Jetty Fishing- Snook Madness at Juno Inlet Jetty July 7th 2013

July 7, 2013 by cudamanadventures

THE FISHING TRIP: Jetty Snook Fishing
Aboard no boat this was a shore bound trip
The Spot : Jupiter Inlet Jetty (AKA Juno Inlet)
Weather : 20 knot winds, Fair weather, some rain clouds
Water: Inlet water was rough, canal water started coming in around 9:30 a.m.
Fish catches: Snook
Biggest size Type : Snook around 40″
Techniques : Live and dead bait
Jigs : no jigs, artificial lures used but no success (hawk Flares and Mullet imitation lures)

I wanted to squeeze some fishing this weekend and decided to make it count so I wanted to go to Juno Pier for some snook catch and release. Rory an old fishing friend told me that the fish were not close to the beach the day before and that the inlet had been better so my wife and I decided to go to the Jupiter South Jetty. The plan was to leave at midnight for our 3 hour drive and get to Blue Heron Bridge for some bait catching and then to Loxahatchee river for some mullet. Blue heron only had small pilchards, spanish sardines, and tiny threadfin herring. Well sometimes you have to get what nature offers and so we went to the river but not a ripple in the water so no mullet to be caught. Oh well I had to go with plans of only using crabs and what ever bait I could get my hands on. I got there around 4 a.m and were greeted by some guys that were taking super morning swims and drinking a few beers. They told us “man, there ain’t nothing out there but catfish people have been using shrimp and only catching catfish and anyways the waves are coming over the jetty, almost all of it”. I thanked them for their advise and continued to unload and on our way we were. The entire jetty was wet, perhaps the rain clouds blew some heavy wind and did have a few waves come over the jetty, but that had gone past. We set up and out the crabs went. I looked for left over shrimp and clams and found a few, so I tried to secure bait with that. Around 6 a.m. came the first hit, I was hoping for a permit since it hit a crab but instead it was an almost blind pissed off snook that gave me a nice little encouraging fight. Later on a fisherman arrived at the jetty and setup camp under my rods that were on my fishing cart and lines were in the water. I paid no attention as he started to cast in between my lines, he got a nice pompano and so I thought the day would be better than expected. Then came the rest of regulars whom also setup camp under my lines. I paid no mind they were avid at casting and positioning the lines accordingly to not intrude my lines that were in the water, but looks like the first guy kind of got offended that the others setup camp right next to him and so he moved. Well, after that pompano out came a whole bunch of palometas, mojarras, and croackers. I checked my lines and recasted or placed a new crab on my hooks. Waited and waited and BARABAMMMM!!!!! My rod is bent like it was elastic, I picked it up and had a nice fight that took me to carefully hopping on the rocks and after gaining line loosing line gaining line I was finally able to see what it was, a nice size permit. I was relieved to see it floating upside down a sign that the fight was over and then PLUP! WTF HAPPNED? I see the fish floating away with the tide. I reel in my line and what do I see? Another case of a broken hook! Yeap! Another broken hook loosing a nice fish. Kicked my self for not getting rid of those darn hooks and I swear they will be gone this week. No more cheap hooks. I had thrown away many of them but kept a few, no more. They are going in the garbage, no more fleabay hooks! Only from known sources from now on. After that we took an opportunity for a nice sunrise photo opt.

As the morning came to light the Charter and party boats pass by the inlet on their way to a rough day of fishing.

I lost two snooks to the rocks so I upped my leader to 60 pound test, that seemed to do the trick as I did not loose any more to the rocks. So off a big fellow went out to fetch me a another snook.

That big fellow swam for two hours until it got hit but the snook were just playing with it it, they would pick it up and would drop it. So out a smaller croacker went to the water, this time at 9 a.m. it got swallowed by a snook. Thanks to a kind kid that came to me and said “here mister, catch a big snook”

Ten Minutes had passed and my rod bends again, another nice snook, as my wife went to get my casting net I caught and released two more snooks.

Then the rest of people decided to join the fun, Fausto a nice gentleman that gave me a few croackers he caught with a cast net also joined and got a few nice snooks

At 10:05 a.m came up another one of my snooks, got some pics since my wife came back and released it was.

At 10:26 Fausto got another one along with a crowd rant for holding the snook the way he did, but he released it quickly.

I kept on hooking up and releasing more then Rory passed by to say high and toss a few lures in the water. I had ran out of bait so I asked Fausto once again for a small croacker as I sent the dead croacker others were instantly hooking up with live ones. I knew I had to wait and just twich the rod every now and then to make it look somewhat live and at 10:30 a.m out a beauty of a snook momma just made me dance hoping from rock to rock like a teenager skipping stones, she came close to a nice gap of rocks and then she would just go out again, doing so 3 or 4 times but she gave up and decided it was time to come up. As I was picking her up and unhooking her she slipped out of my hands and fell in the water but between rocks and she could not get out so I had to hop to the rocks down below to retrieve her, my wife took a quick picture from far away and off to the water momma snook went. She swam so fast that as soon as she hit the water there was no sign of her.

It was a great day of catch and release (except the bait off course) at the Jupiter Inlet South Jetty (AKA Juno Inlet Jetty). My fingers are torn to pieces literally and my whole body hurts like I have been to the gym for hours on end. Those rocks sure made me pay a toll for not being young or better said way out of shape, but I say it again “I will start on Monday”. It was nice to see and chat with Rory, hope he makes it out again to have some fun fishing.

Anglins Pier – 4th of July

July 6, 2013 by cudamanadventures

My wife and I decided to go to the beach, do a little fishing, and then watch the fireworks from Anglins pier at Lauderdale By The Sea. We got close to it and the lines for a parking space got going until I finally got to the pier’s parking area.

Fireworks seeing from Anglins Pier at Lauderdale By The Sea

Well, I forgot that they raise the parking rate when there is a special occasion such as watching the fireworks to celebrate the independence of our great nation the United States of America. And they do so by doubling the regular price. It was $20 bucks!!!! Oh my it is still hurting my pockets! I could have bought a nice lure or a couple of leader wheels. Well, thinking about it it was well worth the increase if you count a mile walking to the the pier in the middle of intoxicated people asking “hey man, are you going fishing to the pier?” I got a couple to ask that question at the parking lot and as I was already in the pier. I wonder what made the ask that question? Was it the fishing cart and the fishing rods in it? Or was it the alcohol or who knows what that makes people ask the weirdest questions? LOL, people were having fun and so I really don’t mind as long as they don’t start touching my stuff asking if they can fish with it. By the way entrance to fish at the pier is $7.00 and if you forget your weights then for a 5 ounce weight it is $2.00 so don’t forget any terminal tackle or be ready to pay a premium for it. Well, we got to the pier and saw how windy it was so we decided to head straight to the pier and skip the crowded beach. As we entered the pier I asked my wife to stop for a second so we could snap some pictures. The crowd was rolling in the high waves on one side and on the other the surfers were enjoying the waves. What a nice day for shark fishing and here I was with mackerel and snapper gear 😦

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Once we got pass the middle shelter we started fishing for bait. There was no white bait only dork jacks a few small blue runners and some spottail pinfish. I spoke with some of the kids that frequent the pier looking for some toothy critters with fins and they said it had been slow for the past couple of days. As we kept on getting bait my wife got some moonfish that were released and as I kept getting more we decided to move to the T. Some very happily cocktail drinking tourists were there and this particular one kept on saying “this man is ganna catch a biiig one, hip! Just look, look he is fishing with shiners, hip! He is gonna catch a biiig fiiish!” I smiled and explained that I was fishing with dork jacks and was looking to get some bonitos or maybe some summer bluefish and as I was saying so my reel started going, but it ended being a vicious hound fish. It had swallowed the whole dork jack.

The second fish hit a small morsel on my light rod, I was fishing with a Troll Right jig and a piece of a spottail pinfish. It was intended for any snapper under the pier. Well, it wasn’t no snapper. After a small run a Tarpon jumped halfway out the water and shook the jig off as some of the tourists were going “woooow!” I guess not many get to see a Tarpon jumping mid air. So I decided to play a little and setup my 30 pound test rod and reel with a barbless circle hook, I place a nice size spottail pinfish on it and sent it on it’s way. My wife was ready with the camera and was trying to snap a few pics but it just wouldn’t take them since the camera was on auto and it was getting dark. As the Tarpon took the bait and jumped 3 times we could hear the tourists going uuuuuuhhhh!!!! ahhhhhh!!! woooow!!! The only pic my wife was able to get was a pic of the Tarpon’s behind saying good bye to us.

It was a great day at the pier, we had some fun talking to the tourist from other states and to the local tourists as well. We enjoyed the fireworks and took some video of it. Below is a small quick video of the fireworks so you get the idea.

K.I.S.S. Fish Recipe

July 1, 2013 by cudamanadventures

Keep It Simple Stupid and it will taste like the fish it should taste like! K.I.S.S. FISH! BABY!!!

Ingredients:

Your favorite seasoning and not too much of it since you do want to know what your fresh catch really tasted like.
Sliced Onions
Sliced Bell Peppers
1 teaspoon of any butter or margarine ( the healthy stuff works too)
A pinch of salt and ground pepper

K.I.S.S.

Keep – your fish fresh clean

It – should be in small individual portions

Simply– marinated for 10 minutes or less with your seasoning

Stupidly – wrapped in aluminum foil and bake it in the oven at 375 degrees for 15 minutes then uncovered for another 5 to 10 minutes or until a nice color is obtained

Eat it with a small salad and baked potatos. Always K.I.S.S.

Smoked Fish Dip Recipe With a Twist

July 1, 2013 by cudamanadventures

This is a recipe that was shown to me on the boatlessfishing.com forum. I have modified it with my own little twist. Amberjack or Almaco Jacks mixed with a 3 to 1 portion of King Mackerel, Bluefish, or Jack Crevale, yes Jack Crevale. This mix makes a great combination, but if you do not like too much of a fishy taste then only use white meat fish. You can smoke the fish on a grill, just go out and but the wood chop container and wood chips. I do soak the woodchips in a 1 part cooking wine and 1 part water. On one side of the grill I place the wood chips and a can of water, the water vaporizing helps to keep the fish from drying out so much. You do not want to eat too much of a chewy dip.The heat is only turned on the side with the soaked chips. I cover the other side of the grill with aluminum foil and spray it with canola or peanut oil. Turn the grill on and preheat until you see the smoke rising, then place the fish in the grill I place the fish over it.

For every pound of smoked fish:

Jar of good Mayo
Teaspoon of deli mustard (optional)
Fresh Dill—two packs
Kosher Salt

Adobo seasoning mix <-The Hispanic Twist- or -> any Tropical seasoning Mix–Come on give it some flavor PLEASE do the twist!

½ ounce of vinegar
Fresh lime
Diced onions- 2 parts white onions 1 part red onions (if preferred)
1 Red pepper
1 pepper (green or any nice color you prefer)
Diced celery – only one small branch
Sour cream – half the amount of the Mayo—if the dip is to be stored over a week, mix the sour cream before use

You can season the fish with Adobo for 10 minutes in the refrigerator (in a covered bowl) and then smoke it. After smoking the fish for about 20 to 30 minutes, bake in the oven for another 10 minutes and let it rest until it is cool. Shred the fish down with a fork and knife and then use a food processor to completely separate it . Add a pinch of Adobo seasoning, just a dash for extra flavor. You can also season the fish and then bake it. If you add the seasoning and bake it the seasoning will adhere more, I like for it to be loose in the mix.

In food processor (or by hand) cut the dill, celery, onions, and peppers and soak them in the lime juice, vinegar, and a dash of salt mixture for an hour and then drain it. Save the juice to increase flavor if needed.Keep second pack of fresh dill by itself as you want the dill flavor to not absorb the lime and vinegar.

Place the shredded fish in a big bowl place a layer of the veggies and mix it.

Once mixed add 2 parts mayo 1 part sour cream and the deli mustard (optional) until it’s all mixed and then add the sour cream to make it creamier.

Add the fresh dill until you get the taste you are looking for. Continue to mix everything until you have a complete paste. Place in air tight containers and store in the fridge. Let it sit in the fridge over night and enjoy the next day. Without sour cream I’ve had dip for 30 days, for some reason 5 pounds of dip will not last in my house. With sour cream I do not like it over 7 days in the fridge. It becomes watery, just mixed it before serving but it kind of looses flavor in my opinion.

Serve accordingly with crackers. It goes well with a glass of wine or a nice cold beer.

Enjoy and don’t be afraid to change the recipe to make it your own. I just gave you an idea, like someone else gave it to me. Pass it on.

Fishing with a friend around Molasses Reef 6-29-13

June 30, 2013 by cudamanadventures

THE FISHING TRIP: Trolling for Dolphin and jigging
Aboard the “Seaquest ” a friend’s boat
The Spot : Islamorada to Tavernier
Weather : 15 knot winds, Fair weather, some rain clouds
Water: 2 to 4 foot seas
Fish catches: Amberjack
Biggest size Type : Small AJ, no big fish found
Techniques : Vertical Jigging produced and cut bait did not
Jigs : 250 gram, butterfly jigs

I was supposed to go fishing the Florida Keys bridges yesterday since the mangrove snapper and permit action has been good, but a friend called me letting me know he would be working on his trailer in Tavernier Key, which is just before Islamorada. He said he wanted to go fishing and try and catch some Dorados (mahi mahi), so I accepted the invitation. My first stop on the way was at Jacks Bait and Tackle in Florida city to buy some ballyhoo and ice. The ballyhoo where on the big side but look like had been brined for too long. I got to Tavernier around 2:30 am and started to rig some ballyhoo and get the stuff ready for the fishing trip. After a few trips to the gas station to fill the boat up we left with about 1/4 of a tank which is about 20 gallons of gas. We noticed it was very windy, according to the weather channel and some websites the wind was supposed to be less than 10 knots and 1 to 2 foot seas but the wind was about 15 knots, at first we thought it was because of some rain clouds passing by but as we headed out we figured it was not the wind was just blowing a bit harder than it should have been and the waves were about 2 to 4 fot seas with some higher rolloers in between, but were not choppy so it was all good for fishing. Hmmm, we noticed that not many boats were heading out, there was no sewaeed stacked, there were no birds, but we kept on trolling towards the Islamorada humps (basically an under water mountain on the sea floor). As we got to 380 feet deep the seas were getting higher and higher so we were forced to head shallower where the waters are much calmer and headed towards the Molasses Reef area, we kept trolling and finally were able to see some birds but had no luck the birds were moving too fast circling and moving, circling and moving fast (sometimes a sign they are following bonito or blackfins). I put on a small squid on one trolling rod and a ballyhoo on the other, but still no luck. I usually get the small blackfins on the small plastic squids and even get small dolphins on them as well. Since the birds just disappeared into the sun we decided to head to the wrecks close to Molasses Reef. On the first wrecks I set down a jig and BAM!!! almost get pulled into the water and was hooked up to a nice fight, so I figured the big amber jacks are still hanging around but then, slaaaack! Oh well let the jig back down and started jigging again then Bam! I get hooked up again, but this time it was a small amber jack, I unhooked it and released it after a few pics. There were lots of bait in the water and all of a sudded they all disappeared and with the the hits. My friend Jeff tried fishing with cut ballyhoo and with squid but it did not work out. We moved to another wreck and as a diving boat approached we decided to go to another one but the action just died and so we decided to head back to the docks. It’s fishing not catching. The luck has not improved but I will keep on trying.

Browning Split Ring Pliers – My Opinion

June 27, 2013 by cudamanadventures

Here is what the manufacturer says:

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Don’t confuse these gold and black pliers with ordinary pliers. Browning’s 7-3/4″ Split Ring Aluminum Pliers are crafted of lightweight, anodized, machined aluminum, and feature stainless steel jaws plus a tungsten carbide replaceable cutter. These outstanding pliers also sport non-slip rubber handles. Also included is a durable, molded black nylon sheath that pivots securely into the desired position on your belt. A coil lanyard secures the sheath to the tool.

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Here is what I think: The pliers are ok and comparable to my old P-Line pliers that did last me 3 years. BP didn’t have them anymore so I bought this Browning Plier because they looked good and were on sale for $39.99 for father’s day weekend. The regular price is $49.99 at the time I purchased it, well on to what I think.

The good: It looks good, it cuts braid good, opens small 80# split rings and large 300# split rings without a problem and with ease.

The bad: It does not close completely, if you try to close it completely you may damage the replaceable cutter blades. The sheath may be good for some but too small for me. The lanyard maybe good for some but too short for me so I bought a much longer lanyard that allows me to let some one else borrow it with out dropping it in the water.

Would I buy the regular pliers? NO I would not, I would just get the cheaper P-line aluminum pliers on other sites. I bought this one because of the split ring opening capability. It looked like a good size. By the way I don’t use the sheath either. The pivoting part is made of plastic and if it snags somewhere it make brake just like must cell phone holders do from time to time so I went to the Depot and got me an electrician’s tool pouch. I fit everything I need in there. Also I do not know how the replaceable stainless steel jaws on the Browning will do against rust in comparison to the coated carbon steel on the P-lines. Once again, only time will tell.

Post Edit: July 4th, went fishing at a local pier and to watch the fireworks. While cutting a piece of braid one of the cutter blades came loose and just jumped in the air, it fell in the water. I am very disappointed this happened.