04-27-2004, 03:58 PM
For most of the week, the windy weather gave us sea conditions that only those with a strong stomach would want to fish in. The fishing action ranged the full gamut from a struggle to good fishing. Dolphin are showing up with a bit more consistency, there have been decent size kingfish on some days, the sailfish action has been spread out over a wide area and if you stopped in the right place, the action has been great, bonito have been filling in while waiting for other bites, and the tarpon fishing has been excellent with the fish showing a definite taste for crabs on the outside and shrimp in the Bay.
Tuesday (4/13), the Sagsveen family decided that the combination of rain storms and windy weather was not a day they wanted to fish. With a Thursday night opening, we rescheduled for a tarpon trip.
Wednesday (4/14) we fished in wind conditions from the NW/NNW @ 24 - 31 MPH. Just north of the hotels on Key Biscayne, we got into a double header of bonito that kept Fabio and Jason Nick busy. Putting the baits back out, the short flatline popped from the clip when we reached 130'. The sailfish crushed the bait, spit it back at us, swam past the stern of the boat, and showed no interest in another bait we tossed at it. The next hit turned out to be a large houndfish. By this time the wind had reached a steady 30 MPH and Fabio decided it was time to head in.
Wednesday (4/14) evening, Doug Gamlin and his girlfriend Deborah Judy were looking to challenge some tarpon. By now, the wind was coming from the WNW/NW @ 23 - 26 MPH and the sea conditions on the south side of the jetties at Government Cut were very fishable. Try as we might, the fish were absent from this area. Once it turned dark and the tide started out, we ran into the Bay. The action was hot and consistent. Within minutes of setting up, Doug had a fish on that we released. Next it was Deborah's turn and she showed the 50# tarpon who was boss. Back to Doug and he landed and released another tarpon. The final fish of the evening was also landed by Doug. Deborah got the big fish of the evening and was giving Doug some good natured ribbing about catching the biggest fish. All the action in the Bay came on live shrimp.
Thursday (4/15) evening the Sagsveen Family experienced their first tarpon trip. On our first drift, Rob hooked up and we proceeded to work our way to the main channel. Just before the fish went over the drop off, we got the official catch of the leader touching the rod tip. With the catch out of the way, the drag was tightened and Rob found out about fighting a large tarpon. His great form and constant pressure soon whipped the 120# tarpon and after a 45 minute battle it was released. Back to the south side and no more action during the remaining daylight hours and first drift after dark. Once again, it was time to head into the Bay. Liz was next up and very quickly she got two great jumps out a 30# fish before it threw the hook. We watched several fish make a pass at our baits and not take them. Then a 70# tarpon gobbled the bait down and Liz was winding frantically to keep up with the fish. It made 2 great jumps, ran toward the bow of the boat and abruptly changed directions toward the stern. Next it ran about 30 yards before coming up again in a 6' high twisting and cartwheeling jump that pulled the hook despite Liz's best effort. AMAZED is the only way to describe Liz's reaction. Next it was Joey's turn. He had a fish pull the bait down, however, it didn't connect. All this time, Dad (Paul) was enjoying watching his children doing battle and giving moral encouragement. He was heard to say that he was glad that it was Rob and Liz on the fish rather than him, because his back was hurting him just watching them. Joey will be first up on their next trip. Hang in there Joey, your time is coming.
Friday (4/16) morning, Bob and Lisa Larsen from Arvada, Colorado wanted a half day of fishing for dolphin. The wind was NE @ 17 - 23 MPH. Catching bait was accomplished quickly with both Bob and Lisa amazed at how the bait would eat a sabiki rig. They had never used the rigs before and got the hang of it very quickly. Off we went straight out from Government Cut to 220'. During the first drift, the seas got the best of Bob. He hung in there and we set up a second drift starting in 300'. We heard of a few dolphin being caught from under a turtle, some king action, and lots of bonito south of Fowey. Bob's condition was not improving any, however, he still hung in. At 170' Lisa saw the sailfish shortly after I did. It knocked the herring off our long flatline. I quickly rebaited and threw out another herring. Just as the bait hit the water, the deep rod got hit and the sailfish was hooked up and none to happy about it. Lisa grabbed the rod, I cleared lines and the sailfish jumped several times, tailwalked in circles and charged the boat before reversing directions and heading seaward. This was Lisa's first sailfish and teamwork between us soon had the fish in photo range. Bob worked the camera and it wasn't long before we got some great shots of Lisa's first sailfish caught on 12# Cajun Red Cast Line and the new Pflueger Contender 7550 size reel. By now, Bob went as far as he could and we headed in for some calmer water. The south side of Government Cut was still too much for him, so we headed back to Spinnaker Marina via the Bay. Lisa still could not get over the fact that she had caught a sailfish, but she had the pictures to prove it. They are both looking forward to another trip with thoughts of calmer sea conditions next time.
Saturday (4/17), Nancy and I celebrated our 22nd anniversary. This is one of two days during the year when I do not schedule a charter. We took a Bay cruise (no rods on board) during the late morning and early afternoon. Saturday evening we continued our celebration by dining at her favorite seafood restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale. The years have gone by quickly and I'm looking forward to the next 22 years.
Sunday (4/18) we rescheduled our trip to next Sunday in hopes of getting calmer seas for Fred and Eileen Clark's grandson to take his first offshore trip in the Atlantic Ocean. I hope the weather Gods are listening. Sunday afternoon Nancy and I joined other members of the South Florida Fishing Club (SFFC) for a BBQ in conjunction with their Club Sailfish Tournament.
That brings me up to date. I've got both tarpon and offshore trips scheduled for this coming week. I'll keep you posted as soon as I can. I also have a few days available the remainder of April. Give me a call and lets go catch some fish.
Dolphin, sailfish, or tarpon, take your choice they all are being very cooperative. Throw in some kingfish, and what more can you ask for? Pleasant sea conditions, north current, and some good blue/green edges have given us the good offshore fishing. A good shrimp run on the night of the new moon gave us outstanding tarpon action.
Monday (4/19) evening was the night of the new moon. It gave us the same fishing action for tarpon as took place on the night of the full moon earlier this month. The shrimp ran and the tarpon were there to feast on them. Jim Lefevre from Stuart, Florida had one whale of a night. It started with the first drift and continued throughout the evening and included 1 double header. With NE/E winds @ 16 - 21 mph, we used the sea anchor to slow our drift down. Despite the windy conditions, we could see the tarpon blasting the shrimp off the surface. We had a total of 9 hook ups, 8 of which were on live shrimp, and 1 on a live crab. Of those 9 hook ups, we landed and released 7 fish ranging in size from 70 to over 100 pounds. In between tarpon bites, we also release 2 ladyfish that went 3 pounds apiece. It was hard to leave this kind of action, however, as I say, "All good things must come to an end", so we said goodbye to the action and headed in with visions of more tarpon pulling on the ends of our lines.
Wednesday (4/21) was a full day offshore. Our goal was two fold. One was to test ride in the 28' Whitewater, and the other was to catch a few dolphin for dinner. James Joiner from Coconut Creek was the angler and the first order of business was catching live bait. We ran the outside from Haulover Inlet to Government Cut so James could get a feel for the ride of the Whitewater. Next, it took some searching, but we found the herring inside Government and caught about 4 dozen baits. We started in 225' off the Monument Buoy and at 160' we caught and released 2 small dolphin. With good north current, the next drift was set up in 340'. It didn't take long before we had a school of decent size schoolies around the boat. We kept 3 and released 3 more. We ran out to under a frigate bird, which resulted in no action. Moving out to 400', we caught a 10# skipjack tuna. By now we were just south of the Miami Sea Buoy and heading north fast. Our next action came in 310' when a sailfish ate the herring on the kite and gave James a good workout after it realized that something was wrong. He made several laps around the boat before I released the sail. Setting up again, this time we slow trolled down a weedline with no results. Back to drifting and just before crossing the blue/green edge, we caught and released another dolphin. Back out to the blue water and another drift. I was live chumming and chunking with the dead baits when we saw a larger dolphin swim by the boat and eat our chunks. Quickly throwing out a live bait resulted in the dolphin eating it and missing the hook up. Another bait thrown out and by this time the dolphin found one of the flatlines we already had out and we added a 12# dolphin to the fish box. One last drift resulted in no further action and it was time to head back to Spinnaker Marina and fillet some dolphin for dinner. Both goals for the day were accomplished.
With the springtime dolphin season starting, the thing to remember is that you do not have to make long runs offshore to find the fish. On most days, the action will be in 400' of water and less. With fuel prices going up like they have, save your fuel money now for later in the summer when longer runs offshore will be necessary to find the mahi-mahi.
Depending on what section of the coast you are fishing, the reports range from a struggle to some very good fishing. The springtime variety is definitely there with dolphin, kingfish, sailfish, and blackfin tuna. The inshore action for tarpon has cooled down dramatically. The size of the fish that are there is very good, however, the number of shots is not. Most evenings, we are having to wait until late in the dusk period before we have our first opportunity.
Saturday (4/24) evening, as I mentioned above, we got our first and only fish late during the dusk period. The 110 pound fish ate a live crab and gave my angler all he could ever ask for. The jumps and screaming run toward the main channel had everyone on board jumping with excitement. Once in the Cut it became a slug it out battle. After 45 minutes, we had the pictures we wanted and I released the fish. The brief bite that took place had another boat getting 2 shots during the time we were fighting our fish. Then all became quiet.
Sunday (4/25) morning, Fred & Eillen Clark from Ft. Myers took their 12 year old grandson, Jacob Whitney on his first fishing trip in the Atlantic Ocean. The E/ESE winds @ 14 - 18 MPH gave us some bumpy seas, but Jacob had no problems with it as he likes riding roller coasters. Our goal was to catch Jacob's first dolphin. On the first drift off Haulover, we had a sailfish eat the bluerunner on the kite. Everything went well until Jacob came tight on the fish. It made its first jump and gave us back an empty hook. Then at 162', a flatline got hit and we had the dolphin on. The fish made about 10 jumps to everyones delight. After putting the dolphin in the fishbox, Jacob remarked about his arms and hands being tired from the fight. We all know how quickly our young children recover and within minutes he was ready for some more action. The next drift gave us a double header dolphin and Fred fought one while Jacob muscled the other fish in. With the morning over, we headed in and Jacob is already talking with Grandma and Grandpa about his next trip.
Monday (4/26) evening it was back to tarpon fishing. Once again, our first fish came late during the dusk period. Jim Lefevre's guest, Captain Rafael Apellaniz from Puerto Rico made quick work of the 60 pound tarpon, his first in Florida, but not before it made its way to the main channel just as a freighter was going out. Then the action got quiet for a long time. Late in the evening, we went over to the north side of Government Cut. The last drift before heading in did the trick and Jim worked his magic and showed the 80 pound tarpon who was boss. Both fish ate live crabs.
We're at the time of the year when the afternoon/evening trip becomes very popular. You get to sleep in, head offshore in the afternoon for action on dolphin, sailfish, kingfish, and blackfin tuna, then as dusk comes on, head inshore for some tarpon action. It's the best of both (offshore and inshore) worlds. If this sounds good, give me a call and lets get out and get in on the action.
Captain Dave Kostyo
Knot Nancy Fishing Charters
305 620-5896 Charter
305 732-2628 Beeper
www.knotnancy.com
nkostyo@bellsouth.net
[signature]
Tuesday (4/13), the Sagsveen family decided that the combination of rain storms and windy weather was not a day they wanted to fish. With a Thursday night opening, we rescheduled for a tarpon trip.
Wednesday (4/14) we fished in wind conditions from the NW/NNW @ 24 - 31 MPH. Just north of the hotels on Key Biscayne, we got into a double header of bonito that kept Fabio and Jason Nick busy. Putting the baits back out, the short flatline popped from the clip when we reached 130'. The sailfish crushed the bait, spit it back at us, swam past the stern of the boat, and showed no interest in another bait we tossed at it. The next hit turned out to be a large houndfish. By this time the wind had reached a steady 30 MPH and Fabio decided it was time to head in.
Wednesday (4/14) evening, Doug Gamlin and his girlfriend Deborah Judy were looking to challenge some tarpon. By now, the wind was coming from the WNW/NW @ 23 - 26 MPH and the sea conditions on the south side of the jetties at Government Cut were very fishable. Try as we might, the fish were absent from this area. Once it turned dark and the tide started out, we ran into the Bay. The action was hot and consistent. Within minutes of setting up, Doug had a fish on that we released. Next it was Deborah's turn and she showed the 50# tarpon who was boss. Back to Doug and he landed and released another tarpon. The final fish of the evening was also landed by Doug. Deborah got the big fish of the evening and was giving Doug some good natured ribbing about catching the biggest fish. All the action in the Bay came on live shrimp.
Thursday (4/15) evening the Sagsveen Family experienced their first tarpon trip. On our first drift, Rob hooked up and we proceeded to work our way to the main channel. Just before the fish went over the drop off, we got the official catch of the leader touching the rod tip. With the catch out of the way, the drag was tightened and Rob found out about fighting a large tarpon. His great form and constant pressure soon whipped the 120# tarpon and after a 45 minute battle it was released. Back to the south side and no more action during the remaining daylight hours and first drift after dark. Once again, it was time to head into the Bay. Liz was next up and very quickly she got two great jumps out a 30# fish before it threw the hook. We watched several fish make a pass at our baits and not take them. Then a 70# tarpon gobbled the bait down and Liz was winding frantically to keep up with the fish. It made 2 great jumps, ran toward the bow of the boat and abruptly changed directions toward the stern. Next it ran about 30 yards before coming up again in a 6' high twisting and cartwheeling jump that pulled the hook despite Liz's best effort. AMAZED is the only way to describe Liz's reaction. Next it was Joey's turn. He had a fish pull the bait down, however, it didn't connect. All this time, Dad (Paul) was enjoying watching his children doing battle and giving moral encouragement. He was heard to say that he was glad that it was Rob and Liz on the fish rather than him, because his back was hurting him just watching them. Joey will be first up on their next trip. Hang in there Joey, your time is coming.
Friday (4/16) morning, Bob and Lisa Larsen from Arvada, Colorado wanted a half day of fishing for dolphin. The wind was NE @ 17 - 23 MPH. Catching bait was accomplished quickly with both Bob and Lisa amazed at how the bait would eat a sabiki rig. They had never used the rigs before and got the hang of it very quickly. Off we went straight out from Government Cut to 220'. During the first drift, the seas got the best of Bob. He hung in there and we set up a second drift starting in 300'. We heard of a few dolphin being caught from under a turtle, some king action, and lots of bonito south of Fowey. Bob's condition was not improving any, however, he still hung in. At 170' Lisa saw the sailfish shortly after I did. It knocked the herring off our long flatline. I quickly rebaited and threw out another herring. Just as the bait hit the water, the deep rod got hit and the sailfish was hooked up and none to happy about it. Lisa grabbed the rod, I cleared lines and the sailfish jumped several times, tailwalked in circles and charged the boat before reversing directions and heading seaward. This was Lisa's first sailfish and teamwork between us soon had the fish in photo range. Bob worked the camera and it wasn't long before we got some great shots of Lisa's first sailfish caught on 12# Cajun Red Cast Line and the new Pflueger Contender 7550 size reel. By now, Bob went as far as he could and we headed in for some calmer water. The south side of Government Cut was still too much for him, so we headed back to Spinnaker Marina via the Bay. Lisa still could not get over the fact that she had caught a sailfish, but she had the pictures to prove it. They are both looking forward to another trip with thoughts of calmer sea conditions next time.
Saturday (4/17), Nancy and I celebrated our 22nd anniversary. This is one of two days during the year when I do not schedule a charter. We took a Bay cruise (no rods on board) during the late morning and early afternoon. Saturday evening we continued our celebration by dining at her favorite seafood restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale. The years have gone by quickly and I'm looking forward to the next 22 years.
Sunday (4/18) we rescheduled our trip to next Sunday in hopes of getting calmer seas for Fred and Eileen Clark's grandson to take his first offshore trip in the Atlantic Ocean. I hope the weather Gods are listening. Sunday afternoon Nancy and I joined other members of the South Florida Fishing Club (SFFC) for a BBQ in conjunction with their Club Sailfish Tournament.
That brings me up to date. I've got both tarpon and offshore trips scheduled for this coming week. I'll keep you posted as soon as I can. I also have a few days available the remainder of April. Give me a call and lets go catch some fish.
Dolphin, sailfish, or tarpon, take your choice they all are being very cooperative. Throw in some kingfish, and what more can you ask for? Pleasant sea conditions, north current, and some good blue/green edges have given us the good offshore fishing. A good shrimp run on the night of the new moon gave us outstanding tarpon action.
Monday (4/19) evening was the night of the new moon. It gave us the same fishing action for tarpon as took place on the night of the full moon earlier this month. The shrimp ran and the tarpon were there to feast on them. Jim Lefevre from Stuart, Florida had one whale of a night. It started with the first drift and continued throughout the evening and included 1 double header. With NE/E winds @ 16 - 21 mph, we used the sea anchor to slow our drift down. Despite the windy conditions, we could see the tarpon blasting the shrimp off the surface. We had a total of 9 hook ups, 8 of which were on live shrimp, and 1 on a live crab. Of those 9 hook ups, we landed and released 7 fish ranging in size from 70 to over 100 pounds. In between tarpon bites, we also release 2 ladyfish that went 3 pounds apiece. It was hard to leave this kind of action, however, as I say, "All good things must come to an end", so we said goodbye to the action and headed in with visions of more tarpon pulling on the ends of our lines.
Wednesday (4/21) was a full day offshore. Our goal was two fold. One was to test ride in the 28' Whitewater, and the other was to catch a few dolphin for dinner. James Joiner from Coconut Creek was the angler and the first order of business was catching live bait. We ran the outside from Haulover Inlet to Government Cut so James could get a feel for the ride of the Whitewater. Next, it took some searching, but we found the herring inside Government and caught about 4 dozen baits. We started in 225' off the Monument Buoy and at 160' we caught and released 2 small dolphin. With good north current, the next drift was set up in 340'. It didn't take long before we had a school of decent size schoolies around the boat. We kept 3 and released 3 more. We ran out to under a frigate bird, which resulted in no action. Moving out to 400', we caught a 10# skipjack tuna. By now we were just south of the Miami Sea Buoy and heading north fast. Our next action came in 310' when a sailfish ate the herring on the kite and gave James a good workout after it realized that something was wrong. He made several laps around the boat before I released the sail. Setting up again, this time we slow trolled down a weedline with no results. Back to drifting and just before crossing the blue/green edge, we caught and released another dolphin. Back out to the blue water and another drift. I was live chumming and chunking with the dead baits when we saw a larger dolphin swim by the boat and eat our chunks. Quickly throwing out a live bait resulted in the dolphin eating it and missing the hook up. Another bait thrown out and by this time the dolphin found one of the flatlines we already had out and we added a 12# dolphin to the fish box. One last drift resulted in no further action and it was time to head back to Spinnaker Marina and fillet some dolphin for dinner. Both goals for the day were accomplished.
With the springtime dolphin season starting, the thing to remember is that you do not have to make long runs offshore to find the fish. On most days, the action will be in 400' of water and less. With fuel prices going up like they have, save your fuel money now for later in the summer when longer runs offshore will be necessary to find the mahi-mahi.
Depending on what section of the coast you are fishing, the reports range from a struggle to some very good fishing. The springtime variety is definitely there with dolphin, kingfish, sailfish, and blackfin tuna. The inshore action for tarpon has cooled down dramatically. The size of the fish that are there is very good, however, the number of shots is not. Most evenings, we are having to wait until late in the dusk period before we have our first opportunity.
Saturday (4/24) evening, as I mentioned above, we got our first and only fish late during the dusk period. The 110 pound fish ate a live crab and gave my angler all he could ever ask for. The jumps and screaming run toward the main channel had everyone on board jumping with excitement. Once in the Cut it became a slug it out battle. After 45 minutes, we had the pictures we wanted and I released the fish. The brief bite that took place had another boat getting 2 shots during the time we were fighting our fish. Then all became quiet.
Sunday (4/25) morning, Fred & Eillen Clark from Ft. Myers took their 12 year old grandson, Jacob Whitney on his first fishing trip in the Atlantic Ocean. The E/ESE winds @ 14 - 18 MPH gave us some bumpy seas, but Jacob had no problems with it as he likes riding roller coasters. Our goal was to catch Jacob's first dolphin. On the first drift off Haulover, we had a sailfish eat the bluerunner on the kite. Everything went well until Jacob came tight on the fish. It made its first jump and gave us back an empty hook. Then at 162', a flatline got hit and we had the dolphin on. The fish made about 10 jumps to everyones delight. After putting the dolphin in the fishbox, Jacob remarked about his arms and hands being tired from the fight. We all know how quickly our young children recover and within minutes he was ready for some more action. The next drift gave us a double header dolphin and Fred fought one while Jacob muscled the other fish in. With the morning over, we headed in and Jacob is already talking with Grandma and Grandpa about his next trip.
Monday (4/26) evening it was back to tarpon fishing. Once again, our first fish came late during the dusk period. Jim Lefevre's guest, Captain Rafael Apellaniz from Puerto Rico made quick work of the 60 pound tarpon, his first in Florida, but not before it made its way to the main channel just as a freighter was going out. Then the action got quiet for a long time. Late in the evening, we went over to the north side of Government Cut. The last drift before heading in did the trick and Jim worked his magic and showed the 80 pound tarpon who was boss. Both fish ate live crabs.
We're at the time of the year when the afternoon/evening trip becomes very popular. You get to sleep in, head offshore in the afternoon for action on dolphin, sailfish, kingfish, and blackfin tuna, then as dusk comes on, head inshore for some tarpon action. It's the best of both (offshore and inshore) worlds. If this sounds good, give me a call and lets get out and get in on the action.
Captain Dave Kostyo
Knot Nancy Fishing Charters
305 620-5896 Charter
305 732-2628 Beeper
www.knotnancy.com
nkostyo@bellsouth.net
[signature]