December brings the first wave of Sailfish pods as they start moving through in depths ranging from 60 to 180 feet of water. Usually in December I will always get double sailfish hook ups on the right day. Kayak anglers need to pick and choose their days wisely in the winter months, with cold fronts moving through bringing some extreme conditions, but also awesome fishing. My choice of tackle for catching sailfish on a kayak is 30 to 40lb mono leader or fluorocarbon to a 3/0 to 4/0 circle hook. I like to go stealthy on my gear when targeting sailfish. Make sure your reel can hold at least 300 yards of line. These fish are one of the fastest fish in the ocean and can make strong runs when on your kayak. My target depth is slow trolling a live goggle eye from 80 to 150 feet of water. I like to fish on an outgoing tide, straight out from local piers or inlets.
Fishing for kingfish in December has always been very spotty for me in the kayak. From 80 to 120 feet I’ll usually pick up a couple 15 pounders and if I’m lucky a nice 25 pounder usually mid depth. Schools of mahi mahi will be running through South Florida in the winter months. What’s great about fishing for dolphin in the winter, is those east winds blowing these fish in close range for kayak anglers. I will always catch a few dolphin in 180-200 feet around weed patches in the months of December. Look for the weed lines and color changes and fish along those areas. My choice of tackle for mahi mahi is the same as for catching sailfish. Sometimes I will throw a stinger rig on when fishing along a weed patch. The occasional wahoo will be swimming either beneath a school of dolphin or up and down the weed lines.
Bottom fishing is always solid during the winter months 1 to 2 miles offshore. On a good day I have caught snowy grouper around the deep wrecks in around 200 plus feet of water. I’ll use a 4 to 5 ounce egg weight depending on current, with 15 feet of 40lb mono leader to a 3/0 circle hook, with a juicy pilchard or goggle eye. I tend to prefer using pilchard when fishing for grouper and snapper. For jigging over the deep wrecks I use a glow in the dark jig or my go to pink colored jig. Make sure your mono leader is at least 50lb test.
The start of the 2019 Extreme Kayak Fishing Tournament Series is just around the corner starting off with the Sailfish Smackdown scheduled for January 12th and 13th, 2019 in Pompano Beach Florida. For more information go to www.extremekayakfishing.com.
Joe Hector
954-895-4527
Extreme Kayak Fishing Inc.
www.extremekayakfishing.com
joe@extremekayakfishing.com