Coastal Angler Magazine | March 2021 | North Central Florida/Nature Coast Edition by Coastal Angler Magazine

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SIGHT FISHING

TRIPLETAIL

CAPE COD BLITZES

RECORD BREAKING SWORDFISH VOLUME 26 • ISSUE 312

PHOTO CREDIT: TOMMY LADO COURTESY OF CHEYANNE SINGLETARY

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ripletail are some of the most exciting gamefish that visit inshore waters. Their peculiar tendency to hang near the surface around floating debris makes them perfect for sight fishing, and on top of that they are absolutely delicious. Capt. Jeremy Davidson is an angler devoted to these oddball fish. His charter service, Southern Salinity, is based out of St. George Island, where he specializes in inshore tripletail on Florida’s Forgotten Coast. “They start to migrate to shallower water when that water temperature starts rising,” he said “It’s wind and water temperature dependent, but everything starts to move in March or April—the bait, the pelagics, everything.” Throughout the Gulf of Mexico and up the Atlantic Coast, tripletail move shallower in waves. Davidson said the timing is different by location, but the patterns are similar. First, scads of smaller

fish move in from offshore through the passes to find homes on floating debris. The early spring bite is characterized by plentiful opportunities at smaller fish. By May or June, larger 8- to 12-pounders settle in on trap buoys, floating vegetation and tide lines. Big fish in the 20-pound range arrive in deep summer. They’re there to feed and procreate, said Davidson, which means they are primed to pick up a bait. However, catching tripletail consistently is more difficult than it might appear. THE SETUP: To spot tripletail, you must train your eyes to look beneath the surface. Fish will stay with a piece of floating cover as long as it harbors the small crabs, shrimp and glass minnows tripletail feed on. Cover could be anything, and Davidson recommends checking out everything floating on the surface. You might spot the fish itself, but the first indication is usually the sub-surface flash of a turning fish. When Davidson spots fish, he leaves the boat in gear and noses into the current to point the bow at the fish within casting range. THE CAST: “Do not hit that fish,” Davidson warned. “Pick a spot out past it. I don’t care if it’s the treeline. Just make sure to pitch past that fish.” Casting past the fish with an underhand pitch allows the angler to retrieve the bait slowly through the strike zone. If the tripletail doesn’t take the bait on the initial retrieve, it’s time to flip the bail and allow the tide to carry the bait back past the fish. “It’s a slow dance,” Davidson said. “Retrieve it slow and easy.”

THE TAKE: Don’t set the hook! Tripletail feed delicately. They ease up and pluck their prey from near the surface. Then, to avoid spooking their next meal, they move away before engulfing it. “Let that fish roll down or go the other way,” Davidson said. “Give it 5 or 10 seconds, then lift up and he’s on. Then he turns into a wild man!” THE FIGHT: The harder you pull on a tripletail, the harder and wilder it fights back. This is important because, along with brute strength, these prehistoric fish have a sharp, line-slicing gill plate. Davidson reiterated his slow dance metaphor, saying you can sometimes lead a fish right to the boat by taking it slow and easy. “Square up with him. Keep your rod tip up, and let him run if he wants to dig,” said Davidson “Walk him around the boat. Stay square with him, and pump him in slow and easy.” THE RIG: Tripletail eat shrimp, pogies and artificials, but Davidson prefers to make a fresh-shrimp lure. He pops the heads off large restaurant-quality shrimp and pinches the flappers off their tails. Then he runs a 2/0 or 3/0 3X Strong VMC circle hook up the tail and out the second notch before turning the point back into the bait. This hides the hook and allows the shrimp to swim like a lure. To make pitching the rig easier, he ties an elongated float, like Boat Monkey’s Cigar Slip Float, between braided 30-lb. main line and a 2- to 3-foot leader of 30-lb. fluorocarbon. More advanced anglers might go bobberless for better control while working the bait. To do this, tie the braid directly to the leader with a double uni knot. Capt. Jeremy Davidson owns Southern Salinity, which runs charters on Florida’s Forgotten Coast. See their website at www.southernsalinity.com.

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ver the last few months, I’ve shared some techniques in these pages that people seem to be trying with some success. When you think about it, incorporating squid into your offshore spreads really is a nobrainer when you can find and purchase good whole squid. One of the best ways to rig those squid, and ballyhoo for that matter, is with a Chin Weight coupled with a “stiff-rig” stinger hook assembly. Recently, I’ve received quite a few calls and e-mails from folks all over the country asking for a simpler way to achieve the end result of a stiff-rig stinger hook. I had to go to the barn, have a few cocktails and dig deep, but here it is: The simple way to keep a stinger hook in a rigid “stiff ” position without snelling it or making a cat’s paw connection. If the terminology is throwing you off at this point, stay tuned, this actually is a very simple solution that anyone can achieve with a limited amount of materials and know how. The key to this rig is inexpensive heatshrink tubing over a standard crimped-wire connection. Granted, you might only get a bite or two out of this rig before teeth shred the heatshrink tubing and it’s no longer rigid. However, it’s so easy to make this rig that you can churn

Step two: Make a second crimp at 90 degrees to the first crimp. This is a (small) diameter in the cable to fit over a 7/0 or 11/0 Tim Barefoot Chin Weight (as shown in photo). Step Three: Slide a ¾-inch length section out dozens in different lengths of heat-shrink tubing over the crimped for different sized baits and keep them at the ready. Cut your cable to the connection of the hook and heat with a lighter correct length and make a few crimps… that’s in the vertical position. That’s it! all there is to it. Step One: Make a standard crimped connection using the High Seas 1.0 crimp and the American Fishing Wire 175# (7x7) or 49 strand cable.

Now, if you’re a visual learner like I am, go watch the video I made on the process. See it once, and it will be like a light bulb going off in your head. It really is that easy. For more information and to watch the video, go to barefootcatsandtackle.com. Click on “Heat Shrink Tubing Stiff Rig Stinger Hook.”

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INSHORE STRATEGIES FOR THE

PHOTO COURTESY OF KNOCKIN TAIL LURES.

Most fish are still in transition between the deep mud and the shallow sand or grass flats, which keeps them spread out through the bays. Add high winds, cool fronts and the small size of the forage, and you have a tougher puzzle to put together than the other three seasons. Here are a few tips to help you sort though this maze and hopefully land a few more fish this spring. First and foremost, baitfish are extremely small this time of year, and it is not uncommon to find dozens of small glass minnows in the bellies of trout and redfish in the spring. This makes my first tip obvious, so I won’t waste a lot of space here, but downsize your lure presentation if you can. Obviously, this can impact one’s casting abilities, so rigging small lures in tandem can be By Capt. Michael Okruhlik a plus and assist in casting distance. Something else I like to use in the spring is a clear or transparent lure with some glitter, or maybe one with a light translucent color. I choose these because it’s more difficult for the fish to see the lure’s actual size, which gives the appearance that it’s smaller than it actually is. I’ve found this to be a productive alternative to downsizing. While choosing a typical-size trout and redfish lure for this application, I look for one with subtle movements. I like either a darting-style bait or a paddle lure with a very subtle vibration. Strong, big-vibrating tails have their time, but early spring is not one of them. One thing I notice about schools of small baitfish is their movement. When displaced, they seldom dart deeper, and most of their movement is side-to-side or upward. Due to this characteristic, I also like a lightweight lure with a slow sink rate. I feel this better imitates spring forage movements and increases strikes. I like a lure that twitches side to side that doesn’t sink very fast on the pause. In early spring while the fish are in transition, they will start to congregate on sandy shores with grass. This will be the main cover for the small fry. While employing these techniques and lure choices, concentrate efforts on broken grass flats with potholes and distinct edges. These areas are best when they are close to deeper water. I hope you find these tactics helpful and as the weather warms and you pring is around the corner, and a lot of fishermen who hang up their gear enjoy the outdoors, don’t forget to take a kid fishing! for winter can’t wait for the temps to rise. Although the enthusiasm is high to wet a line, spring can be the most difficult season to successfully Capt. Michael Okruhlik is the inventor of Knockin Tail Lures, Controlled pattern and to consistently catch inshore fish. Descent Lures and the owner of www.MyCoastOutdoors.com.

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By CAM Staff

ith a five-release first day, Michael Jordan’s boat, Catch 23, held on to win the 58th annual Buccaneer Cup Sailfish Tournament Jan. 20-23. This year’s event featured a fleet of 38 boats and a total of 63 sailfish caught. It was a big win for Catch 23. The big, beautiful boat has been making national headlines in tournament circuits the last few years, primarily because of the star power Jordan brings to the deck. But now Catch 23 has a big win to hang its hat on. The Buccaneer Cup is one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious sailfish release tournaments. It was held this year out of Palm Beach and Jupiter, Florida during the traditional heart of the area’s sailfish season. The name Catch 23 pays homage to the jersey number Jordan wore through six NBA championships with Chicago Bulls. The custom 80-foot Viking is wrapped with the elephant print that first adorned Air Jordan 3 sneakers and now also appears on Jordan’s jet. Since 2019, Catch 23 has competed in several high-stakes marlin tournaments in mid-Atlantic. It also saw duty in the last two Stuart Sailfish Club Light Tackle Sailfish tournaments, and placed third in 2019. At this year’s Buccaneer Cup, Capt. Stetson Turney led Catch 23 to five releases on the first day of fishing, Thursday Jan. 21. The action came in spurts. Catch 23 called in its first two releases at 9:11 and 9:31 a.m. Jordan was on the reel for the first one, and angler Jimmy David cranked in the second. The team hung two more release flags just before 2 p.m., when Danny Young fought a sailfish to the boat at 1:47 p.m. and David got his second at 1:53. At 3:28 p.m., Jordan reeled in the fifth release of the day to earn the boat 1,000 points and a solid Day One lead. The tournament awards 200 points for each sailfish release using live bait and 300 points for each release caught on dead bait. Catch 23 did not call in another release until just before noon on the final day of fishing Saturday, Jan. 23. This allowed the eventual secondplace boat, De-Bait-Able, to climb into contention. De-Bait-Able, a 60-foot Viking, captained by KJ Zeher, called in two releases on the morning of Friday’s Day Two. Both fish were handled by angler Cameron Walsh. Saturday saw De-Bait-Able make a big push with four releases between 8:27 a.m. and lines out. Anglers Jay Lanigan, Mike Lanigan, Laura Rassel and Tom Walsh battled in their catches to give De-Bait-Able 1,200 points at the end of Day Three. They were one fish shy of catching Catch 23, which called in releases for anglers Annibal Moya and Danny Young on the final day of fishing. For more information on the Buccaneer Cup, go to www.buccaneercup.com.

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Tom Brady celebrating in Tampa’s Super Bowl Boat Parade Feb. 10 in downtown Tampa.

om Brady made a big purchase when he moved to Tampa for the 2020 NFL season. No, not just a new house, but a $2 million yacht. His custom Wajer 55 is a perfect choice for Tampa Bay area waters. He named her ‘Viva A Vida’ after Gisele Bündchen’s charity. With a top speed of 38 knots and a range of 450 nautical miles, it can get far offshore in the Gulf of Mexico quickly. But he didn’t need all that horsepower to show his boat off during the Super Bowl Boat Parade on Feb. 10. Following a 31-9 beat-down of the Kansas City Chiefs, Brady, the rest of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and quite a few fans took to the water to celebrate. Brady’s yacht is comfortable and spacious with seating for plenty of guests, whether it’s the sun pads on the bow and aft or the U-shaped couch behind the cockpit. Underneath are two beds for guests, a fully equipped kitchen with a dishwasher, a full bathroom with a shower, and a master suite. One of the coolest features Tom Brady’s boat has in store is its extendable swim platform that can be raised to also act as a gangway.

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lorida is home to one of the most incredibly diverse fisheries on the planet, and every change in season brings entirely new fishing opportunities to our doorstep. With long summers and short winters, temperature changes in autumn and spring bring the most dramatic shifts to our fisheries. Changes are unpredictable this time of year, and the month of March can be absolutely incredible or a total bust. It only takes a few degrees of water temperature rise to bring on full-on spring fishing. This is a wonderful time of year to be an avid fisherman. The delicate and seemingly minuscule weather changes are extremely impactful to the mysterious behavior of fish. We are on the precipice of the next fishing season, but it is based on many factors, none of which are your calendar. Florida is an annoyingly perfect place to be a boater and angler. It may seem like there are always too many boats out there competing for the bite, but, unlike places like Louisiana, where the fishing spots are marked by giant oil rigs, every venture is an opportunity to find a new honey-hole. One of the super-secret offshore coordinates found by the company I work for has been reliably fascinating throughout the year, or even throughout a week. This fishing spot is a unique little ecosystem. The bottom finder is usually marked up like a child’s crayon drawing, yet the species landed can vary greatly from day to day, or season to season. I was fishing this location recently and we caught 53 lane snapper in a few hours. We returned a few days later, and the bottom finder looked the same. We expected to catch lane snapper again, yet it was all mangroves. Then, all of a sudden the screen showed no fish. It was completely blank. This was just as interesting as any other change that had happened there. The fish would reappear on the screen, and disappear, and the bites and lack thereof, followed instantly. All of this happened back and forth within two to five minute intervals. Everyone on board began watching the screen to know when to expect a bite, and then we saw what we had all surmised. Big marks appeared on the screen zipping along solo. There were predatory fish down there. Luckily, we were able to land these predators visiting our honey-hole, and confirm that they were not just sharks. They were giant bull redfish, one of which came up double hooked. Likely not residents of this area, they had stopped by for a snack on their springtime journey through our area. This time of year is unpredictable, and I would never dare claim to understand all the mysterious behaviors of fish, so I will refrain from giving a fishing report. I will, however, say it is a great time of year to be surprised. Capt. Quinlyn Haddon fishes with Reel Lucky Fishing Charters out of St Petersburg, Fla. Give them a call at (504) 929-6342 and check out Capt. Haddon’s social media @CaptainQuinlyn.

8 FLORIDA

MARCH 2021

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By Capt. Quinlyn Haddon

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STATE RECORD

SWORDFISH

The Pompano Beach fishing scene was buzzing in mid-January. Fish were really chewing out on the swordfish grounds, and it seemed everyone with a boat was running 15 miles out to the trench to get in on the action. That buzz rose to near hysteria the evening of Jan. 20, when four anglers between the ages of 17 and 21 returned to the docks at Lighthouse Point Marina. In their boat was an enormous 767.8-pound swordfish. It was a new state record. Here’s the story as told by 21-year-old Timmy Maddock, the new record holder:

had just returned from fishing in Costa Rica when I heard the swords were biting. I asked my buddy Hunter Irvine to go swordfishing, and he was ready! That evening, I swung by Big Dog Tackle in Pompano Beach where my girlfriend, Jaime Johanson, is the store manager. I bought fresh baits to rig for the next day’s trip. Hunter and I were up at 5:30 a.m. to load his 31-foot center console. Jaime and our other buddy Jeremy Rafferty met us there. At the sword grounds, we got a good bite on our first drop but were confused when the fish didn’t come back. After making three more drops, we heard on the radio there were bites to the south. We picked up and ran a couple miles south to find five boats stacked up in the area. Out of courtesy, we moved south of the other boats and dropped. The rod went slack the second the lead hit bottom. The four of us kind of looked around at each other, wondering if we had gotten cut off. I engaged the electric reel and started bringing in line to check. After a couple minutes, there was weight on the rod tip. “We got one on!” I yelled. The line was slack because the fish had shot straight to the surface. With the rod loaded and the darts ready for battle, the fish came straight up and jumped out of the water! We were all excited, thinking we might have a 400- or 500-pounder on the line. The lead was off within the first 15 minutes, and that fish raced all over the surface for 30 or 45 minutes before going back to the bottom. While she was up, we couldn’t get a dart in her because she was hauling ass all over the place. After two hours of hard fighting on the bottom, there was a nervous silence. We had begun to speculate how big she really was. She came halfway up and back down four or five times. The last time she dove, she was at 2000 revolutions off the LP electric reel. That’s when we think she died. We tightened the drag to gain line. Every time the boat rocked on a wave, we gained a foot. After an hour and a half of rocking, we finally got the wind-on leader back on the reel. Her head popped out of the water and we all freaked out, knowing she was dead and the fight was over. Jaime grabbed the gaff, holding her phone in the other hand to record this epic moment. Jeremy backed the boat to the fish on the surface, and Hunter put a dart in her to close the deal after more than five hours. When we got her tied off, happiness and adrenalin filled us all as we jumped around and celebrated. We spent 20 minutes trying to get the fish in the boat before radioing for help. Rob Doda was out swordfishing by himself, and he left his spot to come to our aid. He left his boat floating and jumped aboard to explain what needed to be done. After 30 minutes of all five of us pulling, we got her through the tuna door. The boat was taking on a lot of water from the weight on the back corner. We dropped Rob off at his boat and drove as fast as we could to the dock. 12 FLORIDA 1 LOCATION

MARCH 2021 JUNE 2020

• Word got out quickly as soon as we reached communication range. The folks at Big Dog Tackle led the search to find an IGFA certified scale. Shaughn Miller of Offshore Anglers of Pompano Beach agreed to meet us with a scale at the Lighthouse Point Marina fuel docks. There was a small crowd on hand. The girth of the fish’s tail was bigger than most men’s waist. As she was hoisted from the boat, the scale climbed 400… 500… 600! Everyone was cheering. When she was finally vertical, the scale stopped at 767.8 pounds. It was insane, to say the least. The fish yielded more than 400 pounds of meat that was given away to family, friends and Filet for Friends charity. Some of it was eaten during a celebration barbecue for the community, where many got a taste of the official Florida state record swordfish.

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TIPS FOR SPRING COBIA PHOTO COURTESY OF CAPT. TONY SUMMERS

By CAM Staff

f cobia aren’t already on the move, they’re getting ready to be. During the spring migration, cobia move out of the Florida Keys and run north along the beaches on both the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. This sets the stage for an exciting style of fishing in which anglers cruise beyond the breakers, actively sight fishing for pods of fish. Here are a few things to consider before you head out chasing that spring migration.

4) Get A Late Start: Cruising cobia are easier to spot when the sun is high and there’s less glare on the water. This is especially true if you’re fishing from a smaller boat with a short tower or no tower at all. By heading out late in the morning, you’ll be covering water when spotting fish is more likely. Also, especially early in the season, cobia move higher in the water column as the sun warms the surface. Obviously, you should wear a good pair of sunglasses and ball cap to combat the sun’s glare.

1) Seek Cover: When they’re not on the move, cobia post up, sometimes in schools, around some type of structure. Check the channel markers, buoys, FADs and known wrecks. If they’re not on the surface, they might be deeper. A little chum can be the ticket to bringing them up. If you’re running the beaches, be sure to take a long look around any sort of floating debris.

5) Consider a Net: A gaffed green cobia will absolutely wreck your boat and your shins, if you’re not careful. Even after a grueling fight, a big net is a good place to let cobia expend some of their fury. It also makes it easier to release undersized fish. With a gaff or a net, be ready with the cooler lid or fish box open when you bring the fish over the rail. Chunk that bad boy in the box, slam the door and sit on it. You’ll need a moment to catch your 2) Keep It In Gear: As they migrate up the coast, visible cobia are breath, anyway. bombarded by anglers. They’re hungry—and no one ever accused them of being smart—but they can get a little boat shy. When you spot them cruising, 6) On the Fly: Once you’ve caught a few cobia on conventional tackle, approach at a steady speed and cast as soon as you can assure accuracy in a it’s time to bring a 10- or 11-weight fly rod on the boat. All the things that 3- or 4-foot window ahead of the fish. The farther the boat is from a cruiser, make this fish such a great target for sight fishing also make it an awesome the better your chances are of getting bit. And don’t throw the boat into adversary for fly fishers. reverse or take it out of gear. For some reason, the steady growl of a motor Just like with conventional gear, the window of opportunity begins to doesn’t alarm them, but popping it in and out of gear will put them down close as soon as soon as you approach a pod of cruisers. Cobia will cream a in a heartbeat. well-placed eel or baitfish pattern, but time is of the essence. Start stripping off line as soon as fish are spotted. The cast needs to be quick, so there’s no 3) Keep It All On Deck: When you get a shot, you should be ready with time for excessive false casting. Use a water load on the backcast to achieve an arsenal of baits and lures ready and waiting. If the fish is visible near the instant distance and let fly. If you misfire, pick it up and throw it again. surface, it will let you know pretty quickly if its interested in what you throw. It’s a good idea to fish an intermediate sinking line for cobia. This allows There’s a good chance you’ll get a few shots if you don’t spook the fish by you to fish the surface with fast strips or to let it drop a little deeper. A 9-foot, hitting it in the face. Have several rods ready with bucktails and soft-plastics 20-pound leader with a 30-pound shock tippet will stand up to most fish in in locally preferred colors. Or, keep a bucket on deck with live baits rigged open water, but you’ll want at least 200 yards of 30-pound Dacron backing. and ready to pitch. Large shrimp, eels, mullet, pinfish and whole squid are Whether it’s a 5-pounder or a 50-pounder that picks up your fly, you’ll need all good choices. a quality reel with a smooth drag. It’s more than likely any cobia will take you deep into your backing. For more information, go to coastalanglermag.com and search cobia. COASTALANGLERMAG.COM • THEANGLERMAG.COM

MARCH 2021

NORTH FLORIDA 3

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F L O R I D A

COASTAL ANGLER North Central Florida/Nature Coast

Cary & Lynn Crutchfield ALACHUA, MARION, COLUMBIA, GILCHRIST, BRADFORD, DIXIE, LEVY, CITRUS

MARCH HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US

With this March 2021 issue, (our 109th) we begin our TENTH year, bringing the world’s greatest FREE fishing magazine to North Central Florida and the Nature Coast. We began March 2012, with no publishing experience, and really no clue about what we were getting ourselves into. Even though we are not young, we are smart; we can learn, and we were going to succeed, no matter what--and we have! Dr. Kevin McCarthy has been writing for us since our first issue. Every month he brings us something new and fresh. “Kevin McCarthy, you are a treasure.” See page 3 for FLORIDA WATERWAYS. This month’s recipe, on page 2, Grouper with Potatoes in a Parsley Garlic Sauce, is another one of those easy baked fish recipes. You can prep the sauce the day before, and have your company dinner on the table in a matter of minutes. The sauce is versatile and also delicious on chicken or pork, and of course potatoes. See page 11 for new ½ page starring Marine & Lumber on US 19/98, between Old Town and Cross City. See page 9 for a timely article on bats--yes, bats. Again, a big Thank You to the staff at the Dixie County Health Dept. Cary and I are now the grateful recipients of our second Covid-19 vaccines. (See photo of Dr. Fauci and me on page 15.) We had no issues with getting appointments, no waiting in line in rain and snow, and no sleeping in our car. We now feel safe-er, and one step closer to returning to something resembling normal. As we begin our tenth year of publication, we first want to thank the wonderful folks at our Coastal Angler corporate office for their ongoing support and assistance. We send a really big thank you to our family of franchise owners across the country, for their generous sharing of advice, photos, articles, and sometimes, just an understanding and sympathetic ear. Thank you to our advertisers and distribution locations. Thank you to our writers for giving of their time and knowledge to provide us with timely forecasts and articles. Thank you to Kathleen our graphic artist. (You see her work on every page.) Thank you to Kristi, our web master. See her work at www.CoastalAnglerMag.com/ NC-Florida. Thank you to Rosa, our distribution assistant, helping us get this magazine to our pick-up locations and into your hands. Last, but certainly not least, thank you to YOU, our reader. If you stop picking up our magazine, we are out of business in a hurry! Stay smart. Wear your mask (or stay home). Get your vaccine. Stay well, and stay alive. Lynn Crutchfield Co-Publisher Coastal Angler Magazine of North Central Florida/Nature Coast

MARCH 2021 EDITION

Find Your Outdoors Here! North Central Florida Nature Coast Staff SALES

Cary Crutchfield

EDITING & PRODUCTION Lynn Crutchfield

DISTRIBUTION Rosa Crisman

GRAPHIC ARTS & DESIGN Kathleen Stemley

WEB DESIGN Kristi Williams

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Dr. Kevin McCarthy John Freeze Noel Kuhn Capt. Jason Clark Capt. Dan Clymer Capt. Tommy Derringer Capt. Eric Hasty Capt. Stacy Horak Capt. James Kerr Capt. Pat McGriff Capt. Bryan Smith

CONTACT INFORMATION

crutch@coastalanglermagazine.com 352-542-0356 www.CoastalAnglerMag.com/NC-Florida

INSIDE THIS ISSUE Tide Charts Local Fishing Forecasts Monthly Recipe

Photo by: Suwannee River Water Management District

GROUPER WITH POTATOES IN A PARSLEY GARLIC SUACE

the na in thi name includ Marli

Thank you to The Crab Plant for the grouper. Visit their Fresh Seafood Market or enjoy Cooked Seafood to go. You are welcome to sit at their table and view beautiful Kings Bay while you enjoy your delicious, freshly prepared meal, watching manatees, dolphins, pelicans and boats. Or, you can carry it home; your choice. Open Tues-Thurs 10:00-5:30, Fri-Sat 10:00-8:00. 201 NW 5th St. Crystal River 352-795-4700.

Lynn Crutchfield, Co-Publisher Coastal Angler Magazine of North Central Florida

TIDES • North Central Florida Time Height

2Tu

4Th 5F

6Sa

7Su

2:52 AM 9:26 AM 3:24 PM 9:39 PM 3:41 AM 10:01 AM 3:54 PM 10:26 PM 4:34 AM 10:37 AM 4:28 PM 11:18 PM 5:33 AM 11:14 AM 5:05 PM 12:17 AM 6:44 AM 11:55 AM 5:50 PM 1:31 AM 8:24 AM 12:50 PM 6:48 PM 3:00 AM 10:19 AM 2:17 PM 8:09 PM 4:25 AM 11:37 AM 3:49 PM 9:40 PM

3.8 -0.4 3.3 -0.1 3.5 0.0 3.4 -0.2 3.2 0.4 3.5 -0.3 2.8 0.8 3.5 -0.2 2.4 1.2 3.5 -0.1 2.1 1.6 3.3 -0.1 2.2 1.8 3.2 -0.2 2.4 1.7 3.2

HERNANDO BEACH

MARCH 2021

9Tu

Time Height

5:32 AM 12:22 PM 5:05 PM 10:57 PM 10W 6:23 AM 12:54 PM 6:05 PM 11:58 PM 11Th 7:04 AM 1:22 PM 6:53 PM 12F 12:48 AM 7:37 AM 1:48 PM 7:34 PM 13Sa 1:30 AM 8:07 AM 2:11 PM 8:11 PM 14Su 3:09 AM 9:35 AM 3:34 PM 9:47 PM 15M 3:46 AM 10:01 AM 3:57 PM 10:21 PM 16Tu 4:23 AM 10:27 AM 4:20 PM 10:56 PM

-0.3 2.6 1.5 3.4 -0.4 2.8 1.1 3.5 -0.4 2.9 0.8 3.6 -0.3 3.1 0.5 3.6 -0.1 3.2 0.3 3.5 0.0 3.3 0.1 3.4 0.2 3.3 0.1 3.2 0.4 3.4 0.0

KINGS BAY

High Tide -20 min Low Tide 58 min

High Tide 2 hrs, 20 min Low Tide 3 hrs, 7 min

CRYSTAL RIVER

WITHLACOOCHEE ENT

High Tide 36 min Low Tide 1 hr, 30 min

High Tide 7 min Low Tide 55 min

CEDAR KEY

Time Height

17W

18Th 19F

20Sa

21Su

22M

23Tu

24W

5:02 AM 10:54 AM 4:45 PM 11:32 PM 5:43 AM 11:21 AM 5:13 PM 12:10 AM 6:30 AM 11:51 AM 5:45 PM 12:56 AM 7:26 AM 12:26 PM 6:24 PM 1:55 AM 8:45 AM 1:15 PM 7:16 PM 3:13 AM 10:26 AM 2:41 PM 8:33 PM 4:35 AM 11:42 AM 4:19 PM 10:05 PM 5:42 AM 12:34 PM 5:33 PM 11:22 PM

3.1 0.7 3.5 0.0 2.8 0.9 3.5 0.1 2.6 1.1 3.4 0.2 2.4 1.4 3.4 0.3 2.2 1.6 3.2 0.3 2.2 1.8 3.1 0.2 2.4 1.8 3.2 0.1 2.6 1.5 3.3

COOKING DIRECTIONS

Time Height

25Th 6:37 AM 1:12 PM 6:32 PM 26F 12:25 AM 7:24 AM 1:45 PM 7:23 PM 27Sa 1:21 AM 8:06 AM 2:15 PM 8:10 PM 28Su 2:12 AM 8:45 AM 2:43 PM 8:54 PM 29M 3:01 AM 9:22 AM 3:12 PM 9:38 PM 30Tu 3:50 AM 9:59 AM 3:42 PM 10:24 PM 31W 4:43 AM 10:35 AM 4:14 PM 11:13 PM

-0.1 2.9 1.2 3.6 -0.3 3.1 0.8 3.8 -0.3 3.2 0.4 3.9 -0.2 3.4 0.0 3.9 0.1 3.6 -0.3 3.8 0.4 3.7 -0.5 3.6 0.7 3.9 -0.6

HOMOSASSA RIVER ENT

HORSESHOE BEACH

SUWANNEE ENT

STEINHATCHEE RIVER ENT

High Tide 4 hr, 30 min Low Tide 5 hr, 41 min High Tide 6 min Low Tide 18 min

2 NORTH CENTRAL FLORIDA/NATURE COAST

High Tide 12 min Low Tide 20 min

High Tide 2 min Low Tide 0 min

MARCH 2021

INGREDIENTS

• 1 ½ cups loosely packed Pre heat oven to 425 F. fresh flat-leaf Parsley Line a rimmed baking sheet Leaves with foil or parchment paper. • 1 medium Shallot, roughly (Easy clean-up!) chopped Process parsley, shallot, • 3 Garlic cloves, roughly garlic, thyme, lemon zest and chopped red pepper (if using) in your • 1 tablespoon fresh Thyme mini processer, until chopped. leaves (or ¼ teaspoon Add oil and process until well dried) incorporated. Toss together • Lemon zest from 1 lemon potatoes, 2 tablespoons • ½ teaspoon crushed Red parsley mixture and salt and Pepper (optional) pepper in bowl. • ½ to ¾ cup Olive Oil Place fish on rimmed • Salt and Pepper baking sheet. Sprinkle with • 4 medium Potatoes, cut salt and pepper and spread into 8 wedges each about 1 tablespoon parsley • 4 Grouper fillets or mild mixture on each fillet. Add fish of your choice potatoes in single layer to • Lemon wedges for serving baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven until fish is opaque and flaky about 20 minutes (depending on thickness of fillets) and potatoes are tender. Serve with lemon wedges. Very impressive and easy dish for small dinner party. Parsley mixture can be made a day ahead, and is also delicious baked on chicken or pork chops.

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FLORIDA WATERWAYS Maritime Names for Our Baseball Teams

s college and professional baseball begins in Florida in February and March, fans may wonder about the names of some of the teams that play in this state. As one might guess, maritime names play a role in the nomenclature, including obvious names like the Miami Marlins and the Tampa Bay Rays. Some names of minorleague teams that have a maritime bent include the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, By Kevin McCarthy the Daytona Tortugas (“Tortuga” is the Spanish word for a turtle or tortoise), the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, the Jupiter Hammerheads, the Charlotte Stone Crabs, and the Tampa Tarpons. I want to mention several names in particular for the minor leagues or farm teams of the major-league teams, all of whom have granted me permission to use their logos in this article. The Jacksonville team is called the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. The logo forms a “J” for Jacksonville. As the team’s web site explains further: “The water is included as a natural feature of the First Coast. The animated shrimp represents Affordable Family Fun, and its tenacious expression and posture represents the determination and resilience of the Jacksonville community.” The Miami Marlins began operations in 1993 as the Florida Marlins, in an attempt by the owners to try to attract fans from around the state before another major-league team established a home in the state. When the state did in fact get a second team, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the South Florida team changed its name to the Miami Marlins after the City of Miami agreed to finance a new stadium closer to downtown.

Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp logo

Finally, the name of the Clearwater Threshers: in late 2003, promoters of the new baseball team in Clearwater put up several billboards around town that were meant to startle local residents about the threat of sharks in the area. But, in fact, the billboards were teasers for the baseball team that had been called the Clearwater Phillies of the Single-A Florida State League. The new name: the Clearwater Threshers. Team officials also placed an ad in the local newspaper that was meant to look like a news story about a fisherman who pulled a thresher shark out of the Gulf of Mexico and a baseball rolled out of its mouth. They eventually chose the thresher, which has a very long tail, because of the animal’s tendency to beat its very long tail against its prey to stun the other fish before going in for the kill. Team officials liked the idea of the fish circling its prey, like a baseball player circling the bases, before devouring it and the fact that the thresher is a deep-sea fish that hunts alone, giving it an air of mystery. Even the aggressive sound of “thresher” pleased the team. Kevin McCarthy, the author of North Florida Waterways (2013 - available at amazon.com), can be reached at ceyhankevin@gmail.com.

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MARCH 2021

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ello from Crystal River; the warm weather cannot come soon enough. This past winter has been a cool one, and as a fishing guide it makes me appreciate the warmth. The bite here in Crystal River has been incredible and will continue. The redfish bite has been good pretty much through the whole tide, either incoming or outgoing. We’ve been using free-lined shrimp on long shank hooks. Usually about a 6/0 with 15 to 20 lb. leader, looking for mullet along shorelines. Reds are usually with the schooled-up mullet. Pin fish are also a good choice. Trout fishing is always on fire this time of year. If I go to the deeper flats, I prefer to use a 1/16th oz jig with a little Jon. I always look for the kelp or spotty bottom. For the shallow fish usually in 1 to 3 feet, I’m looking for birds and bait. Trout and birds always go together. I look for hard bottom areas using a DOA jerk bait or a Mirrordine. Also, a popping cork is always a good choice. This time of the year is some the best fishing for the inshore here Crystal River. Give me a shout to get out on the water.

CENTRAL FLORIDA INLAND

k Forest Fishers, the time has come! Are you ready? I hope to heck you are, and believe me when I tell you that I am NOT over-hyping this. For the past several years, I've been telling ya'll, "If God is willing and da creeks don't FALL", that we'd be in for some serious World Class action. Well boys and girls, hold on to your waders. The bass spawn is officially underway; and mark my words, this one will be legendary. Now every year at this time, I tell you to have your heaviest gear ready in case you come across a true giant. This year, you need to have more than just your gear ready. You need to have your mind ready as well. I'm telling you this because I must've heard a thousand of ya'll's "10 Pounder" stories. Who hasn't? We all love a good fish story, especially me, but I'm just gonna come out and say it. Most of ya'll are full of "you know what", if you actually think you've landed a "TRUE 10". There's a good 80% of anglers out here who need to stop showing people their picture of "The One" until this season is over. I promise, when you finally get up close Capt. James Kerr and personal with a true Forest Beast, 352-362-6893 from that point on, you will never be Citrusfishingchaters.com the same. There's only one way to tell if someone's truly experienced how it feels to have a trophy female largemouth in their grips. When asked the size of their biggest bass, they instantly become as humble as a monk. You can see them re-living the moment they first tried to lift her, how shocked they were by the power of it's full body shake (making them use ALL their strength to hold on) and how proud they were when they finally held her up, victorious. Best picture ever! It's a perfect mix of extreme excitement and awe. Now, If there's one part to remember from this article, make it this: If and when you get your shot at holding that trophy, always secure your footing, and grip it as tight as possible with BOTH

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MARCH 2021

HANDS (one for each side of the lower jaw) before you start lifting. Don't keep her out of water long or rub her body against anything (losing just part of the slime coat will kill her). Then, of course, revive it well. You'll feel her want to go when she's ready. I know I didn't talk about what to use, or where to fish and when. That part is simple. Use the bait/lure you have most confidence with, and try anywhere that looks fishy. It's truly become so good, there are biggins' everywhere! A close friend of mine (pic) recently went to test out his boat engine, brought along 1 rod (might as well), and ended up catching a 13 lb. 10 oz. monster! Insane catch Cal, and well deserved! John Freeze Kayak Fishing and Nature Tours OurNationalForrest@gmail.com 352-216-5798

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CEDAR KEY

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ey everybody. It seems like the bite is picking up pace. Now if we can just get this weather to get itself under control. I can honestly say this year has been one of the most up and down winters in my career, and I truly will be glad when it's over. Trout have started moving back out to nearby flats, especially on the days when the water hits the mid 60's. I would say to take advantage of any good weather day, and just focus on the flats and trout. I'm not saying you can't catch redfish or sheepshead, but honestly, if you don't have an airboat, these low tides may get you in trouble. All of my catches of trout have been coming from 2 to 5 feet of water, and I've literally been throwing exactly the same set-up for weeks now. A C&M Custom Baits granny smith 3.5 inch ripper or a 4 inch seafoam sardine underneath William Wade Tackle popping cork.

Just a little bit of that pop, pop action, with a 5 to 7second pause in between, has been doing the trick just fine. Well guys and gals, until next month, stay safe out there!! Capt. Jason Clark In The Slot Fishing www.intheslotfishing.com Capt.jasonclark@gmail.com 352-639-3209

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t’s not like it isn’t expected, but I’m glad March has rolled in. This winter has been weather-weird, hasn’t it? Strong winds and cold fronts followed by periods of Indian summer have kept us flipping the thermostat from heat, to off, to cool during the same day! Anyway, the sheepsheadspawning trigger has been pushed early, not full blast, but a few have set up camp at their regular romantic rendezvous. By the time of this reading, the sheepshead should be in full love-mode. It should be easy and fun to put “enough” in the cooler, while releasing the meaningful pregnant females. Best bait: shrimp or fiddler crabs. If kids are involved, at low tide, let them run down some fiddler crabs around the makeshift small boat ramps in the marsh around this area. (Bring a video camera.) A helpful hint: file down the hook barb for ease of dehooking. After sheepshead sport, ease off and collect some wonderful and colorful seabass on any hard bottom from 20 to 40 feet. They are one of the best eating fish in the Gulf. Best bait: Durable, such as, squid, cut bait or pieces of Gulp. A good

and easy rig is a ½ oz white bucktail jig with a baited hook tied above. To add more fun to both sheepshead and seabass fishing, fish with light weight tackle. The loss of a fish or two is more than made for by the extra enjoyment. A kid, of any age, won’t remember the fish, but will remember the rod bend and the super tug. Try to put more fun in the dysFUNction of fast catching. Red grouper are open year round now. When water temperature is over 59 F, they should bang frozen baits with reckless abandon in waters approximately 60 inches. Too bad the Fed-Rats have seen the need to close gag grouper for the recreation anglers. Trolling in the cool months is a great time, but is not selective or kind to caught fish. Brian Smith BIG BEND CHARTERS www.BigBendCharters.com CaptBrian@bellsouth.net 877.852.3474 | 352.210.3050

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MARCH 2021

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MARCH 2021

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Bats in your building? Now’s the time to check.

he Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is reminding property owners to check your home and other man-made structures for bats. If you find any, you still have time to exclude them before bat maternity season begins. Bat maternity season is the time when bats gather to give birth and raise their young, and it runs from April 15 through Aug. 15. During this time, it is illegal to block bats from their roosts. If bats are excluded during maternity season, flightless young can become trapped inside the structure and die. Therefore, now is the time to check The Rafinesque’s big-eared your home for any entry points, ensure bat has distinctive ears that that no bats are present and make any distinguish them from other bats in Florida. necessary repairs. “It’s important for homeowners to know the signs that bats might be present in their home, and to know how to prevent them from taking up residence,” said Terry Doonan, mammal conservation coordinator for the FWC. “Remember, bats can enter through very tiny spaces, smaller than your thumb.” Guidelines on how to safely exclude bats from buildings can be found at MyFWC.com/Bats. Materials and methods used to exclude bats can affect the success of that process. For more information on how to conduct a bat exclusion, watch this YouTube video: How to Get Bats Out of a Building. Further details on how to conduct a legal bat exclusion can be found at Bat Conservation International. It is illegal to harm or kill bats in Florida, so guidelines have been developed to ensure bats are removed safely and effectively outside of the maternity season. Florida is home to 13 resident bat species including threatened species, such as the Florida bonneted bat. Florida’s native bats are an important part of our ecosystems and help keep insect populations under control. There are several ways that Florida residents and visitors can help bats: • Preserve natural roost sites including trees with cavities and peeling bark. Dead fronds left on palms can also provide roosting spots for bats. • Put up a bat house. • Report unusual bat behavior, or sick or dead bats to: com/ BatMortality. Avoid handling or touching bats, or any wild animals, especially if they are not acting normally. Bats, like any other wild animal, might bite to defend themselves if handled and they can carry rabies. For more information about rabies, visit the Florida Department of Health at FloridaHealth.gov. If you have questions or need assistance, contact your closest FWC Regional Office to speak with a wildlife assistance biologist for more information. More information on bats can be found at MyFWC.com/Bats.

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pring is definitely in the air, and that can only mean that Snook Season must be back! The Nature Coast has enjoyed having this normally hot weather fish, this far north for several years now. The species has built its tolerances to withstand the cooler winter temps here, by finding springs and warmer bodies of water to hide in. Now that water temps are back up into the high 60s, these snook will be ready to chew. Fish for snook in the river and creek mouths with large mud minnows, pinfish, or any variety of artificial baits like the Rapala X-Rap. Captains Cove Outfitters in Inglis has all the great X-Rap colors and sizes to choose from, in addition to all your live bait needs. Reds will be flocking from the backwaters, hungry and ready to eat. Shrimp on a popping cork, or stuck to a Jim’s Jig on the bottom, will get the job done. Look for them around the oyster bars and creek mouths as well. For a lot of you, this will be the first time the boat has been out for the season. Verify that everything

is in good working order and that you have all your safety equipment and documentation before hitting the ramp. It has been my pleasure writing these reports over the last couple of years, but sadly, this will be my last report. I will still be around, but my adventures are running me further south. Please continue to check out We Be Tailing, live Wed nights at 7:00 on the ShastyMcNasty Fishing page on Facebook. Please reach out to me at capterichasty@gmail.com with any questions you may have. Cheers Capt. Eric Hasty ShastyMcNasty Fishing LLC www.shastymcnastyfishing.com 352-220-3206

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sM si gulf wa and th spring bait fis arrival for the most p for Cit Macke welcom table fa runs th They c hoardi for the The active back c as muc them. the out backco perfect its rela and th and a s of the s The ba numbe located the goHer how to over an hangin draw t Give th a “slick on a #2 fluoroc The lon piece o offs” w Castin spoons cal sha also ke The strong the pre

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s March comes upon us, the first signs of spring begin to show. The gulf water temperature is slowly rising, and the transition from winter to spring is taking place. More and more bait fish are showing each day and the arrival of the pelagics should be here for the later part of the month. The most popular of the pelagic species for Citrus County will be the Spanish Mackerel. The Spanish macks are a welcomed sight, not only for their table fare, but their drag screaming runs that make them so enjoyable. They can be seen from great distances hoarding bait schools; keep an eye out for the birds to lead you to the fish. The redfish are becoming more active and dropping out of the deeper back county creeks and rivers. Cover as much water as possible to locate them. They could be anywhere from the outer keys, to the edge of the backcountry. The gold spoon is a perfect prospecting lure for our area; its relatively weedless, it casts a mile, and the red fish love it. Add a split ring and a small barrel swivel to the eye of the spoon to eliminate line twist. The bait stealers are not here in big numbers yet; if a school of redfish is located, anchor up and a live shrimp is the go-to bait. Here are a few different methods on how to target a big mack. Anchoring over any hard bottom area, and hanging a chum bag over the boat will draw them right into casting range. Give the chum plenty of time to cause a “slick” and free line a live shrimp on a #2 long shank hook with 30 lb. fluorocarbon leader to get a hook up. The long shank hook acts as a small piece of wire to cut down of the “cut offs” which mackerel are notorious for. Casting artificials such as small silver spoons, gotcha plugs and D.O.A. glow cal shad tail jigs retrieved quickly, will also keep the rod bent. The sheepshead bite is still going strong and there’s no better time than the present to go give it a try. Keep in

mind, March is traditionally windy, so before planning an offshore trip, check the marine forecast to ensure a safe and comfortable ride offshore. Rock piles, artificial reefs and especially under cut ledges will be hotspots throughout the month. A live shrimp on a knocker rig is still a best bet, and try targeting the 20 to 30 foot depth range for some hefty sheepies. March is also big trout time, and if you want to catch that gator around the 24-inch mark and larger, you will now have an opportunity. Rock and shell bars will be holding the big trout and your favorite redfish points are a good choice as well. My go-to bait is a glow 5.5 inch DOA jerk bait, but for the hard bait fans; a MirrO’lure MirrrO’dine is just as productive. Remember, release the big ones to keep those good genes going strong…. Capt. Dan Clymer 352.418.2160 www.crystalriver-fishing.com

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MARCH 2021

NORTH CENTRAL FLORIDA/NATURE COAST 13

14 NORTH CENTRAL FLORIDA/NATURE COAST

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ST. AUGUSTINE

e’ve had a fairly cool winter, and the water has been as clear as I’ve seen it in many years. Sight-fishing has been about as good as it gets for redfish. Speaking of redfish, there have been some big schools of fish up shallow this winter as well. Hopefully, March will stay on the cool side, and if it does, the redfish will continue to stay schooled. Look for reds in shallow areas that have a darker mud or oyster-laden bottom. On clear days, the sun will warm the water a few degrees in those areas, making a great spot for the reds to hang out and warm up a bit. Bait (mullet, minnows, shrimp) will also hold in these "hot" spots, and it’s common knowledge that the reds will be in the same areas the bait is. If it warms up quickly this month, the water will start to get murky, and one way to spot schooled up reds, is to look for wakes or "muds" caused by the fish moving. I've been locating some big schools this way just about all winter when the sun has been hiding. The latter half of this month marks the start of my favorite time of year to fish for trout. Once the water starts to warm up a bit, the trout will be going crazy. There's nothing like watching that big trout come soaring out of the water after your top-water plug. Creek mouths, rip rap, and just about anywhere you have some moving water are going to be great places to target the specs. Remember to loosen the drag just a little when throwing top-water plugs for trout. They have somewhat delicate mouths, and

you don't want to rip the plug away from the fish before they actually get it. Of course, if top-water isn't your thing, a jig and soft plastic will do the trick for the specs as well. My go-to rig of choice for trout (and reds too!) is a Saltwater Assassin 1/8-ounce jighead with a Saltwater Assassin Sea Shad paddle tail. My favorite colors are the ones with greens, browns, and gold. Check out the Mississippi Hippie color. You can thank me later! Jig, jig, pause-repeat. The flounder bite has been pretty steady all winter long with a few nice sized flatties caught in the creeks and flats. This month, find your favorite creek hole and drag a mud minnow pinned to a 1/4oz jighead as slowly as you can across the bottom, and you're sure to find at least a few hungry flatties hanging around. The black drum bite has been pretty good over the last couple of months and should continue this month. Most of my fish have been in the 3 to 5 lb. range, and were caught in the deeper parts of the creeks off the ICW. The best baits have been live/fresh/dead shrimp, or a fiddler crab. An hour on either side of low tide has been producing the best bite, especially around the new and full moons. Be sure to check out our daily fishing reports with pictures at www. InshoreAdventures.net

SURF & PIER

arch is finally here, and here come the pompano! Our Northeast Florida waters have been very chilly ever since Christmas. That was when the pompano left for destinations far to our south, like Pompano Beach! Now it’s our turn to catch these Silver Nuggets of the Surf. When the water temp reaches 64 degrees and above, it’s on! The two main ingredients you will need, are great baits and sharp hooks. The baits of choice are live sand fleas, fresh clams, and fresh or dead shrimp. After that, are the frozen versions of those same baits. Fishbites are also an excellent choice. I have been fishing their product for the past ten years and have had great success with it. My favorite flavors are sand flea and clam; usually, one of each on a two-hook rig. The rigging is simple and goes by several names such as double dropper, two-hook and pompano rig. The best part of using the aforementioned baits and rigs, is that you will also catch a lot of other species as well. On a typical March day, you may land whiting, blackdrum, bluefish, spot, croaker and a handful of other suspects. Set your drag light when you put it in the rod holder, because there are big bonnethead sharks and stingrays that will also crush these baits.

“Getting my second vaccine; Dr. Fauci came along for moral support. Thank you to the Dixie County Health Dept.”

Capt. Tommy Derringer www.InshoreAdventures.net 904-377-3734

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The next most important key to your success is knowing where to cast your bait. Longer casts do not equal bigger fish, or more fish. Learning where to cast can be had from hiring a guide like me, someone else who is very successful most of the time, or from YouTube! Just search “reading the beach”. On YouTube you will find several videos that include drone footage that really pinpoints what you seek out in the surf. The things you will be looking for are sandbars, runouts, holes, troughs, sloughs, pumpouts, and riptides. There are several names sometimes for the same things. Just learn to read the surf and fish the most fishy looking spot you can find. I am so looking forward to filling my cooler with my favorite dinner--grilled pompano. Next month will even be better, as the pompano run will be in full swing as they return to our waters. Till then, tight lines and good fishing. See you on the beach! Noel Kuhn 43 years of surf fishing experience, surf fishing guide and long distance casting coach. Founding member of Florida Surf Casters club. 904-945-0660 www.TheSurfAngler.com

MARCH 2021

NORTH CENTRAL FLORIDA/NATURE COAST 15

STA-SEA’S FORGOTTEN COAST ADVENTURES

KEATON BEACH

I G

Sammy Shaw of Lake Park, Ga. with a fine Keaton Beach trout

reat fishing will resume at Keaton Beach in March, as water temperatures rise into the 60’s early in the month, and then hold 70 degrees later on. Suspending baits will catch fish in early March with Catch Jrs. Catch 2000’s and MirrOdines taking front stage. Mid-March will see a diversity of artificial baits producing trout & reds as warmer temps bring fish out of their winter doldrums. Bite-a-Bait Fighters, Cordell Redfins and other lipped hard jerkbaits will be the ticket then. I plug-fish with TrikFish 12 lb. test X-rated Co-Polymer line for longer casts in clear water. This low stretch TrikFish Co-polymer has a smaller diameter and greater sensitivity than regular monofilament, yet doesn’t tear lose big trout like braid is likely to do. By the end of March, we should see Gulf water temperatures holding around 70 degrees, which opens the door for pelagic bait to show up from the south. The presence of these bait

schools trigger the topwater bite with stickbaits, propbaits and chuggers, taking trophy trout from the shallows. Don’t forsake soft plastics in March, as Assassin’s 5-inch shads, rigged-up un-weighted, on a 5/0 offset worm hook are a perfect choice in March. Whether you fish them as a primary bait, or as a follow-up lure behind missed strikes on topwater plugs, they will take a lot of fish this month. Redfish should be showing up in greater numbers out on the flats and the arrival of pelagics will turn them on as well. Weedless spoons, such as the Flats Intruder HEX spoon in the 1/2 oz. Gold and Copper, will be my Go-To bait of reds in March. Meanwhile, Let's Go Fishing! Pat McGriff dba One More Cast guide service for 30 years! www.onemorecast.net onemorecast@gtcom.net cell: 850.838.7541

am leaving the Nature Coast and moving to the Forgotten Coast. This was a very tough decision because the Nature Coast has been home to me for many years. I will never forget how good this coast has been to me. I have made lifelong friends and caught more fish than I can count. Now it’s time to move on. I have fallen in love with the Forgotten Coast because it is just as the name implies. It’s very peaceful here. I feel like I have stepped back 20 yeas in time. I am so excited to start this adventure. I feel Mother Nature speaking to me, telling me to take it all in. I will once again be doing inshore fishing charters. I will be departing out of St. Marks. The town of St. Marks is a quaint little town surrounded by friendly folks. There is so much history here. This sleepy little town is the third oldest settlement in North America, staking claim to one of the longest histories of any place in Florida. The historic St. Marks Lighthouse, located in the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, is the second oldest lighthouse in Florida, still standing over the shores of Apalachee Bay. It’s a must see if you are in the area. I can imagine some of the stories just waiting to be told of Spanish explorers, of Apalachee Indians, of forts and cannons firing, pirates, sunken ships, and battles during the

Civil War. There are some great little bar/ restaurants with that local vibe, and a couple marinas. There's a tiny little store that been around for more than 50 years. St. Marks even boasts a bed and breakfast. Over the years, St. Marks has become known as a fishing village for both commercial and sport fishing. The slow pace is exactly the change I was looking for. I’m so excited to get out on the water and revel in this outstanding fishery. The fishing here is some of the best I've experienced. I love learning new areas and challenging myself to always be better. I’m ready for this laid-back lifestyle. Don't be surprised if you find me sitting on the docks, sipping rum and listening to Jimmy Buffet. St. Marks is a drinking town with a fishing problem. Now that’s my kind of town. Captain Stacy Horak Cell 352-553-3604 Facebook: CaptainStacy Horak Instagram: captain_stacyhorakfishing www.fishingwithcaptainstacy.com

Trout like this beauty, will take lipped Jerkbaits in March. 16 NORTH CENTRAL FLORIDA/NATURE COAST

MARCH 2021

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PHOTO COURTESY OF TROPHYCATCHFLORIDA.COM.

Woody Bozeman caught this 9-lb., 15-oz. largemouth from Orange Lake in January.

Orange Lake Regains Its Legendary Status S

outheast of Gainesville in southern Alachua County, Orange Lake has a storied reputation as one of the best freshwater fisheries in Florida for largemouth bass, crappie and bream when conditions are right. At nearly 13,000 acres, it is large but relatively shallow, with an average depth of 6 feet. Connected to the Floridan Aquifer through numerous sinkholes, water levels can be very dynamic, and habitat conditions on the lake can change dramatically. During periods of extended drought, the lake can drop low enough to eliminate access. Abundant rainfall, such as that which accompanies tropical storms or hurricanes, helps to replenish the lake. These cycles of drought and refill have been recorded on Orange Lake

since the early to mid-1900s, and they have likely been occurring before recorded history. The lake’s fish populations have proven resilient in the face of such dramatic changes in water level, and it is likely they even benefit from these periodic resets in habitat conditions. Since the most recent drought of 2012 and the refilling of the lake in 2013, fishing in Orange Lake has been getting better every year. Recent angler interviews by FWC staff have shown excellent fishing for black crappie and bream. Anglers trolling or drifting jigs and minnows in open water do well for crappie in the fall and winter months. As crappie move shallower in preparation for the spring spawn, anglers do better targeting nearshore vegetation. Good catches of bluegill and redear sunfish can be had from spring through early fall as fish congregate to spawn in nearshore vegetation. Live baits such as grass shrimp, crickets or earthworms fished in open holes in the vegetation account for most of the fish. Although a little slower to rebound than the panfish, largemouth bass fishing is excellent for both numbers and size of fish. Creel surveys, electrofishing surveys, TrophyCatch submissions and bass tournament results have indicated a healthy bass fishery. Orange Lake lays claim to the second-heaviest bass ever submitted to the TrophyCatch program at 15.8 pounds. A remarkable five-bass tournament bag limit of 45.2 pounds was caught in Orange Lake. Bass anglers on Orange typically do well flipping soft plastics in and around emergent pads and floating vegetation mats, especially during the springtime spawn. Anglers should also target submerged vegetation with spinnerbaits, lipless crankbaits, soft plastics, and topwater lures. In addition to healthy populations of fish, Orange Lake’s abundant aquatic habitat supports excellent numbers of other wildlife. Waterfowl hunting, alligator hunting, frogging and bird watching are also popular activities. The lake can be accessed from Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Park near the community of Cross Creek and at Heagy-Burry Park near the town of McIntosh, just off of US 441. The lake can also be accessed from nearby Lochloosa Lake via passage through Cross Creek. A handful of fish camps also provide launch opportunities on the lake for a nominal fee. For more information, go to myfwc.com.

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nglers pursuing reef fish in federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico will now be required to have a descending device or venting tool on board, rigged and ready for use. The new regulation has been in the works since 2019, and Congress signed it into law in January. It applies to recreational anglers, including charter boats, as well as hook-and-line commercial fishermen. Led through Congress by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, the DESCEND Act was also supported by a coalition of fishing and conservation groups, including the International Game Fish Association and the American Sportfishing Association. The primary targets for conservation are economically and recreationally important Gulf red snapper, which are particularly susceptible to barotrauma because of the depth at which they are caught. With strict regulations and short seasons, red snapper and other reef species must often be returned to the water after being caught. Many of these released fish never make it back to the bottom. The rapid change in pressure from being brought to the surface from depth causes a condition called barotrauma. Barotrauma is a buildup of gas pressure in the fish’s body, which makes it difficult or impossible for them to swim back down. Consequently, countless fish returned to the water can die at the surface or fall victim to opportunistic predators. “Considering that a significant percentage of recreational fish are caught and released alive, the use of descending gear will increase the number of fish that survive to be caught again at a larger size or later when in-season,” said Ted Venker, conservation director for Coastal Conservation Association. “This conservation-minded law is an important piece of our overall efforts to reduce all sources of discard and bycatch mortality, and ensure marine resources are healthy now and in the future.” A descending device is a weighted hook, lip clamp or box that will hold the fish while it is lowered to a sufficient depth to recover from the effects of barotrauma and be released. A venting tool is a sharpened, hollow device capable of penetrating the abdomen of a fish to release the excess gas pressure in the body cavity when a fish is retrieved from depth. The Florida Wildlife Resources Commission warns: “Descending devices and venting tools should only be used when fish show one or more signs of barotrauma and cannot swim back down on their own. It is essential to work quickly when using these tools and return the fish to the water as soon as possible. Anglers should choose the device and method they are most comfortable with and that best fits the situation.” For more information go to myfwc.com.com

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ollowing the 2003 listing of smalltooth sawfish under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), a team was assembled to recover the population of this endangered species. But what is recovery and how do we achieve it for smalltooth sawfish? Under the ESA, recovery is restoring a species to the point where they no longer require the safeguards of the Act. To guide managers and researchers, the ESA directs NOAA Fisheries to develop recovery plans that outline a path to secure self-sustaining wild populations. A recovery plan for smalltooth sawfish in the U.S. was published in 2009. Sawfish may be delisted only if data indicate improvement in the status of the species to the point where it is no longer appropriate to be considered endangered. For smalltooth sawfish, that means ensuring long-term viability of the species through substantial increases in abundance and range. Smalltooth sawfish in the U.S. are considered and managed as a single population. All sawfish receive equal and consistent protections, regardless of where they are. Sawfish in Everglades National Park are just as protected and important to the population as those in Tampa Bay, Indian River Lagoon, Texas or Georgia. While we are seeing encouraging signs, we are a long way from recovery. Modest increases in sawfish numbers are likely the result of the 1992 protection from harvest in Florida, the 1995 Florida gillnet ban and the 2003 ESA listing. However, until recovery is truly documented, it is critical that local, state, and federal regulations and protections remain in place.

You Can Help Save Smalltooth Sawfish

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Angler Guidance ▶ Release sawfish immediately ▶ Never lift from the water or drag ashore ▶ Do not use gaffs or ropes to secure ▶ Cut the line as close to the hook as possible

Diver Guidance ▶ Keep your distance ▶ Avoid disturbing sawfish ▶ Do not chase or pursue ▶ Never feed or touch

Help track recovery and steer research by sharing information about your sawfish catches and sightings at www.SawfishRecovery.org.

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NORTH FLORIDA 7

NON-STAINLESS Circle Hooks Now Required

nglers using hook-and-line with natural bait to target reef fish like snapper or grouper from a vessel in Florida’s Atlantic state waters are now required to use non-stainless steel, non-offset circle hooks north of 28 degrees north latitude (near Melbourne) and non-stainless steel hooks south of 28 degrees north latitude. These changes are consistent with requirements in Atlantic federal waters that recently took effect and, along with emphasizing best fishing practices through educational resources and strategic messaging, will help conserve fisheries for the future. Non-stainless steel, non-offset circle hooks are already required when fishing for reef fish in Gulf state waters and have been a successful tool in increasing the number of fish that survive release. Non-stainless steel hooks degrade faster in the marine environment compared to stainless steel or other non-corrodible metals. Use of these hooks may ultimately improve survival if the line is broken or the hook cannot be removed, and increase a fish’s chance to shed the hook over time. Additionally, non-offset circle hooks more often hook fish in the mouth rather than the gut, which reduces internal harm to the fish and decreases de-hooking time for the angler. Allowing the use of other types of non-stainless steel hooks south of 28 degrees north latitude accommodates for regionally important south Florida fisheries, such as yellowtail snapper, in which the use of J hooks allows for greater efficiency and reduces discard mortality. FWC encourages the use of tools such as descending devices and venting tools when barotrauma occurs so long as they do not delay release.

From left to right: J-hook, circle hook, non-offset circle hook, offset circle hook.

To learn more about proper fish handling techniques, visit MyFWC.com/FishHandling.

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’m expecting awesome spring action at the beach. Longer days and warmer weather will start bringing snook from the deeper water around the inlets to feed in the surf early in the morning and late in the evening. Tarpon will start navigating the inlets and going along the beach. Pods of bait will have snook, tarpon, large jacks, mackerel and bluefish feeding on them. Even though the pompano bite and mackerel bite will start to end, the whiting and croaker bite will improve, and they will be hitting live bait, small jigs and spoons where you find bait. Follow the Bait: Fish will be following pods of glass minnows, greenies and other bait as they start heading north. Look for pelicans in the water and gulls and terns that dive at the tops of waves, picking off bait. When you go to the beach, look for birds that have located schooling bait or bait pods. The general rule is: No birds, no bait. Find a beach where you can see birds and/or bait. If you walk down to the water, you will see activity around the trough behind the closest breaking waves. You will see splashing or small fish jumping if there’s going to be fishing action. Birds will usually be concentrated on large schools of bait and big pods. The Early Bite is Best: My experience is 15 minutes before daybreak until early morning is the best time to fish the beach. It’s the best snook bite, and the fish will be around the trough because the bait will be in the wash. Usually the bait will start moving out after daybreak. Reels and Tackle: I use a medium to light spinning reel (400 series) with 10to 20-pound white braid on a 7-foot rod. A long rod gives you longer casts. I use a 30- to 40-pound fluorocarbon leader attached to the braid with a uni knot and attach the lure with a loop knot for better movement. Lures: My favorite search bait is a 3/8- to ½-ounce chartreuse jig with a pearl white paddletail, which gives the lure more movement and even works with a steady retrieve. That steady retrieve is useful in rough, windy weather. I use a variety of retrieves depending on whether the fish are hitting near top or off bottom. Usually, I try and fish near the top by holding my rod tip high, twitching the lure, and using a fast retrieve. For bottom feeders like whiting and croaker, I let the jig sit on the bottom and give it an exaggerated jerk, which brings it to the top. I also like shallow-running crankbaits and spoons in gold or silver. For long casts in wind and bigger fish, try 2-ounce silver crocodile spoon.

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f you’re looking for a fishing adventure that’s just a short flight away, where the fishery is as good as any on the planet, and you won’t have to mortgage your home to afford it, don’t overlook Mexico and Belize. Flights to Cancun are available from almost every airport, and if you shop around, very inexpensive flights can be found. Once you get there, accommodations are very reasonably priced, and meals are cheaper than here in The States. I have fished the “Mayan Riveria” from Cozumel to Tulum, with results that are pretty awesome. What’s more, I had most of the areas I fished entirely to myself. I am a fly fisherman, and I spent days wading turtle grass flats for species like tarpon, bonefish, snook, a variety of snapper species, pompano and even the elusive Permit. I recently returned from a trip when the weather was marginal, at best, with high winds and rough seas. Still, I was able to produce several different species, along with some world-class triggerfish. These odd-looking warriors can be found hanging out on shallow coral reefs, and they are a ton of fun on the fly. I also spent a day fly fishing with my friend Will Robins, who owns and operates Fly Fish Costa Maya, in Chetumal, Mexico, near the Belize Border. In one morning, we hooked and broke off four trophy-sized triggers and had legitimate shots at three permit in the 10- to 15-pound range. If you know how difficult permit are to catch on the fly, you’ll understand that just having a few opportunities to cast to them is exciting. The highlight of the trip was a triggerfish we landed that would have been a monster anywhere. If Belize has been on your bucket list, the waters of Ambergris Caye are as good as their reputation. I’ve fished the caye several times with personal friend, Hilian Martinez. Most consider this man among the best in the country. Belize is also very easy to travel to, and reasonably priced. With a little homework, the waters of the Yucatan Peninsula and the waters of Belize can also produce good numbers for those who desire DIY fishing, without a guide. These are just a few examples of opportunities that await just a few hours away in a place that’s as beautiful as it is productive. A world-class fishery awaits, and it’s a lot closer and more attainable that you ever thought possible.

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SPRING TROUT IN THE SMOKIES

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uide Ian Rutter is fired up about spring in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Ample rains and a mild winter bode well for the wild trout that inhabit more than 800 miles of trout streams in the park. This time of year, fish are perking up to feed on an abundance of aquatic insects. But there’s another reason the Smokies are inviting to anglers in spring. The summertime crowds, with their campers and inner tubes, haven’t yet invaded the larger rivers. Ian and his wife, Charity, run R&R Fly Fishing out of Townsend, Tennessee. They have guided anglers in the park for a quarter century and live a stone’s throw from Little River, one of the largest and most popular streams in the Smokies. From high-elevation brook trout rills to roadside rivers, they fish it all, but Ian said it’s wise to stick to the larger flows in lower elevations this time of year. In March, and even into April, it’s likely there will still be snow on the ground up in the hills. Trout thrive in cold water, but their metabolisms slow, and they feed less readily in icy temperatures. Also, the bugs they feed on are mostly dormant at higher altitudes, which can make things slow for fly fishing. Meanwhile, down in the valleys, larger rivers like Little River, Deep Creek and the Oconaluftee will be waking up. In afternoons, even on cold days, fish should be looking to the surface for hatches of mayflies like Quill Gordons, blue-winged olives and blue quills. Throw in a few early brown stoneflies, and you’ll see why the Smokies are known for great dry fly fishing. “Oftentimes you’ll have some combination of those bugs all at the same time,” Ian said. “They’re not too particular. And even the one’s that are particular aren’t as particular as some folks think they are.” Being sneaky is more important than fly selection, Ian said. Trout in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are wild, stream-born and extremely wary of predators. So wading very carefully and making short accurate casts are important to success. Another thing about trout in the Smokies is they grow slowly. Fishing is less about catching big fish and more about the overall experience. “I like to say, ‘your results may vary,’” said Ian when asked about angler expectations. “We do catch some 16-inchers, but the important thing to remember is it’s a wild trout fishery. There aren’t any stocked trout that were put in last week at 14 inches. A 16-incher might be 10 years old. It’s survived every type of predator out there, so it’s super-smart and difficult to catch.” A proficient angler can expect to catch good numbers of brightly colored 8- to 10-inch wild trout. Any angler can expect to wade through some of the most gorgeous mountain trout water in the East. For information on fishing the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, contact R&R Fly Fishing through their website at randrflyfishing.com.

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From proprietary fabrics that breathe to superior functionality and bold graphics and colors, GILLZ is in a class of its own. It starts with revolutionary, chemicalfree GillzTec fabric. It’s engineered to quickly distribute moisture 360 degrees across the garment, so the moisture evaporates much faster, keeping you cooler. The cross-breeze ventilation system channels cooling air under the shirt. In

fact, you’ll find GILLZ shirts breathe like nothing you’ve ever worn. And of course, all of their shirts provide UPF 50+ sun protection, so you can fish from sunup to sundown safely. GILLZ masks feature “gills” that channel air down your neck and mesh mouth openings that prevent your sunglasses from fogging. Plus, their masks can also be worn in a variety of ways to suit your particular needs. Functional hybrid shorts with pockets where you need them also feature four-way stretch fabric, an expandable waistband and a vented, gusseted crotch that lets cool air in. And who couldn’t use some cool air down there? And you’ve got to check out the epic designs and styles. Each color and print is inspired by and pays homage to nature and marine life. You’ll find bold, confident styles for anglers like you. Whatever your destination – the Bahamas, Florida Keys, Outer Banks or the Gulf of Mexico… whether you’re fishing offshore, the flats, lake, or river, only GILLZ Technical Fishing Apparel brings this level of durability, comfort, and performance to the table. That’s why it’s the choice of many pros. Rest assured, GILLZ will continue to push innovation and performance to the limit with elite new products. So, breathe in that moment out on the water when your muscles are working overtime and the sun is beating down. You’ll know that GILLZ apparel breathes with you so you can be at your absolute best. See the latest GILLZ collections by checking out their website: www.gillz-gear.com

COASTALANGLERMAG.COM • THEANGLERMAG.COM

MARCH 2021

NATIONAL 15

LOCAL ANGLER CRUSHES VIRGINIA SWORDFISH RECORD A daytime deep drop expedition yielded spectacular results for a Virginia angler this past September. It took four months for the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament to officially announce it, but a 597-pound swordfish caught by Nicholas Kontodiakos on Sept. 25, 2020 absolutely crushed the existing state record. Kontodiakos, of Norfolk, Va., was drifting in 1,000 feet of water off Virginia Beach when the massive swordfish hit a bait suspended at 800 feet. Caught along the southern edge of Norfolk Canyon, Kontodiako’s fish topped the existing record by more than 130 pounds. The previous record of 466 pounds was caught in August 2019 by Tony Gower Jr., of Virginia Beach. Kontodiakos and fishing buddy Trey Wallace left Rudee Inlet at 4:30 a.m. aboard the angler’s 2007, 29-foot SeeVee. After arriving at their location, they made several long drifts and had a couple of bites that did not come tight. The lines were set for “one more drift” before they planned to head in for the day. At 3:30 p.m. the deep “buoy rod,” with a rigged dolphin belly on a blue and white skirt, came tight. After wrestling the fish for nearly five hours, it was clear it was a large swordfish, and when the fish was finally secured at the transom, they began to relax. But securing the fish to the transom was

just round one. Round two consisted of couple hours of inching the fish onto the deck. Kontodiakos’ passion for swordfish began a decade ago while living on the east coast of Florida. “I had no idea how to go about catching them,” he admitted. After moving to Virginia Beach and realizing there were swordfish 60-plus miles off the Virginia coast, he decided he needed a bigger boat. Unfortunately, even with a bigger boat, his lack of success in Florida tagged along to Virginia. “No one wanted to fish with me because I never came back with any fish,” he said. Relentlessly perusing information on the Internet and talking to successful anglers eventually began to payoff, and his success improved in recent years. He said he’s caught a swordfish in every month of the year except January. It was nearly midnight when the pair pulled inside Rudee Inlet on Sept. 25. A call had already been made to alert the Virginia Beach Fishing Center of the catch, and the boat’s bow was pointed straight to the Fishing Center’s main dock. Representatives from the Fishing Center were dockside to assist, and a small crowd of onlookers had assembled, despite the late hour. The fish measured 180 inches total length,

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with a lower jaw fork length of 111 inches. It sported a hefty girth of 69 inches. Kontodiakos used a custom Joe Leffler 80-pound class rod, teamed with a Shimano Tiagra 50 reel, spooled with 80-pound PowerPro braid and topped off with a 25-foot, 250-pound Moni mono leader with a Mustad 7691, 11/0 hook, attached to the business end.

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p b sh It’s the fry can Bu catchin vetera tips to 1) crappi hold o times shallow “Th for the the spa mid-5 As Then seek o of cree back o Th targets spawn could have m Sa the 10 discard

pringtime is crappie time. When water temps begin to climb, the crappie schools move shallow to stage on structure before the spawn. It’s the time of year when loading coolers for a fish fry can be quick and easy. But the thing with crappie is you’re either catching them or you’re not. With that in mind, veteran crappie angler Dan Saknini offered some tips to consistently catch slab crappie. 1) Know The Cycles: The comfort zone for crappie is 35 feet and shallower, said Saknini. They hold on deep brush during the coldest and hottest times of year, but in milder weather they move shallower in search of optimal water temperatures. “This time of year, the crappie are fattening up for the spawn,” he said. “Their comfort zone for the spawn is when water temperatures rise into the mid-50s, preferably closer to 60.” As the spawn begins, fish stage up on structure. Then they’ll move extremely shallow in waves to seek out spawning areas on the banks and backs of creeks. The females move in, lay eggs and move back out. The males stay shallow to guard the beds. Through the stages of the spawn, Saknini targets brush in 15 feet or shallower. With the spawning season lasting about a month, these could be pre-spawn fish or post-spawn fish that have moved back out. Saknini shoots jigs in and around docks in the 10- to 15-foot range. Many lake homeowners discard Christmas trees off their docks. These are

the docks you need to find. 2) Locate Structure: Regardless of the season, black crappie school up on some type of structure. They change depths, and move off structure momentarily to feed, so catching them consistently means knowing the locations of brushpiles at all different depths. Saknini said good electronics and prospecting are key to being a good crappie angler. If you fish a lake that allows it, you can build your own honey holes. “I probably sink 50 or 60 brushpiles a year,” Saknini said. “Then I go back and fish them. There might be fish there, or there might not, but I always have another one to go to.” 3) Ditch the Minnows: Fishing a minnow under a bobber is traditional, and it can be effective. However, Saknini said fishing jigs is a far more efficient. “Once you get used to jig fishing, it’s always more productive,” he said. “If you’re fishing a minnow, it’s either under a bobber or on a downline, and it’s stationary. With a jig, you’re moving and covering water.” Crappie are lazy and won’t chase a bait more than a few feet, Saknini said. There could be fish all over a piece of structure, but you wouldn’t know it if your minnow is just a foot out of the strike zone. With a jig, you can cover water vertically and horizontally for a better chance of passing through that zone.

PHOTO BY NICK CARTER

Catch More Crappie

Dan Saknini is a member of Lanier Crappie Anglers Club. Check them out at www.laniercrappieanglers.net.

FREEDIVER SPEARS WORLD RECORD SNAPPER

reediver Stephanie Schuldt broke a world record in late November when she speared a 19.3-pound (8.8 kg) dog snapper in the Bahamas. At a depth of 45 feet, Schuldt stuck the big snapper with 9-foot Headhunter Nomad roller polespear while wreck diving off Nassau. The fish qualified her for the International Underwater Spearfishing Association’s women’s world record for the species in the sling/polespear division. It also outweighed the men’s record of 19.1 pounds, which was caught by JonMichael Degidio off Grand Cay in 2016. “At the end of my breath hold I saw the dog snapper swimming in and out of the wreckage,” wrote Schuldt in a description of the event. “I came back up to the surface and told my boyfriend, Matt, ‘There is a world record dog snapper down there.’ I took some time to get a good breathe-up, dropped back down into the wreck and got a solid holding shot on the fish. It fought for a bit on the way up, but I was able to clear it from the wreck and get it to the surface. Once at the surface, it tried to bite me and tangled up my float line, but I was able to grab it by the gills and swim it back to my boat.” Even on a rod and reel, Schuldt’s fish would have been impressive. The IGFA all-tackle world record weighed 24 pounds. It was caught back in 1994 by Capt. Wayne Barder off Abaco. Check Stephanie Schuldt’s adventures at www.saillaviecharters.com. COASTALANGLERMAG.COM • THEANGLERMAG.COM

MARCH 2021

NATIONAL 19

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here should be a betting pool for just how quickly the Black Lake, Michigan sturgeon season will end each year. In 2020, the season lasted just six hours. This year, the scheduled Feb. 6-10 season was shut down after two hours of fishing when the harvest limit was met. Imagine getting all geared up to go spear fishing through a hole in the ice for these big prehistoric fish. The season opens at 8 a.m. Then, at 10 a.m., your hopes are dashed when Michigan DNR knocks on the door of your ice shanty. Apparently, that’s the way Black Lake sturgeon season goes for a vast majority of anglers. More than 500 anglers registered to jockey for a harvest quota of just six fish this year. It’s a credit to Michigan DNR that they even hold the event at the 10,000-acre lake, which is connected to Lake Huron by the Black and Cheboygan rivers. Rehabilitation of the lake sturgeon population in the watershed is an ongoing effort, and this limited harvest creates excitement around the effort. There are reports of anglers who have fished the season for decades without getting a single sturgeon. The six fish caught ranged from 50 to 63 inches and 25 to 61 pounds. Three of the fish had been tagged before during studies of the spawning run up the Black River. A 61-inch-long female, estimated to be about 20 years old, was tagged during the 2006 spawning run. Male sturgeon have a lifespan of about 55 years. Females can live longer than 100 years. For more information, go to Michigan.gov/Fishing. 20 NATIONAL

MARCH 2021

ooking through Facebook and reminiscing on traveling for boat-show season, one conversation starter I remember most fondly is, “That’s too big for my rope locker.” In spite of American fiberglass OEMs like Sea Chaser and Sea Pro factory-installing the Rebel EZ-4 on specific series, there’s still a popular myth that drum anchor winches are built predominantly for aluminum boats. One too many boaters have told me this when they stopped at our company’s booth during the 2020 season, and while we’re officially homebound due to the pandemic, we’re as busy as ever answering questions and informing customers about our product. We want to help them achieve the best anchoring results for them. From newbies who have recently embraced boating, to longtime hobbyists who have extra time to add new features on their boats, there is usually an anchoring solution, whether it’s a Patriot direct drive unit or a Rebel free-fall unit. “You can click the ‘Products’ tab on the website and select the winch that interests you,” Sara Hitchins, E-Z Anchor Puller’s office and trade show manager said. “Select the unit you’d like to view and the link to the dimensional drawings are on the product page. One way to measure is to make a cardboard cutout at home to measure against your boat.” If you’re one of the new boaters looking for a new fiberglass model or researching that windlass upgrade on your family boat, these center consoles from customers and builders prove that a drum winch looks sexy on center consoles, too! SEA PRO: Sea Pro Boats introduced the world to their 320 Deep V Center Console at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, joining Carolina Skiff to become another American fiberglass OEM to factory-install E-Z Anchor Puller’s Rebel EZ-4 free-fall unit, adapting the innovative technology one year after Georgia-based OEM Carolina Skiff began installing. SEA CHASER: “I liked it so much I installed a Patriot on my own personal boat,” Ed Johnston, engineer at Carolina Skiff told us when we saw him at the Miami International Boat Show. The 35’ Sea Chaser also uses the free-fall Rebel EZ-4 and hides it in the rope locker. PARKER: “I know this is an old post, but I love my EZ on my 2820,” one writer on Classicparker.com posted to a company thread, “I have 600’ of dyneema, 75 of nylon and 50’ of chain. With lots of extra room still.” Live2fish posted several pictures depicting the Rebel EZ-4 unit resting on a bow pulpit. ARIMA: Mark Fitch was an avid poster of his installation process on ArimaOwners.com, documenting his journey with various “beer breaks” in between. Mark’s 1987 Arima Sea Pacer was sized for the Patriot EZ-1, a smaller complete 316 stainless steel unit. He still tags #ezanchorpuller in his fishing posts.

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MARCH 2021

NATIONAL 21

HUGE SWORDFISH SETS NEW FLORIDA RECORD

n Jan. 20, four young anglers from Pompano Beach, Fla. set out early from Hillsboro Inlet to get in on the fast action being reported from the swordfish grounds, some 15 miles off the coast. They returned to the docks that evening with a 767.8-pound swordfish that set a new Florida state record. The official record holder and the man who manned the LP electric reel was 21-yearold Timmy Maddock. The 31-foot center console they fished from belongs to 17-yearold Hunter Irvine, who put the final dart in the enormous fish. Lady angler, Jaime Johanson, 20, videoed the landing and got in with the gaff, while Jeremy Rafferty, 21, manned the helm as they subdued the new record. It took five and a half hours to fight the fish into submission. It took almost another hour and a radio call for help to get the swordfish through the tuna door and safely in the boat. Rob Doda, who was fishing solo nearby left his boat floating and boarded Irvine’s boat to help haul the giant fish onboard. It was an epic catch for the group of young anglers, and the 400 pounds of meat their fish yielded was shared with friends and family, with the charity organization Filet for Friends, and at a celebratory barbecue for the whole Pompano Beach fishing community. To read Timmy Maddock’s account of the catch, see the Florida section of this magazine or online at www.coastalanglermagazine.com. 22 NATIONAL

MARCH 2021

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NEW ENGLAND AWAITS

warm water, and they’re looking for that constant bait source. That’s what the rivers provide.” Action is fast in tidal rivers like the Weweantic on the north side of Buzzards Bay. Murphy walks the dog with topwater baits like a 7-inch Lil’ Doc to draw explosive strikes from good numbers of stripers in the rivers. They’ll also eat By Nick Carter soft-plastic eel or herring imitations like those made by Hogy, and although these river fish aren’t the monsters Murphy pursues later in the season, there aren’t many anglers who’d turn their nose up to consistent topwater activity from fish up to 20 inches. As the season progresses, the bite moves to the mouths of the rivers, where stripers ambush herring moving out. This is where some of the bigger fish come into play, and they also can be taken on topwater. By mid-May, Murphy said he’ll be chasing the classic New England bass blitzes, when schoolie-sized fish ball up bait and crash the surface. At this point, fish will have spread up around Cape Cod or through the Cape Cod Canal into Massachusetts Bay. Action ou can almost feel the excitement building on the coast of can be intense for fish in the 2- to New England. Winter is ebbing, and soon warming water 10-pound range. conditions will spark the migration of striped bass up the “You can go out early in the Atlantic coast. Jack Murphy will be waiting when they arrive. morning any day and find blitzing Murphy and his partner, Jack Loveday, co-founded Lucky Jacks schoolies,” Murphy said. “You can Fishing in Marblehead, Massachusetts. For them, April begins the catch 30 or 40 fish in just a couple busy striper season off Rhode Island and Massachusetts. hours.” As you read this, striped bass are spawning in tributaries of By the first part of June, anglers Chesapeake Bay, Delaware Bay and the Hudson River. When in search of big fish will head 5 to water temperatures rise into the 50s, these fish push north with 10 miles offshore to find big pogy huge schools of menhaden to feed ravenous post-spawn appetites. PHOTOS BY SEAN MAIORANO PHOTOGRAPHY (menhaden) schools. This is a Murphy said the first fish collect on the south side of Cape Cod WWW.SEANMAIORANOPHOTOGRAPHY.COM short-lived first-light bite. in Buzzards Bay. Timing is dependent on weather and water temperatures, so “When you come on one of these schools that’s getting harassed, you’re in Lucky Jacks spends spring studying winds and water temps to try and intercept the first waves of migrating fish. They normally show up in the second or third for a heck of a day.” Murphy said. “We’ve had a few days when our smallest fish were 37 pounds, and 40- to 50-pound fish are very possible.” week of April. “When river herring (alewife) push into the rivers to spawn, the first waves of stripes will be right on their tails,” Murphy said. “They’re looking for that Check out Lucky Jacks Fishing at www.luckyjacksfishing.com.

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MARCH 2021

NATIONAL 23

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