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Jupiter & Palm Beach Offshore Saltwater Fishing Report
Capt. Rob Mazzei
January 2, 2001
Jupiter - Saltwater Fishing Report
"Sailfish Alley" living up to it’s name!
If you have ever had dreams of catching a sailfish, it’s time to make that dream a reality. Sailfishing has been so good that even with morning temps in the mid-thirties and swells to 10+ feet anglers have had their hands full. On the calmer days, the marinas and boat ramps have been busier than the mall and finding fish offshore has been easier than finding parking there.
Although nasty weather kept some of us at home for the holidays, those who have ventured out have come back bragging about the action. More specifically, the location of the action, which has been anywhere from 1-6 miles from the inlets. Out of Palm Beach Inlet, the fish are the closest. Many mornings we’re shutting down to fish just as the cold feels like it’s going to rip through your clothes. One passenger said "maybe we should have gone to Aspen for the holidays"! Everybody’s mind was changed shortly there after. The temps never broke 60 that day. But the sailfish action was so hot, you could have worn a "thong" that day.
Once we reached 70 feet of water off the "stacks", south of the inlet we first put out several flat lines and attempted to get the kite flying. I haven’t mentioned what type of bait we were using because we were fishing "sailfish alley" and here it’s common knowledge that goggle eyes are the premier bait, hands down. They’re hardy and reliable. Anyway, before the kite was in the air someone yelled "I think we’re snagged". Not really paying attention to what was said (the kite had to fly). I thought to myself, "how can we be snagged at this depth using flatlines"? The rod tip straightened and the line went slack, but 60 feet to starboard a sailfish exploded from the water, cartwheeling and twisting like Chubby Checker. I humbly ordered "grab the rod" using more explicit terms. When a sailfish starts to jump wildly just after "the take", it means he’s been spooked and you’d better crank like mad and come tight on the fish before he has a chance to spit the hook. The fish hit so close that the line came tight again immediately, this fish hooked himself. Expecting a double- header because sailfish generally travel in packs and can get very competitive at times, I hurried to get the kite baits out and into position, keeping an eye on the other flatline. Again some yelled "why is my bait swimming towards the boat", I looked and the bait was making a beeline for the boat, ripping across the surface, the bow in the line slicing behind. I had seen this before and I knew it meant one thing! Something big spotted the bait and was closing in. The bait, I guess it’s safe to say "crapped in it’s pants" and knew the end was near, attempted to hide under the boat. We cranked in the goggle eye because one of the kids felt sorry for it.(just kidding) We cranked it in because I wanted to cut off part of it’s tail, to disable it slightly, making it easier the sailfish to capture the bait. I also repositioned the hook near the tail so he would cast better and then struggle near the surface, against the pull of the line. We tossed him back out. I mainly use spinning rods for flatlines for this very reason. I feel casting live bait from a boat with a spinner is much easier than a conventional You don’t need a backlash when the sailfish are "lit up" around the boat. The goggle eye was "toast" in no time. It was double- header time, or I should say double-trouble. Both fish hit so close to the boat that they were "tail walking" around each other. WHO LET THE DOGS OUT? What a great time! They had forgotten about Aspen and were strippng off clothing and carrying on.
We got both fish in after a short but memorable battle. Both were revived and released promptly. By now drift and the pull of the kite had taken us out to 185 feet. We cranked in the kite and throttled back to where we took our first two fish, put out more baits and raised a sailfish on almost every drift. The kite baits saw most of the action.
When I positioned the kite I tried to keep the baits close to the boat so everybody could see the fish as it came up on the baits splashing on the surface. When the sailfish "light up" they look like "batman" with his cape extended to the sides. If he’s gray, brownish or sandy colored he’s not that excited, when he turn darker, black dark blue or purple, and raises his sail, his spots will light up, he’s ready to eat. A pursuit is O.K. Sails seem to enjoy the hunt. When they have the bait balled up, they’ll flare their sail up to help corral the bait into a tight school, they then take turns charging into it, using their bill to whip and injure as many bait as possible. When the injured bait falls back from the rest of the school they’re easy pickings. Those stunned but able to swim will try to catch up with the school are chased down and pounced on. Although they grab the bait quickly, they are usually slow to swallow the bait as they try to crush and kill it first. Give him a little time, when he take off rapidly it’s time to lock up the reel and cranks like mad. You don’t want to deep hook him so use good judgement.
During the colder months sailfish will swim south, usually on the edge of the gulf-stream. If you find fish and then drift north past them, you should head back to the south and try to get ahead of the school you just encountered. Another good way to assure you’re in a productive zone is to listen to channel #65. When a skipper reports he’s seen fish and gives a longitude and specific depth, it may be wise to go to that depth and remain south of the location given. If the sailfish find a warmer current break, you can be sure they’ll stay very near to edge of the break. That depth should be where you concentrate your efforts.
I’ll get on one side of the edge and stay there. Which side depends on the wind. You want to be on the side from which the wind is blowing, let the kite blow over the edge and then stagger the baits. The far bait on the other side of the edge and the close bait on the side that the boat is on. Flatlines are behind the boat. If the far bait on the other side of the edge is getting more strikes, move closer or let out kite line putting both baits on that side. Moving the boat right on the edge also puts the flat lines in the productive zone. Always look out for birds and busting fish.
Not all fishing trips have been that productive, but fishing live baits in the tradition locations, using the traditional bait, put in your time and you will catch a sailfish.
A nice surprise has been the number of dolphin caught recently. While there a likely catch any time off south Florida, they have been a little scarce last couple of winters. Reports of larger fish have been common lately. The gulfstream has been so close to shore, we’ve seen schoolies pushing bait in 60 feet. Trolling ballyhoo with skirts has been productive. Running and gunning has been tough when the north wind pushes against "the stream" traveling north. The waves can get pretty large.
Wahoo have been caught as well. Speed trolling when conditions permit is your best bet.
Kingfishing has been good. 70-90 feet off Juno has been hot.
We still have some dates open for charters, feel free to call me for any info. Home phone 561 741-4371, mobile 561 352-7844.
Good luck, see ya out there! Captain Rob
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