Spanish Mackerel Fall Run Is On

It's reasonable to be skeptical of the forecast this time of year. For example, when I checked the NOAA buoys offshore this morning, I saw 2-3 foot swells, rolling gently at nine second intervals. I was pretty excited because that meant I could get my 3/4 day clients, James and Jay, out to the deep water in relative comfort. So, imagine my surprise to roll out into a brisk, 10-12 knot breeze, blowing up a sideshore chop that made every mile feel like a ride on a jackhammer. Instead of racing along at 30mph, I was beating into the head sea at about half that. Fortunately, I had a fallback plan so we stopped at an artificial reef about halfway to the original destination. I was marking a lot of fish in the spot, but they didn't seem very interested in my cigar minnows. We worked the area pretty hard until, finally, one of the long lines went off. Jay, the youngster, jumped on the rod and after a bit of back and forth, brought the fish alongside. I put the gaff down when I saw what was pretty obviously an undersize king mackerel (they have to be 24"). I reached down to see if I could pop the fish off the hook when I noticed the black dorsal fin. This was no short king, it was a hoss of a Spanish mackerel! We pulled through the area for a while longer with nothing to show but a short strike on the other top line. Finally, I asked if they would be up for making the run the rest of the way to our original destination, about 8 miles further out. After some consideration of the rising breeze, we decided to go for it. I don't think we had completed our first circuit of the artificial reef area when the long line went off hard. Jay, quick with the speed of youth, jumped at the opportunity. I looked back in time to see a hefty cow dolphin cutting acrobatics (aerobatics?) behind the boat. Jay followed the fish while I adjusted the boat to keep it in a good position. There was a good bit of give and take, but the fish finally came alongside and I sank the gaff and brought the beauty aboard. We made a few more rounds in the area when the other rod bent and the reel started screaming. A brilliant blue dolphin burst out of the water as James beat Jay to the reel this time. This fish also put up a classic fight, and despite a gaffe with the gaff, we were able to reduce this one to possession as well. It wasn't long after this that we picked up a full-grown Atlantic sharp-nose shark on the downrigger. Jay fought this one to a standstill, but not before it managed to cross the other lines. After deciding they didn't want to eat this shark (they're delicious and boneless!), I released it to swim again and turned my attention to the mess it had made. While I worked to clear the tangle, the wind caught the boat and spun it back on its own track. Suddenly one of the other reels was screaming. At first we were all excited, but then I realized that this wasn't a fish... the line was caught in the propeller. This is a potentially dangerous situation, as the line can bind up the prop and cause overheating. Or worse, it can cut the seals allowing water into the lower unit and making a very expensive problem. I killed the motor and raised it up to see the extent of the issue. It wasn't great. I spent the next half hour or so working to get the line cut and cleared. Under ordinary conditions this is a challenging process, but in the pounding seas and wind, it was all I could do to hold onto the motor, the knife, and my pliers. At one point, I was ready to give in and call for a tow, but the prospect of waiting for a tow to arrive from 18 miles away was too much, so I went back at it and finally got all of the line cut away. Fortunately, the motor started and operated properly. Nevertheless, we decided to move closer to shore just in case. We ran in and put Clark spoons out to troll along the beach. The Spanish were cooperative, and we put several in the boat, adding to the haul. Finally, the winds were getting to be too much. We had pretty much filled out the 8 hours anyway, so we hauled in the lines and headed for the hill. Overall, despite the challenges it was a really good day. But I won't lie... I'm sure looking forward to some glassy slick days.

Sometimes it pays to reach out at the last minute, which is what my little group did yesterday. On a spur-of-the-moment trip to the beach, they decided to try a private charter instead of their usual head boat trips. Fortunately, I had an opening for an afternoon kids' trip, so we were on! We waited out a line of thunderstorms and made it out onto the water at around 3pm. The wind had died out and the seas were beautiful and calm in the trail of the squalls, which made for perfect conditions to troll the beach for Spanish. On the downside, the storm had scattered the fish and driven them down, so we couldn't really count on feeding birds or surface feeding to find them... we just had to hunt. The hunting wasn't too difficult though, and we had our first bluefish before I even got my second line set out. It was no monster, but 14 year-old McKinley brought it to the boat like a seasoned pro. Throughout the afternoon, we hit the scattered blues and Spanish, releasing the blues in favor of the tastier mackerel. The little family just wanted enough for a nice dinner, so that's what we got. At the end of the trip, we'd released a small pile of bluefish and some undersized Spanish to send Amanda, Brandon, and McKinley home with eight, perfect-sized fish. The last I heard, the plan was fish tacos. I'm betting it went great! This is a great time of year to get out there and get some fish tacos for yourself! Come on down!

Had a 3hr Kids' trip last weekend, and sorry to say we didn't get on the fish. It's a bit early to be fishing nearshore, but I had high hopes for an early bonito or maybe a bluefish... but it wasn't to be. With that in mind, the season is just starting. With a regular half-day trip, we can get a little further offshore and by all accounts, it's hot and getting hotter with Atlantic bonito and even some early Spanish mackerel. Longer trips can get us out to the early kings. Nothing is ever guaranteed, but 2026 is officially underway and we're ready to get out there and get 'em! Come join us!