# Sunday snapper plus others



## Nitzey (Oct 9, 2007)

We went for red snapper, again to spots 16 miles out. For bait we had Boston mackerel but was I surprised when I opened one of the boxes - they were so small. About the size of cigar minnows, the smallest Boston mackerel I have ever seen. They worked though. Once we found the fish, the bite was constant. Many were not as large though, probably due to the undersized bait, but we had quality fish nonetheless. We caught one jack this way, an almaco jack I think. Can someone concur? We threw it back, not wanting to argue with the fish police. 

When we neared the snapper limit, I threw out a fly line. I tossed it out with a spinning outfit to the side of the boat, and the current being pretty strong soon had it at the back of the boat. The second time I did this, we realized after a while that the bait was not moving. So, I pulled it in and low and behold a small cobia. After the cobia, the fly line was hit by big fish twice, heavy fish, but unfortunately the drag on the Penn 8500 ss failed; it locked up and these fish were big enough to break the 20 # line. 

When we had our snapper limit, we trolled, using a Drone spoon and a Stretch 25. The spoon was the winner, it had all the hits. We caught a big amberjack (38 inches) trolling and several smaller amberjack. The big thrill of the day was when a big wahoo hit and jumped twice, the second time clear out of the water. The second time that he jumped he threw the spoon. We ran back in to try for kings since they did not seem to be 16 miles out. However, at the Deliverance we again caught a 38 inch amberjack on the Drone spoon. We did manage to catch a king but it was the smallest I have ever caught at 23 inches. No hits at the sea buoy. 

All in all, it was a great day on the water. Hot as hell though. Must have had 6 or 7 drinks per person, but that was not enough.


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## evacuee (Oct 16, 2007)

Good report!


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## devinsdad (Mar 31, 2010)

Love that Blue & Orange shirt!


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## bamagun (Apr 28, 2008)

That small Jack, is in fact an Almaco, but the others are greaters.. Great job for throwing the fish back if you arent sure, and they can get really tough to tell the difference once they get big, but the tale tale sign is the arching dorsal fin..


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## submariner (Oct 2, 2007)

nice post looks like you had a fun day


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## bamagun (Apr 28, 2008)

What kind of boat is that? Looks VERY fishable..


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## Lil Curve (Feb 23, 2011)

Nice catch.


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## Nitzey (Oct 9, 2007)

bamagun said:


> What kind of boat is that? Looks VERY fishable..


True World Marine. Yes, very fishable. Check out their web site to see the layout, etc.


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## bjones20 (Mar 3, 2011)

those look like greater ajs to me . whats another way you can tell?


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## Nitzey (Oct 9, 2007)

bjones20 said:


> those look like greater ajs to me . whats another way you can tell?


The big ones are for sure. The small one is an Almaco as confirmed by an earlier reply.


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## bjones20 (Mar 3, 2011)

Ohh haha i thought that was some kind of croaker I didnt even notice . it only looks to be 12 inchs


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## DreamWeaver21 (Oct 3, 2007)

Nitzey said:


> True World Marine. Yes, very fishable. Check out their web site to see the layout, etc.


Are you out of Pensacola? I looked at those boats hard on the internet but haven't seen one in person. I did see one going through the bay a while back. Either a TE288 or a TE2810. I might have been you. I seriously debated chasing it down to ask about the boat but I didn't know how that would go over. If you have the 28 footer I would like to ask some questions.


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## DreamWeaver21 (Oct 3, 2007)

Also I feel your pain on the bait. The last couple of times I got northern mackerel, they were tiny too.


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## Nitzey (Oct 9, 2007)

bjones20 said:


> Ohh haha i thought that was some kind of croaker I didnt even notice . it only looks to be 12 inchs


For some reason, I measure it.  It was 14" or 16", I cannot remember which. 

Doesn't look like any croaker I have seen. It's a jack for sure.


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## Nitzey (Oct 9, 2007)

Regarding the boat, it is a TE288. Ask away if you have questions. The guys at the factory were going to give me a bonus of some sort if a lead ended up with a sale. There are not many around here. I am in Pensacola (kept at Bahia Mar) and there is one in Destin I think, and saw one coming down the interstate on a trailer.


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## DreamWeaver21 (Oct 3, 2007)

Sent you a PM as to not side track the thread too much.


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