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Wahoo the speeding Bullet
When Wahoo hits your lure at 60 miles an hour
and runs your 30 lbs test line for a few spurts of 100 to150 yards , you have
discovered an allure that no other fish will give you. The Wahoo or
(Acanthocybium Solanderi) is lean, sleek, torpedo looking fish that may be
confused with a king mackerel to someone who has never seen one before. The
mackerel however does not run like a Wahoo nor does it display the classic
vertical bands that extend its lateral lines. The Wahoo are also normally found
in deeper blue water zones where tuna are often running, as is the common case.
Few argue that there is a better tasting fish than the Wahoo.It can be argued
that there isn't a fish in the ocean that has whiter meat than a Wahoo and the
texture of the meat makes you want to eat all of it as Sashimi, Sushi or very
lightly seared. It is a crime to cook this fish for longer than a few minutes,
as there is no need to alter its texture from its right out of the water
texture.
It hits a Texas peak in May and can last all
year. Wahoo grow rapidly from birth often growing to five feet in range. The
older ones seem to be rounder at the girth, the bigger ones often reaching above
70+ pounds. On average in the Texas waters Wahoo are caught between 20 and 80
pounds and a lot come from 12-50 miles offshore. In Texas Wahoo is not sought
out commercially and even difficult to hook one on rod-and-reel due to their
hard mouth and razor sharp teeth. But, Most boats manage with extremely sharp
hooks and lures. Hence, they are often lost as often as landed. When it comes
down to it, Wahoo are not under much fishing pressure and no regulations to date
have been imposed or size limits.
To catch a Wahoo, a fisherman will need over 100 lb. steel test leader and it
needs to be about 3 to 4 feet in length. It is often that you will see the marks
of the leader wire along the sides of the Wahoo body after catching one. On a
few occasions I have witnessed fishermen wanting to use monofilament test leader
only to be amazed at the mono shreds left from the hoos razor like teeth. To
cach them, our local fishermen will recommend Rapala And Yozuri lures and
deepwater divers anywhere in the 3 to 5 inches range as with anything saltwater
the bigger the lure the bigger the fish remember a weighted lure is best. Your
luck with the lure will vary depending on what the Wahoo are eating in the area
you are fishing. In Texas, we troll for Wahoo’s although I have on occasion
caught a few bottom fishing for grouper. When the word is out that they are
around, we�ve rarely failed to catch them Most often trolling is the key on
most charter boats a trolling trip for wahoo can cost big bucks so choose your
charter very well make sure they have caught wahoo at least more than 3 times as
this will benefit your luck at possibly getting and landing one on the deck and
remember there is no limit on wahoo.
This
being said if you have never had a chance to catch one try it 1 wahoo will make
your dreams come true . One of the best time water shows you can find. Come find out why they say WAHOOOOOOO
The Mighty Grouper
The classic bottom fish for a lot of anglers
is the grouper. Whether strawberry,black,snowy,yellow edge,Warsaw, a good
grouper in the ice chest means a good day fishing for most people. In Texas, we
get some good size grouper, normally found on or near bottom structure out of
Freeport Texas the run isn’t deep or far, Although most larger grouper are
found diving or in very deepwater structure,holes and rigs. They prefer to be
able to seek shelter and hide, and although their name implies that they stay
together, they can also be very solitary fish. The larger ones become quite
solitary. Grouper will chase a bait occasionally, but their preference is to
ambush their prey. Their coloration and ability to change hues and shades
to blend in with their surroundings gives them that ambush capability.
It is this ambush ability that makes them relatively easy to hook, but difficult
to land.
Anglers find that medium-heavy bottom fishing
tackle is the best way to approach the grouper.
Grouper feed on other small fish, crustaceans
like crabs or crawfish, and squid. They tend to sit back in their cover
just under a ledge or backed into a hole in a reef and wait. When an easy
opportunity swims buy they rush out, inhale their prey, and quickly return to
their lair.
There are basically three approaches used
when fishing for grouper straight bottom fishing, free-lining live bait, and
very slow trolling. Fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico are quite successful
catching grouper. I myself perfer live or cut bait, Although I have been told
lots of times my fishing technique’s are very unconventional but, I do catch
fish and maybe I am successful because I do offer baits differently. One any one
trip I never know what the fish might like so I normally bring 4 or 5 different
kinds. Most of the grouper we catch in Texas is warsaw or strawberry both are
excellent eating and can get extremly large strawberry normally caught april-May
then move alittle further out around 20-30 miles out of freeport texas. I love
this area for deep water fishing and the need to not have to run deep. Grouper
run out, grab a bait, and head back for cover. This habit will cause many
lost fish and hung lines.Serious grouper anglers will crank the drag down on
their reel as hard as they can, often using a pair of pliers to lock it down.
The idea is to stop the grouper from taking line and returning to his structure
home. This is where the "easy to hook but hard to land" quote
arises.
When a grouper strikes, anglers will lay
their rod on the rail of the boat and start winding as hard as they can. The
circle hook will handle hooking the fish. The battle now is one of brute
strength between angler and fish. More often than not the fish wins!
When a grouper makes it into a rock or reef, many anglers will simply break off the line and try again. The savvy angler will give the fish a loose line for as long as thirty minutes or more to allow the fish to relax and possibly swim out from under the structure. It has worked for many anglers on more than one occasion. The deep-water grouper lurk from 300 to 900 feet down very often you will find BIG grouper out of freeport Texas, and require some extra work to bring up and a very good back. These include the misty, snowy, speckled hind and yellowedge. And the warsaw, previously mentioned. Not many recreational care to drop a bait down that deep in the Gulf unless you use a downrigger or electrical reel I invested in a electric and I swear this will bring up a reef if you hook it especially with the steel leader/cable I have on it.. Bringing these fish to the surface is real work and is without question fatal to the fish every time, so there is no releasing your catch. Find a school of hungry gags in 20 feet of water, and you've got your hands full. It was my great luck to find a school feeding on threadfin herring about three years ago, and these grouper were literally busting the surface like freshwater bass, hammering what must have been the year's first schools of passing baitfish. They pounced on every artificial we threw at them, both jigs and plugs, and mutilated the hooks on several Magnum Rapalas I love these buy the way, when we began trolling around them. On some days they want a live bait, or a smushed, frozen bait. Or some bait you simply don't have.But these uncertainties only makes them more sporty than snapper. And at least they don't have the long, closed seasons that torment red snapper fishermen.
Texas Shark Fishing Blacktip sharks both large and small are a
frequent delight to many anglers fishing along the Gulf Coast of texas. But it
is the jumbo blacktips, those hard-jumping 6-8’ monster sharks that delight
the average fisherman.These Sharks have a long and pointed snout. Small eyes.
Origin of the first dorsal fin usually over or slightly behind the insertion of
the pectoral fins. Coloration: Grey, grey-brown or bluish grey upper body, white
ventral surface. Black tips usually present on pectoral fins, second dorsal fin,
and ventral caudal lobe, and sometimes on pelvic fins. The tip of the anal fin
is usually plain (no black tip). A conspicuous white band on the flanks. Folks
these are some good eating fish. These fish are swift as a tarpon, yet carry a
cruel set of teeth. They can cartwheel through the air while snapping at the
leader, often destroying 40-pound tackle in the process. You want excitement and cheap
thrills? Try hooking a dozen of these guys in a single afternoon. I've had
charter customers cringing at the far end of the boat while I struggled to
unhook one big splashing blacktip after another.
We have caught up to 18 Blacktip Sharks in an
afternoon, simply by anchoring and setting out live baits or chumming. Shark
populations have been under tremendous stress and overharvest for the past 20
years, but the blacktip seems to be hanging in there. They favor murky water
along the beachfront, but venture around the jetties and into the bays during
late summer and fall where they have their young then retreat. They will also
follow the shrimp boats offshore that are dumping their culled fish, a natural
chumline that can stretch for a half mile This is where it gets exciting for all
fisherman is the roar of the boiling water ever experienced shark sounds yes,
they actually make sounds as if telling the others get out of my way. This past year I
had the pleasure of having some guys onboard my charter and had the privledge of
fishing in a boil the boat gets bumped and adrenaline gets going and everyone is
excited I believed they each got to hook and fight their own sharks, Since yrs
gone by we have limits on sharks now, On my boat I personally feel keeping what
you will eat nothing more as far as shark is concerned shoot if it is big enough
you can have many meals off one. My biggest Blacktip was from Surfside Texas
beach Area not far from shore 8’we just laid out 1 bait and Bam there he was , we pulled him
away from shore and boated that dude. I have used lures trolling and cut bait
for my sharks . TEXAS TUNA FISHING One of the most popular tuna caught in Texas,
the blackfin tuna which is the smaller cousin of the yellow fin tuna, are caught
off of private charter boats. In addition to blackfin, yellowfin tuna are also
possible on any trip where you find blackfin. The current world record blackfin is about 40
pounds, and most fish caught in Texas water will average from 15 to 30 pounds.
Our biggest yellowfin has been approximately 85 pounds. Although the blackfin tuna is smaller in size
than it's larger cousin, don't let their size fool you. Blackfin tuna have very
streamlined bodies, are extremely strong, and are known to be amazingly stubborn
fish. The Blackfin tuna lacks an air bladder like those possessed by other fish
such as grouper so both blackfin and yellowfin tuna can literally fight from any
depth with ease. Tuna can usually and often overpower inferior tackle as well as
out of shape anglers trying to fight them to the surface. It's no wonder why it
can be an exhausting yet exillerating challenge when landing a tuna. A novice tuna angler will make sure to take
note of a blackfin's characteristics as this fish is known to be shy toward
boats. Once a school of tuna is located, extra effort must be taken to circling
the school several times to make the right presentation. One must be patient to
experiment with various baits as well as trolling speeds in order to entice the
tuna to answer the dinner bell. On private charter boats, most blackfin are
caught around distant oil platforms The most popular blackfin bait in Texas
waters is the Diamond Jig, a heavy hunk of lead that doesn't look like much more
than a fancy sinker. Still, Diamond Jigs are time-tested and proven weapons for
fooling finicky blackfins. Ballyhoo, cigar minnows and ribbonfish are also good
baits. If you hook a big one (20 pounds and up),
hang on for dear life and watch your line peel off of the reel. Blackfin Tuna
always head for the bottom creating an instant intense and tiring battle. It can
be said that fishing for Blackfin tuna on the Texas coast is fun and
exhillarating. So for the out-of-shape anglers who want to hunt for Texas tuna;
well, it's time to hit the gym. Master Captain Bill Curry Licensed USCG 1108123
Kingfish the
Acrobatic Predator