SW FL-Bonita Beach: 8-lb. Red Grouper, Snapper & More

Monday, four/18, I headed offshore with longtime customer, Peter Kenney, his son, David, and pals, Bernie and John. We fished about 22 miles west of New Pass with reside shrimp. The catch of the morning was David’s 24 ½ inch, eight-pound red grouper. When we had that lunker, the group saw no need to maintain a lot of other fish, so they stored about 10 of the thirty-some lane snapper we caught, to 14 ½ inches, and introduced the relaxation of them, along with about 35 red grouper shorts to 19 ½ inches.

Tuesday, I headed back out to the previous day’s fortunate spots, this time with Ron Musick, Dick Arnett, Bob Mayer, Larry Lodick and John Zahaby. The red grouper ended up abundant once more, but no keepers ended up among them. We introduced plenty of them to 19 inches. But we did catch thirty keeper lane snapper, and launched a bunch more of individuals too. It was harder fishing because the tide was ripping out and the wind was howling by early afternoon, with seas creating. The men ended up broken off 4 times by what was most likely grouper that acquired down in the bottom and lower their lines.

Wednesday morning, I fished a catch-and-launch trip with Richard Driscoll Jr. and Sr., along with Richard Jr.’s 5-yr-previous son, Jack, and Jack’s 8-12 months-aged cousin, Sadie. The browsing loved ones was heading back again home to Virginia tomorrow, so the group had no interest in trying to keep fish. The youngsters just wished to try their fingers at catching a few. We used stay shrimp, and we released mangrove snappers, sheepshead and snook.

Thursday, I headed out 22 miles and fished with Steve Spitzer and Jolissa Reever in 47 feet, employing shrimp. We have been fishing with light spinning tackle, which served us effectively for the twenty lane snappers we caught, to 13 inches, as effectively as 7 whitebone porgies to 14 inches. But, when a thing big grabbed Steve’s pole as he was reeling in a lane snapper, we wished we’d had it on a heavier pole. It ended up getting an approximate fifty-pound cobia, which we fought for forty-5 minutes. It appeared to be tiring, not running so way from the boat, and nearly inside of our grasp but, at the end it wore via the leader and obtained off…sore arms are all we have as a reminder, as we couldn’t even get a photograph!

Friday early morning, winds picked up to about 20 knots, and we encountered some four-foot seas, out about 23 miles, where I fished with Tom Wolfe, his son, Jordan, and Gary Johnston. We kept twenty good lane snapper to 14 inches, out of thirty-two we caught on live shrimp. We released red grouper shorts to eighteen inches, and also obtained hit hard once by some thing big that bit a free of charge-lined shrimp.

Saturday early morning was windier than Friday was, and I couldn’t get out as much as I did on Friday, due to rougher seas. Frank Partee and his son, Joe, fished the near-shore reefs and a handful of other shut-in spots with me. We caught 8 keeper lane snapper and a mess of grunts for the family’s dinner, and then we acquired to play with an eighty-pound goliath grouper, on light tackle, which we received to the surface area for images.

Monday, 4/twenty five, I headed out about 22 miles with Bob Sawyer, family members and buddies. We caught thirty-5 keeper lane snapper to sixteen inches, and released tons of red grouper shorts to 18 inches, all on stay shrimp. Seas have been a minor sloppy, with some wind and rain in the forecast for later that day, but it was cozy enough out there to devote a little about 50 percent a day catching ‘em up.

Tuesday, seas had been calm once once again, and I headed out about 22 miles with Dick Hall, son-in-law, Clay Attebery, Clay’s son, Jack, and household buddy, Chuck Schmidt. We caught a brace of 21-inch red grouper keepers and released a few other folks that had been just borderline-twenty-inches. We also introduced about twenty additional red grouper shorts. We caught the grouper on pinfish and tomtates. We also held thirty lane snapper of about fifty, all caught on reside shrimp. Also on shrimp, we caught two 23-inch Spanish mackerel and a 13-inch keeper mangrove snapper. We released about fifteen smaller mangs.

Wednesday, I had planned a full-day trip offshore with prolonged time customer, John Carmack, and his 8-12 months-outdated son, Jackson. It was to be Jackson’s first offshore trip with me, and he was hunting ahead to some large fish. Regrettably, winds had been blowing challenging, and seas have been a few-to-4 feet, even at the close to-shore reefs, so we didn’t venture a lot additional than people. We caught a keeper pompano, as nicely as keeper sheepshead and Spanish mackerel. But, Jackson did get his want for a massive fish when we hooked a forty-pound goliath grouper, which we photographed and released.

Thursday, I fished central Estero Bay on a catch-and-release trip with Jim Fares. We launched eleven redfish to 19 ¾ inches, a modest snook, a 13-inch sheepshead, and a 12-inch mangrove snapper, all on live shrimp.

John Carmack and his 8-yr-old son, Jackson, returned to fish with me Friday, this time with family friend, Rick. Seas have been even rougher offshore than they have been on Wednesday, when John and Jackson fished the in the vicinity of-shore reefs with me, so we elected to fish in Estero Bay this time. We introduced three redfish to sixteen inches, two of them caught by Jackson. We also caught 3 keeper mangrove snapper, and we introduced a couple of rays.

Saturday morning, I had planned to head offshore with a celebration of six but, with seas forecast to be three-to-five feet nicely offshore, I advised the group to wait for a day with greater situations, since the most productive fishing not long ago has been out over and above the reefs.

Sunday morning, 5/one, I fished a catch-and-launch trip in Estero Bay with extended-time consumer, Jim Novy and his 4 young children, Jaclyn, Jordan, Jimmy and Julia, ages twelve, nine, eight and six. The Novy household planned to return north the next day so there was no need to have to retain fish. We released mangrove snapper, sheepshead, crevalle jack, a 16-inch snook, and a 17-inch trout, all caught on reside shrimp.

The photograph shown is of angler, David Kenney with a 24 ½, eight lb., red grouper, caught on shrimp, on a recent offshore trip.