October 13 Fishing Report

This week, fishing felt like a Don Henley song.  In the Lowcountry, Sharks and Tarpon are the boys of summer and this week they were gone.  While I have not seen a Dead Head sticker on a Cadillac, I am pretty sure the boys of summer are leaving town.  In the Summer, catching Sharks behind shrimp boats is super easy and very reliable. On Saturday, I did not catch a single one.  After striking out on Sharks, I ran the Pathfinder just off the beach looking for rolling Tarpon. For the past few months, finding Tarpon on the beach has been a regular thing.  Saturday, there were none to be found.  

After spending Saturday targeting the boys of summer (and not catching anything), on Sunday I focused on a more available species, Speckled Trout.  In the Fall, Trout form large schools and feed aggressively. So, this time of year, they are usually pretty easy to catch. Thankfully, this was the case on Sunday.  The Trout were stacked up in the mouth of small creeks that were draining into the main river. Casting a Z-Man TRD or Trout Trick into the creek mouths produced steady catch and release action.  After releasing several Trout, the porpoise with the wonky fin that Brody (the amazing fish finding dog) scared off last week, returned. Brody was not on board. With no dog deterent, the porpoise swam right up to the boat and stared at me.  

Overboard! And a New Recommendation.

After the shark selfie episode, my fishing trips have been more sedate. Brody (the amazing fish finding dog) and I have been concentrating our efforts in the rivers and creeks. For the most part, the Trout, Flounder and Redfish have been very cooperative. All are readily striking a Z-Man Trout Trick rigged on a quarter ounce lead head jig. On Sunday, we were catching and releasing Trout at a rapid pace. After about 30 minutes, a porpoise (with a distinct notch in its dorsal fin) began following my Pathfinder around and eating the fish we were releasing. Brody did not approve and began barking each time the porpoise approached the boat. So, we left the fish biting and moved to another location. Brody and I used the trolling motor to slowly move along the creek bank and cast the Trout Trick to points and pockets in the marsh. It did not take long to find another school of hungry Trout. A few minutes later, the porpoise with the wonky dorsal fin found us again. As it approached the boat, Brody began barking and jumped into the water nearly on top of the porpoise.

Brody is not much for swimming. Thus, he wears a floatation device when we are on water. As it turns out, Brody is a good swimmer and likes being in the water. However, I was thankful that he was wearing a floatation device. The handles made it easy to lift my 52-pound dog back into the boat. After drying Brody off, I resumed fishing. The porpoise never came back. Brody is now the amazing fish finding and porpoise scaring dog.

On occasion, I discover something that is worthy of sharing. All my fishing rods are lightweight, sensitive and very expensive. Recently, I purchased a Shimano Sellus spinning rod. It is reasonably light, sensitive and costs only $49. That is 1/10th the cost of my normal fishing rods! If you are thinking about getting a new inshore fishing rod and don’t want to invest $500, check out the Sellus. I think you will like it.

Shark Selfie Gone Wrong!

On an all to regular basis, we hear about people that get injured or even die while trying to take a picture for social media.  This week, I was almost that guy. It all started when I decided to do a little Tarpon fishing. With the water beginning to cool off, Tarpon will be leaving the Lowcountry very soon.  So, I set out to catch one before they left.  

Step One was to locate a large school of Menhaden just off the beach and catch a few for live bait.  Step Two was to stay with the menhaden school because Tarpon, Bull Redfish and Sharks often follow their favorite food source.  Step Three was to pick up a 30-pound class spinning outfit and rig a live Menhaden on a 5/0 circle hook. Step Four was to use the trolling motor to stay in contact with the school and deploy the live bait behind the boat.  Step Five was to listen to the stereo, enjoy the weather and wait for a bite.

After about 20 minutes, the rod bent over double and a Tarpon jumped right behind the boat.  Unfortunately, the circle hook failed to set. No worries, I quickly deployed another live bait and settled back into Step Five.  For the next hour or so, not much happened. I was about to call it quits when the rod bent over double again. This time the circle hook did set, and line poured off the spinning reel at a torrid pace.  Whatever I had hooked was big. Really big. The fight was tough and the outcome often in doubt. Eventually, a 5-foot shark (not sure what species) came to the boat. My smart-self told me to take a picture of the shark swimming alongside the boat and release it without bringing it aboard.  My not-so-smart-self told me to bring it aboard and take a really cool selfie. I pondered both options and decided to compromise, leave the shark in the water and try to get a really cool selfie. I was about to take the picture when the Shark snapped at the hand that was holding my phone (apparently way to close to its face).  For a fraction of a second, its teeth caught in the sleeve of my shirt. Time slowed down. I distinctly remember thinking; this is not good. Quickly followed by; you are an idiot. Thankfully, other than a slight scratch, no physical damage was done.  

So, this week, there is no picture.  Should I ever have the urge to take a selfie with a shark, I will use a selfie stick.  Better yet, no more shark selfies!

Hero, Zero, Or Somewhere Inbetween.

Fishing Report 9/23/2019

Recently, inshore fishing has been outstanding.  Especially for Trout and Redfish. Now that summer is over, predators are feeding aggressively in advance of Winter.  So, they are pretty easy to catch. While Trout and Redfish are abundant inshore, they are often on the smaller side.  

This weekend, I decided to fish a “hero or zero” strategy.  Exclusively targeting larger fish and significantly increasing the chance of catching nothing.  When inshore fishing, I typically fish with a Shimano Expride 7-foot light action rod with a Stella 1000 frame reel.  This outfit is very light, sensitive and easy to cast all day long. When hero fishing, I use an Expride 7-foot medium action rod with a Stradic 3000 frame reel.  This outfit casts larger lures and handles hero-size fish extremely well. However, it weighs significantly more than my light tackle outfit.  

My plan was to fish at the jetties for the first half of the incoming tide.  When fishing with lures, clear water is important (so fish can easily see the lure).  At the jetties, the incoming tide usually brings clear water with it. On Saturday, this was not the case.  High winds and big waves stirred up the bottom sediment and poor water clarity prevailed. Undeterred, I selected a chartreuse Z-Man 4-inch Jerk ShadZ (the most visible lure in the conditions) and rigged it in a 3/8-ounce jig.  Then began casting the lure to the rocks. Two hours and hundreds of casts later, I had no bites and a sore elbow from casting the heavier tackle. I made a note that hero fishing is not as much fun as I recalled, took some Advil and started casting again.   Over the next 2 hours, I made hundreds of more casts, caught one small Redfish and made an appointment with my doctor to look at my elbow.  

On Saturday, I was not a hero or a zero.  Today, I am an orthopedic patient