Straight Hooked

posted by Davin on Aug 30

It has just become dark as you slowly troll across your unsuspecting prey and then is one quick motion you lunge your spear (aka) gig forward.  Did I get it?  You ask but you don’t have to wait long for your answer as the sweet feeling of the vibration of the gig pole in your hand as you raise your prize in the boat.  For those of you that have never tried this form of fishing I recommend that you do.  Be warned once you try it you will be hooked!  One may ask what does it take for me to be able to gig fish.  You need a boat that preferably can go in the shallows typically we fish in 1 to 6 feet of water.  Also you will need lots of lights so that you can see down in the water. A good trolling motor to push you around, a couple of gigging poles,a valid fishing license, and a generator to power your lights so that you don’t run down your battery.  You may want to stay out a little longer, so be sure to take some extra gas to keep that generator running.  We strap our lights down on the boat with bungy cords at the front, middle, and back of the boat. Find what works best for you and your boat.  We went out last night August 29 and didn’t do to bad considering the high tide.  We caught four Sheepshead which have to be 12 inches and eight Mullet.  The best time to go out is on an outgoing tide with as little wind as possible it doesn’t take much to mess up the clarity of the water.  Check the laws in your area to see what can be harvested in this manner.  ”Spearing is defined as the catching or taking of a fish by bowhunting, gigging, spearfishing, or any device used to capture a fish by piercing its body.  Spearing does not include the catching or taking of a fish by a hook with hook and line gear or by snagging(snatch hooking).  Spearfishing is defined as the catching or taking of a fish through the instrumentality of a hand or mechanically propelled, single or multi-pronged spear or lance, barbed or barbless,operated by a person swimming at or below the surface of water.  The use of powerheads, bangsticks,and rebreathers remains prohibited.”

posted by Davin on Aug 2

The spotted sea trout (aka) speckled trout has to be between 15″ to 20″ to harvest. You are allowed one over 20″ inches per person and a daily bag limit of 5 per person. Their season is closed for the month of February. Now that we have the formalities out of the way lets get down to business to find out where we need to be to catch them and what we need to use. You can find trout in grass flats around sand bars and while you are in these areas look for run offs or small drops in depth. The speckled trout is a stalker and will be hiding around a corner or beneath a ledge. If your tide is coming in the trout will be facing out because the water will be pushing the bait inward and the exact opposite if the tide is going out. Fishing tide changes are so important because of the water movement the fish know this and are a lot more active at this time. You can use many varieties of bait while fishing for trout here are a few of my favorites. Sometimes I just use live shrimp without weight because this looks more natural, but you can also use weights if you choose too. You can also use small pin fish with an cork trout love them also. Some people choose to use artificial lures such as shrimp, worms, and different types of fly lures. If I am using artificial bait I prefer to use an Cajun popper and a Saltwater Assassin lure. To use this you tie the top end of the Cajun popper to your line and connect the bottom to your leader which will be a heavier pound test than your main line. Once it is out there give it a jerk from time to time because your popper makes a sound that attracts the fish when you do this. You will want to know the depth of the water you are fishing because this will determine the length of your leader. I highly recommend you try these techniques and hope you have a great time doing this. Find out what works best for you practice it and master it and always happy fishing.