# 8-28 Back @ Sykes (A Load of Bull)



## ThaFish (Feb 27, 2013)

Tonight Taylor, Johnny, Maggie, Caleb, Ashlie, Mitch & I headed over to Pompano Joe's around 9:30 to pick up some stuff & drop some more gear off. Joe & a few of his friends decided to join us for some fishing out at Sykes, with the hopes of getting into some reds. Long story short, we fished for a few hours with nothing more than a big butterfly ray, some catfish (caught by none other than Pompano Joe the catfish master, or should we just call him Catfish Joe now? ) & some big ladyfish. Met a pretty cool dude named Preston out there & helped him fight a massive southern ray for just under 50 minutes before his 25 lb. mono finally broke at the knot. During all the passing off of the rod during the fight, Preston & I started talking redfishing, & he told me about a spot of his that wasn't far & said that the bulls are absolutely thick there right now. Caleb, Taylor & Ashlie had packed it up & left around 1:30 or so. So it was just Maggie, Johnny, Mitch & I left out of our group around 3:00AM. We said our goodbyes to Joe & his crew & then followed Preston to his spot. No one wanted to fish besides me, but Johnny said I could have five casts. Fourth cast I ripped my 8'' chartreuse twistertail right through a school of bulls busting on some menhaden & got slammed. Five minutes later I landed my first bull since I got back to Florida last Saturday. At only 35'' & just over 15 pounds it was no monster, but it was still a blast, plus I got to test out my new Sustain 2500FD that I got from Joe & my new Loomis Pro Green rod. Man is that one sweet combo! Everyone wanted to leave after that so I headed to the truck & we all went home to get some sleep. I'll definitely be going back to that spot tonight. Thanks Preston, you're one cool dude to hook me up with such a good spot.

*Tally for the night:*

*Taylor*: 0
*Mitch*: 0
*Caleb*: 0
*Me*: Big butterfly ray & a 35'' bull
*Johnny*: 0
*Maggie*: 0
*Joe*: 40 lb. hardhead catfish

Tight lines everyone!


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## HappyHourHero (Jan 31, 2012)

Butterfly ray = my favorite shark bait.


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## TheFlounderPounder (Jan 9, 2012)

nice redfish!!


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## Mike Moore (Feb 10, 2010)

Nice job and congrats on scoring a new red hole. Kudos to Preston for being a sport and sharing his spot. N
Can't have to many fishin holes!


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## IrishBlessing (May 13, 2012)

Awesome. where did you get that lure? I want one!
Irish


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## ThaFish (Feb 27, 2013)

IrishBlessing said:


> Awesome. where did you get that lure? I want one!
> Irish


Go to Gulf Breeze Bait & Tackle & grab a 6-pack of Gotcha Plastics 8'' twister tails in the chartreuse color & some red Sea Striker 1 oz. jigheads to put them on! The jigheads come in a pack of 2. It's the ultimate bull red combination, they can't resist them! Work them at every depth until you find the fish. They're killer just when you burn them an inch or two below the surface too.


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## Pompano Joe (Jan 28, 2009)

Good to see your smiling face back in the Panhandle!


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## fla_scout (Sep 28, 2007)

Good to see you back south! I enjoy the reports.


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## DAY OF REST (Dec 7, 2013)

Nice catch and thanks for the tip on the lure. I will have to pick some up and give em a shot.


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## Freebird monroe (May 28, 2014)

Thafish, looked for you Sunday night at Sykes. We had no luck. I am from Monroe La and meet you last summer one night at Sykes. Caught a few bulls late July when I was there. Tryed to post a pic but it ended up on how to post pic thread. Us old people you know.


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## ThaFish (Feb 27, 2013)

Freebird monroe said:


> Thafish, looked for you Sunday night at Sykes. We had no luck. I am from Monroe La and meet you last summer one night at Sykes. Caught a few bulls late July when I was there. Tryed to post a pic but it ended up on how to post pic thread. Us old people you know.


Hey man, was only out there for a bit Sunday night & it was late. I think I went there around midnight & fished till 2AM or so. My buddy Mitch pulled the hook on one bull & I missed two due to poor hook sets. I haven't had any luck out there since I got back really. Hoping the bite picks up soon though! It should within the next few weeks. Those are some nice fish in your pictures! Looking forward to fishing with you when I get the chance to.


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## Cornflake789 (Oct 10, 2008)

Nice Reds Sawyer! I've been extremely busy with all the social stuff this week :tt2::singing: but on Saturday we're getting a big squad together to do some sharking! I got a deep freezer from Matt and am fully stocked on rays!


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## SpeedoJosh (Jun 15, 2013)

I need to get out there! I've been swamped with school because I missed the first few days. 

Been too long since I had a red on. I think the Sargus is done though. Reds have claimed its bearings.


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## ThaFish (Feb 27, 2013)

SpeedoJosh said:


> I need to get out there! I've been swamped with school because I missed the first few days.
> 
> Been too long since I had a red on. I think the Sargus is done though. Reds have claimed its bearings.


Shoot me a text & let's figure out a night we can go out there! Within the next few weeks the run should be starting... & that's a shame to hear the life of your Sargus was taken so early...  Haha.


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## SpeedoJosh (Jun 15, 2013)

Will do. Have a test Friday, so I've been living in the library. 

Yea, it was doing good until my buddy got the run of all runs out there. Drag was screaming! After he broke off, I walked over there thinking the drag was super loose. Nope, it was almost fully locked down. I was surprised the line didn't pop sooner. Hasn't been the same since. I plan on taking it by Pompano Joe, to see what he thinks when I have some free time. I'll probably pick up a couple power handles for my two Saharas while I'm there too.


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