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Miami - Haulover to Fowey Light
Capt. Dean Panos
March 5, 2002
Miami - Saltwater Fishing Report
3/4/02
Windy weather was the norm for this past week, especially during the weekend. This past weekend was the Bob Lewis Billfish Tournament. We have done well in this tournament in the past and hoped to do well this year also. Last year we got first place angler, and the year prior we got 2nd place overall.
This year we ended up in ~ 12th place, and most importantly we had a great time. What hurt us is that we had two sailfish on Saturday, but managed to lose them both. We also had on a large yellowfin tuna, which eventually broke us off. Several of the big boats also spotted big bluefin tuna shallow (500 plus pounders) which would have been exciting to see. Although the wind was howling on Saturday, and seas were 8 feet, with some 10 footers thrown, we were in a 34 ft SeaVee, and not only were the conditions fishable for that boat, but we were actually comfortable. During certain conditions and especially when it is rough, I use a 15 ft sea anchor. This sea anchor not only slows down your drift, but pulls your bow into the seas, so the bow takes the brunt of the waves and not you and your customers. This plus the fact that the 34 SeaVee runs so good in rough seas, definitely allowed us to fish safely and comfortably. Some may already know, but I have ordered a new 34 ft SeaVee, which I am expecting delivery in a week or so.
Sunday, for us, the fishing was much better. We started our first drift by Pacific, and with blue water and North current, we had a doubleheader within 15 minutes. Landing both sailfish, we set up again and immediately got another sailfish. The bite slowed down for us, but we got some dolphin and our 4th sailfish at the end of the day. There were only 2 other boats that got four or more sailfish that day, so we felt pretty good with our daily standings.
The lead boat had 6 sailfish total and the 10th place boat had 4 sailfish. As you can see, if we didn’t miss those two fish, we would have been right there. I’m sure other boats had similar stories, but either way, the teams in this tournament are some of the best in South Florida, and most of them are friends of mine. Congratulations to all the winners and to all the teams fishing in the tournament.
Although tournaments are a lot of work for captain and crew, they are also a whole lot of fun. This is just the beginning of the sailfish tournaments in South Florida. More tournaments are scheduled for this month and next month. Next sailfish tournament is the Masters Tournament on March 16-17th. I am tentatively open for that tournament, so if you are interested in tournament fishing please give me a call.
Tight Lines and Good Fishing,
Capt. Dean Panos
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