I've been off the Lagoon for almost a week now-- another infected cut. It seems like I've been accident prone lately. I did get some waders and I need some boots or shoes to go with them and I'll be back on the water.
I did go fishing on the beach tonight with my neighbor, Jim, and caught three nice snook. Here's a pic of the largest:
My biggest snook of the evening (click pic to enlarge)
Fishing Report 8-6-15; 7:00pm, ocean access across from Hermann's; Wind from Southeast, tide low outgoing; waves moderate. Water temp mid 70s, water clear.
I've just been surf fishing a few times and the most snook I've caught were two and today I caught three and a nice jack. I use the same set-up as in the Lagoon but I use a 3/8 oz weight with a 4" paddletail.
I just throw out looking for baitfish and burn the lure back in. It's hard enough for the snook to find the bait in the waves and wind so I just keep it in straight line. I do cast at an angle to try and bring the lure horizontally through more of the strike zone-- an area around the first cut (closest breaking waves). I've caught snook in 8" of wash in front of the first cut and within 30 feet of the first cut. You just don't want to cast out as far as you can- unless there's a bait pod deeper with feeding fish.
Jim and I went to the surf across from Hermann's and there were schools of bait all along the shallows breakers. I saw one fish feeding and cast repeatedly over a school of bait-- wham, hard strike, the fish missed. Two casts later, fish on!!! This wasn't big but it fought-- it was a 3 lb jack. I released it and kept casting to schooling bait.
Jim had fished North and came back to where I was. "Nothing going on there," he reported. He headed South and was moving fast, walking along, looking for bait and stopping to cast. I moved South 100 yards until I found another school of bait. The water was very shallow on the cut - maybe 1-2 feet deep max. There was a deeper troth back about 10 yards and the bait was swimming up and down the shoreline.
I was standing in a foot of water and burning my jig through the bait. I cast at an angle North, wham, fish on!!! The snook jumped completely out of the water and headed South toward me. This was a nice fish, a small slot around 28", I pulled him into the cut and waded out about 15 feet to get him. I took me three tries to lip him and lift him up. My neighbor was way South didn't look over at me. I released him and adjusted my paddletail.
I went back shallow to the shore and cast South across a big school of bait- wham, a snook slammed it-- spraying water across the surface. It went North fast and was bigger than the last fish pulling drag for 30 yards. I went after it as it went shallow and didn't get back past the first cut. It went along the wash with its dorsal fin stick out of the water-- another nice slot maybe 32". It was hooked perfectly through the top lip and I didn't lift this one up- just grabbed him around the middle and popped the lure out. Wow, two snook on two casts!!!
I walked back South to the same spot. Jim was very far away South and he hadn't looked my way. I waved to him but he didn't see me. I walked a couple yards South and the bait was still everywhere. I cast out at an angle South- nothing. Then I cast at an angle North - big strike, big splash, fish on!!! This was big, my drag was whining and the line was going out. He was headed North and I was losing line. He pulled out 80 yards of line and I started along the beach after him. I'm using 8 lb test so I need to be careful. I stopped him and he turned back south really motoring even faster than before. I walked along the beach South for over 200 yards after him. Jim was now getting closer but he was still so far away-- he didn't see me. I walked a couple hundred more yards more and the snook was tiring. I turned him and he decided to go out deeper but this time I brought him straight to me.
As luck would have it, a girl was walking down the beach with a cell phone- taking pictures with her camera. I called over to her and she and her friend stopped. I asked," Would you mind taking a photo of this fish for me?" She said, "Sure." I waded deeper and got to the tired snook who I'd battled for 15 minutes. I tried to lip him but he shook his head and my hand popped out of his mouth. he swam about 12 feet away and I pulled him back. I tried again, then I grabbed him with two hands. I lifted him and turned back to the girl. After I walked in a couple steps-- she took a couple pics. I gave her my number so she'd send the pics to me. I quickly released the fish. He seemed slow to move so I moved the water through his gills and off he swam to fight another day.
I walked several hundred yards South to where Jim was fishing- and told him about the fish. It had already grown longer and fatter but after looking at the pics it was just a nice snook over 40" long:
Jim and I fished our way back and he caught a nice ladyfish. We saw some other snook feeding but they didn't get hooked.
My totals: 3 snook, 1 jack. One of the snook was well over 40". A gr8 day on the water!!
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