Pensacola Fishing Forum / Offshore Fishing / Offshore Fishing - General Q & A

effects of Hurricaine Dolly

Ajerv — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 06:37:22 GMT

I understand the waters and surf have been rough from Hurricaine Dolly. Can anyone speculate on how this might effect the nearshore and offshore fishing?

Thinking of going offshore 7/25, any suggestions in the 5-8 mile range?

Coflafisherman — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 19:25:23 GMT

I was thinking about going offshore tomorrow the 25th. What about trolling the bouys, Liberty, Mass.? Any other suggestions and rigs I should bring?

Amberjack Setup?

ateupwitit — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:29:09 GMT

What type of gear do you guys use while hunting amberjack? i.e. reel,line,rod sizes, lead sizes, leader length, bait, etc.....you know what I mean give me the lowdown. I have been using a Okuma Titus 50 with 80lb line and 130lb leader mono rigged like I would to catch snapper with a 16oz weight and swivel 6' leader with a circle hook.

After this weekend I realize I need to upgrade my line and hook size. We landed many AJs including a 84Lber but we were broke off and pulled hooks too many times.......thanks for any input.

Trolling the Edge?

Polebender — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:21:23 GMT

We are going out Friday night to bottom fish. Was wondering if it will be worth it to troll the edge -nipple areas first thing saturday am for wahoo? Any info would be appreciated!

Jellyfish

Daydreamin — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:59:49 GMT

What the hell is the deal with all the jellyfish this year? :banghead

They seem to be everywhere and millions of them. Anyone know why and have any idea what and/or when they will be gone? There are so many I bet they will be targeted for reductions in bag limits and probably have a closed season (April - August?).

rigs off alabama coast

bigone — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 14:00:30 GMT

Haven't fish perdido/orange beach in awhile, last time went with a friend, we fished 10-15mi sw of perdido, tied off to some rigs , guess 30-60ft caught mixed bag. Will be bringing my boat from Destin this week, to fish with the wife and another couple. Thought the rigs would be gentle relaxing trip for the ladies to fish. Can you still use a rig hook on them, and some rigs better than other?, or pick and choose. They don't need anything big just action,

thank you,

Bait Boat O/B

cribbs55 — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 05:50:15 GMT

Where is the bait boat in Orange Beach? Headed out Saturday Morning wondering if anybody had a phone number or channel number to get in touch with the guy.

Red Snapper Season Regulation Change - Any Truth?

Reel Alimony — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:16:10 GMT

Heard from a good friend that the Red Snapper Season in Federal Waters may be extended to September 30th instead of the August 4th/5th date that wasinitially set for this year. Has anyone heard anything about this change.

Certainly would be good news if true

Harpoon or Flyer

Lil' Scout — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 22:52:38 GMT

Water sux so....for the sake of argument: Harpoon or Flyer for meat fish (non-tournament/IGFA) i.e. Tuna, Swords, Mako, Manatee...

I'm kinda partial to the Poon myself. :)

TLD 30II A

Jarhead — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 13:58:03 GMT

What's the difference between the Shimano TLD 30 and the TLD 30II A? The 30II A is about 40 bucks more but I'm not seeing any difference..

Newbie Needs Nearshore Advice

Hellcat171 — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 19:08:20 GMT

Hey guys first time poster...

I have just recently begun to fish (the last 4 years) I try to get out every other week. Mostly Me and a buddy do some wade fishing in the grass around Navarre. His dad has a 18ft CC. We have had moderate success trying the usual spots, the russian, the mass, etc.

My goal: to catch some better quality fish, like snapper, AJ's, macks etc.

My Gear: 113H w/ 6 1/2ft 20-50lb Penn Slammer. Currently I think I have 25lb mono.

Penn 6500 w/8 1/2 ft Key Largo "Mullet Spin." 15lb Ande Envy Green Mono

Penn 4500 w/ 7ft G-Loomis LR844S Med-Hvy. 10lb Ande Envy Green Mono

Penn 4200 on a Berkly cheapie ult light rod Good for Sabiki???

Penn Silverado 4000 on a Penn 7ft 8-17lb with 12lb Suffix Seige Neon Tangerine

I have 40lb and 25 lb Flourocarbon Leader material

I have 2 packs each 1/0, 2/0, 3/0 Owner cutting point hooks

I have 1 pack 5/0 Owner Circle Hooks

Some various lures, pims minnows etc, smaller jig heads, natural DOA Shrimp, weights, swivels etc.

My questions:

Can I use dropper loops to attatch multiple (2) leaders with circle hooks on cut squid in 80-120 ft with 2 oz lead for bottom fish effectivley. I thought that using 3 way swivels would be too much tackle.

What are your thoughts about big DOA shrimp?

I have been a big fan of live shrimp on any fish what about in this situation?

Lures to throw into baitfish for macks?

Thanks in Advance.

Looking for sportfishing charter

wrangler — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 15:55:34 GMT

I will be in destin this coming sat (july 26) and will be there for a week. I have been calling around and no one I can find on the net will do make up or grouping together trips. My family doesnt want to go fishing and I need to find a charter group that wants to target tuna, mahi, billfish etc. If anyone here can recomend a charter I might call that would do this or be interested let me know.

Need advice for offshore

Greenjeans — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 15:07:55 GMT

Guys,

If the weather forecast stays good I am taking my two sons offshore to do a little fishing on Monday. I am planning on the 5-12 mile range out of Pensacola Pass. I was wondering if anyone might have any advice on where to go as my time off is limited and dont want to waste time and gas unnessarily. I know GPS numbers are sacred so not asking for that, but was wondering if any of you might have any links to public gps locations that might be good to try.

Thanks much,

Dave

Alabama Deep Sea Rodeo

diesel84 — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 07:12:34 GMT

Just wondering if anyone has heard of any good fish brought in yet.

What is this bait fish and is it good for anything?

GregBR549 — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 13:02:47 GMT

We fish for bait out near the bouy out of OB. Many times we catch a very silvery, slick, no scale fish with a yellow tail that is flat and looks a bit like a jack. What is it and is it any good for bait???

thanks

Greg

what is it?

TeamAwareness — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 09:37:53 GMT

i am working today. its 9:30 on friday. i am on the 14th floor of beach colony in perdido key and i walk to the window the check out the water as i do everyday. i see these very large dark spots moving around anywhere from 300yrds to a mile out. and all of the sudden these spots will explode like nothing i have seen before! anyway know what it is. they streatch s far as i can see both directions, and i am watching boats just runn past these spots. i hate seeing this stuff and being land locked at work. :banghead.

wanted to fish the edge this sunday but...???

reddogg — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 22:44:26 GMT

i want to fish the edge this sunday but i dont have time to get to the half hitch tacle shop to get the chart with the numbers before they close saturday! can anyone please help? and maybe some other numbers in the same area (5 to 10 miles of it) im only asking for some public #s but if you want to give up some private numbers that would be cool too!! lol

Saturday trip

Brad K — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 13:28:18 GMT

We are headed out in the morning for a lil' bottom bumping then off to the edge for some trolling. Just curious how many baots are in the Spearfishing tourney, so I can figure out where we should go for a little bottom action.

We wanna try and stay out of the tournament guy's way. Don't wanna mess up anyones dive.:letsdrink\

Anyway, thanks for any help. We will be in the 27' Triton "Over the edge". If you see us hovering way away from where you are at, and don't mind us moving in, give us a call on 16. I think we will be headed West first thing. We can just never tell if a boats got everyone back on board or not, so we're a little over cautious.

Anyway thanks alot guy's and happy hunting tommorrow, looks to be a great day for shooting.

Greens hole question.

HOOKEM — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 12:44:58 GMT

Until now I have been fishing without a fish finder. I have always just went to the paradise hole and had great success. Well now I have a fish finger and want to try some different spots. Tried the greens hole once with no luck, but im thinking I wasnt really on the hole..Anyone have much luck there? Is it as good as the paradise hole? Also, if there are any well known spots in this general area and you would like to share some info, it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance

Mahi HELP

Jarhead — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 13:44:16 GMT

My sons and I have fished for years from piers and whatnot because I didn't have a boat. I've taken them on charters and fishing with my buddies every chance I got but they were always snapper trips. I've caught snapper and redfish until I'm blue in the face. I just bought my first boat and we went for the fish we always wanted to catch. Namely Mahi ! I've read everything I can and listened to every buddy I have about how to catch dolphinfish but as soon as I got out I realized I don't know jack. I put the lures in the water and trolled for hours never having any idea if this was even the right lure to use. It's hard to know if they're biting if you don't know if you're using the right bait. Considering that I've fished every chance I got since I was a kid it's hard to admit that I'm lost but I am.

We lucked up and got a couple chicken dolphin on a king lure. I left it in the water," like I was advised" and hooked one more but the rest wouldn't bite. At the end of the day I ended up with 4 fish in the box. My sons freaked and all I hear now is dolphin, dolphin.

What lures are best and I keep hearing that "Natural Bait" is best. On this show I watched this guy hooking live bait on the lure? Please, any advise would be greatly appreciated and keep these boys from realizing their dad is clueless.

Thanks

Semper Fi

Trip to Oriskany

Scott6 — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 19:51:03 GMT

Looking for someone with boat large enough to accomadate 7 experienced scuba divers to take out the Oriskany on Aug. 2nd 2008.

wahoo?

reelsmooth19 — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 18:45:33 GMT

Iam going out next weeken does anyone have info,how far out and any #. thank

What Should I Bring On A 3 Day Charter?

mdrobe2 — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 15:16:21 GMT

I lined up a fishing vacation for myself and 3 family members in Venice, LA. in August. I have posted about it several times, but I will give the details again. Capt. Kerry Milano with Outer Limit Charters. Focus is YFT with option to do that all 3 days or do a rig trip or an inshore trip depending on the bite and how much we enjoy the YFT trip. All meals and booze included with accommodations. I am compiling a list of things to bring since I set the trip up and probably have the most angling experience of any of us. Please post any tips about any aspect of the trip or just add to my list of what to bring.

List- non marking shoes, hat, sunscreen, cameras- digital and disposable, cell phone chargers, coolers to bring fillets home, sea sickness meds (pretzels, bonine, dramamine- non drowsy, electrolyte beverages like gatorade or propel, queze ease, ginger ale, saltines), cash- for paying the captain and wagering on the day's catch.

Thanks All,

Mike

Thank you

Jarhead — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 17:19:18 GMT

Man, you guys are freakin' awesome.:bowdown:bowdownI've been a member of this forum for a couple weeks and just can't believe the lengths you guys go to to help out. Researching topics and posting articles, pics, and even diagraming maps to help someone find the bait boat.. It's unbelievable!!! I think I've learned more in a week on here than 20 years of figuring it out on my own.

I wish I had found this forum earlier. It could have saved me years of trial and error and thousands of bucks on buying the wrong crap. Every time I check out a new thread I'm blown away by the amount of information, detailed descriptions and just plain generosity to strangers.. Some guys have even offered to take me fishing to show me things so I don't screw it up. Where in the world are you going to run into that kind of people? I have an extreme passion for fishing but am usually a little shy about asking for help but hell, you guys just offer, and are willing to go to some pretty extreme measures to do so, without a second thought. :bowdown

In this dog eat dog world we live in it's rare to find even one person willing to help out a stranger but it's everywhere you look here.. And I just thought it necessary to point it out. Maybe it's common place for you guys but it's brand new to me. I better stop, I think I'm gonna cry. :clap..:crying:reallycrying:bowdown:bowdown

First rounds on me fellas. :letsdrink:letsdrink
:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag:usaflag

The Russian Freighter

gotwake7 — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 10:24:46 GMT

Planning on heading out there this weekend, is any body catching anything out there, if so what are the methods. I would really like to catch a grouper where is a good spot to try for these fish. Any help would be great. Thanks

Stretch????

Matt09 — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 23:04:14 GMT

well idk if im doin somethin wrong or the fish dont like me???

i use the stretch 25 usually try the red and white one first, trolling about 7-8 mph, i dont go far offshore just threw the pass and maybe a mile offshore. i put them back about 30-50 yards, am i doing anything wrong? any suggestions would help alot.

Dauphin Island / Billy Goat Hole Question

NewtoBlue — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 20:56:49 GMT

My boat draws about 2 1/2 feet, when leaving billy goat hole from DI do you have to run out in the ship channel or can you cut down west of sand island lighthouse?

Dusters for king fishing

Ajerv — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:06:06 GMT

I know dusters are used when slow trolling dead cigs, but do you enhance the bite when you use them with LIVE cigs or hardtails???

Thanks.........

Live Bait vs. Trolling for Kings

bdmast2002 — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 16:02:00 GMT

Is drifting/slow trolling live baits (hard tails, cigars, etc.) that much more effective than trolling with stretches, dusters w/ dead cigs, etc.?

Also, is trolling around the buoys about as good of a spot as any?

I'm going out next week to give it a shot on my own for the first time and am just looking for a little advice from the "experienced ones".....

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I will post a report after I give it a shot next week.

Good fishing!

snapper rigs

bluffman2 — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 12:41:15 GMT

in the past few weeks i have seen about 5 or 6 different set ups for bottom fishing......

describe your setup from the main line down.....what size main line,swivel,leader and hook preference.....

im using 30#from reel to 80-100# swivel 5-6 ft of fluoro 80# and 8-10/0 circle hook crimped

weight above swivel

Need Charter Advice

HawgLeg — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 17:14:57 GMT

So the wife says I can't spend the cabbage on my usual inshore guides this year so I have to revamp and look for a cheaper alternative. As much as I hate going on a "cattle boat" it looks like that is going to be my only choice.

Any reccomendations on a bottom fishing boat with good results/reputation? It will be me, and my 2 sons (age 7 and 10).

Thanks!

nipple and edge

14offshore — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 19:58:19 GMT

What is biting at the nipple and edge right now. What do I look for, I have fished the nipple one time and only been there once. I do not have numbers for any structure there. i have only trolled it and caught a small dophin. Any tips, hints suggestions, or ideas as to what i might do to be productive. i have only bottomed fished the rigs and a few wrecks

Lead Core Line

bdmast2002 — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 11:03:26 GMT

Does anyone in this region troll for kings with lead core line? If I remember correctly it sinks about 4 feet per 10 yards of line (one color). Seems like it would be a good way to get baits deeper without having to use trolling weights, planers, etc. The only problem would be possibly not having enough backing for a long run on a big king.

Snapper saver

fmitchell — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 11:43:40 GMT

Ok - we all heard the new law about a venting tool and a de-hooker. How many saw $ signs? Well, here we have it - a guy from Alanta, Ga.figured it out! Embarrasing? Well, not really - good idea - YEaaaaaa! Check this out - and by the way - they are sold out at the present time and have about as many vender orders as they can count - One of these days I'll figure something out?? Anywayt here is the website -

http://snappersaver.com/

Big Snapper Baits

tjkelly17 — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 16:36:53 GMT

What is your favorite baits when targeting big snapper?

Offshore Trips

minkmaster — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 18:43:46 GMT

If you had enough guys together and were looking to go on a 36 hour charter in the gulf who would you go with and what time of year would you go? I just spent a week of Perdido Key and my buddy and me are already planning our next trip but this time it will be adult only. We want to go after some serious size fish. We limited out on your endangered red snapper in 10-20 minutes every day we went out and caught alot of mango and white snapper as well as some triggers. I would love some advice on this because it is alot of money for each of us to drop just to find the wrong guy.

Creature comforts are not important we want the guy that can put us on something that will try to kick our tails.

Anyone fishing on Saturday?

Shiner — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 22:09:14 GMT

We have been planning a trip fishing trip for this weekend for a while and it just happenned to fall on the same day the Blues are flying. How bad will the ramps be Saturday? I usually put in at Bayou Texar. I'll probably head out in the wee hours of the morning anc come in around noon. Anyone forsee any issues?

Are these reefs marked?

Hunt4Jesus — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 11:54:36 GMT

Well went out of destin last week and we went about 18 miles out. Along the way we seen about 10 or so rafts and circle floats. What the heck are they for. I guessed reefs that others marked, but anyone smarter than me know. I checked a few for dolphin but did not drop down. Did not want to be nosy.

Need help rigging

damdusta — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 18:28:41 GMT

I just need a few tips on how to make a set up for a ballyhoo. I know what the end en result is supposed to look like but i don't know exactly what size hooks, line or swivels, etc...... I think I have most the tackle for it already but if anyone has pictures or knows of a website that may shows a video of how to do it, that would be a great help. I am trying to go out Saturday what is the best place to troll that isnt to far out. THANKS

Tackle Suggestions for Newbie

specksnreds — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:47:23 GMT

I am beginning to venture further and further from the bays. Been catching a lot of kings here recently and have decided that I probably need to venture out a little more often. I'm missing out on some good fishing.

My current tackle once I leave the pass is a Torium 30 on a good snapper rod and a Penn 320 LW on a 30-60 Medium w/roller tip (I don't feel like this is a great matchup).

So, I'm a big enough boy to admit don't know a dang thing about rods and reels outside of inshore stuff and need some suggestions. I've never been one to buy the most expensive or high tech of things like fishing tackle, guns, etc. My dad bought me a $1,500 shotgun for X-mas one year and then proceeded to kick my butt in the back yard throwing skeet with and old 1930's Model 12 pump. I've always looked at fishing tackle the same way. I've seen dudes with a cane pole that can catch more fish in an hour than I can all day.

In any combination of what I've already got and new gear:

I'd like to have 2 good trolling setups that are big enough to handle a occasional Dophin and/or Wahoo because I will eventually be that far out. I see it coming.

And 2 good bottom fishing setups.

Not really wanting to spend much over $250 for any one setup.

I don't know that there's anything wrong with my Torium, and I like it. Just been looking at TLD 25's, Okuma Titus (SP?) and of course your old school Penn Senators.

I hope I'm on the right track. Anybody got any advice they'd like to offer I'd appreciate it.

- THX