This is the final Offseason Report of 2009-10!

VIRGINIA

Virginia Beach

The weekly party boat trip to Norfolk Canyon on Saturday produced good catches, all in all, said Capt. Skip Fuller from Rudee Inlet Charters. The anglers first fished the shallows for blueline tilefish. Dog sharks were a horrible nuisance, but a few bluelines were boated. So the vessel was moved to deeper waters, and blackbelly rosefish gave up very good catches. Several snowy groupers, including a 57-pound whopper, the highlight of the trip, were pumped up. A few golden tilefish to 35 pounds were also creamed from the deep. The trips will keep sailing to Norfolk Canyon 4 a.m. to 8 p.m. every Saturday, limited to 40 passengers, costing only $170 per person, a great price for offshore angling. Blueline and golden tilefish, blackbelly rosefish and snowy groupers are some of the common catches. Inshore trips also started fishing during the week, putting anglers on a few tautog and even a few cod. The cod were unusual this far south, and the cold winter must’ve drew them in. The inshore trips will probably target the tog another couple of weeks, until waters warm. Then the anglers will switch to flounder and croakers, until fishing for sea bass when the season for the lumpheads opens May 22. The inshore trips are running 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays through Sundays. Call: 757-422-5700 or 757-425-3400. Visit Web Site.

Tautog, ling, cod and pollock offered catches 12 to 20 miles from shore, said Capt. Bill Richardson from Backlash Sport Fishing. The cod and pollock were surprising, and cold waters this winter must’ve caused them to slip down to the local area. Backlash will relocate to Hatteras, North Carolina, on May 1 for six or eight weeks for annual trips for tuna, marlin, mahi mahi and wahoos. A healthy population of the big game began developing there already. Call: 757-286-0711. Visit Web Site.

NORTH CAROLINA

Oregon Inlet

Bluefin tuna that were checked in from the offshore grounds included fish that weighed 279, 253, 240, 205, 201, 172, 165, 140, 126 and 125 pounds, said Affie Meekins at Oregon Inlet Fishing Center. Boaters scored excellent catches of bluefins and a few yellowfin tuna on Saturday. On Thursday five boats from the marina fished offshore, walloping 2 to 11 yellowfin tuna per vessel, and no bluefins. But the bluefins showed back up Friday and Saturday. News was scarce on Sunday because of Easter. On Monday the fishing beat yellowfins, no bluefins and a few mahi mahi. Nothing was really doing in inshore waters and the surf, because the waters were cold. Visit Web Site.

Hatteras

A 201-pound bluefin tuna got waffled on a charter Saturday, said Capt. Bob Robinson from Fin Seeker Sport Fishing. That fish was trolled, and while the bruiser was fought, the anglers jigged a few more bluefins that were smaller, releasing them, keeping the big one. Plus they trolled eight yellowfin tuna, two mahi mahi and a wahoo on the trip, and big-game fishing was beginning to hit on all cylinders. “It’s just on!” Bob said. Anglers should come down now. Bob sent a photo of the bluefin that was posted on this site. “You look at that photo,” he said. “Those people are happy!” Bluefins bit since winter, and the numbers of yellowfins, mahi and wahoos were increasing as waters warmed. The billfish population should also grow with rising water temps. Grouper fishing is also currently an option in the deep. Call: 757-618-7421. Visit Web Site.

Surf fishing began to pick up, because waters warmed to 65 degrees, said Steve Hissey from The Roost Bait & Tackle at Teach’s Lair Marina. Bluefish stormed the wash at the south end of Ocracoke, and puppy drum were mixed in. A friend  who’s a sharpie who chases big drum at night nailed two 42- and 49-inchers at the south end. Puppies started to swim the surf at Hatteras during the right weather, and the warm waters caused big blowtoads and sea mullet to arrive there. A load of puppy drum had schooled Pamlico Sound at a certain area of shallows. But then inexperienced boaters plowed through them, dispersing the fish, and anglers were yet to find them again. In offshore waters on Monday a crew on one boat totaled eight yellowfin tuna, and on Sunday another belted nine yellowfins, a wahoo, seven snowy groupers and five tilefish. Wahoos and mahi mahi were beginning to show up. Big bluefins such as one that weighed 150 pounds were sometimes boated, but anglers had to travel north to find them. A 57-pound bigeye tuna was docked, and Dave saw photos of a blue marlin that was released that must’ve weighed 500 to 600 pounds. Fishing was heating up along with the waters around Hatteras. Visit Web Site.

FLORIDA

Lake Okeechobee

Bigmouth fishing started to gain steam on the lake as the weather and the waters warmed, said Capt. Angie from Captain Angie Douthit Guide Service. She sounded pleased, and the lake averaged in the low to high 70s, about normal, and the mean depth was 14 feet, slightly high. The larger lunkers attacked East Texas Big Bass Lures. The top-water lures, with a prop on each end, are popped along the surface. But working them is impossible to do all day, is tiring. So anglers aboard fished them in the mornings and switched to flipping later, and that worked well too. Sometimes Rat-L-Traps gained attention. Angie did no fishing for crappies, bluegills or shellcrackers on the lake during the week, but the bluegills and shellcrackers moved into the shallows to spawn, and that’s a good time to catch them. Live crickets will attract the bluegills, and meal worms will entice the shellcrackers. Angie is a professional largemouth bass angler who guides when she’s off the tournament circuit. She enjoys fishing for the bucketmouths with artificials and likes to teach, is up on the latest techniques, if anglers prefer. Or anglers can fish with bait, namely shiners, for the bass if they wish. Call: 863-228-7263. Visit Web Site.

Boca Grande/Pine Island

Big amberjacks 35 or 40 pounds were slammed at the box car reef 20 miles offshore on a trip Monday, said Capt. Larry Conley from Reel-Ality Sportfishing. Some of the fast, hard-fighting, fair-tasting fish rocketed up to the chum slick to swipe livelined blue runners. The amberjacks gather at the box cars at this time of year, and Larry had been waiting for calm seas to be able to reach them, and seas finally flattened out, after lots of rough weather this past season. Red, scamp and gag groupers and lots of mangrove snappers were also plucked from the reef. Grouper season opened April 1 in the area, so they could be kept. The blue runners used for amberjack bait were caught closer to shore on the trip, and a bunch of sheepshead were also socked there. Previously Larry’s trips had dusted up plenty of speckled sea trout from Pine Island Sound, and those fish still schooled the waters. Giant tarpon are expected to arrive any time near Boca Grande, the Tarpon World Capital. Larry heard about a few of the fish seen so far, and looked forward to the run. The fish, averaging 80 to 175 pounds, put tackle to the test. Call: 239-471-0875 or 215-932-8411 (cell). Visit Web Site.

Miami

Catches increased, averaged 20 to 30 fish per half-day, so trips were going well, said Jackie Glinski from the Blue Waters II. Clearer, warmer weather reaching 80 degrees, warmer waters to 74 degrees, and the right wind direction, northerly winds, helped. Trolling was great for clobbering blackfin tuna, skipjacks and bonito. King mackerel were both trolled and live-baited. Mahi mahi and a few wahoos began to appear for the season. Sailfish began to reappear Monday, pouncing on live baits. Not much was heard about amberjacks at the wrecks, because the season for selling them ended. Little was heard about fishing for sharks and swordfish, but all of that angling should still be on tap. Fishing was really good. Call: 305-373-5016. Visit Web Site.

Islamorada

The weather turned perfect for the most part, except for winds over the weekend, “but no complaints after that brutal winter,” said the report on Over Under Adventures’ Web site. Fishing out front was very productive. Several days pounded out king mackerel on trips, and a few fat cobia to 35 pounds were clobbered on cigar minnows. One charter landed his first-ever sailfish, and yellowtail snappers started to feed, putting out limits of the fish. Amberjacks were angled in from the Little Hump and the wrecks, and one trip blistered Spanish and cero mackerel on every cast. Fishing in the back was on the upswing, serving up catches including lots of speckled sea trout and all the jacks and ladyfish anyone could handle. Snook were a different story and were scarce, apparently because of the fish kills from the cold this winter. Anglers said tarpon fishing should improve soon. Mahi mahi should also move in. A long-range, multi-day trip to the Dry Tortugas was slated to sail soon. Call: 866-OUA-TUNA.
Visit Web Site.

Trips banged out a bit of all the different fish, said Capt. Bruce Anderson from Captain Easy Charters. A mess of king mackerel, including some big ones to 20 and 30 pounds, tore up the baits. Tons of amberjacks kept jumping on lines, and a few sailfish chomped hooks. Vermillion snappers were rustled up, because the season opened for them, and mutton snappers and yellowtail snappers were sometimes nabbed. Lots of black, red and gag groupers swam thick, and grouper season is closed until May 1, but a bunch were hooked and released. No trips really targeted groupers, but they almost couldn’t help but be hooked, because they were so abundant. One of them came up from the 100-foot depths where the fish would normally hold, and grabbed a bait on the surface meant for a king mackerel. Most of the different species were located around the reef, 3 to 5 miles from shore, but the a.j.’s hovered around the Hump, 11 miles from shore. Call: 305-451-9578 or 305-360-2120. Visit Web Site.

Lots of yellowtail snappers started to be swung aboard from the edge of the reef 4 miles from port, because warmer weather and onshore, easterly winds, conditions helpful to the fishing, finally kicked in, said Capt. Ben Loy  from the party boat Miss Islamorada. The weather warmed the waters, “and warmed our spirits, you could say,” he added. A few king mackerel were wrestled in. This was the tail end of the season for the largest numbers of kings to stick around, but a few will keep biting. Grouper season remains closed for a few more weeks, but big black groupers to 30 and 40 pounds make an appearance this time of year, inhaling live baits such as grunts or pinfish. Two 25-pound black groupers were caught and released this week. The Miss Islamorada sails 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. from world famous Bud N’ Mary’s Marina. Call: 305-664-2461. Visit Web Site.

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