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Report for Destin, Florida - Nearshore
Capt. Larry Pentel
November 27, 2003
Destin - Saltwater Fishing Report
Too rough to fish so I guess I'll try to make my old English teacher proud by trying to spell. The weather has been going from one extreme to the other. The weather service has a small craft advisory out for today and tommorrow with winds at 30 knots-seas at 11 ft. The previous 2 days were absolutely gorgeous, chamber of commerce weather.
I took advantage of the flat seas and have run 4 days the past week. All were quite successful with quite a few groupers being thrown in the box. The bull sharks have made a large showing also of late, eating the big grouper baits and sometimes the big groupers! My folks yesterday were all exited when I mentioned the sharks, the fellow that booked the trip said he desperately wanted a big shark. Like momma said " be carefull what you wish for". We went to a reef I knew had a school of amberines on it and started fishing. We had a nice grouper in the boat and 2 or 3 'marines when " bubba" showed up and ate a fish or 2. My guy with the big stick finally put a hook in him and the battle was on. After 15 minutes my angler decided the shark was in a lot better shape then he was and passed the rod off to buddy. One more angler later (the shark didn't have 2 friends helping him!) we got the toothy critter to the boat for pictures and released him to pester somebody else. At about 180# he was a serious pest. On to serious fishing and the groupers are chewing, in the middle of a good bite my "shark guy" hooks another one and this time his buds won't help. Luckily for his chiropracter this one broke off after 10 minutes or so. Even with all the time we spent messing with "Bubbas" we still tallied 6 keeper grouper, 18 amberines and 8 triggers on half day.
A day or 2 before I had a Dad and 2 boys, 'bout 9 and 11. I had the boys catching triggers and Dad grouper fishin'. The younger boy had it down immediately and was putting 'em in the box. He even had one trig about 9#! Dads getting a lot of grouper bites but missing em and the older boy is the snapper king, getting a little frustrated that his fish are being released and his brothers are in the the boat. I finally gave the the older one a grouper rig and he put 3 keepers in the boat by himself. Dad came around and put some in too to bring our 4 hour tally to 8 grouper, 20 triggers and 1 lane snapper. I think if the youngest angler hadn't worn out so soon we would have had 40 or 50 triggers they way he was bailin' em.
Still lots of big rays in the surf and I saw a pompano yesterday coming in to the beach. Have heard of a lot of blues too.
Talked to Capt. Random at Indian Pass and he relays that the trout bite is still strong over there ( weather permitting) but they are moving towards winter holes. He had a sight fishing trip for reds yesterday and ran my skiff up in the skinny water. I haven't heard back yet but for him to want to use my rig instead of his (much nicer but more draft) Pathfinder I think he knew where they were.
Tell your signicant other that you really do need that new set or rods and reels for christmas, power tools are just passe'.
capt. Larry Pentel
Capt. Larry Pentel
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