Determined to test the legendary winter wahoo fishing out of Venice, Weston and I had been planning this trip for more than two years. We struggled to find fishable weather during the short time window of January and February, when big wahoo are found at Gulf of Mexico oil rigs some 15 to 30 miles off Venice.

Deepwater Rigs in Sight

Finally, Mother Nature was on our side, with a forecast of 2- to 3-foot seas. As we crossed into the Gulf through the Southeast Pass of the Mississippi River, a significant chop, seemingly left over from the previous week of windy conditions, greeted us.

Nonetheless, the ride in the high-bow catamaran was surprisingly comfortable, and with four 300-hp Yamahas pushing the boat at a cruising speed of 45 knots, we found ourselves approaching the first rigs within 30 minutes once outside the mouth of the Mississippi.

We found conditions marginal for wahoo at those first rigs, with greenish-brown water at 58 degrees F. Wahoo normally appear around Gulf rigs where water temperatures run at least 62 degrees and less than 86. Within that range, significant temperature breaks attract wahoo, which often frequent the colder side of such breaks.

“I look not only for temperatures more than 60 degrees,” McKnight says, “but also signs of baitfish on the big Simrad sounder. Some rigs are better at holding wahoo than others, so I spend most of my time on those.”

Despite the cool water at the first rig, McKnight felt it was worth a shot, and we set out a trolling spread consisting of two 30-wide Shimano Tiagras and two Shimano Talica II 25s, all spooled with 60-pound braid and 100-pound mono top shots. The skipper ran Rapala X-Rap Magnums, deep divers designed to reach 25 to 30 feet at 7 to 8 knots.

Most large diving plugs with large lips, designed to run consistently deep, will catch wahoo in the Gulf off Venice. Many pros favor Rapala X-Rap Magnum 30s, as does McKnight. “I find that these perform most consistently in catching wahoo here,” he says. Other popular diving lures include Mann’s Stretch 25+ and 30+, Bomber’s Saltwater Grade Certified Depth, Nomad DTX Minnow, and Yo-Zuri’s Sashimi 3-D Magnum.

Got Jacks? Move On!

It seemed that McKnight’s hunch paid off when, during the second pass, we hooked a fish that made a spirited run, though not with the characteristic drag-melting pace of a wahoo. After a 20-minute tug of war, we released a bicep-building brute of a jack crevalle, a good 30 pounds. We quickly cranked in the lures and moved on to try several more rigs with little success.

When we moved to rigs farther offshore, we found water conditions that were significantly better. Water temperatures here were around 68 degrees and offered the clear, deep-blue color we had hoped for. As we rolled up on a high, narrow rig, McKnight pointed to the depth finder, saying, “That’s what we’re looking for.” Lighting up the screen were long, slender images of fish stacked like cordwood in 80 to 150 feet of water.

As soon as our plugs passed the first leg of the rig, the right long rod whipped down and began vibrating violently as the reel screamed, the mono top shot disappearing in an instant.

I jumped from the back of the center console, where I’d been leaning, to grab the rod from the right gunwale holder, then watched braid melt away — 100, 200, 300 and approaching 400 yards. I glanced back at McKnight, a quizzical look on my face, silently asking if we might have to chase down this fish. The captain, with the calm voice of experience, said: “That’s a nice fish! Let’s get him away from the rig.”

Day’s First Wahoo is a Whopper

McKnight sped up slightly, angling away from the rig, until we had cleared the fish. Pulling fish at a slight angle away from the structure keeps them from reacting violently, as they’re likely to do when pulled at a severe angle away from the path they’re swimming.

McKnight’s maneuver kept the line pressure moving the fish’s head away from the rig and discouraged it from swimming into rig structure and cutting the line. Once we’d coaxed it away from the sharp legs of the platform, it was up to me. As I regained line, I could feel the strength and weight of the fish. Knowing wahoo are famous for vicious head shakes, and that they can easily unbutton themselves from treble hooks on plugs, I tried to bring the fish to the boat as smoothly as possible.

I could not imagine this fish having the energy to do anything more after the long first run of the fight. After 15 minutes, I had it within 100 yards. I thought the end was in sight, but the wahoo had other ideas, and scorched another run of 150 yards or so.

But this run proved different from the first, neither as fast nor as sustained; I could tell the fish was wearing down. With the same steady pressure, I continued to gain line until the wahoo appeared from the depths, about 5 feet from the boat. McKnight smoothly gaffed the fish and, in a single motion, lifted it over the rail.

Break Out the Bright Lures

On the second pass by the same rig, we hooked up again and landed another wahoo around the century mark, which hit the deck and found its way to an ice bath in the fish box. The skipper decided to change the trolling setup slightly, adding a pink Yo-Zuri Bonita on the right short.

Heavy, lipless, fast-vibrating lures like the Bonita and the Braid Marauder are designed to troll at a wide range of speeds, and McKnight wanted to give the wahoo a slightly different presentation with a tightly vibrating lure in the spread. Pulled on a spread close to the boat, just outside the prop wash, such lures make a great complement to long lines pulling lipped lures.

Capt. McKnight says: “Generally the brightest colors catch the most fish. It’s best to vary color patterns and types of lures to find the most effective combinations. If you’re in an area where you’re marking fish or where you know wahoo frequent due to current and structure, don’t be afraid to change color and lures to find what works best.”

At the end of the day, the long lines with Rapalas and similar lipped plugs caught the most fish. McKnight trolls these at a speed slower than I’m used to while fishing for these speed demons. Our trolling speed never topped 7 knots. “High-speed trolling just hasn’t proven to be as successful in the Gulf as it seems to be in the Atlantic,” McKnight says.

When an angler hooks a wahoo on a plug, it’s important to judge how the fish reacts to pressure and, if possible, discourage the violent head shakes for which these surgically toothed critters are famous. When some of the wahoo I hooked that day fought straight up and down, I could feel them opening their jaws and viciously shaking their head. Luckily, most stayed connected.

An Expert Trolls the Rigs Strategically

Combine the experience and skills of a seasoned captain with a little luck, and you can enjoy a phenomenal experience fishing winter wahoo out of Venice. McKnight fishes the rigs methodically. He starts by carefully determining the areas of a rig that hold fish and trolls plugs over them.

“Wahoo are ambush predators,” McKnight explains. “They like to attack from below, so something swimming directly overhead triggers that instinct.”

In terms of where wahoo are likely to be around a rig, I noticed we marked them mostly on the up-current side stayed on the up-current side of the structure. “Wahoo are definitely affected by current and feed more aggressively in faster current,” the skipper explains. He focuses his efforts where the current changes direction laterally, such as around the structure of an oil rig, or vertically, such as around significant depth changes that force currents upward.

We trolled around several other rigs without any action before returning to the rig where we had caught the largest fish of the day. As the Simrad “chirped” away, images of the wahoo we had seen earlier reappeared, though the fish now seemed more spread out. On multiple passes, we failed to get bit, so McKnight decided to change the direction and angle (relative to the rig) of the troll. Sure enough, on the next pass over the area, pulling lures in the opposite direction at a 30-degree angle to the side of the rigs, and passing within 25 yards of the up-current leg, we hooked up to wahoo and even some bycatch — a nice yellowfin tuna.

End of a Great Trip

Weston and I ended up with a fish box full of wahoo. One unusual aspect of our trip was an almost unheard-of 100 percent success rate in landing hooked fish. The trip back to the dock was quick. We made it back to the Southeast Pass of the Mississippi in 30 minutes, cruising at 48 knots. Unfortunately, we hit something just under the surface while running, knocking out the lower unit on one of the four outboards. The boat still made great time on three engines.

The great staff at Venice Marina cleaned our fish, setting aside a few wahoo steaks. We took them upstairs to the restaurant, where the chef grilled the wahoo to perfection — a fitting culmination to a fantastic day of winter wahoo fishing in Venice.

Tips for Planning a Winter Wahoo Trip to Venice

Give Yourself Time

The key to fishing in the winter, with the weather so unpredictable and many days unfishable, is to be flexible. I had cleared my schedule to have a six-day period in total to find a weather window. Secure at least a three-day booking with a charter captain in Venice who will target wahoo. We decided to book four days to ensure we could get at least two fishable days.

Look for a Package Deal

Venice is rather remote; there are houseboats available in Venice proper (the Lighthouse Lodge is about 10 minutes north of town). Most captains will book a package trip that includes lodging in a houseboat, condo, or one of the nearby lodges.

Stop En Route for Food

There are limited grocery options locally, so it’s best to buy essentials you’ll need before you arrive in Venice.

Stay in Contact with your Captain Beforehand

I called McKnight four days prior to our trip to get an idea about the weather and texted or called every day up to the first day of the trip. Because of unfishable offshore conditions, we moved the trip two days ahead and made it happen. When the weather offshore isn’t cooperating, you can experience some great inshore fishing for redfish. Many captains can substitute an inshore trip for a blown-out offshore one, many times at a lower rate.

How to Bring Fish Home

You’re likely to bring back wahoo from days you do get offshore. The Venice Marina folks packed the fish in flight-approved, insulated containers with cold packs to check on our Southwest flight from New Orleans. We neatly taped the boxes shut to keep the contents from opening in handling and flight. However, the TSA folks dismissed our handiwork, cutting the tape to check out the contents. We couldn’t talk them out of it, but they were kind enough to retape the containers. If you plan to fly fish home, make sure you allow additional time for the TSA screening. For us, the additional time was a small inconvenience for great wahoo steaks we had when we arrived back home.

Louisiana’s Wahoo Season

Areas like Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and San Salvador, in the Bahamas, have gained attention for the size of their wahoo, but what about the best bets for wahoo in U.S. waters? A National Marine Fisheries Service study showed that the catch rate for wahoo was the highest by far off Louisiana’s coast, with one wahoo caught for every five hours of offshore trolling. That rate is five times higher than catch rates off the North Carolina coast, and six times higher than off South Florida’s coast.

Venice wahoo are typically caught in the largest numbers during January and February, when they average 50 to 60 pounds, which is larger than in the spring months. You’ll find most charter captains who fish out of Venice recommend January and February as peak months for targeting wahoo, although the fish are also caught with some frequency from March through June, but only sporadically after that, until winter.

The post The Gulf’s Wintertime Wahoo Wonderland appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

My alarm rudely interrupted my sleep at 2 a.m. I launched from slumber and headed for my laptop on the table in the salon. Within a minute, I was reviewing the latest sea surface conditions from overnight satellite passes. The weather still looked great for a canyon run, but the water had shifted from the last clear images I saw a couple days ago. Now we would have to run to the Norfolk Canyon instead of the Washington to intercept a strong temperature and color change I knew held our best chances for tuna and billfish. Without that intel, we might have searched for hours in an area that held fish several days ago, but would have been a desert that day. 

In today’s world, if you’re not using satellite mapping to study the water and gather information in the days prior to an offshore fishing trip, you’re missing out. The ocean is a bit like a desert, in which most of the fish congregate in oases of favorable water conditions amid vast swaths of unproductive water. By doing your homework on ocean conditions, it’s possible to home in on likely areas and launch with a gameplan that can greatly increase your catching-to-fishing ratio.

How to Best Use Satellite Images for Fishing

Satellite images are an incredible tool giving offshore fishermen a way to watch the ocean’s movements and predict where to find pelagic species. By learning which indicators show conditions that concentrate fishing action instead of dispersing it, anglers can often predict when, as well as where, the bite is likely to be the hottest. As a warm-water eddy spins off from the main current, you can watch for days. Putting all that intel together will help you save fuel by spending more time fishing in productive water, rather than randomly searching the ocean for a bite.

Look for boundary zones to improve your fishing. Consider how the water is going to interact with the bottom structure. Look for indicators in satellite images that help you find the signs on the water that lead to that “20 percent of water that holds 80 percent of the fish.” Don’t focus too heavily on an exact temperature or color, think edges.

Find Waters Holding Fish

While anglers cannot see fish from satellites, they can see the physical conditions that fish prefer. Fish do not have an ability to change a thermostat, so they need to move with the water temperature they’re comfortable in. While tuna and swordfish have some limited ability to self-regulate their internal temperature, they move with favorable temperatures just like highly temperature-sensitive species such as dolphin and wahoo. Additionally, fish live to eat, and pelagic fish species have a knack for finding forage fish. Today’s satellite mapping might not be able to show you fish, but it absolutely can show the ocean conditions pelagic species prefer.

How to Read Sea Temperature Data

Temperature, color and altimetry are most useful for offshore fishing. Water temperature seems obvious, but satellite sensors can only see the very surface of the ocean, or skin temperature. During early morning hours the surface appears cooler, while after a hot day it appears warmer than the temperature displayed on your on-board water temperature sensor. And this is just the surface temperature. Don’t get hung up on the absolute temperature on your gauge or in a satellite image, rather use the temperature as an indicator of the features and circulations of different water bodies like the Gulf Stream’s warmer waters versus cooler coastal currents. 

Best Chlorophyll Levels for Fishing

Some satellites provide ocean color, while others provide chlorophyll concentrations—where more chlorophyll typically means greener water and less is clear blue water. This helps us to see the clarity and the plankton or suspended sediment content of the water. Satellites can measure the top layer of water down to as deep as 100 feet, depending on just how clear and clean the water is. The key is not necessarily to identify a specific color, but rather where the boundaries are, what the circulation is like and where the current comes from. For example, anglers rarely find yellowfin tuna, wahoo or marlin in turbid coastal waters. More often they are found in the cleaner, bluer offshore waters.

Does Water Height Matter in Fishing?

Satellite altimeters measure the height of the ocean’s surface. Areas where the surface is higher typically indicate a downwelling where the water is nutrient poor and less likely to hold fish. Areas with lower sea surface height tend to coincide with upwellings that have more life. Once again, use these images to focus on the boundary areas between highs and lows.

READ NEXT: How Fishing Charts Have Revolutionized Sportfishing

Fish the Eddies of Ocean Currents

Ocean currents like the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic or the Loop Current in the Gulf of Mexico tend to be comfortable for pelagic fish and the bait they love to eat. When eddies spin off these currents, the eddies often carry fish with them. Following the motion of these spin-off eddies is key to finding the best fishing conditions. Off the northeast US, the offshore season’s success is largely dictated by how and when these spin-off eddies come off the Gulf Stream and how fast they move west and south, before eventually being swallowed back up into the Gulf Stream.

Notice the Gulf Stream eddy labeled A in the image below (top). This eddy is circulating clockwise, while moving from east to west. Usually, these eddies hold pelagic fish like tuna, mahi and billfish. Ideally, anglers want to fish where the current pushes from deeper to shallower into a canyon wall. You can also notice that the sea surface temperature cannot be seen through clouds. The white areas in the image are cloud locations that have been removed from the image.

In the image above (bottom), from a few days later, the eddy has pushed west. I would choose to fish along the 100-fathom curve around the “triple zeros” of the Hudson Canyon. This is where the circulation is pushing good Gulf Stream water from deeper to shallow, creating an upwelling effect against the canyon wall which is likely driving bait toward the surface. I would avoid the area north of the Hudson Canyon where water is pushing from shallower to deeper water.

Marlin Fishing in an Upwelling

Upwelling is another condition to watch for. This occurs when current hits a canyon wall or seamount. The water must go somewhere, so it goes up and over the structure. This brings cooler, nutrient-rich water toward the surface, where the sun’s energy then grows the phytoplankton, which are eaten by the zooplankton, which then becomes food for the small baitfish, who then become feed for our target species.

Large-scale upwelling can be seen on the west coast of the U.S., but any upwelling is good, especially when it has been stable for a few days. Always try to track the circulation as you are looking at imagery and find areas where the water is pushing from deep to shallow. Baitfish and other forage are either attracted to these areas or are pushed closer to the surface by the upwelling, increasing your chances for finding tuna, wahoo, dolphin and marlin. 

Why Convergence Zones Attract Gamefish

A convergence zone is where two bodies of water come together. A divergence zone is an area where the water bodies are being pulled apart. Most of us have been lucky enough to see the visual signs of a convergence zone when our boat approached a weed line, or the edge of a strong green-to-blue front on the water, like the color break at the edge of the Gulf Stream. Generally, look for areas of convergence versus divergence along the edges of two water bodies.

When two bodies of water come together, one cooler than the other, the cooler water will go under the warmer water and all the sargassum and flotsam will create a weed line at this convergence edge. Bait is attracted to these areas, making it much more likely to find fish concentrated in the area hunting the bait. In a divergence zone, the weeds will be scattered and breaking up. While anglers still might find some life along divergence zones, the action is likely subsiding, as the bait is being dispersed instead of being concentrated. 

Where to Find the Best Satellite Images for Fishing

While you can dive into the internet and find inexpensive, even free satellite images, you most likely want to start out paying for a more complete service that helps point out optimal fishing spots. Engage these providers in discussions to understand what they are seeing and why they believe the bite will be at one location or another. This will help you to appreciate the sometimes very minor differences in satellite image data that will highlight your best chances for catching. Additionally, as these providers are typically talking with many fishermen in the same area you are fishing, they can help identify which water bodies have been holding fish or bait, again, increasing your chances for success.  

• Canyon Runner (www.canyonrunner.com) provides a concierge-level coaching service, including access to satellite images, weather and fishing reports. Their app allows you to see real-time locations of their pro staff and they highly encourage live conversations to help you develop a plan for your best chances for catching on the days you are able to fish.
• ROFFS (www.roffs.com) provides satellite images and oceanographic analyses to help direct your fishing efforts.
• Sirius XM Marine (www.siriusxm.com/marine) provides images and analyses directly to your boat.
• SatFish (www.satfish.com) provides low cost, easy to use satellite data in an app designed to help you view the images easily.
• Rutgers University (https://marine.rutgers.edu/cool/data/satellites/imagery) provides near real-time access for free to sea surface temperature data.

About the Author: Louis Chemi’s lifelong passion for fishing is deeply rooted in his extensive experience in the marine industry. From his early days fishing in Long Island Sound to his time as a captain and mate on various boats, Chemi has accumulated a vast amount of on-the-water knowledge. With a strong foundation in engineering and marine physics, Chemi has also applied his technical expertise to the fishing industry. He has worked in various roles at Raymarine, Simrad, Lowrance and B&G, including developing fish-finding services and designing marine electronics. More recently, he spent time growing Freedom Boat Club’s franchise business. Today, Chemi continues to explore new fishing waters and share his expertise as a board member of the Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation.

The post Improve Your Fishing with Satellite Mapping appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

The frigid seas of the Gulf of Maine are home to a diverse blend of bottom fishing opportunities, with species such as cod, haddock, and pollock routinely filling anglers’ boxes. However, famed Atlantic halibut are also once-again beginning to show in increasing numbers. 

Recognized as the largest member of the flatfish family, the Atlantic halibut inhabits a broad range, stretching from the icy waters of Labrador and Greenland across to Iceland, and down through the Canadian Maritimes. Within U.S. waters, Atlantic halibut are most frequently encountered by anglers in the Gulf of Maine. These demersal fish inhabit the seafloor at depths ranging from a few hundred feet to deeper than 6,000 feet. 

The largest Atlantic halibut on record was caught by a commercial angler in the early 1900s off the coast of Cape Ann, Massachusetts. It weighed more than 600 pounds even after the head had been removed.

The Crash of the Atlantic Halibut

Throughout the late 1800s, the growing population centers of the Northeast drove an increasing demand for fresh fish. In response, commercial fleets focused on Atlantic halibut for its impressive size, sweet flavor, and signature flaky texture. Records show that at least 12 million pounds of Atlantic halibut were harvested annually in the Gulf of Maine during this period.

Atlantic halibut are an extremely slow-growing species that require 10 years to reach sexual maturity and can live past 50 years of age. Over time, the extreme fishing pressure began to take its toll, and the U.S. population of halibut had all but crashed by the 1940s. 

Little effort was made to restore the fishery until the early 2000s when the New England Fishery Management Council stepped in to put in place a rebuilding plan, through tactics such as seasonal and year-round area closures, limited commercial and recreational harvest, and annual catch limits, the goal remains to get the population back to a target level by 2055. Yes, that’s another 30 years. 

Atlantic Halibut Rebounds

For an insider’s take on the current state of halibut fishing in the Gulf of Maine, I had the chance to connect with Capt. Bruce Sweet, of Sweet Dream Fishing Charters, based in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Sweet and his team routinely target Atlantic halibut along the Fippennies Ledge section of the Gulf of Maine, an underwater shoal located around 65 miles northeast of Gloucester. 

While the fishing is not consistent, Sweet says, “Over the last 15 years or so, the fishing is trending up; they are hardly abundant, but you are hearing about more and more being caught.” These days, strict recreational regulations continue to help Atlantic halibut maintain growing population levels, with only one fish measuring at least 41 inches able to be harvested per boat, per trip. 

Sweet also highlights that the surge in halibut activity has drawn increased interest from anglers, particularly as New England groundfish species have seen decreased bag limits for the past few years. 

Tips and Tactics for Targeting Halibut

For Sweet, the peak of his halibut fishing season occurs toward the end of May, into early July. The biggest reason for this is that once the Gulf of Maine hits a water temperature of 60 degrees, the area becomes inundated with dogfish and blue sharks that make getting any fish to the boat nearly impossible. 

Offshore shoals with depths of 200 to 300 feet, featuring gravel bottoms or scattered boulders, are great areas to start. While most halibut are caught as bycatch during pollock and haddock trips, targeting areas with abundant bait and other biomass is important. Along with Fippennies Ledge, anglers might also consider making the trip to Jeffreys Ledge off the coast of New Hampshire, where commercial tuna fishermen and recreational ground fishermen occasionally hook halibut that rise from the bottom to strike suspended live baits.

The massive specimens of the past are still a distant memory. Sweet reports that most fish caught by his clients weigh between 50 and 60 pounds, with the largest of his career surpassing 90 pounds. As a result, using the right gear to bring large fish up from deep water is essential. Anglers typically target Atlantic halibut with traditional three-sided Norwegian jigs, often accompanied by a series of teasers, ranging from 12 to over 20 ounces to account for current — requiring heavy conventional tackle to impart action and maintain bottom contact.

While the full recovery of the Atlantic halibut population remains uncertain, strict regulations and careful management are driving the species’ resurgence, giving anglers the opportunity to target these remarkable fish once more. With continued efforts, one day it may not take a trip to Alaska for U.S. anglers to wrestle with the king of flatfish.

The post The King of Flatfish appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

When Should I Fish a Jig?

In the yin and yang of tackle design, the development of specialized gear can be circular. Thus, with jigging gaining in worldwide interest and popularity, tackle manufacturers make better and better jigging gear. At the same time, with manufacturers making better and better gear, jigging seems to make commensurate gains in popularity. As a sport, jigging is a niche within the niche of saltwater fishing, and it has generated a range of reels and rods made especially for fishing jigs.

Jigging is now extremely popular for almost all offshore fishisng, except billfish. Bottom species such as groupers, rockfish and snappers eat jigs. The mid column and surface species such as jacks, yellowtail, mackerel, wahoo and mahi slurp a jig. Even the mighty tuna, with its species variety, attack a jig.

But all jigging tackle is not created equal: There’s gear made for speed jigging and for slow-pitch jigging. The difference, in brief, is critical because each method requires different gear. Speed jigging means relying on longer, thinner “knife” jigs that are worked upward with a rapid, rhythmic cadence. Slow-pitch jigging involves considerably more finesse; these jigs are moved with a quick upward lift, then allowed to drop a short distance as they take up the slack line created by the lift.

What Reel is Good for Jigging?

Types of Reels

First up in determining what reels will work best for your fishing: the type—spin or conventional. The majority opinion among experts suggests that for speed jigging, either spin or conventional can be fine. But for slow-pitching, think conventional.

“Slow pitch is all about finesse and sensitivity,” says Paul Chua, a jigging expert at Saltywater Tackle. It’s also about “understanding the underwater conditions, jig action, and currents through your line and rod to the angler. Conventional reels don’t have the gyro movement of a spinning reel and can better transfer all the movements of a jig to the angler.”

For speed jigging, Chris Wong, of Jig Star USA rods, also favors conventionals. The conventional reels not only handle heavier jigs better, but they also deal with the “brutality of mechanical [speed] jigging,” including dealing with big, tough fish such as yellowtail and tuna. “With spinning gear,” he says, “I found myself struggling to even turn the handle” after hooking such species. “Spinners struggle in this area, whereas conventional reels excel.”

Slow-pitch enthusiasts require lighter lines, often in the 20- to 40-pound range. Some slow-pitchers will go considerably lighter, seeking the thinnest braids they can find, to get jigs very deep—more than 2,000 feet for some Japanese experts, Wong says.

Jigging Reel Weight and Power

Jigging requires endlessly lifting reel and rod repetitively; lighter reels are a huge plus. The trend toward smaller reels for jigging has produced some remarkably compact conventional reels capable of holding plenty of surprisingly heavy line (it’s far more difficult to radically downsize spinners without losing key performance parameters).

“Once you’re over 20 ounces a reel, it gets to be a bit much,” says Benny Ortiz, a Shimano pro staffer. “Over 25 ounces, and it is too much.” He cites a time not so long ago when jig anglers had to rely on reels weighing 30 to 40 ounces (which in case your math isn’t so good, means a couple of pounds or more). Now, he says, he can jig 800 feet of water with a tiny lever drag weighing about 15 ounces. But Ortiz does caution against “sacrificing strength for light weight,” which in part is where the quality of the reel comes into play.

Fishing Reel Gear Ratio

Here again, the nod goes to conventionals because many offer an option for two speeds. The high speed (typically at least 6-to-1) helps speed jiggers move the lure quickly, and also works well for slow-pitchers, Chua says. The low gear, of course, offers power when winching a fish away from bottom.

Fishing Reel Line Capacity

Keep in mind line capacity as well. If you intend to use a rig for dropping into really deep water, you’ll want to go conventional because many hold far more line for their size than spinners.

Fishing Drag

Clearly how much available drag a jig angler needs has much to do with his quarry. For smaller fish, most good reels of any type are likely to suffice. But for bigger game, 25 to 50 or more pounds of maximum drag will help win battles. Chua says drag is particularly important with slow-pitch jigging because when hooked up, the reel tends to do most of the work. (In speed jigging, the angler relies heavily on the rod to tire the fish.)

The Price of Quality Fishing Reels

Performance differences between the two types of reels aside, cost can be a factor, Wong says: “It’s a fact that a premium spinning reel will cost more than a premium twin-drag conventional.” You want a jigging reel to be machined with tight tolerances: “no back play or handle slop,” as Ortiz puts it. He also says he prefers a taller, narrow-spool reel because it gives you a more consistent rate of retrieve. In wide-spool reels, the smaller line-on-spool diameter you’re left with when fishing deep means fewer inches per crank. Star-drag conventional reels are fine, but experts tend to prefer lever drags.

What is a Jigging Rod?

Jigging rods are designed for one purpose, Ortiz says: “to impart an action on a jig.” Not many rods truly do this effectively, he adds. A quality rod for jigging should, in Ortiz’s opinion, “have the ability to properly work a jig at various depths. The hallmark of a good jigging rod is an ability to effortlessly move a jig in deep water.”

Before picking out a jigging rod, Chua advises, “know where you’ll be fishing, with what types of jigs and weights, what line class, and in what depth and currents.” Also, “beware of manufacturers who rebrand inshore blanks with a reconfigured grip and guide layout, and then call them slow-pitch rods,” Ortiz advises. Serious, purpose-built jigging rods should show a rating both for braided line and jig weight. Some key parameters experts consider in rods for jigging include:

Rod Action

Wong recommends rods with softer parabolic actions for most jigging. That allows the rod to load up on the upstroke and release on the downstroke. “It’s this loading and unloading recoil the angler feels; this will assist in developing the rhythm that’s so essential,” especially for speed jigging. Stiffer rods can still function this way if an angler uses larger, heavier jigs. Chua agrees that a parabolic (“slow”) action is best; its bounce-back capability is useful and less fatiguing both in working jigs and fighting fish.

The Length of a Fishing Rod

For deeper jigging, Chua’s speed-jig rods range from just over 5 feet to 5 feet, 7 inches. He says in shallower water, where water resistance is much less, he likes a rod from 5 feet, 7 inches to 6 feet, 3 inches. Most slow-pitch rods run 6 to 6½ feet.

For speed jigging, Wong prefers short rods — 5 feet or a bit more. But for anglers using a less aggressive style than his, somewhat longer rods might be preferred, particularly with spinning reels. Song generally fishes 5- to 6-foot rods, noting that he prefers a moderately fast action in slow-pitch rods, with a “soft and delicate tip” but plenty of backbone.

A Lightweight Fishing Rod

In jigging, where anglers are lifting repeatedly for long hours, weight—as with reels—is key. Good jigging rods are generally light. Recent advancement in rod design and materials allows for feather-light jigging sticks that are remarkably strong. Chua cites jig rods weighing about 10 ounces that can handle 300-pound tuna—“no kidding!” He says nano carbon fiber and graphene are probably the most advanced materials available for jigging rods.

Many of these rods are available only overseas and at steep prices. It’s worth noting that most tackle manufacturers in the United States are now offering excellent jigging rods, including those specifically for slow-pitch enthusiasts. Examples include Accurate’s line of Valiant rods, Okuma’s Metaloid slow-jigging rod, and Shimano’s Grappler Slow J1 and Trevala S jigging and casting rods.

Picking Jigs for Fishing

Best Metal Jig Styles

For speed jigging in deep water, Wong recommends streamlined, tail-weighted jigs. “These get down fast and are less likely to be pushed around in the current.” But, he points out, these also have less action on the retrieve, so the jigger has to work them hard and fast to make them swim. Chua’s also all about bottom-weighted, or tail-weighted, jigs for speed jigging. These drop in a sharp darting, wobbling, sliding action.

Long knife jigs with a wider profile are Chua’s pick for tuna in particular; for grouper and amberjack, he’ll fish those long tail-weighted jigs. On the other hand, Song prefers short, center-balanced jigs for tuna.

Center-weighted jigs that are long, wide and flat are Wong’s choice for water that’s shallow or moderately deep. “These have a lot more action on the lift and drop. Their flutter also offers more hang time, which is especially valuable where shallower depth means less area to cover in the water column.”

For slow-pitch jigging, Wong likes the “original, wide-body keel jig, the jig that made slow-pitch so popular. It’s easy to fish and responds to all nuances of rod movement.” He also likes “short, cigar-shaped jigs,” particularly in deeper water. “When worked, these exhibit a rolling, tumbling action, different from conventional tail-weighted jigs. Chua prefers slow-pitch jigs that are flat on one side and rounded on the other.

Ortiz points out that “it’s a common misconception that slow-pitch jigs have to be short, fat and flutter a lot.” In fact some longer, narrow jigs work well for slow-pitching, and their shape gives them a very quick fall into deep water. “The trick,” Ortiz says, “is knowing how every jig in your bag will fall.”

Opinions vary on colors, but Chua mentions a preference for glow jigs that luminesce, particularly for deeper waters. As for size, many experts use jigs no heavier than necessary to reach bottom or any level they desire in given conditions. Chua also points out that, particularly with slow-pitch fishing, it’s paramount to match jigs, per their weight, to a rod’s action.

About the Fishing Experts Mentioned in this Article

Paul Chua: Born and raised in Singapore, Chua began joining fishing adventures to Malaysia when he was 11. Since then, he’s fished the world, and been in the jigging and popping tackle business since 2007. Chua currently lives in the Northeast and is one of the jigging experts, along with Sami Ghandour, at Saltywater Tackle in Sayreville, New Jersey.

Benny Ortiz: Florida-based Ortiz (@mrbennyortiz) is a jigging master, whose expertise and success in slow-pitch has made him a featured speaker at various seminars as well as the subject of coverage in many regional and national magazines. He’s a member of several pro teams, including Shimano.

Kil Song: Song has been described as a “jigging master.” Since 1980, the New Jersey resident has averaged more than one in three days on the water, many in some of the most productive jigging grounds around the world. Song operates the popular online specialty shop: jignpop.com.

Chris Wong: An angling enthusiast who also runs a fishing-tackle import/distribution company in his native New Zealand, Wong’s regular trips to Japanese tackle exhibitions have given him an appreciation for the development of speed (“mechanical”) and slow-pitch jigging. Since 2007, he’s been producing his own brand of jigging rods—Jig Star—with frequent trips to New Zealand’s Three Kings Islands and Ranfurly Bank, which are among the world’s toughest testing grounds.

The post How to Choose Jigging Fishing Tackle appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Thanks to harvest limits and voluntary catch-and-release, anglers have lots of opportunities to catch red drum these days, especially the adults whose tenacious and dogged fight has earned them the well-deserved sobriquet — bull reds.

Tipping the scales at an average of 30 pounds, adult red drum eat voraciously, consuming a variety of fish and crustaceans by quickly swallowing their prey and relying on crushers in their throats to prepare the meal for digestion. This aggressive feeding behavior can lead to deep-hooking and injury when anglers present natural baits on J hooks with weights and long leaders.

However, a veteran North Carolina angler named Owen Lupton discovered a while back that when he positioned the sinker a few inches above the hook redfish hesitate to swallow the rig past the weight. Also, the location of the weight provides leverage, enhancing the function of the inline circle hook.

Inline circle hooks — their points align with their shanks — work better than offset circle hooks, which tend to attach in soft tissues such as the tongue or throat, negating the rig’s ability to reduce deep-hooking. This kind of short-leader-circle-hook rig usually hooks bull reds in the corner of the jaw or in the lip, causing very little harm to the fish and facilitating a quick release. Some anglers opt to flatten the hook’s barb for easier removal. However, in areas with strong currents or turbulent water movement, bait retention on a barbless hook can be an issue.

Bull Redfish Fishing Rigs

Here’s the list of materials needed to build three variations of this terminal red drum rig:

• Mid-wire, non-stainless, inline circle hooks with a gap between the point and shank of at least a half inch.
• 80-pound- and 150-pound-test monofilament
• Double-barrel sleeves for 80-pound-test mono and .080-inside-diameter (size 4) single-barrel sleeves
• Plastic beads to fit 80-pound and 150-pound mono
• Three-way swivels, 70-pound test
• Duo-lock snaps, 1 1/2 to 2 inches in length
• Barrel swivels, 80-pound test
• Sinker slides
• No-roll or egg sinkers, 3 to 6 ounces
• Crimping tool

Snell a circle hook to a 10-inch length of 80-pound mono. Pass the tag end of the mono through one side of a double-barrel sleeve, a plastic bead, a no-roll or egg sinker, a plastic bead, one side of a second double-barrel sleeve and through the eye of a barrel swivel.

Then, reverse the process and pass the end of the mono through the unused side of the closest double-barrel sleeve, back through the beads and weight, and finish by threading it through the unused side of the double-barrel sleeve closest to the hook. The weight and the beads now lie between the two sleeves.

Position the weight so that it is no more than 6 inches from the hook. Pull the tag end of the mono snug, crimp the sleeves, and cut off the excess monofilament. Tie the main line to the barrel swivel at the top of the rig. You can modify this basic rig by replacing the no-roll or egg sinker with a sinker slide that comes with a clip to attach a pyramid sinker, making it suitable for surf fishing.

Three-Way-Swivel Rig for Bull Redfish in the Surf

Snell a circle hook to an 8-inch length of 80-pound-test mono. Use a double-barrel sleeve to connect the leader to one eye of the three-way swivel so there is no more than 4 inches between the hook and the swivel. Crimp the sleeve and remove the excess mono.

Tie the main line to the second eye of the three-way swivel.

Connect a duo-lock snap to the third eye of the three-way swivel, and clip the snap to a pyramid sinker of the desired weight. This version can be used for surf fishing and bottomfishing from a boat or pier.

The Heavy-Duty Rig for Bull Redfish

This variation of the short, circle-hook rig is used by Capt. Greg Hildreth who fishes the Brunswick-Golden Isles area of coastal Georgia and often finds himself tangling with sharks and even tarpon while pursuing adult redfish for his clients. The longer and heavier leader facilitates catching and handling fish weighing triple digits while also reducing deep-hooking of the bull reds.

Snell or tie a circle hook to a 4-foot length of 150-pound-test mono. Pass the end of the mono through a single-barrel sleeve, a plastic bead, a no-roll or egg sinker, a plastic bead, and another single barrel sleeve.

Position the sleeves, beads, and weight so that the distance between weight and hook does not exceed 6 inches. Lightly crimp the sleeve closest to the hook to fix it in place being careful not to damage the mono. Pull the plastic beads, weight, and top sleeve snug against the crimped bottom sleeve. Lightly crimp the top sleeve.

Finish the tag end of the leader with a double-overhand knot to form a loop. Connect the rig to the main line using a 150-pound-test coast-lock snap swivel. If you want to be able to change weights, replace the no-roll or egg sinker with a sinker slide to attach a pyramid sinker.

In most of the coastal Mid-Atlantic and Southeast, adult redfish cannot be kept. That means that each year, tens of thousands, if not more, bulls are released. It is the responsibility of anglers to do everything they can to ensure these released fish survive.

The short, circle-hook rig is so effective that hundreds have been given to anglers and guides as part of the Fish Smart Red Drum Conservation Project. Help make sure we have plenty of redfish in our future by using this rig and asking your friends to do likewise.

The post How to Tie Rigs for Bull Redfish appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show is happening right now. There, you’ll see lots of new saltwater fishing boats—eye candy to tempt avid anglers. But before you decide to buy that shiny new fishing boat, make sure you take time for a thorough sea-trial. That’s the only way to gauge how well the boat handles seas and fishes in real life conditions.

Any boat dealer or factory representative should be more than happy to host an on-water demo for a serious boat buyer. Rather than relying on a brief run outside the inlet during the busy boat show itself, schedule a day sometime after the show when you can put the boat through its paces and spend a few hours onboard.

Theres no reason not to follow this same guide when buying a used boat. At the dock, be sure to go over all of the boat’s systems including livewell setups. Create a checklist of the features and comforts you want, and make sure to tick them off as you walk through. After you’ve left the dock, ask the dealer or owner to let you take the wheel. This will give you the best possible feel for the boat. Here are 10 key factors to look for while sea-trialing a boat that you’re considering for purchase:

Fishing Boat Helm Visibility and Comfort

Determine if you can see well from behind the wheel at all times — at idle, underway or during acceleration out of the hole. A boat that rides bow-high or has a dash that sits too high for good visibility creates a safety issue. It also impairs your ability to see signs of fish ahead of the boat. If you can’t see well from the helm, move on to another boat. You should also feel comfortable at the helm, whether standing, seated or using a leaning post.

A Boat’s Acceleration

Make sure the boat climbs onto plane without struggling, when you punch the throttles. If not, it might be a sign of insufficient power, poor choice of propellers or improper setup (such as having the outboards set at the wrong height on the transom). In any case, ask the boat representative to correct the flaw, and then schedule a new sea trial.

Minimum Planing Speed of a Boat

It’s important to know how slow a boat can go while also staying on plane. This can make a big difference when you encounter rough seas and need to slow down to maintain a comfortable ride, but want to stay on plane for greater fuel economy. Try adjusting the engine trim angle downward and deploying the trim tabs or interceptors to determine the minimum planing speed. Look to achieve a speed of between 15 and 20 mph. If the boat will not plane at such speeds, you might want to start looking at other boats.

Fishing Boat Fuel Efficiency

Try running the boat at various rpm (revolutions per minute) to find where it achieves its best mpg (miles per gallon). This is often indicated on the engine’s digital instrumentation. For an outboard-powered boat, the best mpg is usually achieved at around 3,500 to 4,000 rpm. This will give you an idea of fuel costs going forward and, just as importantly, your fishing range, based on the boat’s fuel capacity.

Smooth Ride and Seakeeping When Boating

The ride comfort and seakeeping ability of the boat become critical in rough seas. You want a boat that slices as smoothly as possible through choppy water, waves and swells without taking excessive water over the bow or delivering a jarring ride. If the boat pounds hard or the nose tends to plunge through waves, try adjusting the speed, engine trim and tabs or interceptors to create a more comfortable ride. Sometimes you can correct for these issues with judicial helmsmanship. But if not, start looking at other boats.

A Fishing Boat’s Stability

Check to see if the hull rolls uncomfortably at rest or while underway. Put the boat abeam of the seas and pull back to trolling speed. How does the side-to-side motion feel? You will feel some rolling motion, to be sure, but it should not be highly exaggerated. If the roll feels acceptable, you have a stable platform for fishing. If not, you might want to look at another boat or consider installing a Seakeeper gyro-stabilizer to eliminate the roll.

Boat Handling

Few of the newer saltwater fishing boats handle poorly these days, but if you’re considering an older boat, particularly one of the early stepped-hull designs, make sure it corners safely at speed. It should turn as if on rails with minimal sliding or catching of the chine edge in mid-turn. As indicated earlier, make sure the bow does not stuff into waves while underway. Also check low-speed handling to ensure you can dock with ease and that the boat is responsive in reverse.

Reserve Power When Boating

Make sure the boat has sufficient and quickly available reserve power. That is, while cruising in the mid-rpm range, you have extra throttle available to accelerate out of danger. This can be critical if you find yourself suddenly faced with a rogue wave advancing from abeam or a large following sea while returning through the inlet. With extra power, a quick punch of the throttle can put the danger astern, but without reserve oomph, you’re left at the mercy of the seas.

Fishing Boat Top Speed

All-out speed is not always relevant to saltwater fishing, except in tournament situations when it’s crucial to quickly find a fishing spot or make it back to the scales in time. Still, knowing the top speed can be helpful, particularly if you find yourself needing to outrun an approaching thunderstorm while fishing offshore.

Keeping Dry While Boating

As you’re running the boat, note whether or not spray is an issue and, if so, in which sea conditions. Just about any boat will take spray on the windward beam in gusty conditions, but most will stay fairly dry when running down- or up-wind. If the boat takes a lot of spray while running into or with the breeze, that’s an issue. If everything stays dry, you’re sea-trialing a well-designed boat—one that you just might want to buy.

The post How to Sea-Trial a Fishing Boat appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Time to break those old habits. I’ll be the first one to admit I have some when it comes to ­fishing with soft baits. Often those habits take shape after successful trips. I think, “Heck yeah, I’ve got these fish figured out!” Then, on the next couple of trips, I’ll get skunked.

Soft plastic lures come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and colors, making them suitable for targeting a variety of fish species. They can be rigged in so many different ways, with new options being dreamed up all the time. Today’s soft plastic lures are more durable than ever; they can withstand multiple casts and retrieves without losing their effectiveness.

Techniques for fishing with soft baits shouldn’t remain static. The same old baits can stagnate in their effectiveness. Take advantage of better fish-catching opportunities by using different styles of fishing, trying new lures and techniques, or even considering a wider range of target species. Pick up some new habits.

Freshwater Fishing Lures in Saltwater

Daniel Nussbaum, president of Z-Man Fishing, learned the costly consequences of sticking to the same presentations, especially during slow fishing periods. “I was fishing in South Carolina with Drew Reese,” says Nussbaum. Reese is the former tournament bass angler who finished seventh at the inaugural Bassmaster Classic. “Reese caught eight quality seatrout in a row from the back of the boat, while I failed to get a bite on my three staple trout baits.”

Reese had chosen a finesse rig, also known as a Ned rig, similar to the style of bait he uses in summer for smallmouths at Lake of the Woods, Ontario. The rig consists of a ⅙-ounce Finesse ShroomZ jig head and Hula StickZ (a buoyant creature bait with rear tentacles). Nussbaum stuck with his lead-head Trout Eye jig head and ElaZtech soft bodies that imitate baitfish.

“At the next few stops, we quietly poled and drifted across several flats in search of schools of redfish, and Reese proceeded to boat several quality redfish while I struck out again,” Nussbaum says. “Reese expertly played the fish on his light gear with 6-pound braid, 10-pound fluorocarbon leader and light-wire hooks. He was putting on a clinic using Midwest finesse tackle and tactics.”

Nussbaum realized why the bass master’s baits and presentation were so effective. “Reese slowly raised his rod three times before allowing the presentation to settle to the bottom,” he says. “He always allowed the bait to reach the bottom at least once on each retrieve, noting that the bait standing up off the bottom and moving slightly mimics a small minnow dying or feeding.”

Twitch Baits as Soft Plastic Fishing Lures

A growing number of soft-plastic baits now come rigged with trebles, taking up real estate once reserved only for hard baits. Break the mindset that only hard baits can be twitchbaits or topwaters. The most established soft-bait brand to produce twitchbaits with trebles might be the one with Paul Brown’s namesake, now produced by MirrOlure. Some Gulf Coast anglers recognize them as Corkys.

“I think predators hang on to them for a bit longer due to the fact that they’re soft and more realistic in feel,” says Capt. Tommy Thompson, a past executive director of the Florida Outdoor Writers Association. “We use them only in colder weather, when big seatrout are moving slowly and want slow-moving prey that’s easy to catch.”

The Paul Brown line of baits recently introduced topwater models to complement its suspending twitchbaits. Thompson favors the Devil twitchbait model, with a built-in wire harness, ­single treble hook, oversize eye and short “rat tail” at the rear.

“Use a very slow retrieve, just keeping the plug off the bottom. A random twitch will cause the plug to die, and that’s when predators like trout and reds are more likely to attack,” says Thompson. “I’ve caught 60 trout on one, but it takes just a single bluefish to cut one in half. A 2500-class reel on an 8-foot rod with 10-pound PowerPro works just fine for these plugs.”

Use Weedless Lures All Day Long

Fishing with weedless soft baits is and always has been a productive technique in estuaries, creeks and other inshore waters. But for many, the jerkbait is just a single tool in the box when fishing in shallow waters. I propose that the jerkbait become your prized tool, like a hammer that’s used regularly in around-the-house projects. Make sure there’s always a rod rigged with a jerkbait and worm hook whenever you’re fishing shallow waters less than three feet deep.

“If you retrieve the jerkbaits fast, you can skim them on top for surface strikes,” says Adrian Gray, fishing photographer and creative director at the International Game Fish Association. “If you fish them slower, they suspend if not heavily weighted. Plus, they land softer than most hard-body lures and spook fewer fish.”

The inshore scenarios where weedless baits excel illustrate their versatility. You can cast them under mangrove overhangs or docks, on top of oyster beds or grass beds, or even along rock jetties or shore breaks.

“I find that if I have someone fishing with me with little experience casting to shorelines or structure, a weedless jerkbait affords the angler more confidence to cast closer to structure with less risk of snags,” says Gray. “Plus, worm hooks are far easier to unhook and better for releasing fish than a mouth full of trebles.”

Creature Soft Plastics for Saltwater Fishing

Picking the right soft plastic sometimes defies conventional logic. If fish attacked only the most natural-looking presentations, all soft baits would come from the same baitfish molds, utilize the same natural colors, and replicate one another. But colors such as LSU’s purple and yellow are popular in ­places like Louisiana. And at times, the bait that’s shaped like a french fry can ­out-fish the mullet imitation.

“It’s all determined by our dirty marsh waters,” says Capt. Dan Skermetta of Louisiana. “Those darker ­colors show up so much better than light, natural colors.”

Creature baits that mimic crabs, eels and animals that I have never seen on this green earth also generate a profile that’s easier to pick up in murky waters. Often the baits are rigged with a noisy popping cork 2 to 3 feet above the bait.

Anglers who fish tidal zones where fresh meets salt have the opportunity to catch both largemouth bass and redfish at the same spot. Flip a jig-and-pig at reedy shorelines for both species.

In the Florida Everglades, Capt. Ray Van Horn pitches mangroves for snook, reds, black drum, young goliath grouper and tarpon with Strike King’s Hack Attack bass jig coupled with a Strike King Rage Bug (creature bait) or MirrOlure Marsh Minnow (baitfish) trailer.

“It truly is a reaction strike [I’m ­looking for] when flipping to mangroves and undercut banks,” says Van Horn. “I use a 7½-foot medium-heavy casting rod with backbone and large guides to handle the GT knot I tie between my 70-pound braid and 80-pound leader. When fish bite, they hit it with ­authority and don’t let go.”

Catch Swordfish on Soft Plastics

The dirty secret that experienced deep-droppers only recently revealed is that eels are top natural baits for swordfish. Capt. Corey Burlew, a commercial fisher­man from Deerfield Beach, Florida, found that soft-plastic eel imitations are just as productive.

“The first day I ever tried the 18-inch Hogy eel, I had five bites and two swords landed,” says Burlew. “The next day I had five bites and landed three fish. Ever since, I’ve used them with confidence.”

Curlew uses traditional electric gear for the swordfish, but at the terminal end he adds a pink or black skirt to 300-pound mono leader before ­rigging the soft-plastic eel to two 8/0 Southern-style tuna hooks. He sews the Hogy to the hooks the same way he would sew a mackerel.

“What gives action to the eel when fished deep is the current at the surface,” he explains. “I’ll head up-current, say, into 3-knot current at just 2 knots, so the boat drifts slowly back, and that imparts action to the eel at the bottom.”

So far, Curlew has landed up to four swordfish on a single soft plastic, but averages closer to two or three fish per bait. “I’ve tried marinating the Hogy in menhaden oil,” he says, “but I haven’t noticed much of a difference in my catch rate between the scented and unscented baits.”

The post Not Your Ordinary Soft Plastics appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Maybe you’ve been slaying the fish every time you slide your kayak into the water. After all, you’re on the water every weekend. You’re the classic obsessed kayak angler. Then again, maybe you just really like to kayak fish and only get out when your busy schedule allows.

Either way, the odds are good you’ve heard that there are a bunch of kayak tournaments nearby, and you want to join the fun. Maybe the tourney results you’ve seen online or in print have you thinking, “The fish those tournament guys catch are nice, but they’re no better than the fish I tangle with on a regular basis.”

And if the competitive aspect of tournament participation isn’t for, you may be part of the growing contingency of yak anglers who participate in these events for the social aspect. Kayak tournaments are a great place to meet new fishing partners, share tales of the ones that got away, and build friendships with other anglers of all skill levels.

What Kayak Fishing Tournament is Right for You?

Now, you need to find out where these tournaments are being held, how to register and what details you need to pay special attention to that will quickly help you maximize the experience. Whether you’re “in it to win it” or just looking for a great way to escape the daily grind, kayak tournaments have a place for everyone.

One of the great things about kayak tournaments is their inexpensive nature. Unlike pro powerboat tournaments, yak tourneys aren’t about who can afford the fastest boats. For example, in no-motor tournaments, all anglers start out on a level playing field as long as you don’t have a hole in your kayak. The key to being successful truly lies in your ability to locate, catch and photograph fish in a timely fashion.

Keep in mind, today’s fully rigged kayaks often have multi-function display electronics (and possibly live sonar), plus propulsion systems in the form of trolling and electric motors. So be careful when signing up for kayak tournaments to read the rules — some tournaments allow more than others. Don’t take a knife to a gun fight. Competing against a kayak angler that’s rigged with 360-degree, sidescan or live sonar, plus a Minn Kota trolling motor, means you better be similarly outfitted. Fish-finding and vessel range are important in tournaments.

The majority of kayak events are CPR (catch, photo and release) format. This is beneficial to our fisheries as the fish are released to be caught again, and you are not burdened by having to drag a stringer of fish behind you all day.

Use Social Media For Fishing

So, what are the best ways to get information to locate the tournaments in your area? Today, many of us find that social media serves as the hub for almost everything in our lives. My number-one source these days for angling information is Facebook. You can get information about where the fish are biting, cool rigging tips for your kayak, new products hitting the market, and what kayak tournaments and gatherings are going on around the country.

I turned to a real pro to see how he got his start. Past Inshore Fishing Association champion, Benton Parrott, fishes more tournaments a year than the average angler. Parrott attributes his start to social media, where he saw different tournaments being discussed and thought that they looked like a good time. He friended as many people as possible who also had interest in kayak fishing, and next thing he knew, he was traveling from his home in Alabama to almost every tournament he could reach, from Texas to Florida. Benton is the exception to the rule, but definitely shows how the competition and camaraderie can be addictive.

Personally, my start was a bit different. I’ve been at this kayak fishing thing since the beginning. Years ago, I got my first kayak and set off to learn how to fish out of it. Back then, the only way to obtain fishing information was through magazines and seminars at local tackle shops. The problem was that those writing articles or hosting talks in shops had almost nothing available when it came to catching fish from a kayak.

Through one particular online forum I found my first major kayak series, called the Extreme Edge. By fishing that series, I became friends with anglers from all over the Southeast and met some participants who went on to become best friends. While placing in the larger tournaments is always the goal, it’s the friendships and experiences that last in my memory.

Different Types of Kayak Tournaments

Once you fish a tournament, you will be part of a network giving you access to as many tournaments as you care to participate in and probably a bunch of new fishing partners. These days, kayak fishing has become part of the mainstream, so now your local shops, TV series and magazines keeping close track of the kayak tournaments.

There are several different types of kayak tournaments. There are a few national tournament trails, plus plenty of regional series as well. Some are kayaks-only, while others are built into much larger rodeo-type events. Probably the most common are the club tournaments. While some fishing clubs put on a series of events, others concentrate on a big annual blowout.

Tournaments are great for anglers of all skill levels; most have a bunch of categories that give anyone a chance to walk away a winner. There are pro-style circuits that have little in the way of frills, but the payouts are great. You can be guaranteed that a bunch of kayak anglers from a large, surrounding area will be in attendance.

Then there are charity tournaments, events truly designed for the whole family. They have a ton of added value; you get a captain’s bag that usually has a tee or tech fishing shirt, a bunch of quality tackle and coupons for local merchants. Most have large, picnic-style meals. And even if you don’t place, raffles are loaded with amazing prizes, often including kayaks and great original artwork.

The post Getting Started in Kayak-Fishing Tournaments appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

I eyed a spot at the southwestern tip of the Cameron, Louisiana, jetties and made a cast. My lipless crankbait hit the water.

As the lure sank, I began my normal seven-count before making the first pull. I stopped at three. It felt as if the lure had hit a rock and got stuck, so I set the hook — just in case.

The rod immediately doubled over, the drag screamed, and for the next 15 minutes, a super-sized redfish put my muscles and tackle to the test.

Catching redfish is fun. Catching big redfish is really fun. And one of the best ways to do that in early fall is with crankbaits at jetties.

Gearing Up for Fishing Crankbaits

Endless varieties of crankbaits flood the market, especially for bass fishing, but the most effective crankbaits for redfish are lipless.

As the name implies, these lures feature no protruding lip, a characteristic that allows this kind of bait to be fished at specific depths. Lipless versions can be more versatile because the angler essentially controls the fishing depth.

Rat-L-Trap has long led the industry, but my favorite is the Super Pogy by Bomber Saltwater Grade. It comes with a high-pitch rattle that I’ve found effective. Other options include the Nobondo Lipless Crankbait, Nomad Design Madscad and Biospawn Rattle Bot.

Best colors include chrome, white/black, chrome/pink, and bronze. I use a casting reel rigged with a 30-pound green P-line braid tied directly to the lure because I fish in dingy water. In clear water, add a 36-inch fluorocarbon leader if needed.

I like a medium-heavy action, 7 1/2-foot rod but have a particular preference for its composition. I learned about this while fishing over the years with four-time Bassmaster Classic champion and living legend Rick Clunn.

Super-sensitive rods actually work against you when fishing with crankbaits, Clunn told me. A fish actually pushes the lure in pursuit; if you’re fishing a super-sensitive (graphite/composite) rod, you’ll set the hook before the fish actually has the lure.

Clunn collaborated with Wright & McGill a few years back to create the S-Glass Series of rods that incorporate traditional fiberglass technology with a modern flare. I use these rods for crankbaits and have had serious success everywhere from the Mississippi River near Venice, La., to the Cameron jetties.

With glass rods, I have had far more hookups than misses because I can’t feel the bite until the fish takes the lure. You’ll find numerous fiberglass crankbait rods on the market, and they can make a massive difference in the pursuit of redfish.

Location and Technique

Around the jetties, start fishing near the boat cuts [Ed’s note: Texas jetties feature breaks in the rock wall about halfway out that allow small boats through] to take advantage of reds foraging on baitfish moving between the channel and Gulf side of the jetty rocks. “You get shrimp, shad and crabs pushing through, and the reds will move in and feed,” says veteran jetty angler Bill Killian.

Anchor up-current of the cut and work the lure against the flow. “Throw it out toward the cut, let it sink a few seconds, and then reel it in as fast as you can. The pressure of the current will allow the rattles to work really well,” he says.

Also look for jetty reds in the deep holes usually found around the southern tip of the rocks and northward about 50 yards. At these spots, the current wraps around the jetty structure and carves out large holes. Reds congregate around large boulders that have fallen off the main wall into these holes.

Read Next: More Redfish Fishing Tips

Throw out the crankbait, let it sink to the level of the rocks, and rip it. I pull a few feet and then reel a couple of cranks. Repeat that three or four times and recast. The reds usually hit just after the first pull and sometimes on the fall.

While it might sound counterintuitive, if you see dolphins feeding in the area, that’s a fortunate sign.

In my logbook, I’ve noted dolphins feeding in the vicinity every time I’ve caught lots of bull reds. The times we had fewer fish, I saw no dolphins feeding. The presence of dolphins often indicates menhaden, a primary forage species for big reds.

Releasing for the Future

As everything from algae blooms to bycatch in the menhaden fishery puts pressure on redfish populations, catch-and-release becomes increasingly important — particularly for the big, breeding-size reds that inhabit jetty systems.

Scientists say the discard mortality rate for all sizes of redfish averages around 8 percent, though the type of terminal tackle used plays a major role. In general, lures deep-hook fewer fish than J-hooked natural baits.

In fact, one fish Killian caught at a nearshore gas platform off the Sabine Pass, which I tagged for Texas Sea Grant, made a reappearance three weeks later two miles away at the Sabine jetties. As the super fat bull redfish surfaced, Killian netted it. We quickly noticed a tag covered with slime.

I removed the growth, and my heart raced as I realized the tag said Sea Grant.

After examining our data, we realized it was the same fish Killian caught a few weeks before. It taught me firsthand that releasing big fish pays off, and I will carry that and deep respect for these bulls with me for the rest of my life.

The post Fishing Crankbaits for Gulf Jetty Redfish appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Sunup at Ferry Beach, near Scarborough, Maine, had us excited to catch striped bass. The Scarborough, Nonesuch and Libby rivers dump into the Gulf of Maine, and that’s where we wanted to be as the sun popped above the horizon. Summer warmth kept us comfortable as we launched our kayaks and headed toward the pass.

Nearby, we heard a huge splash from a mystery fish that no one was able to get eyes on. The whole group turned toward the sound. “Probably a sturgeon,” guessed nearby kayak angler Daniel McFetridge, Old Town kayaks’ e-commerce and digital marketing manager.

Fighting an incoming tide, most of us were using the ePDL+ drive that propels Old Town kayaks via a lithium battery. Of course, anglers can assist and pedal with their feet for extra power. Ryan Lilly, marketing director at Old Town, was the first one to the spot which was chock-full of underwater boulders and feeding stripers.

A strong incoming tide made the area really hard to fish. We had to hold position in the cut and make pinpoint casts. A kayak with a spot-lock trolling motor might have been able to handle it, if the motor was strong enough to stay in position in the heavy current. Maine regularly experiences 8-foot tides, with little slack tide between the rising and the falling.

With his ePDL+ nearly at full power, Lilly locked his rudder steering in place to slice into the current. He was then able to stand up and make long casts close to shore. Prospecting with a topwater, Lilly hooked up on his third toss. And then a couple casts later.

The rest of us couldn’t replicate what he was doing. Some of us didn’t quite have the battery power to fight the current, which then required us to pedal sitting down. And sitting down meant we didn’t have enough casting distance to reach the fish. I didn’t risk moving closer to the fish, fearing I might run into submerged boulders. Soon the tide began to slow, the bite shut down, and Atlantic sturgeon were jumping around us so frequently I thought I’d become a pancake.

It was one of the most unique ways I’ve seen someone stand and fish from a kayak. Lilly obviously had experience standing in a kayak, which is necessary to fish an inlet. But I never thought I’d see standing — not sitting — kayak anglers fishing inlets and jetty rocks during a roaring tide. The experience made me think of two other instances on that recent summer trip to Maine when standing in a kayak was better than just sitting.

The Path Forward

On the backside of an island in Casco Bay, Maine, we dissected a shoreline in a way that any veteran Bassmaster would appreciate. Joe Albanese, editor in chief at Wired2Fish, and I cast plugs, Z-Mans and Slug-Gos at fishy-looking grass edges and rocky shorelines in the lee of the island.

We stood in our Old Town Sportsman BigWater kayaks, recognizing the higher elevation was a huge asset in this type of fishing. In the background, gray storm clouds blew up like popcorn near the Sandy Point Bridge. We needed every bit of sunlight and height to find the spots we wanted to land our lures. Albanese struck pay dirt first when he landed a striper off some vegetation. The striped bass were definitely selective in the heart of the afternoon.

Here’s how I handled it:

1. Standing in the 3-foot-wide kayak wasn’t a problem. Most wide kayaks with a wide-flat hull are plenty stable to stand up in. Standing is more of a confidence issue than anything. When you trust your footing, you don’t overcompensate and cause problems. Utilize a wide stance and loose knees to ride the swells, just like in a bigger boat. I’ve fished a ton in kayaks; be wary of kayaks that are too long-and-skinny or seemingly too lightweight for their size. Those are the ones most likely to dump you in the water while standing.
2. Next, I set the ePDL+ drive on its lowest setting to slowly creep along the shoreline. Every once in a while, I had to make an adjustment to my course, but it was as simple as making a rudder correction with the hand knob.
3. Finally, the other key element was skip casting. This was not as technical as casting underneath mangroves or docks, but I still used that underhand motion to land lures close to structure without making a huge splash. Executing a skip cast while sitting in a kayak isn’t easy.

Later that day, fishing a different part of the same island, we had success casting topwaters at a sandy beach and nearby shallow-water point. Out in open water, it was much less about precision casting — instead we were fan-casting a general area, looking for bait school marks on the side-scan sonar. Of course, we were standing and stretching our legs while casting.

In the Marsh

Sneaking back into the marsh was a blast. A certain type of angler from Texas to Maine really digs exploring a maze of shallow waters in search of surprisingly large gamefish. I’m that type of angler. Ideally, kayakers should allow a flood tide to push them into the labyrinth. But first, always make a stop at the entrance. That’s what we did and landed a couple striped bass off a flat. I let the current and wind drift me along a fishy stretch to maximize fishing time. 

Then it was onto the creeks. We had a short window — as we were fishing the outgoing tide — before the water left the creeks entirely. I had luck with an oversize Z-Man DieZel Minnow soft plastic. It looked like a hearty baitfish, or maybe an eel. And I didn’t have to sit down to re-rig or retie. Just grab what you need and pop right back up. Even releasing smaller striped bass was easy while standing.

The exploration was productive. Standing in a kayak in the marsh allowed me to see what was coming next, such as a creek mouth, island or shallow flat. In many cases, we were able to look over the marsh banks and reeds to prep for the next cast, which is something you just can’t do while sitting. With the water dropping, stripers were exiting quickly in the deepest water they could find. We had to lift up our pedal drives to float out, paddling over the shallowest points.  

Standing in a kayak takes getting used to, but most anglers become comfortable quickly. Start with a quality kayak in shallow water, and work your way up. Soon enough you’ll be fishing moving water in passes and inlets with the best of them.

The post A Balancing Act appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.