Joined
·
5,608 Posts
Got the pleasure to FINALLY get Oxbeast out in the Gulf. He brought along Tom, sorry I forgot his SN.
I was late because I couldnt find my sunglasses but we met at the pier at dawn.
We unload and make bait pretty easily and head on out.
Tom hooks up first with a nice king and a remora. With the wind to our face we werent making much headway so they decide to stop dragging baits. I cant do that so Im pulling my mahi candy when I get a good hit. The fish is SMOKING my reel, I thought I saw a splash or two at the surface but couldnt tell if it was the fish or white capping waves. After gaining some line the fish stayed below me about forty feet down just thumping. Im thinking either a foul hooked king or bonita or maybe a BFT. I get it up just enough to see color. I think I see green and yellow but naw, it aint fighting like a mahi so its probably my duster. The fish makes another blistering run. After several minutes its down again about forty feet just thumping.
FINALLY I see color and MAHI. A nice one. Then I see an even bigger one, a big block head bull. I tell Oxbeast to drop down his duster and jig it.
The bull left so I told him to grab a live one. He sets his rod in his rod holder with duster still in the water while he fetches a livie.
I look over and see his rod bowed up. "He ate he ate." I yell. Because his drag was really tight he couldnt get his rod out of the rod holder. The fish skies about eight feet and spits the hook.
Meanwhile Im still trying to get my fish up. After seeing Adam get his sail I decided to add about a four foot piece of sixty five pound fluro to my main line to be able to grab and hoss the fish around instead of my punny seventeen pound test. I was finally able to grab the leader and sink the gaff on my personal best yak mahi. Whoo hoo.
We make way to our spot.
Tom is new to salt water fishing and a little apprehensive about bottom fishing. I give him a quick demo and pull up my first yak grouper. Unfortunately he was a little short and back he went.
I bait Tom up and hand him my rod. He hooks up instantly and gets a cobia about thirty inches. He didnt like the tippiness bottom fishing so he didnt drop again.
Oxbeast and I decide to drop a few times and we pull up a couple snapper. Nothing special in size. I also managed a small cobia.
We move on to another spot. Once over another cobia pops up to say hi and Oxbeast picks him up on a jig.
I drop down my trigger rig and pick up several but all too short.
I drop down some frozen cigs and get some snapper and a real treat, my firsy yak lane snapper and its a BEAST. The biggest lane Ive ever seen at about five pounds.
I tell Tom to troll around us and he hooks up several times landing a couple kings.
We then decide to head south and west and then north to hit the beach.
Tom, again the king man for the day picks up another king.
While he is fighting the fish I notice Oxbeast wiggling around a bit. I am thinking he is going to get something out of his front hatch. Next thing I know Ox is in the water and his yak is upside down.
By now the wind is dead calm and so is the water. Apparently in his perhaps not brightest decision Ox decides to stand in his yak and rock it back and forth testing its stability and goes in the drink.
On his third attempt he finally manages to scramble in the yak. A couple rods and some gear were donated to the fish gods.
He licks his wounds and we head on in. I pick up a king on the way in.
It was a beautiful day out there and Im so happy I could help Tom and Ox get on a few nice fish. Tom got his first king and cobia and Ox got his first yak snapper and cobia and I got my first WHOLE grouper and lane snapper and personal best yak mahi. Success in my book.
I met my wife and daughter on the beach and finished out the day enjoying the weather with my family.
I was late because I couldnt find my sunglasses but we met at the pier at dawn.
We unload and make bait pretty easily and head on out.
Tom hooks up first with a nice king and a remora. With the wind to our face we werent making much headway so they decide to stop dragging baits. I cant do that so Im pulling my mahi candy when I get a good hit. The fish is SMOKING my reel, I thought I saw a splash or two at the surface but couldnt tell if it was the fish or white capping waves. After gaining some line the fish stayed below me about forty feet down just thumping. Im thinking either a foul hooked king or bonita or maybe a BFT. I get it up just enough to see color. I think I see green and yellow but naw, it aint fighting like a mahi so its probably my duster. The fish makes another blistering run. After several minutes its down again about forty feet just thumping.
FINALLY I see color and MAHI. A nice one. Then I see an even bigger one, a big block head bull. I tell Oxbeast to drop down his duster and jig it.
The bull left so I told him to grab a live one. He sets his rod in his rod holder with duster still in the water while he fetches a livie.
I look over and see his rod bowed up. "He ate he ate." I yell. Because his drag was really tight he couldnt get his rod out of the rod holder. The fish skies about eight feet and spits the hook.
Meanwhile Im still trying to get my fish up. After seeing Adam get his sail I decided to add about a four foot piece of sixty five pound fluro to my main line to be able to grab and hoss the fish around instead of my punny seventeen pound test. I was finally able to grab the leader and sink the gaff on my personal best yak mahi. Whoo hoo.
We make way to our spot.
Tom is new to salt water fishing and a little apprehensive about bottom fishing. I give him a quick demo and pull up my first yak grouper. Unfortunately he was a little short and back he went.
I bait Tom up and hand him my rod. He hooks up instantly and gets a cobia about thirty inches. He didnt like the tippiness bottom fishing so he didnt drop again.
Oxbeast and I decide to drop a few times and we pull up a couple snapper. Nothing special in size. I also managed a small cobia.
We move on to another spot. Once over another cobia pops up to say hi and Oxbeast picks him up on a jig.
I drop down my trigger rig and pick up several but all too short.
I drop down some frozen cigs and get some snapper and a real treat, my firsy yak lane snapper and its a BEAST. The biggest lane Ive ever seen at about five pounds.
I tell Tom to troll around us and he hooks up several times landing a couple kings.
We then decide to head south and west and then north to hit the beach.
Tom, again the king man for the day picks up another king.
While he is fighting the fish I notice Oxbeast wiggling around a bit. I am thinking he is going to get something out of his front hatch. Next thing I know Ox is in the water and his yak is upside down.
By now the wind is dead calm and so is the water. Apparently in his perhaps not brightest decision Ox decides to stand in his yak and rock it back and forth testing its stability and goes in the drink.
On his third attempt he finally manages to scramble in the yak. A couple rods and some gear were donated to the fish gods.
He licks his wounds and we head on in. I pick up a king on the way in.
It was a beautiful day out there and Im so happy I could help Tom and Ox get on a few nice fish. Tom got his first king and cobia and Ox got his first yak snapper and cobia and I got my first WHOLE grouper and lane snapper and personal best yak mahi. Success in my book.
I met my wife and daughter on the beach and finished out the day enjoying the weather with my family.
