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Hook grouper till Snapper season starts
Hello Folks, well winter is ending and spring is coming! What does that mean for us wanting to do some fishing? Well, we have a few yummy options whether we are fishing from the shore or a boat.
Fishing offshore
Red Snapper season is closed till April 22nd, however, there are many species that are still in season if you can get past all the hungry Red Snapper. Getting past them, well that is the trick if you want bottom fish such as Triggerfish or Grouper which are both doing well on the wrecks that survived Ivan. Aboard the Reel Eazy with Captain Buddy Rogers the trick to trigger fish is easy. Captain Buddy has his crew rig up 2 hook bottom rigs with a 6oz lead. The hooks are very small and he stresses small squares of cut squid. This does not eliminate the snapper, h owe ve r, they are not as
enticed by larger more attractive baits.
Fishing with Captain Buddy for Grouper
Captain Buddy will pull out
some
old Bonito
Slabs cutting them into larger strips or use live bait where he can get it. The large strips of bonito are again not as attractive to the Red Snapper however; it is a good meal for a waiting hungry Grouper hiding on the bottom.
Amberjack is another great offshore catch in the wintertime and since the baitfish have been thin during the winter are easier to catch with a jig. When fishing Amberjack, drop your rig about 3/4 way to the bottom while fishing a taller wreck and quickly jig your bait back to the top. Hold on though, these fish can fight! Another option right now is to catch some squirrel fish or other type of bait fish off of a wreck somewhere then take them to your wreck where you are wanting to fish. It is my experience that Amberjack are less likely to eat baitfish caught from the same wreck, which I believe they are plentiful and not as attractive there.
The inshore captains will tell you that there are some keeper redfish and speckle trout out on the grass flats. There has not been a lot of pressure and the water has been really nice for fishing. This time of the year they are really keen on some small diving plugs as well as bull minnows. If you are fishing at night around some lights fish a few feet down with live shrimp.
On the pier they are catching redfish off the 2nd sandbar using cut bait such as menhadden or cut mullet. Smellier the better! The best rig is one that allows your bait to float away from the lead. I usually tie my lead to a loop about 18 to 24 inches above the hook. Pompano are also eating off the sand bars and are taking small plugs site fishing or small sand fleas if you are fishing the bottom for them. Most of the pompano are being caught about 50 yards or more from the beach in the shallow bar area. If you are into flounder you can catch them with live shrimp near the pilings or use a small plug with a taste of shrimp bumping it along the bottom slowly.
That is what we expect to catch for the next month, however we are looking forward to some exciting fishing here soon too. Cobia season which is just around the corner and we will be more than happy to report to you when the first one is caught from the Pensacola Beach Gulf Pier which is still open. Also, Snapper season opens April 22nd which I can guarantee there will be a hot bite with all the reduced pressure.
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