With the overwhelming response for the first "Chew On This Fishing Show." I have already begun work on the next episode called "Inshore Grouper Slamming," Be on the lookout.
After 3 weeks of miserably cold weather here in SW Florida. I finally got a chance to get out on the water during a warming trend. Sometimes it is nice to get a break but three weeks is well beyond what I would call a little break.
On Sunday night, fellow Florida Sportsman member MirrorLure7m (aka)Joel Instant Messaged me to find out when I would be back on the water. Well, he sure has good timing because I was going out the next day and invited him to come along. Joel was so excited to go out that he didn't even sleep the night before. Hopefully he will have enough strength to tackle some Mogans.
We left the house with everything from the 30 to 50 pound class Man O' War to the 8-17 pound class Cape Fear Advance Techs with Mega Lite Spinners. I just wasn't sure what we were going to do when we got out there. But I knew we were going to have a good time just being on the water. Our trip to the Causeway from the river took alot longer than usual. The fog was so thick I could only see 50 feet at best. For the most part, I usually never use the map function on my Lowrance GPS. I sure used it this time though. I never knew how important they can be. Once we made it through the river the bay was a bit better to navigate. However it was still fairly foggy.
Eventually, we made it to the Causeway for bait. Joel spotted some Threadfin flickering on top of the water and in one cast we had 50 Threadfin in the well. I didn't think 50 would be enough so we kept looking for more bait. After a short move I threw one cast and we put at least 150 more bait in the well. I love it when I can load the well so easy. Unfortunately the Pathfinder only has one well and I have to be careful not to overload it or they will all die.
Next, I decided to go after inshore grouper. The first stop we made was a big fat zero, nothing, nada, not even a hit. I don't know what happened to it but for some reason it sure has dried up. So off we went to the next spot and that was the ticket by far. The very first bait I tossed into the hole was eaten and I missed the hook set. The second bait I tossed up to the hole was inhaled instantly as it hit the water. I set the hook and within one second was busted off. Shear bruisers were in there and my heart was pounding. Joel missed a fish and when he rebaited and tossed his Thread in the hole, SLAM!! the drag started screaming and the fish was heading for structure. Joel dropped his rod tip and applied full pressure and the fish turned. After a couple of short runs Joel landed a nice 21 inch Grouper. We continued to chum the area with live Threads and soon the water was just boiling. Unfortunately for us, everytime we hooked into a big one we would get busted off. We only managed 4 to the boat before the bite halted.
Once the bite slowed we decided to move down the bank. I was sure we were going to lay into some Snook. As our luck would have it, we didn't get one decent bite the whole bank. I looked over at Joel and said "let's go back to the grouper hole." He agreed and off we went. After repostioning the boat a couple of times to get the right angle. The match was on, and I mean ON! It seemed every bait that made it to the Grouper Lair was destroyed. Joel was the first one to win a battle. He took his Thread and tossed it to the hole, POW!! Joel's drag screamed and his rod bent over double. He pumped the fish hard and after a hard fight Joel landed a nice 23 inch Grouper. You would have thought he had a 15 pound Snook the way the grouper bent his rod over double.
Finally, it was my turn to tangle with the Slammers. Sure enough, I tossed my Thread into the hole, WHAM!! Shear Power is all I can say about the brute strength of a big grouper. He bent my Cape Fear in two. I pulled with all my might and he pulled with all his. After exchanging several blows, I began to gain a little on the big boy. When he surfaced I knew he was 12 plus pounds. What a fight. He was the biggest inshore grouper I have ever caught and at 13 pounds he is going to be one great dinner. With an ear to ear smiled I posed for the picture. Once everything was said and done I was still shaking from the battle. In a word AWESOME.
In conclusion, what a great day! I really couldn't have asked for much better. Especially after being off of the water for 2 plus weeks. As I write this I am still shaking my head in disbelief of the shear power those fish displayed. I am honored to have landed the one big Slammer that I did. To all of those other Grouper who have my hooks in their lips as some sort of jewelry, look out because I am coming back.
Until next time may you have line singing, leader fraying, and
tackle busting action!!!!
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