OK, I know it has been a long while between reports. No good excuses for the hiatus other than really good fishing keeping me away from the keyboard. That and some truly grueling fly tying sessions. This getting up at 4:30 AM to tie flies because the supply was exhausted from the day before is getting a little old. Can thank the largest number of bull sharks I may have ever seen in the area for the large number of lost flies. Some days they just won’t let us get very many fish to the boat. Though I must admit, everyone gets a big kick out of a half dozen ten foot sharks all converging on one hapless Albie on the end of their line. At least the first couple of times, then that gets old too. When the sharks get really out of control, a little looking around usually will produce Albie’s off by them selves with far fewer sharks
I know I called last years Albie season the “Season of the Beast” because of the average size the fish were running. I’m not sure just what to call this year, because, if anything, the Albie’s are running even larger and in greater numbers. Twelve to fourteen lbs is about normal with very few fish under ten pounds. And trophy sized sixteen pound and up fish,(largest to date was just a hair over twenty pounds!) are coming over the side regularly.
There have been quite a few Blackfin tuna in the mix, though deliberately picking one out of the rampaging mass of Albie’s is a knack most have not mastered. A few small ones in the five to ten pound range have visited the ice box,(Blackfins are truly great table fare), but the magnum sized twenty to thirty pound plus fish have eluded capture to date. A smattering of snook, tarpon, king mackerel, dolphin and deep water work around wrecks and reefs have rounded out the current action. A good number of sailfish have been moving into the area, a hint that last years action,(Sailfish were Everywhere in July and August) has a good likelihood of repeating. Now if I can just keep the Albie’s from running interference while trying to get a sailfish hooked up, life will be grand.
There is still plenty of time open in my calender and this type of action stayed at a break-neck pace well into late August last year if anyone had a mind to get in on this years season. And for those of you looking for a fall getaway, dolphin fishing last fall was epic,( my wife told me to stop bringing home dolphin because she just couldn’t eat anymore). The Skipjack tuna, snook and tarpon also put on a great show last fall.