Bending rods and making memories in Dest

The bite came back late in the week. Live shrimp from Captain Hicks in Sara Ann Bayou, #2 mustad demon perfect circle hook, 30lb Andes Fluorocarbon, and 20lb Power pro super slick on a 3500 Penn Spinfisher V. Rigged modified Carolina style, presented the tailooked shrimp in the shadow of docks in 5-8’ of water around 65 degrees. If pinfish are present, keep moving. Redfish and sheep’s do not “nibble.” Watch out for predator dolphins when releasing your shorts. The 10lb sheepshead surprised us because they were mixed in with the redfish. Make some memories with L4K Charters.

The week of Christmas may not seem like the time to fish in Destin. However, there are fewer boats on the water meaning less pressure on the fish. This week we found some bull redfish under the Destin bridge. Outgoing tide, live shrimp on a 2/O demon perfect circle hook, 30lb Andes Fluorocarbon, 2oz lead on a L4K rig, and a Penn 4500 Spinfisher VI. Our tag 589 on a healthy release will be monitored by Coastal Resources. This fish was 9.5lbs and 32" long. Kian has been fishing with me for the past five years. I'm very proud of him.

September afternoons in Destin, FL are tough on the Captain to find active fish. This week's hot weather and South wind made it seem impossible. However, we found this 25" Redfish in < 3' of murky water with an outgoing tide, hanging around schools of Sand Trout and Ladyfish. He and 18 of his smaller friends ate live Menhaden on a Carolina Rig tied to a 2/O Demon Perfect circle hook on 20lb Seaguar Red-Label fluorocarbon. We used a PENN Battle II 2500, 7' Extra Fast, Medium-Light Rod, loaded with 15lb Berkley Power-Pro super-slick braid. The hardest part is getting bait past the Mangrove Snappers and Pinfish. This lady-angler broke her own personal record with a 7-minute fight around dock pylons, heavy grass, and a set of deployed Power-Poles. The Captain finally netted the bull after three failed attempts. WOW! That fish went straight from live-well to grill for the freshest fish at the Hansill house--EVER! That was an exciting day aboard "at EASE!"