# Red Snapper Help



## Awhite08 (Jul 28, 2012)

This is our first season fishing for snapper on our own boat and we have been struggling. We have been fishing the public numbers in about 80-95 ft of water around 15 miles SE of the pass and have only caught one keeper red snapper. We’ve managed some mangroves but we really want to target reds. I’ve been using a Carolina rig with a 6/0 circle hook with cigar minnows or squid and the one keeper that we caught was on a vertical jig. I see reports of people fishing public numbers and limiting out easily. Are we fishing too deep? Not deep enough? There are a lot of spots a little closer in than where we have been fishing but I just figured that deeper water would yield bigger fish but so far that hasn’t been the case. Any help/tips would be appreciated.


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## FenderBender (Oct 2, 2007)

A larger live bait with a long leader several cranks off the bottom will help. Also, try a knocker rig- there are several YouTube videos of how to tie one. Helps get fish higher in the water column. 

Lastly, don’t be afraid to try some of the smaller public numbers like tanks and pyramids as opposed to the big, easy to find wrecks and rubble. Smaller spots tend to hold big fish.


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## canygaar (Nov 25, 2018)

What FenderBender said with respect to large live bait. Frozen bait will only get you so far.


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## LY-zer (Jan 16, 2019)

What leader material are you using? We use 30 to 40 lb Seagar Fluorocarbon about 2 - 3 feet long. It is pricey as hell but we get bites that others don't. Everything else sounds about right. We have not been out much this year but have heard from others that it has been a tough year. During trigger, we couldn't keep the snappers off the hooks, Weird. Live Cigs or LY's are the best baits for just about anything out there. Squid for triggers.


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## MrFish (Aug 21, 2009)

What LY-zer asked. What leader?


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## CurDog (Nov 14, 2010)

I'm not sure what you're doing wrong, I can only guess you're too far off structure or setting the hook? You didn't say if you were getting bites or not, just that you weren't catching them. If you're getting bites but not hooking up, then you are most likely setting your hook when you feel the bite.
Using circle hooks, you do not set the hook, you just start reeling your line in, the hook will set itself.
Live cigs are the ticket, even cigs cut in half or even thirds. Try chumming, then when you see the one you want, toss the bait to it.
I use minimum of 4' of 50# mono leader on 30# mainline, and the smallest weight to get the bait down. If I keep getting busted off, I crank the bait up higher off the bottom.


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## Awhite08 (Jul 28, 2012)

Thanks for the replies. I have been using 80# pound mono leader and we are getting plenty of bites and catching fish, just small ones or the wrong species. I think we will try downsizing the leader and switching to fluorocarbon and go the big live bait route next time.


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## CurDog (Nov 14, 2010)

If you're on the bottom, that may be some of your problem. Run your line down to the bottom and crank the bait back up about 15-20' off the bottom. This will help keep most of the smaller fish from biting, they chance being lunch if they go too far up off structure.


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## MrFish (Aug 21, 2009)

Awhite08 said:


> Thanks for the replies. I have been using 80# pound mono leader and we are getting plenty of bites and catching fish, just small ones or the wrong species. I think we will try downsizing the leader and switching to fluorocarbon and go the big live bait route next time.


80 mono is way too big. They're leader shy after being bombarded. 20-30 lb flouro.


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## Awhite08 (Jul 28, 2012)

Thanks for the tips! We'll see what happens next time out.


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## Boat-Dude (Sep 24, 2011)

I just hook it to my braid with a ball bearing snap swivel, then when we are heading back home I just unhook the leader and coil it back up on the noodle so I am not banging the leads against the rod all the way home, then when I get home wash off with water and use the next trip.


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## Awhite08 (Jul 28, 2012)

Boat-Dude said:


> I just hook it to my braid with a ball bearing snap swivel, then when we are heading back home I just unhook the leader and coil it back up on the noodle so I am not banging the leads against the rod all the way home, then when I get home wash off with water and use the next trip.
> 
> View attachment 1069926
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Thanks. That's really helpful.


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## chaps (Aug 31, 2009)

A lot of time my knocker rig with a 1 ounce weight with a long 30 # fluoro Leader gets the majority of larger snapper. We try to fish near the bottoms and up in the column. We always Chumm especially on the shallower structures.


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## Hangover (Aug 5, 2013)

I'm admittedly not a fisherman and do more spearfishing...totally different game, BUT I've found that ability to stay on a spot has been a factor for us lately. 

Case 1 - 4 guys, public numbers, only frozen squid for bait, outboard w/ no trolling motor. We limited out
Case 2 - 3 guys, same public numbers, frozen squid, some live bait, larger boat w/ inboard one week later. Caught 1 fish.

I'm thinking that my ability to stay backed into a spot w/ an outboard was a key factor. We had better luck when we could stay on the spot rather than drifting across the spot over & over. Sorry to hijack the conversation but I'd be interested in learning what most folks are doing in terms of drifting and or holding over a spot or not and most of all what the best boat technique is when targeting snapper.


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## lastcast (Oct 12, 2007)

Anchor, chum and drift baits with light weight back to them. Tail hook a live bait and let it free line down.


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## LY-zer (Jan 16, 2019)

If we do not get a bite in 20 minutes, we are moving. Maybe 5 feet, 10 feet, or to another spot. It all depends on what the garmin says. LOVE the I-Pilot, can not fish without one.


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## hjorgan (Sep 30, 2007)

Was a tough snapper bite for us this year. Might fish Florida a bit, but I doubt it. I expect FLA to shut down early like Bama did.


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## Catchemall (May 8, 2018)

I go 6' minimum on leaders, chum and free line a lot in heavily fished areas. That means ZERO drag on the bait as it drifts down and out. Big baits of about a pound will get bypassed or nibbled on by smaller fish. I actually like the smaller snapper to bump the bait around, it seems to make the big ones more aggressive. I was catching fish a couple hundred feet back in the chum last week so don't be afraid to let it drift on out.


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## Awhite08 (Jul 28, 2012)

Sounds like chum is the way to go. An Ipilot is definitely on the list for next season


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## Boat-Dude (Sep 24, 2011)

The invention of the Ipilot is up there with the wheel and fire.


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## lastcast (Oct 12, 2007)

Old school, anchor, chum and drift baits back. Try it.


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## OutsmartedAgain (Oct 12, 2018)

Hangover said:


> I'm admittedly not a fisherman and do more spearfishing...totally different game, BUT I've found that ability to stay on a spot has been a factor for us lately.
> 
> Case 1 - 4 guys, public numbers, only frozen squid for bait, outboard w/ no trolling motor. We limited out
> Case 2 - 3 guys, same public numbers, frozen squid, some live bait, larger boat w/ inboard one week later. Caught 1 fish.
> ...


The best generic advice I can give is smaller lb test flouro leaders longer (6'+) , smaller hooks and different bait. Yes frozen squid is my favorite bait but some days the fish don't want squid, they want pinfish or cigar minnows or pinfish or bonita chunks. I always have 2-3 types of frozen bait and live bait when I leave the pass. The stuff the fish don't care about is used for chum. Move around to different spots and fish the whole water column. One day we struggled to catch red snapper on the bottom, we were ready to head home, threw out some trolling rigs to make a pass over the wreck and head home and we had a quadruple hookup and landed 3 red snapper. Deepest plug was a stretch maybe 20' down. Bottom fish aren't always on the bottom!

Also, I cannot emphasize this enough, a trolling motor IS a game changer. I roll my eyes when I hear how you have to have this $1000 combo with fancy electronics yada yada, but the trolling motor is a huge advantage. I have never heard of anyone regretting purchasing one, I know it's expensive but do it ASAP. I tried convincing myself I didn't need it and all it did was make fishing more difficult and frustrating and waste a lot of time anchoring and reanchoring. I can't recommend one enough!


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## Boat-Dude (Sep 24, 2011)

Think of all the snappers you could save by not accidentally dropping an anchor on their heads!!! By an GPS trolling motor Snapper Lives Matter!!!!!!!


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## Catchemall (May 8, 2018)

Black snapper matter the most.


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## WeathermanTN (Oct 3, 2014)

I am far from good, but have had some luck. The hints on fluorocarbon leaders are a great start, as well as the lightest weight that will get the bait down to the fish. We find that snapper often locate away from the structure, and usually suspend, at times well off the bottom. I cheat - we locate the fish in relation to the structure, set up on or slightly up-current of the fish, and set the Rhodan to hold that position. We use decent graphite rods with Shimano Tekota line-counter reels loaded with braid, and the drags upgraded by Rick’s Reel Service. Drop live bait, or my favorite a hunk of Bonita about the size of my fist to the depth seen on the Lowrance, and wait. The vast majority of times, the wait is less than a minute. When the rod tip is headed to the water, crank away. We use light leaders, so a smooth drag is critical. A few big snapper get us into the structure, but the lighter set-ups result in far more hook-ups, and a more fun.


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## Boat-Dude (Sep 24, 2011)

Dang, nice one!!!


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## WeathermanTN (Oct 3, 2014)

Boat-Dude said:


> Dang, nice one!!!


That one is just a tad over 36” long. The day before, my son caught one that was 37 1/2” long, but I don’t have a decent photo of that fish.


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## Boat-Dude (Sep 24, 2011)

I have never caught a snapper that big, Glad you guys got hooked up on some big ones!!!


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## WeathermanTN (Oct 3, 2014)

Boat-Dude said:


> I have never caught a snapper that big, Glad you guys got hooked up on some big ones!!!


Peace Marvel is a guide at Venice, LA. We were talking with him at the dock when he came by and we were cleaning fish many years ago. He offered a number of tips, such as lighter leaders, less weight, braid, and sensitive rods. He also said that big snapper suspend up in the water column, and often up-current from rigs and down-current of bottom structure. His idea on the hunk of Bonito was that the smaller fish would nibble on it, and the bigger snapper would respond by inhaling it. He recommended circle hooks years before they were required so folks would not keep trying to set the hook when the smaller fish were chewing, and would only react when the rod tip was headed to the bottom.


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