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2018 Fishing - Year of the big one


fattyflattie

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43 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

I know, I've said it before, and maybe folks don't agree....but it makes me sad when folks kill a big, OLD fish like that.  I catch and keep plenty of fish for eating, but I also do a whole lot of catch and release, and I think alligator gar are some of the coolest fish that we have in the state. They're prehistoric beasts.  And killing an old one like that just seems pointless.

I mean, I'm sure it was a cool and exhilarating experience, but I just wish they could weigh and measure the fish, and slip her back into the lake.

I'm admittedly torn.  First off, I would shit my britches if I was face to face with that fish while spearfishing.  Second, I'm not sure I could do it.  I love hunting and fishing, and I think that if it's not against the law, then more power to them.  But, like you, I don't think I could or would personally take something like that purely for sport.  

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Side topic... How long until TPWD implements tags for oversized trout?

Florida has slots for not only Redfish, but also Black Drum and Specks among others.  15"-20" slot for trout and 14"-24" for black drum.  All others are catch and release.  I had a tough decision last year when my son hauled in a 26" Speck.  We ended up keeping her, but I regretted it as soon as she was in the box.  Should have thrown her back.  Do you think TPWD will try to slot Specks and Black Drum anytime soon?  

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1 hour ago, Brisketexan said:

I know, I've said it before, and maybe folks don't agree....but it makes me sad when folks kill a big, OLD fish like that.  I catch and keep plenty of fish for eating, but I also do a whole lot of catch and release, and I think alligator gar are some of the coolest fish that we have in the state. They're prehistoric beasts.  And killing an old one like that just seems pointless.

I mean, I'm sure it was a cool and exhilarating experience, but I just wish they could weigh and measure the fish, and slip her back into the lake.

Yep.  I release all the big fish I catch.  If I'm going to eat some, I keep the mid size fish.  But I was thinking the same  thing as I looked at those 2 monsters hanging there.

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I know, I've said it before, and maybe folks don't agree....but it makes me sad when folks kill a big, OLD fish like that.  I catch and keep plenty of fish for eating, but I also do a whole lot of catch and release, and I think alligator gar are some of the coolest fish that we have in the state. They're prehistoric beasts.  And killing an old one like that just seems pointless.

I mean, I'm sure it was a cool and exhilarating experience, but I just wish they could weigh and measure the fish, and slip her back into the lake.

Yeah that guy that speared the gar is an asshole.

 

Part of the reason I got a big live well in my new boat is so I could keep a few smallish legal trout and then release them unharmed if I only caught 1 or 2 which to me isn't enough to break out the filet knife. I'll keep a single red because a 18 (legal in LA) or 20 inch fish is enough for 2 people.

 

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1 hour ago, Spaulding Smails said:

Side topic... How long until TPWD implements tags for oversized trout?

Florida has slots for not only Redfish, but also Black Drum and Specks among others.  15"-20" slot for trout and 14"-24" for black drum.  All others are catch and release.  I had a tough decision last year when my son hauled in a 26" Speck.  We ended up keeping her, but I regretted it as soon as she was in the box.  Should have thrown her back.  Do you think TPWD will try to slot Specks and Black Drum anytime soon?  

I don't think think TPWD will change the slot for trout anytime soon.   Right now TPWD is grappling over whether to institute the 5-fish limit on the upper coast (FM 457 in Sargent to Sabine Lake).  If TPWD were to do anything with respect to bigger specks it would be to implement a tag system similar to reds for fish over 25".  But I don't even think that will happen anytime soon.

Edited by Dry Elbows
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re the gar, why, just why?  just because it's legal and you can doesn't mean that you should.  kinda like shooting a giraffe, elephant, lion, etc.  why?

i'm of the mind that if you're going to kill it, it better because your life was threatened or you're gonna eat it.  killing those gars are pointless.  idiots.

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4 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

I know, I've said it before, and maybe folks don't agree....but it makes me sad when folks kill a big, OLD fish like that.  I catch and keep plenty of fish for eating, but I also do a whole lot of catch and release, and I think alligator gar are some of the coolest fish that we have in the state. They're prehistoric beasts.  And killing an old one like that just seems pointless.

I mean, I'm sure it was a cool and exhilarating experience, but I just wish they could weigh and measure the fish, and slip her back into the lake.

Put me in the don’t get it camp. His comment in the last part of the story make it worse in my opinion. I’m primarily catch and release and will just keep what we want to eat that day.

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On 8/27/2018 at 10:40 AM, huge said:

Decarb boat I went out on recently had a good weekend.

4 sails

2 whites

1 blue

15 dorado

That’s a nice haul. We fished our last tournament of the year Saturday. TWAT Tournament. Won 2nd place overall and first place blue marlin. Check got a bonus for a wahoo pot too and it ended up being for almost as much as when we won it 3 years ago. Good end to,the season.

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So it’s another beautiful evening on Jax Beach, but I’m not real happy with my bait. Just some juvenile whiting and fiddler crabs and not getting any bites. We can see 5 gulls slamming the water north of us and they slowly get closer over 10-15 minutes. Suddenly I can see the water they’re hitting and it looks like it’s boiling! I sprint out with my cast net and wait for the pod to get closer. It’s not the mullet I’m used to seeing, but something silver and pretty good size. Finally it reaches me and I toss the 6’ net near the edge, as far as I could throw with a decent pancake. The water EXPLODES and I drag the net to shore with 20-30 menhaden! I had only ever caught 1 before and it was sickly. These fish were solid. Guys on both sides of me rush over with their nets and do the same. On of them tells me they’re menhaden (calls them porgy) and tells me to run a hook through mouth and nose then toss it out and “hang on”.

I bait up both polls, keep a few more and return the rest. I can see the pod continuing south. Not 5 mins after hitting the water one of the polls bends 90* and the drag starts screaming... fish on! Damn thing nearly spools me but I got him under control and start a LONG battle to bring him in. Like that last big one that got away a few weeks ago, this one goes north, then out, then south on me. I work him in near the breakers but can’t seem to get him any closer for the longest time. There’s a large crowd around me and I don’t want to rush this one like last time and lose him, so I loosen the drag and let him run a few times. Finally I can tell he’s out of gas and wait for a big wave to push him in. Landed him! 3-4’ black tip. Not sure how, but had him hooked in the neck below his mouth. I couldn’t get the hook out of that tough skin so I had to release the hook and leave it in.

I pull him by the tail back in the water and hold him towards the surf to help him breathe. He’s not pulling very hard so I keep holding on but a big wave crashed into us and I lose grip. He rolls around a bit and I can tell he’s not ready, so I’ve got to grab his tail again... yikes! Finally I get him set again and after several minutes he starts pulling away and makes a pretty strong run out.

What a blast! I was absolutely EXHAUSTED by the time he took off. Catch of my life and it’s not even close

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I was so focused on releasing him ASAP that I didn’t grab my phone to take pics. Someone in the crowd said they would so I didn’t think any more of it. I didn’t realize they were using a phone from 2004.

 

Speedo dude was German and despite the fact that I didn’t speak German and he didn’t speak English, he was insistent that we carry on a lengthy conversation afterwards. It’s possible I’m now committed to marrying his daughter or he gave me the recipe for German deviled eggs.

 

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Nothing super big this summer. No doubt, all the trophy trout are saving themselves for a run at my flies and lures this fall.

However, a buddy and I hit one of my favorite spots that hasn't been worth fishing for nearly half a year and got into some decent trout, including my two biggest Bonnies (~18 inches), one super colorful rainbow (~19 inches), and one chubby girl.

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Waded Saturday in POC. Was strange day. Started slow but managed to scratch a limit of trout and then went hunting reds and flounder. Found some nice ones. I finally picked up a flounder on a Chicken Boy lemon pepper, but he was only 13 inches. That would have completed my slam.

My biggest red was 29 1/2. Angle of the pic makes it look 40 of course. It had a shaker weight and hook still in it from breaking off somebody earlier in the weekend.

My old man went out on his own and found five solid trout. That’s a size 12 shoe in the pic.

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A two bladed H&H spinner never fails in a stock pond.  I always have 3 or 4 different colored ones in my spinner box at all times.  If they aren't biting anything else I can usually throw those and figure out what color they like that day.  Black/White and Chartreuse seem to work the most but Red/White has been the only thing that will get a bite some days too.

 

I went fly fishing last week around Crested Butte and the water was depressingly low.  We picked up a few here and there but nothing like it has been in previous years, especially in the small creeks up in the mountains where it's usually 3 wt/Brookie heaven.

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I’ve been fishing w live finger mullets a lot recently. I’ve been hooking them under mouth and up through between the eyes. I’ve pulled in dozens of them to find only the head left. Frustrated, I usually hook the next few through the back but then never get hits.
Anyone have experience with this?

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16 hours ago, Lurch said:

I’ve been fishing w live finger mullets a lot recently. I’ve been hooking them under mouth and up through between the eyes. I’ve pulled in dozens of them to find only the head left. Frustrated, I usually hook the next few through the back but then never get hits.
Anyone have experience with this?

Have you tried dorsal hooking?  Short of that, double hooking although your baits may not be large enough for that.

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