# The King Fish are in



## Harbison (Apr 18, 2012)

:thumbup: The King Fish are in

For the month of October the full moon was 10/8 @ 6:50 A.M. Mangrove snapper love to feed during full moon periods. This weekend it will still be bright most of the night. The mangrove snapper fishing should be fantastic, and, hopefully, 'The King Fish are in.'
Sit back, relax, and join in as we find out together.
Mr. Dylan Hubbard greets us and fills us in on what to expect:

One thing about John's Pass, there is always something to do, and see:

Will, first mate, fills us in on the latest Coast Guard regulations:

After a Chef Tammy special Mexican dinner it's bunk time. After all, we will be fishing one hundred miles off Madeira Beach, Florida. Mangrove snapper are very hard to catch; we must be at our best.
1 A.M. Saturday morning; Captain Mark Hubbard sounds the battle stations alarm. Go get them! The weather is picture Florida perfect, and the fish are hungry:
Way to go, Bo:

Joining us all the way from Columbus, Indiana is Columbus East High School junior Master John Weddle. John is very proud to have finished second in the High School level state Bass Fishing Tournament. But can this 17 year old catch our Florida fish? Well!

Not to be outdone, Mr. Eddie Sumrall, an expert's expert:

It's mango time:

Representing Orlando, Florida, Ms. Jessica Scott:

Cody, catch that memory:

Representing Spring Lake Elementary, Ocoee Florida's Master Cody Scott:


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## Harbison (Apr 18, 2012)

Mr. Paul Scott, fishing out of spot # 3, joins in. Cody is very proud of his dad:

Look at the size of those snapper:

Mr. Don Galloway, West Palm Beach, Florida:

Mr. Nick Richardson traveled from the small town of Bargersville, Indiana to fish our Florida Waters. Bargersville is a small town, population 4,013, that still believes in a close knit community life stile.
Nick likes what Florida has to offer so well that he has made the long journey numerous times. This time he brought his brother-in-law, Mr John Frank, Chicago Illinois, with him. Can these Northerners catch our Southern fish? Well!

It's almost sunup. The fish are hungry and so are we. Tammy, it's a war out there; we are starved. No time to talk about a breakfast like this; we are too busy enjoying a real masterpiece:

Mr. Eddie Sumrall, a 'Regular's Club member, is simply the best of the best. Eddie is a serious fisherman who always gives a 100% effort. Welcome home Kyle. Out trusted mate has been off for a few weeks. Young Cody can't believe the size of that king:

Hold on! Cody's dad, Paul, has just had a hit on his dry line. He has been cut off numerous times, but this time the fight is on:

On and on goes the great battle. The mighty fish has lead Paul from the Port stern to the bow and down the Starboard side; will this fish ever give up? Finally! Color, the color of a trophy king fish. Kyle, quick, the gaff. Cody is so proud of his dad. Spring Lake elementary will never be the same:

Wow! Talk about a fishing family:




That picture of Will and his dad, Mr. Drew McClure, had been eluding me for years. Finally!

Hold on! Like father like son. 'The King Fish are in!' 

We are keeping Will & Kyle very busy. Mr. Mike Gill:

Now that's a nice gag:

The mangos are still hungry. Fish that won't stop, picture perfect Florida weather, great food, and the best of companionship. Talk about the things dreams are made of:

Nick, wonder what John will be thinking about back in the windy city?


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## Harbison (Apr 18, 2012)

Wow! You guys can sure catch our Southern fish:

Captain Mark Hubbard is so proud of us:

This is turning into a major mangrove snapper catch:

Even the porgies are 'king' size. Bo, what's next?

Mr Bo Janecka, like Ed, always gives 100%. Look at 'what's next:



Bo & Ed, two of the best:

The mangos have been hungry all night & day. Cut thread fin herring, bonito, squid, live pins; no difference. They are hungry.:

Looks like the barracuda also like snapper for dinner:

Kyle goes overboard to vent a goliath grouper:

It's been a very long, hard fought, day. Talk about the beauty of nature. The heavens are on fire:

Hungry? Here comes our 'Jersey' Girl with the best Salisbury steak and mashed potatoes swimming in brown gravy. Add Tammy's own blend of steamed vegetables and you have a meal fit for a king:

Master Cody, your dad can be proud of the man you have become:

We are tired, I mean really tired. First a nice hot shower than it's time to hit the bunks. Take us home Captain John, home to beautiful Madeira Beach, Florida.
Now that was one quick night. Life back home will never be that same.


You are going to need a bigger, much bigger, cooler:

Master John Weddle, your junior year in High School will never be the same:


It's a shame that gag is not in the jack pot:

Several very respectable gags were caught; none were in the jack pot. Numerous monsters overpowered us. 
Mr. Bo Janecka took home jack pot money with a three pound strawberry grouper. Ed's 6.5 pound mango was also in the money:

Hopefully, 'The King Fish are in.' Well!

Bob Harbison Florida Outdoor Writers Association


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## tkh329 (Mar 14, 2012)

Nice! It's awesome that the Nate went over the side to vent the Goliath. Great report as always. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Harbison (Apr 18, 2012)

Thanks! The Florida has a special permit to bring goliath grouper on board. However, it's only done when it's too rough to go "over the side." Kyle takes conservation seriously. We all do!


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## WhyMe (Apr 21, 2013)

As always a great report and great pictures.
WhyMe 
Mako My Dayo


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## Harbison (Apr 18, 2012)

Thank you sir. It's people like you that keep me going.


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## sealark (Sep 27, 2007)

Bob your stories bring back memories. Back in the 50s i worked on the Clipper out of Cortez. I never got paid and worked going out cutting bait and cleaning the boat after returning. What i got was fishing time when we got to the spots. I got to keep all my fish and sold them when we returned. If I made 5 or 6 $ I thought i was a millionaire. Talk about fish when the soapstone showed coral we anchored loaded the boat in two hours then 8 knts back to Cortez by sundown.


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## BananaTom (Feb 16, 2008)

Sure makes my palms sweat, thinking about a trip like this.

Someday soon


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## Harbison (Apr 18, 2012)

Thank you so very much for sharing your memories. In the 50s I was wade fishing the miles of grass flats in Tampa Bay. The fishing was fantastic. In the 60's I started close in grouper & king fishing. We too would make a few dollars selling grouper @ .25 cents a pound. Remember the great king fish schools of the 60's? I remember selling many for .10 a pound. Often the fish houses were so full we could not even get that. Those days are forever 
gone!
Tom, it would be an honor to have you on the Florida. Please let me know when you are coming and I will feature you in my report.


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## sealark (Sep 27, 2007)

Kingfish at 15 years old i would go down to the old wooden Cortez bridge at sunlight a kingfisherman in his boat would come by. I made one throw with bait net. Get all the shiners we needed. Off we went found kings made a big circle aroung the school chumming and catching 50 or 60 big monster kings filled the ice chests in about three hours.


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## Harbison (Apr 18, 2012)

*Huge king fish schools*

:thumbup: My king fishing career began in the early sixties. Most of my fishing was done a few miles off Clearwater Beach, Florida. The Spring schools stretched for miles. They were not hard to find; as a rule there would be hundreds of boats in a relatively small area. Most would be hooked up. Often we never reached to fleet. We would be on the lookout for kings leaping into the air. We would chum with live white bait. With the first hit we too would circle-up and chum heavily into the center of our circle. We trolled very slow. We used live white bait, two hooks, a dark swivel, and a very short brown wire leader. The short leader cut down on kinks & was all that was needed. We often for hours had 2-3 on at the same time. 
Another very successful method was to anchor up, usually over a ledge, and chum heavy. We never used a sinker of any kind. Using this method we would often also catch grouper. At that time we caught what we called 'black' grouper. I never heard of a gag until years later. 
It's nice to reminisce. The days of old may be gone forever, but the memories will last a lifetime. I only wish we had digital back then; 
35 mm just did not cut it.


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## delta dooler (Mar 6, 2008)

I remember going down to the bay front auditorium with my dad when I was kid to kingfish, we'd go to the trusses and catch our menhaden before daylight and hang them in 5 gallon bait buckets off the sea wall at the auditorium. 

Dad always puta orange balloon on his line for a float, said it was his lucky color, I caught my biggest there (42#) and dad also caught his biggest there (54#).

Have fished many days without a hit, but have been there on several good days and have caught 4 fish over 30# in a morning.


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## Harbison (Apr 18, 2012)

Now that sounds like fun.


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