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Report for Destin, Florida - Nearshore
Capt. Larry Pentel
April 26, 2002
Destin - Saltwater Fishing Report
It's been a couple of weeks since I sat down and typed but I've been fishin' hard everyday and not much free time.
Today I ran a 6 hour split trip. We bottom fished for a couple of hours with a good catch of snappers and one grouper. My folks had lots more grouper bites but the fish were more experienced than the fishermen. We then came in to the beach to sight fish cobia. We were succesfull in capturing the only one we saw, about 25#. As a whole this cobia season has not been anything that fantastic. As in all fishing there have been some unforgetable days though.
Last Tuesday I took a couple from Grayton on a strictly cobia trip. After about 2 hours of loooking we found a good fish on a turtle and the husband caught him. I feel good, fish in the box, all down hill now. The next fish I saw was long and skinny and purple ! A sailfish swimming right down the sandbar! I flipped a cobia jig at 'em and he followed it but wouldn't commit. I climbed down the tower, put a live cigar minnow on just a hook ( no leader) and pitched it in front of the fish. It looked like somebody dropped a '57 chevy in the water from the size of the splash that fish made charging the bait. I knew better than to set the hook right away and waited for him to come back. When he did I set the hook and handed the rod to my angler. 45 minutes and 30 jumps later we had him to the boat. Seven and a half feet long and about 65# in 20 feet of water!. To make the day just completely memorable we went on to find a BIG cobia all over a turtle. I pitched the jig and she was starvin'. Handed the rod to my female angler and realized we might be outmatched. For some strange reason the big fish stayed on top and let me pull the boat right up alongside. I gaffed her, put her in the boat and damn near had a bunch of broken bones as a very green 75# flathead suddenly realized things weren't going her way! Needless to say these folks are coming cobia fishing again next year! I ran a half day trip on Wednesday with 4 anglers. We managed to find 11 cobia before noon and got 1 on for everybody! I love being in the right place at the right time.
On the bottom scene fishin' is pretty good. The snappers aren't thick on the beach yet but what is here is a good grade and there are plenty of groupers mixed in. I've had some Really nice boards of fish on half day bottom trips in the past 10 days with most trips being limits. Quite a few black snappers around too.
If can't find a boat don't worry-the pompano are biting in the surf and I've seen 2 cobia swimming right on the beach this week!
No excuses--- go fishin!
Capt. Larry Pentel
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