    
Captain Judy Helmey (Unregistered Guest)
Unregistered guest
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Votes: 0 | | Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2004 - 5:49 am: | |
July 26, 2004
Barracuda Attack
Over the last 50 years I have had everything as far-fetched as hooking up with a nuclear submarine to a bat landing on my boat, but never have I had a fish fly into the boat and cause injury to a customer.
It's a known fact from watching the Discovery Channel that a barracuda can take flight even though it doesn't come standard with its own set of wings. The bottom line is that most all fast feeding fish do jump. Last week we had such a landing on the Miss Judy Too. One of our customers, "Mr. Ziggy Zablotay" was standing in the doorway of the boat's salon when a large cuda came crashing in. Unfortunately the cuda before making deck-fall and in only a few seconds did considerable injury to "Mr. Ziggy's" hand. The bottom line to this situation is that fishing has always been taken serious at Miss Judy Charters. However, at this time we must add serious and dangerous to our fishing slogan.
All of us from Miss Judy Charters hope and pray for a speedy recovery for "Mr. Ziggy!"
INSHORE
TROUT, SPOT TAIL BASS, FLOUNDER, WHITING AND SHARK
Trout, spot tail bass, flounder, whiting, shark, blue fish, croaker, and the old so-called "Yellow tails and spots" are in their full season swing. Trout, bass, and flounder are what I consider the "High Maintenance Fish." In other words these fish are very bait sensitive. They prefer live shrimp or mud minnows, which can either be purchased or caught by you. As we move down the line you see I have added whiting and shark. They are those fish that don't necessarily hang together, but can be caught in about the same area. The whiting lay low on the bottom to feed while the sharks move about looking for food that is moving in the upper water column. Whiting do prefer fresh dead shrimp, but will eat the old stuff. In this case where you find the whiting you will probably find the sharks. So therefore your catch of whiting can be your bait for the sharks. Either way you win!
YELLOW TAILS AND SPOTS
I know you are dieing to hear about the spots and yellow tails. These are the simplest fish of all to catch. All you need is light line, small hooks, small pieces of bait, and some water to drop all of this tied together in! In other words pull yourself up a floating dock or boat and give it a try. You haven't a thing to lose, but your bait!
NEAR SHORE, SOUNDS, ARTIFICAL REEFS
For those of you who want to live line, slow troll, or just plain pitch your lure these are the areas to try. The Spanish and king mackerel have arrived and are set for the rest of the season. This can only mean one thing, "Fish On!"
As you all know that Spanish mackerel are known for hitting the old but classic spoon called "Clark Spoon." In fact I think that this lure has almost been around as long as the fish. So therefore buy some, pull them either naked, behind trout sinkers with 20 lb test leader, or just plain pitch them into the surface feeding schools of fish. I am sure that you will get some sort of "scaled Attention."
The good news about the Spanish mackerel is that they are finally starting to push their intended meal to the surface. So therefore trolling blindly is not necessary in order to locate this fish. You should be able to see them with the old naked eye. Another good thing is that you aren't the only one looking for them. You will also get some much-needed help from your fine-feathered friends. Where those birds are-a-flocking, there's fish a feeding! Here's your sign!
Packaged Value!
Snakes, Teenagers, and Smokers
The king mackerel come in what we call this type of packages. They start being "Snakes," then grow to "Teenagers, and finally reach the final stage, which is "SMOKER!" All stages of this fish love to eat live bait. However, you must be selective with the bait if you are targeting a certain stage of king mackerel. For instance if you intend on having a lot of action, which means lots of fish not necessarily the big ones go with small live baits. The baits to use are usually cigar minnows or Spanish sardines. They are easy to catch and basically easy to use. Now for those that want to target big fish only there is a secret that I must share with you all! Go with big live baits such as blue runners or Spanish mackerel. However, another great bait to use is menhaden or mullet. They aren't as big, but are also very effective. You might not catch a bunch of big fish, but you chance of a large hook-up will definitely be in your future.
"SMOKERS'
The snakes and teenagers are being caught more so on the artificial reefs and live bottom areas such as the Savannah Snapper Banks. Quite a few of these fish were also caught fishing the perimeter areas of the Naval towers located in around 100 feet of water. This past week R-6 naval tower was holding quite a few nice snakes and teenagers. Most of these fish were caught while slow trolling fresh dead cigar minnows rigged with Mylar skirts. The secret to catching these fish is that you must use light tackle. According to optimists king mackerel have superb eyesight. In other words what they can't see attached to the bait will definitely give you a better chance for a hook up!
For the big boys better known as the "Smokers" fish close to shore and use big baits! The hotspots to fish have been Port Royal and Tybee Roads, which is better known as the shipping channel.
Savannah Shipping Channel
I fished the shipping channel this past week. I couldn't believe all of the large king mackerel that I got to see sky rocketing out of the water. In fact almost everywhere I saw a big fish jump there were sea birds hovering and the smell of fish oils were strong in the wind. As soon as I saw a king jump I headed in that direction. Once arriving to said spot, sure enough the oil sheen was noticeable on the surface. It's a known fact that large kings during this time push their intended meal toward the surface so as to make the kill. Once the fish feels that it has pushed the bait to exactly the right spot they hit it will great thrust. This great thrust that I am talking about usually jets them right out of the water. In fact, I have seen large king mackerel airborne with Spanish mackerel in mouth. Now that's a mouth full!
I decided that I would pull my old faithful king mackerel stand by lure make-up kit. It's a simple design that usually works. I take a number #3 Sea Striker planer (SSP3), add a snap swivel, and then tie of about 30 feet of 80-pound test monofilament line. On the line I slip on a "Judy Jig" and directly tie on my hooks. (No wire is needed) My hooks consist of three 5/0 "J" style hooks that I have put together by opening the eyes. There is three baits that I use while pulling this rig: Spanish mackerel (small), cigar minnows, and medium ballyhoo. The main thing to remember when rigging your bait up is to place the first hook through the fish's bottom lip and up through the top of the head. All you have to do with the next two hooks is to place and bury. This set up allows your bait when pulled to have a more natural look.
Our Atlanta Connection!
Todd Ingram and Jim Armstrong had a great day while fishing the Savannah Shipping Channel this past week. According to Todd he did exactly what my fishing report suggested and had some great success in the catching department. Todd and crew took his 23-boat to the shipping channel to try to catch a "smoker king." According to the story, it seems that old Todd went back in time and just used the old basic way to catch a fish. His new boat wasn't equipped with downriggers and he didn't have any planers. So therefore he decided to just rig up his bait offerings of ballyhoo & finger mullet and give it a try. He put his naked un-weighted finger mullet and his weighted ballyhoo out. His plan was to slow troll, which means just enough throttle to keep control of the boat. Todd's top trolling speed was 2 to 3 knots, which worked out prefect. The first fish they hooked up weighted in at 35 pound. As soon as they landed the first smoker the second hit came, which resulted in landing a 40-pound king mackerel. The 35-pound king had been hooked before. While admiring his catch he found that it had a nice set of shinny new live bait hooks embedded in it. In my book the more a fish is caught and escapes the smarter it gets. So therefore congratulation is in order to Todd and Jim for a job well done in the "Smoker Department!" Welcome to the club! Thanks for the report!
The Koncul Fishing Boys!
After reading this report you are going to know that those "Koncul boys" have done it again. While fishing for king mackerel and other scaled ones a serious sail took them up on their bait offering. The sail fish was caught at the Artificial reef "L" Buoy. This area has been "Real Hot for Bills." In fact over the past years quite a few Atlantic sails have been caught and released in this area during this time frame. For those of you that are not familiar with this area, it's an artificial reef that is located in approximately 50 to 65 feet of water. It has low (concrete, pallet balls, barges) and high (subway cars, tug boats, battle tanks, dredges) type structure scattered throughout the area. Bait and bottom fish of all species find this area a great stopping off place. I guess you could say, "It's a great watering hole in the middle of a vast sandy area." Once again I find myself asking the same question that I do year after year, "Do fish communicate?"
James Massey and Geno Sauers had the offshore
Trip of a lifetime
I received a call from James as soon as he made landfall. On July 21, 2004 he and Geno Sauers took to the ocean for fishing trip that would prove to be one for the records books. They decided to fish the artificial reef "L," which is located about 15 miles 115 degrees off the Warsaw sea buoy. I only have enough room for what they caught instead of how they caught it. James and Geno caught 13 king mackerel, which came in assorted sizes from 10 to 15 pounds. While all of this king mackerel fishing was going on they also landed a 50-pound cobia. While they were cleaning up a bit a lonely school dolphin approached the boat. A quick reflex along with the desire for more action meant yet another fish added to the already seasoned cooler. All along while catching mackerel, cobia, and dolphin more species were landed. They hooked up with several barracuda and amberjack. After reading this information I'm sure that you will agree that these fishermen had quite a busy day. However, things in this catching department got turned up even more. Geno hooked, landed, and released a fine Atlantic sailfish. I was truly jealous after getting this fishing report from James. I certainly wish I had been there! Last year about this time James took his father boat offshore without permission. He also landed a sail fish of which he couldn't tell anyone about. However, after a while of keeping it a secret he had to confess so that he could spread the news about his first sailfish landing. Of course after telling his father he was immediately congratulated and then put directly on boat restriction. However, for this particular day arrangements were made on the home front, which resulted in him being able to obtain once again "Serious Loud Bragging Rights!"
Bottom Fishing At the Savannah Snapper Banks
It's hot and the fish should be a little nostalgic of which they are. However, I do have to admit that I have seen some pretty good catches being brought back to the dock. The catches range from good to great. It seems that not all fish are nostalgic, which means slow to bite most of the time during the warmer water temperatures. However, I am finding that the bottom fish don't seems to feed as much as they do in the cooler water conditions. Normally during the cooler season fish feed about every 6 hours. However during this time it seems they that only get real hungry every 12 hours, which is considered their major feeding times. So therefore it's could be the luck of the draw or just fish everyday to get a handle on it.
The bottom line is that large numbers of some of the biggest black fish that I have seen in years are being caught in 100 to 150 feet of water. The black fish ate cut squid and fish. Some of the red snapper caught this past weekend, even when weighted back at the dock 10 hours later, tipped the scales to thirty pounds. The red snapper hit live cigar minnows, Spanish sardines, rock bass, and sand perch. The vermilion snapper have also been on a feeding rage with their appetite being easy to please. We have been catching these fish with just plain squid and cut fish. They aren't feeding everywhere in this fashion. Just in isolated spots, which can vary from day to day. It's a looking game at this time of the year, but at least you are now aware of the possibilities.
Gulf Stream
I don't have a report for this week. However, if you don't go you and as you can see we all won't know!
"Little Miss Judy's Believe It or Not!"
Achieves fishing for the Allusive Sunfish #2
As soon as this story was posted I started getting calls. Apparently I'm not the only one that remembers this fish. Jimmy Cannon of Wilmington Island also remembers fishing for the allusive sunfish. According to his story, much the same as mine, as a same child he too fished with the elders for them. He was small at the time, but remembered a few things in regards to this fish. The best time to target the sunfish is during a slack tide stage. The most active bite occurred during nip tides, (6 ½ to 63/4 feet tides) which means slower current and clearer water. The method in which his family used to catch them was about the same as ours. They also used a beef-up traditional cork rig. However according to Jimmy they used what all fishermen labeled as a "cobia cork" instead or a trout cork. A cobia cork is shorter and much fatter than a standard trout one. I remember when Daddy started using this style cork, but it was later in years. Jimmy is a good bit younger them me. So therefore the allusive sunfish was still around 10 years after the fact. I remember fishing for them in the fifties. After doing the math we can all come to the conclusion that this fish was still around in the sixties. There is one more very interesting bit of information that Jimmy shared with me. His family had two names for the sunfish. The second and most used was "Eddy Fish." The reason was simple this fish's favorite hiding places was behind ranges, rocks, and buoys. I love it when a story gets better! Thanks Jimmy!
Here's My Line Now Bite My Hook!
Captain Judy
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