Capt. Bart Marx
Hello fellow anglers, what does January 2021 have in store for us? After 2020 let’s pray that it is not as crazy. When you can get out between the cold fronts you could target hogfish on the reefs from 30’-70’ depths. For the hogfish you need a medium weight rod with 20-pound test line and I would start with a 1-ounce sinker rigged with a knocker rig. Hogfish eat crustaceans like shrimp, small crabs, and fiddlers. They like the crunchy baits. I would start with a 1/0 circle hook. They like the hard bottom ledges where you may find grouper and snapper. Sometimes you need to catch a few of the other fish to get them out of the way, as hogfish are not aggressive eaters. They tend to lay back until things calm down to feed. They do fight good for their size!
The next species I would like to discuss would be lane snapper. Lanes can be caught between 40’-60’ of water. They too like the hard bottom with some relief/small ledge. They will eat squid or sardines, and shrimp too. To target lanes, start fishing a spot with frozen baits and get a good bite going. When you are catching these fish they tend to empty their stomach trying to spit the hook out. This creates a underwater chum slick, that attract other fish. You can catch the (Key West grunts) white grunts in this same area as well, even some mangrove snapper may join in on the feeding frenzy. With all that happening the bite may slow down and it would be time for some live shrimp or scaled sardines if you can find them. I have found that the bigger snapper will hit the live stuff at that time.
The next species I would like to discuss would be sheepshead, yes, they are fun to catch and great eating too. I have heard them called poor man’s lobster. They are tasty when eaten fresh, which is my favorite fresh. I get asked often, “Capt. What is your favorite fish?” and my reply is fresh! If you eat fresh fish often you understand there is a difference in freshness. All of these species I have written about can be caught with the same 20 lb. set-up I talked about earlier. If the bite is slow, try rigging up a chicken rig, or even a fish finder rig. I have 15 lb. fluorocarbon leader if the fish get real shy to the heavy leader. Most of the time I use a 6’ mono leader using a uni- to uni- knot to connect the line to the braid. Using as small of an egg weigh to get the bait straight down. Always remember singing drags and tight lines make me smile. <*((((((>{