Fort Lauderdale Charter Fishing Wahoo and Sailfish
Capt. John Logan
June 15, 2012
Fort Lauderdale - Saltwater Fishing Report
We never know for sure what charter fishing off Fort Lauderdale will produce but always include Wahoo and Sailfish when we speak to people about fishing. Today Chris and I had the absolute pleasure of fishing with Ron and Peggy from New Milford, CT all day. And what a day it was too.
Today was an absolutely perfect Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce day. Clear skies, temperatures in the low 80's, calm winds for most of the day and calm seas. Our 2 guests showed up right on time and we had a plan.
First stop was bait fishing, with no wind, Goggle eyes weren't an option. Our first stop at the buoy didn't produce what we wanted so we went to the balls for Ballyhoo. This took some time but finally paid off. While we didn't slam them, we did catch enough for our day.
Then it was time to troll for a bit. Bonitos were being caught just off shore of where we were and we began trying for a few. Most the action had been done by the time we got there but we managed a few before they became spread out and harder to find.
Anytime you have a school of fish like this, it's not unusual to have a predator or two in the area. A nice surprise came when both deep rods went off and we ended up with 2 Wahoo about 12 pounds or so. Dinner has been had.
But Ron had mentioned Sailfish when booking the boat. He'd caught a Striped marlin, but never a Sailfish. A few had been seen but none caught. It was time to switch methods and begin trying for the prize.
We fished, we hoped, we waited. Moving in and out from shore, dragging our live baits behind us. Watching, waiting, this is what fishing is like sometimes…
Ballyhoo are great baits, they tell you when something is about to happen by jumping out of the water. They can see they are about to be eaten better than we can see beneath the surface. And finally, there they go, the long left began leaping from the water. We saw the large black area coming from beneath, knew we were getting the bite and soon it was game on for Ron as Betty watched and took pictures.
On light tackle and line, these fish can be awesome. We were down to the last ¼ of the spool when we finally began chasing the fish down with the boat. Ron did a great job and after 20 minutes or so, we had our fish, boated him for pictures and revived and released him, or her, back to the sea.
We still had some time so set back up but that was the ONLY shot on live bait we had today.
So when we tell you we might catch Wahoo or Sailfish charter fishing in Fort Lauderdale, it doesn't mean you will catch… But maybe.
Capt. Steve Souther
Target Species:
Sailfish, Shark, Tune, Dolphin, Wahoo, Marlin, Swordfish and more
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