I arrived at the south jetty late in the falling tide and fished for about four hours. Working fiddlers on a Carolina rig, red #1 and #2 lazer sharps exclusively.
Caught three keeper sheepshead (lost 2 more nice fish at the boat), four or five under-slot reds, one pompano, one fat keeper sea bass and a bunch of little ones, and two keeper black drum, one of which was my personal best and a great fight. Only kept the sheeps for dinner.
Lots of action all day, bites on almost every cast and I am starting to figure out where to cast and how to work the bait to avoid sea bass, sharks, and skates.
I would like to avoid the reds too as I don’t eat them and gut hooked one today…I cut off all the mono but the hook was too deep to get out. Anyone have a tip there?
How is Pompano to eat? I have not tried it yet.
Also went out the Tuesday before the hurricane, same spot, same gear. Caught Noah’s Ark. 2 reds, 2 sheeps, 2 sea bass, two jacks (1 bar, 1 crevalle), three bluefish, two weakfish, two black drum, and a bunch of little spots and grunts. That was constant action all day but the sheep bite turned off after mid morning as it often does for me.
I have always just cut the leader as close as I can with out pulling to hard on the hook and let them go! Have had a few grabbed by flipper before they got there bearings tho! I have caught a few with leader material hanging out of there mouths so I know there is a good chance of them making it.
I swear, I need 1 good day at the jetties like this to keep me excited to come back. I’ve suffered too many slow days out there. Were you fishing the inside or outside of the south jetty during the falling tide? Same on the incoming or do you switch it up?
I mostly fish wherever the wind and tide let me get in stern first since I have a wakaround. But there is one spot which produces for me consistently but I aint tellin! I will say moving around to have some current but not too much helps, and interfaces between clear and muddy water are good too.
I arrived at the south jetty late in the falling tide and fished for about four hours. Working fiddlers on a Carolina rig, red #1 and #2 lazer sharps exclusively.
Caught three keeper sheepshead (lost 2 more nice fish at the boat), four or five under-slot reds, one pompano, one fat keeper sea bass and a bunch of little ones, and two keeper black drum, one of which was my personal best and a great fight. Only kept the sheeps for dinner.
Lots of action all day, bites on almost every cast and I am starting to figure out where to cast and how to work the bait to avoid sea bass, sharks, and skates.
I would like to avoid the reds too as I don’t eat them and gut hooked one today…I cut off all the mono but the hook was too deep to get out. Anyone have a tip there?
How is Pompano to eat? I have not tried it yet.
Also went out the Tuesday before the hurricane, same spot, same gear. Caught Noah’s Ark. 2 reds, 2 sheeps, 2 sea bass, two jacks (1 bar, 1 crevalle), three bluefish, two weakfish, two black drum, and a bunch of little spots and grunts. That was constant action all day but the sheep bite turned off after mid morning as it often does for me.
By chance, were you fishing the submerged Jetty closer to Morris around 2-3 o’clock?
Good catching out there. Looks like you are getting dialed in!
re: would like to avoid the reds too as I don’t eat them and gut hooked one today…I cut off all the mono but the hook was too deep to get out. Anyone have a tip there?
Just as boatpoor says: cut leader as short as possible. Never try to remove hook IMO. I do a lot of T&R and track recapture reports on my gut hooked fish (happens to all of us occasionally) and often get recapture reports back of previously gut hooked fish - even those that were bleeding when I released.
Just caught a red yesterday that was in the process of “passing” a piece of mono. I’m assuming there was a hook attached and being “digested” slowly. Fish was healthy and released with a tag.
I tag fish for the DNR program. Last year I gut hooked a red and cut the line as close as I could to the hook, tagged him and let him go hoping for the best. Caught the same fish in the same general area 3 weeks later and the hook was gone, he looked great. This was up the Wando so water salinity wasn’t as high as at the jetty’s and the hook still rusted away.
