I was pretty disappointed with the experience. I had been communicating with Captain Justin for several weeks prior to my trip asking how the fishing was and asking what we would be fishing for. Justinโs response to me was โUsually cobia is just showing up in April so you got a good chance at 1 or 2 of those. Otherwise amber jack, vermillion snappers, king fish, groupers that type stuff is here thenโ. We spent a good portion of the trip hovered over a reef catching small reef fish using cut up squid, which is not what I had pictured based on the information I received from Justin, what is advertised on their website or based on the $1000 I spent for the trip. We were using the same bait and catching the same fish from the pier the day prior for $8. Also, they were catching a ton of Kings off the pier the day before and we saw a ton of other boats trolling in the area for what I am assuming were Kings. I guess I was just really disappointed in the experience for the amount of money I spent.
We just wanted to catch something that puts up a fight. I finally asked if we could go catch something that takes some line. Justin was fine with that and took us over to a wreck about 2 miles from where we were. He definitely put us on the Amberjacks which was awesome and the highlight of the trip. We couldnโt keep any but we didnโt care.
The captainโs website said all the gear was Loomis or Biscayne rods. It even says that the bait catching rods are Loomis. Every rod we saw on the boat were Shimano. The rod I was using for reef fish was a Shimano and pretty beat up.ย Not a huge deal but again wasnโt what was advertised. We missed quite a few hookups and my son and I, who fish a lot, noticed that the circle hooks we were using were pretty dull. I personally change out hooks daily at a minimum on my own boat but the ones we were using seemed really dull. Also, on our rod we were all sharing to catch the Amberjacks, the line didnโt go through one of the guides on the rod. Again, not a huge deal but not something I expect from a $1000 half day trip. Also would have been even more critical had we been able to retain fish.
Justin was pleasant for the most part but he didnโt really greet us first thing in the morning and there was never a โwelcome aboard my boatโ or any kind of safety briefing to show everyone where the life preservers or fire extinguishers were. Also, the website says โWe keep a complimentary cooler full of ice cold drinks to keep you hydrated and feeling freshโ. That was never offered to any of us.
I also paid an extra $50 for two more guests to fish; however they ended up not feeling well and never touched a fishing pole. Would have been nice if Justin would have offered that $100 back to me since they were just spectators.
I guess in summaryโฆ...nice boat and good experience catching a few Amberjacks but this trip wasnโt worth what I spent and wasnโt even close to the experience I was hoping to have with my two sons and wife.
I was pretty disappointed with the experience. I had been communicating with Captain Justin for several weeks prior to my trip...