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Fishing heats up this month with Cobia, snapper
Hello folks and welcome to paradise! There is a lot happening in the world of fishing in the month of April. In fact, a lot of people would tell you that it is the most exciting saltwater fishing month of the year!! First, chronologically speaking, in March the first cobia was caught at the Pensacola Beach Gulf Pier! Second, snapper season opens April 15 for state waters (inside nine miles), but federal waters do not open until June 1. So for a month in a half we will be fishing for red snapper within nine miles.
Cobia or ling are caught seasonally off the cost of Northwest Florida and start showing up in March and peaking in April and May. These large fish migrate from South Florida North in the early spring. Fisherman on the pier generally monitor piers like Panama City and Okaloosa Piers, and in earlier days the Navarre pier, to gauge when they will be arriving at Pensacola Beach. Since the hurricanes, the early warning network has been somewhat disabled, meaning catching the first cobia comes as a surprise.
There are two means by which you can catch cobia off Pensacola Beach. One is to buy a pass at the Pensacola Beach Gulf Pier and sight fish for them. Most anglers at the pier will fish at the end of the pier with an array of cobia jigs. Once a fish is spotted, the more seasoned fisherman will quietly cast beyond the fish jigging back. This technique requires excellent casting skills and practice. My friend Kenny Wade and his son crab cast on objects in the water or on the beach. For a demonstration of his skill Kenny casted out beyond an object in the water that was several yards away, jigged and returned a piece if insulation smaller than a paper plate in one cast.
 | | This cobia was caught on the Pensacola Beach fishing pier. Photos by Mark Clabaugh |
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The second way is by boat. In the early spring if you're at the beach on any nice day you will see all kinds of boats with towers running up and down the beach just outside the sandbars. Some days, the boat traffic is so busy it looks like a highway out there.
Now, aboard the boats cobia fisherman and women will use cobia jigs, however, some will use eels or live bait as well. My preference is live eels which do a great job of getting the fish's attention most of the time. Again, the technique is the same-casting beyond the fish and gently bringing your bait back toward the fish. Now, if you do not have a boat for cobia fishing, don't worry because Pensacola Beach offers charter boats that specialize in cobia fishing.
 | | Zac Strickland shows his catch. |
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The biggest fishing event for most people is the opening of red snapper season. Red snapper are generally caught in Gulf and Atlantic waters between 30 to 200 feet, using two hook rigs and snapper rigs. They eat live bait like pinfish, squid and many cut baits too. The technique for fishing red snapper is to allow your line to reach the bottom and reel up about eight laps or so. When you feel the bite, jerk your rod upwards to set the hook. Once you have set the hook start reeling because they fight hard and can tear off your line leaving you with a bare hook. If you are using a circle hook, the technique is a little different since you do not set the hook with a jerking motion, you allow the fish to take some line then start reeling.
Captain Buddy Rogers of the Reel Eazy on Pensacola Beach prefers a light tackle approach, which he has specialized. Captain Buddy will use a Calcutta 700 along with 20 lb or less line and rig it with a long shank hook and a 1.5 oz slip lead. Using a whole or half cigar minnow, he will send it to the bottom using his thumb to stop the line, fishing for short periods of time at different depths. When he gets close to the bottom, he says if you do not have a bite in a few moments most likely you have already lost your bait.
When the strike comes, he jerks the rod back hard and rather than cranking the rod he will lift the rod tip, and then reel the tip back down keeping the pressure on the line and fish at a minimum. This prevents the fish from tearing off or breaking the line. I have fished with Captain Buddy using this method and I agree it is very effective.
Another fish being caught a lot in our area, which gets little attention and is very tasty is sheepshead. Right now anglers are catching plenty of sheepshead on the pier and Bob Sykes Bridge. If you have a boat, the most popular spot is at Fort Pickens at the pier there. To catch these fish you will need a smaller hook and frozen shrimp or fiddler crabs. The technique for sheepshead is to fish along the pilings of the pier or the bridge, when you get a bite, set the hook and reel fast getting them away from the pilings. The barnacles on the pilings can cut your line fast.
Barbecued Cobia
4 8os Cobia Fillets, steaked
1/3 Cup Brandy
1/3 Cup Lemon Juice
1/2 Tsp Dried Dill
1 Bay Leaf
1 Med. Red Onion, Thinly sliced
1/2 Lemon Thinly Sliced
1/3 Cup Chili Sauce
2 Tbs Melted Butter
Combine brandy, lemon juice, dill and bay leaf in a shallow bowl. Add the fish steaks and top with the onion and lemon slices. Let marinate for one hour. Drain the fish steaks reserving the marinade. Discard the onion and lemon slices. Please the fish steaks on a well oiled grill over hot coals. Combine the reserved marinade with the chili sauce and butter. Baste the steaks every 2 minutes as they cook. Grill for 5-6 minutes per side.
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