The Learning Curve. Nsb. Icw. 6/23/17

After reading all the good reports on night fishing I decided to give it a try . AS a Bass fisherman I love to catch fish on artificial baits using lite tackle, and knowing how hard saltwater fish hit [ Snook, Red drum ,Jakes ] this is just the ticket for me ! It`s 0355 as we pull away from the ramp in my LITTLE 16 ft. alum boat not knowing what to expect, but with eager expectations we can`t wait to wet a line . The tide is outgoing and no wind and it is dark, no moon tonight. I head East at almost idle speed listening for top water action and hanging close to the piers and working a top water plug as we go, not knowing these waters I keep a close eye on my depth finder. WE continue on for 30 mins. or so and I notice up a head a pier with a light on it and some kind of commotion around it, I put the motor in neutral and let the current take us slowly towards the pier working the plugs as we go, now that we are within casting range of the pier I ease the anchor over. We give it our best shot for 10 mins. but no takers, it seems to me with these top water plugs we are spooking the fish in the light of the pier. I tell John let`s drift past ,let it sit for awhile and come back. After working some other piers and flat areas without success we slowly make our way back, this time using jerk baits and gig heads with paddle tails. BINGO John gets one on his gig head ,its a small Blue fish and pulling like a freight train, as he is fighting it BINGO one hits my Jerk bait it is a small JACK ,running all over the place to right then to the left ,great action on this lite tackle 'YES" we hooked a couple more on this pier but they got off than it died down, it was fun while it lasted and that`s what its all about. BY this time its starting to day break and the tide has started to come in. So I tell John I want to move to another area and fish a point where a incoming goes in two direction that I located on a previous time, as we approach it we are casting top water plugs, well we were not disappointed John was the first to hookup and it was giving him a run for his money the rod is bending and the fish is making fast- very fast hard runs right to left, it`s got me wondering could this be a Snook ?, but it`s not jumping out of the water , well we`ll just have to wait and see, after what seemed like a long battle we get a glimpse of it a Big Jack, "What a fight " it goes over 4 lbs.
The current is moving us faster then I like so I toss out the anchor and hold us on this point. Not long after John lands his fish BINGO I got one on and it`s pulling hard and taking drag " man this is great " he is running from one side to the other and under the boat ,trying my best to keep him away from my trolling motor and the anchor line I stick the tip of the rod down under the boat to steer him clear but you know how that goes, sure enough he is wrapped in my anchor line . After some tense moments and a little help from my partner he `s free and making a be line towards the channel taking drag as it goes . I manage to bring him back along side of the boat, he is tuckered out , it`s another nice size JACK close to 4lbs. " I got to remember to bring a net next time " We continue to fish here but now I want to try a gig head with a DOA Shrimp ,we are casting next to a bulkhead and getting bite , however not what we really want to catch I feel some thing heavy on my line , as it gets closer to the surface what do I see, a 6inch Blue Crab holding on my DOA and he is determined not to let go even with me balancing him up and down trying to shake him off " OK I`ll teach you I`ll use you for bait" into the cooler he goes. My next cast lands right next to the bulkhead BINGO something picks it up [DOA] and starts to run I bring it next to the boat and to my surprise it a Spotted Seatrout about 18-20 inches and I am thinking this going to make a good meal " don`t count your chickens before they hatch Ron " or in this case fish in the boat" with one swipe of it`s tail it`s off the hook, well at lease I got a good look at my first ever Spotted Seatrout. Now the sun is up high and we drift down this cannel with boat slips on one side and Mangroves on the other, trying different lures as we go we do this for the next hour , it looks great but not today." OK that's enough of that ". Now we move to a area where I `ve caught snappers before , lets put these OAKHILL shrimp to good use ! Drop anchor and start to pick up small Lane Snappers, fun to catch but to small for the table, John is doing his thing [CAT FISH] I tell John lets make one more stop before we head in , turn the boat to the South and off we go. We are not there 3mins. and John gets a hit and it is giving him fight it`s a Blue Fish maybe 15 inches , he`s a happy camper .
Next up it`s my turn I hook what I think is a Atlantic Whitten, maybe someone can clue me in ? All in all we had a good time on the water today, not many to take home but for me it was a learning curve and I guess that's why I love fishing , it`s a curve that you can never go all the way around. PS. John made a video I`ll try to attach it.

 

Thanks that was my first one now I know

 

Thanks for the tip, I hope I can remember it next time I go [like next week] I learned a lot on this trip, hope to do it again soon. AS for the JACKS they are a BLAST, are they eatable ?

 

Thanks Paleoman for the research, that's it!! Now I know a king Fish and a Whiting are the same . Funny how the names differ according area.

 

Yes I enjoy C&R on game fish and I consider them a lot of fun to catch on lite tackle, but I sure would love to get something for the table next time , hopefully some nice snappers .