40-POUND PIKE BREAKS IDAHO RECORD! BLACK SEA BASS OPEN YEAR-ROUND IN SOUTH ATLANTIC

Black sea bass o en y under the radar for anglers o the coast of the Southeast. Perhaps it’s because their size and numbers are thickest in the middle of winter, when it’s not as pleasant to be on the water? Or maybe it’s because they don’t grow as a large as the other grouper species that inhabit our wrecks and reefs?

This 40.76-pound northern pike is a new Idaho state record. It beat the existing 13-year-old record by a little more than half a pound.

Avid pike sherman omas Francis landed the monster sh on March 21 from Hayden Lake in northern Idaho. e sh was more than 4 feet long, with an o cial length of 49 inches and an impressive girth of 26.5 inches.

Francis told Idaho Fish and Game he speci cally targets big pike almost every day. In late March, ice still ringed the banks at Hayden Lake, so Francis was casting his lure up to the edge of the ice.

“When my lure hit the water, I let it sink all the way to the bottom,” he said. “As soon as my lure hit the bottom, I felt her hit. I sh with 80-poundtest line, and she almost immediately started peeling drag, a lot of it.

“She pinned herself to the bottom and just kept going, peeling drag the whole time,” he continued. “I knew that wasn’t normal, and I could tell it was something special.” e IGFA all-tackle world record northern pike was caught in Germany in 1986. It weighed 55 pounds, 1-ounce.

For more information, go to https://idfg.idaho.gov

Whatever the reason, there’s no denying that black sea bass are some of the tastiest critters in the ocean, and anchoring over a wreck or reef teeming with them can ll a cooler in short order. Just ask the folks up in New England, where the species is a highly sought a er target of anglers.

NOAA recently announced that recreational harvest of black sea bass will again be open year-round for the 2023-2024 season in federal waters of the South Atlantic, south of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. So, sharpen the hooks on your chicken rigs and go collect some meat.

NOAA Fisheries has projected that the 2023-2024 recreational catch limit of 366,510 pounds whole weight will not be met. e season in federal waters will run from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024. Seasons in state waters vary, so be sure to check state regulations where you plan to sh. In federal waters of the Atlantic, south of 35 deg 15.0321’ N, there is a seven sh per person bag limit with a 13-inch minimum size limit.

A descending device is required on board all vessels shing for or possessing snapper and grouper species in federal waters of the South Atlantic. e descending device must be readily available for use and attached to at least 16 ounces of weight and at least 60 feet of line. For more information, go to coastalanglermag.com.