By: Capt. Greg Poland
It’s Summertime and it’s hot out on the water, and my advice is to get out early and get back before noon, so you can jump in the pool and take a siesta! We have been leaving the dock at 6 am and fishing a 1/2 or 3/4 day charters, following the directions above. I can’t tell you how happy I am to have a T-Top on my Contender Bay Boat! For the last 30 years, I didn’t have a top or had a bimini top that I just didn’t put up enough. Whether you plan to head offshore early in the morning to catch mahi, or into the Backcountry for some snook and juvenile tarpon along the shorelines, have some live bait with you, and get out that Ballyhoop or Sadiki rig and fill up the live well. If live bait is not an option and you are headed out for mahi, I have been having good luck with squid, which is available in the freezers at any marina or tackle shop. I also link a smaller size trolling lure, which can be dragged through the grass to trigger a bite from the fish under those weed lines.
On my boat, I like to put one of each out after locating floating debris or a weed line, and make sure to keep an eye in the sky for birds, as they will lead you to the fish. Binoculars come in handy, especially for us guys in the smaller non-tower boats. Once we find the birds, I like to deploy the trolling lure so it’s out fishing while we look for the mahi. Once located, cast a spinning rod with a squid or that live bait you spent time catching out in front of the fish and hold on tight. Once you have a fish on the line, bring him close but leave him in the water to keep the school around and break out the fly rod or light spinners and have some fun catching them. If you’re lucky, you can catch and release lots of fish and take a few of the larger ones for dinner.
If the backcountry is where you’re headed this time of year, my bait of choice is a pinfish or a jighead and a soft plastic which are both on board my boat. I like to get casting right along the shoreline with the soft plastic while the pinfish is on a knocker rig, swimming around under a shoreline or on the point of the island. You will catch everything from a goliath grouper to a snook, and if you see a tarpon roll, cast up current and hold on. Have fun out there and if you’re looking to get out on the water, my contact info is below!