00 it was 5 to 7 ft with plenty of white caps. The trip was worth it because we had 14 Mahi and 2 Wahoo. Most of the Mahi were gaffers and we have one bull around 30 lbs. The Wahoo were OK aroung 20 lbs. Even though there was no weed to work we stayed in fish most of the day with double headers and we had 4 on at once with the school behind the boat. Overall a great trip and the stream is at its best. If the weather will cooperate we will go again this weekend. Give me a call if you want to catch one of the best game fish - MAHI.

Captain Mike

      

     

 
Fishing Report 5/13/2006 

Finally a day when the wind was not blowing and we went to the stream. Last minute change by a client so I went with my son and a couple of fishing friends. We had a great day with lots of action. The final count was 17 Mahi and a 54 lb Yellowfin tuna that David caught. We caught every fish we hooked which is a great day at the stream. The disappointing part was that we had a school of 60 to 100 Mahi around the boat and they would not eat even cut bait. The minute we started trolling 3 lines went off. There was a lot of weed line and action on top with Mahi jumping chancing flying fish. The next couple of weeks should be outstanding at the stream.
 

 The boat ran great averaged 40 plus MPH even with 3 to 5 ft seas on the way back in. I am very pleased with the new HPDIs.
 
Didn't get a chance to get a good picture of the Mahis but attached a couple of the Yellowfin.


  

Fishing Report 3/25/3006
Had a short near shore trip today with some guys in town to watch basketball. The weatherman was right on the temps cold but the wind let off and it stayed pretty flat. We bottom fished at a near shore artificial and had a lot of action but it was hard to find keeper size sea bass. The guys stayed busy all morning and caught a couple of keepers, 3 sharks and many throw backs.

Hopefully the weather will warm up again and the wind will allow a trip to the stream.
 

Fishing Update 3/13/2006
 The Gulf Stream has started early as we thought with the warmer than usual winter the waters have warmed up at the break. Yellowfin, Blackfin and Wahoo were caught over the weekend. I went with a friend on another boat for a fun trip. We had a wahoo, a blackfin and a king mackerel in 220 feet of water (he must have been lost). Most of the good bites were south of us we fish north out of New River inlet but the water was bright blue and 75.5 degrees. If the weatherman gives me a break with the wind I am going to the stream on board Live Line this week and we will see how the new 300 HPDIs do.Give me a call if you are interested in getting out to the fishing grounds quickly and spend the day fishing rather than riding. I can't offer a comfortable saloon to sit in but I can get to the fishing grounds quickly and spend more time fishing. We also stop the boat when we hook up and allow the angler to fight the fish from a dead boat rather than dragging them in on heavy tackle with the boat moving.

 
Give me a call
Captain Mike


Update 2/5/2006
All upgrades have been completed to Live Line and the motors are broken in a ready to go. We are getting ready for the Gulf Stream season and if mother nature continues with a warm winter I think March and April will be good. The Blackfin
and Yellowfin should be around with the occasional Wahoo. I also heard the kings are still around Frying Pan tower in good numbers. The next weekend with light winds we are planning a tower trip for kings and grouper. Stay tuned for Gulf stream fishing it should begin in a few weeks.