After some much needed time off- Jawbreaker fishing charters hosted some old friends this past Saturday for some rod bending action offshore from St.Pete Beach. John Clough and crew, Graham, Nick, George and Dan had actually prepared themselves for a slower than normal bite that we sometimes experience the day of the full moon...not this trip fellas, the bite was anything but slow!
Bottom fishing in 50 feet of water produced all of the short Red Grouper, and decent sized grunts, you could ask for. Again, the bite was lightning fast and both cut baits and 'livies' were being inhaled before they could reach the bottom, but the bigger groupers were evading us. After putting a couple dozen snappers in the fish box, and a few cigar minnows in the livewell, we headed out to 65 feet to find some bigger fish. This 'deeper' shallow water is holding quite a few large Gag Grouper like the one Graham Clough's good friend, Nick, is displaying in the above pic. Unfortunately, because of the Gag Grouper closure, we had to release 5 or 6 of these tasty fighters. No problem, we will be back in mid-September when these fish are legal to harvest....then it's “Game On”!
Anyway, George did manage to put a chunky Red Grouper in the box, and Graham definitely caught the bonus fish of the day....a solid 25 pound Kingfish that fell for a free-lined hardtail! Nice fish Graham, hang in there, when we do get your Cobia it will be a monster! Check out John and Graham Clough in the photo gallery with the most recent Kingfish to join the fish box. Tight work guys!
There you have it, Jawbreaker fishing picking up right where we left off, and it's always great to see familiar faces to share the adventure with. If you have ever had the desire to do a fishing charter, with professionals, call today and book your very own Jawbreaker fishing charter. Remember, Gag Grouper are back on the menu in less than 4 weeks. Happy fishing to Ya, Capt.Dan