Great May Fishing aboard the Hooked Up
Capt. Taco Perez
May 21, 2010
Fort Lauderdale - Saltwater Fishing Report
May 1
April is behind us and here comes one of the best months of the year to fish down here off the coast of Fort Lauderdale.
We had no trips going today but at the last second we got a call from one of the other fishing boats in town and they happen to have an extra trip for us.
Captain Greg and I were excited about getting a trip at the last second because we had heard of a few sailfish being caught this morning.
Once Scott and Dave from Tampa Florida got to the boat we were off. We set out both kites with live baits suspended from them. Ok at this point the trap was set and all we needed now was for a couple of sail fish to swim by and eat our baits.
But as luck would have it the bite shut down and no sails ever showed up. Ok no problem we just switched to plan B and we started trolling the reef. But once again we struck out and trolling was just plain old dead slow.
Ok now it was time to make something happen. These guys had fished all morning on another boat without landing a fish and I was dammed if I was going to let these guys go home after fishing on 2 boats in one day and not catching a fish.
Plain C ;We brought in the trolling gear and set up to do a deep drop on a wreck that laid 210 feet down. Captain Greg sowed a big live mullet to a hook and down he went. The second he hit bottom BAM we were Hooked Up. Dave was the first to jump in the chair and after a good 10 min struggle he hoisted up a nice amber jack.
I've got to say that it is amazing what a difference one fish can do. As it turned out this was the biggest fish Dave had ever caught. We were out of time but there was no way I was just going to let Scott watch Dave catch a nice fish and not give him a shot. So once again down went anther mullet and once again as soon as the bait hit bottom BAM we were Hooked Up again. And yes once again a nice amber jack.
I know that I am lucky enough to do this every day and sometimes I take it for granted but when I seen these guys faces light up and what a thrill it was for them it makes me remember how lucky I am to do what I get to do for a living.
Thanks again Dave and Scott and we're looking forward to fishing with you guys again soon.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 4
Today we had one of our repeat customers/friends Fred from Fort Lauderdale and the (guy who opened the Wish You Were Here hotel on Fort Lauderdale beach) along with his son Jay and his nephew Allen from New York.
Fish for the table was the order so we went straight off shore hoping to catch some dolphin fish and some black fin tuna and no sharks!!
As luck would have it we spent more than half of the trip off shore and while we did manage to catch a few small dolphins and one black fin tuna the bite was just not going off like we would have wanted. So we worked our way to the south and found a beautiful blue edge with a lot of north current and set out our kite with live baits suspended from them.
Once all the baits were out and the trap was set we seen a monster hammer head shark coming in right after one of our live baits with light leaders on it. Captain Greg reeled the live bait up in the air so this SEA MONSTER could not get hold of our bait.
Soon after he swim away without putting us threw a 3 hour fight. Soon thereafter we had a sailfish try to eat one of our baits but once we went to set up on him the bait came out of his mouth. (RATS) Right after that we had another smaller hammer head shark come screaming in like a freight train after one of our baits.
This time Greg let him have it and Allen fought him for about 5 min till his tail hit the line and that was the end of him. Soon thereafter here comes another shark this one was a little silky and this time we got him to the boat. As it turned out not only did he have our hook in his mouth he also had anther hook in his mouth? This is one lucky shark or one dumb one but all the same we let him go.
Sorry Fred I know you wanted no sharks but fishing is just that fishing and sometimes you just never know what is going to bite.
Thanks again Fred and good luck hunting with Greg.
Guys don't forget to go back to my blogs and check out what's going on with Carey the Canoe guy. We all need something to laugh about and we also need someone to cheer on these days. Lets see if he can really canoe from Fort Lauderdale to Canada with no money just help from people he meets along the way??
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 6
Today we had one of our regular customers/friends Nick from the Bronx and he brought along his wife Traci and their 2 best friends Donna and Mike.
We started out trying to catch some live ballyhoo with little luck. We could see them back behind the boat but we just could not seem to get them close enough to catch.
So we started out trolling the reef hopping to catch a few king fish and hopping that the wind would pick up enough for us to fly our kites.
While trolling the reef we did get the kings to start biting and before we knew it we had our limit of king fish and it seemed as if we might have enough wind to get our kites to fly.
Once J.J. got all the baits suspended from the kites our trap was set and now all we needed was for a big hungry fish come along and eat one of our baits.
All of a sudden I saw this sailfish chasing our left short kite bait. I yelled out to J.J. that there he was but J.J. was nowhere to be found. I ran down stars and locked up the reel and before we knew what was going on we were Hooked Up. At this point J.J. had come running out from the bathroom and ran up to the fly bridge to go ahead with the boat. The line came tight and the rod bent over and this beautiful sailfish started dancing all over the surface putting on this great show for us. I turned around handed Mike the rod and ran upstairs to run the boat.
Just as I got upstairs and J.J. got back to the cockpit I saw another sailfish after another one of our baits.
J.J. picked up the rod and handed this one to Nick. Holly cow we were Hooked Up with a double and both fish were jumping all over the place! (What a site)
Mikes fish came to the boat first and at this point Nick's fish had a lot of line out. It took another 10 min of backing down and reeling like a mad man but at last Nick got his fish to the boat.
Guys thanks again for one fun morning of deep sea fishing!! Nick we are looking forward to fishing with you guys again soon.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 8
Today we had a bunch of local guys from down here in South Florida out for a little boy's day out fishing. We had Bob, Jeff, Kyleigh, Kyla, J.J. and Ryan.
We started out kite fishing with 4 baits suspended from the kites and caught a couple barracudas and one bonito.
Then we got a bite that we had no idea what the heck it could have been but this fish was peeling line off the reel as if it was never going to stop. I've got to say that 99 out of 100 times we know what is on the other end pulling but this time we were stumped. We were all hopping for a big tuna but when this GAINT JACK CARVELL popped up we were all surprised.
A bit disappointed I must admit because we were all thinking we might have a little yellow fin tuna on but a great fight all the same.
We finished our tip off doing a couple of deep drops on a wreck that produced a couple of nice amber jacks.
Thanks again guys and we are looking forward to fishing you again soon.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 9
To say that every day of fishing was going to be a great day of catching would just not be true and I am sorry to say that today was just a slow day of fishing.
We took out Mitchell, Alex, Toney, Tommy and Paul
We started out flying our 2 kites with 3 live baits suspended from them and one big shark bait also suspended from the kite. We also set a shark bait down about 150 feet down and a last one down 350 on the bottom.
After waiting and waiting without a bite we tried a deep drop on a wreck that was 210 feet down. At last a bite and we ended up catching a big amber jack.
Guys sorry today was a slow day but it seemed you guys all had a good time all the same. Thanks so much and we owe you guys one.
Captain Taco (9540 764-4344
May 10
Today we took out Robert and mike from Fort Lauderdale and Jeff, Mo and Annie from New York.
Once again we went right to kite fishing and today it was for sure the right choice. We ended up catching a few nice king fish 2 bonitos and Mike ended up catching a big sail fish.
Afterwards we did a deep drop on a ship wreck and hauled up a big amber jack.
Nice going guys sorry I did not have our camera set right and the picture turned out so bright.{%image_id=15373
Thanks again for a fun morning of deep sea fishing.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) Sea-4344
May 11
Today we started out our day fishing with Carl, Dillon 17 years old and his little brother Andrew 11 years old. They also brought along their good friend Mathew all from New York.
Once again we went right to kite fishing with our live baits suspended from the kites and once again it paid off big for everyone. Everyone took turns reeling in king fish and bonitos but once a sail fish jumped on one of the baits little Andrew jumped in the chair and the fight was on.
It took him a good 20 min but he finally reeled his first sail fish in at 11 years old!! Way to go Andrew.
Sorry about the bad picture but this was the only one that came out.
As we got back to the dock we had our afternoon trip waiting on us. We had Tim, Joe and Bobby all from Baltimore and we were excited about sail fishing this afternoon because conditions were looking better and better as the day went on.
Once we got out there and set out our kites it did not take long before our first bite and yes it was a sail fish. Joe jumped in the chair and the fight was on.
It took Joe a good 20 min till he finally got his first sail fish to the boat. Just as he was getting out of the chair we could see he was not feeling so good.
Having said that he ran to the side of the boat and started chumming for us. As soon as Tim seen that he thought he would lend a hand and also started helping chumming the waters for us. What a great couple of guys doing all that chumming for Bobby. We knew that with all this chum in the water that it should not take long for anther sail to swim up. (LOL)
And sure enough it did,t and now it was Bobby's turn to fight a big sail fish. It took Bobby a good 15 min to get his fish to the boat and at this point I think they were ready to call it a day. I guess they got SICK of catching fish (LOL)
Thanks again to all our anglers today.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 12
Today we had our annual Hook Line and Sinker Torment held by South West Air lines to benefit the Ronald McDonald House.
Today we have Angie, Steve, Enrique, Guy, Glen and Steve aboard the Hooked Up.
We were going for the big fish prize so we went right to kite fishing and it turned out to be a great day of fishing with the exception of a couple of hang over's onboard.
While we did not win the biggest fish award we did have a great day of fishing and as it turned out the big fish award went to one of the boats that had killed a hammer head shark and yes we did catch a big hammer head shark we just don't kill them so we were unable to see if ours was the biggest but we all had a great time all the same.
We ended up catching A box full of big king fish and bonitos and Glen reeled in a giant Hammer head shark and Angie caught one of the biggest barracudas we've seen in a long time.
Thanks again to the whole gang at South West Air lines we had a ball and we are looking forward to fishing again next year.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 13
Today our day started out with one Matt from Louisville Kentucky he was supposed to go on a shared charter but we ended up with only Matt and decided to take the boat himself.
We trolled the reef hopping that we could catch a few kingfish but as it turned out they were biting like mad dogs and Matt had his limit in no time along with a few bonitos.
We did try fishing out in deeper water just to see if any dolphin fish were around but we never did find any. By the end of our morning trip Matt was doing J.J., s job and not only was he reeling in the fish but he started wiring the long 60 foot leaders and then gaffing the fish all himself.
I know he had a great time because he knew we had another shared charter going out in the afternoon and Matt decided to just stay aboard and fish the afternoon with us also.
So we went back to the dock and picked up Carrie and John from Fulton Mo and off we went right back out top the reef trolling.
Once again the kings were biting and we were catching plenty we also managed to catch a big barracuda.
Thanks again Matt. John and Carrie we had a ball fishing with you guys.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 14
Today we had Zach and Phil from Penn and Drew, Jim and Dustin from Maryland.
Once again the water looked good for sail fishing so we set out our kites and suspended our live baits from the kites. As it turned out we made the right choice. We ended up catching 4 nice king fish and Zach and Phil both ended up catching a sail fish each.
I am sorry to say that our camera batter was dead and we never got any photos so guys if you send me the pictures you took I would be happy to post them for you.
Thanks again guys and Dustin and Phil we never could have done it if you guys hadn't chummed up the fish for us. (LOL)
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 15
Today we started out fishing with Jerry, Bill, Don, Duane and Crag all from Newfoundland.
Today we decided to set out our kites out in 150 feet of water with our 3 live baits suspended from the kites and with one big shark bait also suspended from the kite. We were catching king fish one after another so much so that we were starting to run short on live baits. I kept trying to get the baits out to deeper water just trying to get away from the king fish before we ran out of live baits.
All of a sudden out of nowhere I saw this big fin heading for our shark bait out of the kite. He took the bait and took off like a rocket. We were Hooked Up and this was a big shark.
Craig jumped in the chair and the fight was on. At first this shark peeled off a lot of line than as if he wanted to see what was on the other end he just swam toward the boat.
We got him within 10 feet of the back of the boat and he had a change of heart. This time when he took off there was no stopping him. Craig was beat and soon after one of the other guys jumped in the chair to see if he could mussel him back to the boat. But soon there after this guy was worn out. This went on for over 45 min with this shark wearing down everyone on the boat.
After a good hour of fighting this SEA MONSTER we got him to the side of the boat. We managed to get 2 out of the three hooks out of him and watched him swam away in good shape.
We estimated him at about 10 feet long and over 400 pounds.
So we had A monster shark under our belt and a bunch of kingfish and a happy gang of fisferman.
It was time to head back to the dock to pick up our afternoon trip but as we were heading back on of our engines was running like crap and soon enough we had lost one of our engines and we were now on one engine.
Our afternoon trip had already been waiting for us for a while so we just sent them out on our other boat the Local knowledge and Greg and I went into the engine room to see if we could fix whatever was wrong with the engine. As it turned out we had a big blob of algae in our fuel line and it was going to take a while to fix and to make matters worse the engine room was about 150 degrees.
Just as we cleaned out the fuel line this guy named Mart from Sweden who we had talked to the day before walked up and he was ready to go fishing.
I thought this must be our lucky day but man was I wrong.
We got Mart and his buddy Ernie aboard and off we went. The motor ran great and things were looking good.
Since Greg had done all the work in the hot engine room I told him that I was going to work the cock pit and he could drive on this trip.
We set out both kites with three live baits suspended from them and one shark bait also suspended from the kite.
It was late in the day and with the sun going down it was hard to see the kite baits looking right into the sun but something grabbed the shark bait out of the kite and we were Hooked Up. Mart jumped in the chair and the fight was on. Mart fought this fish for about 5 min than the line went slack. (RATS) this one got away.
Ok so I sent out another shark bait out of the kite and soon thereafter we got a hit on the shark bait once again but this time it took off like a freight train and Mart was in for the fight of his life.
After about 30 min of this back and forth tug a war Mart had him coming in pretty good when all of a sudden 25 feet away from the boat the line went slack. (RATS AND DOUBLE RATS) I could not believe it this shark somehow broke 19 wire. We never did get a look at him but we turned the handle on the reel 26 times and it was at the boat.
Ok let's try this again I got another shark bait out there and all of a sudden something ate one of our live baits.
This time Mart got this one to the boat and it turned out to be a big barracuda. We were still getting over the last one that got away that we never even thought about getting a picture of this one.
We got the baits right back out there and BAM a sail fish piled on one of our short kite baits and went nuts jumping all over the surface made a big circle and landed right on top of the line and broke the line. I can't believe this!!!
Ok one more time let's get this right this time and out went the baits AGAIN.
Once again a big shark popped up and this time we got a good look at this big hammer head shark and once again we were Hooked Up. Mart jumped in the chair and we felt sure we were going to catch this one. BUT after about 5 min of fighting him the line went slack. NO WAY it could not have gotten away??
But it turned out that our bait did not have a scratch on it and I guess the leader had got wrapped around his head and was never hooked in the first place.
We really did have a great time but here is a picture of the most unluckiest fisherman in the world (LOL)
So if you're looking to go fishing you might want to think about fishing with us we have gotten rid of all of our bad luck and all we got left is good luck!!
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
Fort Lauderdale Fishing Forecast:
While fishing has been good off the coast of South Florida the big Dolphin Fish have not shown up YET like they do every May so we think the best dolphin fishing is yet to come.
Target Species:
Sail fish, Sharks Amber Jacks, King Fish, ECT
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