Our Daily Fishing Reports

Stu,

I wanted to take this opportunity to inform you about my fishing trip on the Bonitta II. Brett and Joe were fantastic. I felt very comfortable immediately. I felt that they had tremendous confidence that I would catch some kind of game fish that day. Brett was a great captain and Joe’s understanding of fishing and where to catch game fish was evident. We tried placing a couple of lines out off of Ft Lauderdale but when this didn’t work we went down to Miami to fish over some sunken ships. As time passed, the guys were really working hard to find a way to catch something in the allotted time. Joe tried using different baits and it was amazed to watch as we caught different live baits to use. We finally caught a bonita to use for bait and within about 20 seconds, we got a bite. We lost the fish but Joe felt we could still use the bait as is and he put it down again. Within 20 seconds again we had another bite. Joe masterfully reeled the fish up so it could dive back down to the ship wreck and when he felt it was safe gave it to me to reel the rest of the way in. It was a barcuda and it took me about 20 minute to get it in. It was an amazing experience. I was so impressed the way Joe and Brett worked together to keep the boat in the right place to keep the line behind the boat as the fish dove and moved around. When we were trawling for bait fish I actually caught a rainbow runner. Joe said it was the biggest one he has seen. It was 3 feet long and Joe noted that these are typically much smaller and used as bait fish.

It was a great trip and very memorable. I am having the two fish stuffed to commemorate the trip. It hope to go out again when I return to Florida but this time have my wife, Lisa and my 3 year old daughter join me.

It is important that you hear about the good trips as well as the bad. The guys were great and the boat really performed well.

Mitchell Yass

PM TRIP

We had Dan and Bob bring their wives from Montana to join us for the afternoon. Once again, we went back to the can and caught more speedos. We had the area to ourselves since it was later in the day. We ran over to a favorite local wreck. After one pass, just by looking at the fish finder, it was obvious that it was going to be a good afternoon! We went over he wreck one time, dropped the bait down and WHAM! After about 3 seconds we were on! Bob jumped in the chair and brought up a nice looking amberjack! We made 6 more drops, each producing a jack. The largest jack was close to 70-80 pounds. Everyone got their chance. After everyone brought their fish in, we went to trolling the rest of the speedos. Nobody was home. Since we saw some sailfish free jumping in about 100 feet we switched gears and put the kites out with the goggle eyes, but to no avail. Overall, everyone had a great time and we look forward to seeing you again next year.

AM TRIP

This morning we took part in a 15 boat convention trip for ATT. All of the guests were South Florida locals. We started the trip by shaking the chum bag at the # 1 can catching speedos (aka “small eyed scad”). Once we caught an abundance of bait, we headed down towards the Hollywood “bubbler.” From the bubble, looking to shore, you can see the Westin Diplomat hotel. This is where the sewer lets out in the water from land. The bait around this area is insane! We set out the speedos, rigged on triple trebles, 2 on top and one on the down rigger to see what we could find. It didn’t take long! After only about 10 minutes a nice king jumped onto the downrigger. We caught 3 more kings with each consecutive pass over “the bubble.” We then changed over to the kites and sent some goggle eyes out dangling on top of the water. We spent a while waiting for the bite but we had no success. All in all, everyone had a good time out on the water. Who wouldn’t?! Thank you for the trip and we hope to see you next year.

Lisa brought her family from New York to come out for a day on the water. The original plans were for yesterday, but the weather was not very conducive to fishing, and definitely not conducive for having fun. Today was a much better day. The seas were calm and the sun was out. We started the trip catching speedos with the children at the #1 can. They brought in about 2 dozen baits. We then started heading down towards the “stink hole.” On the way down, Joey was getting the rods ready with the triple trebles. Once we got down there, Joey put out 2 baits out of the outriggers on top and 1 down deep with the down rigger. After a few passes, one of the top baits got chopped while the downrigger went off. It was a nice king mackerel. We then decided to head further south to the Tenaco Towers. Joey got some bug lines ready and put them out with the bullets. The gang caught a nice black fin tuna. Next stop: deep wreck, but to no avail. We then moved to a more shallow wreck. Joey rigged the dead black fin tuna and sent him down deep. After only 2 passes, I bumped the boat over the wreck. WHAM! The bait was inhaled! After a 20 minute fight, the gang brought in a nice barracuda. Joey brought him into the boat for some measurements. He weighed in at about 30 pounds, measuring 55 inches. We then went to a different deep wreck, “Cruise Del Sur” to try something different. All it took was one drop. The rod doubled over with screaming line. At the end of the line was a nice amberjack. Finally, we tried to catch some Vermillion snapper, but we they didn’t seem to be very hungry. All in all, the gang had a great time. We hope to see them next year!

Dave and his family joined us for a 4 hour fishing trip right out of Port Everglades. The early morning was a little bit rough and stormy, so we decided to start about 90 minutes late. The rain let up and the seas laid down a bit. It turned out to be a beautiful day. Unfortunately, the storm dropped the barometric pressure and made it difficult to get many bites. We managed to catch a few baits.

The gang used the baits wisely and managed to catch a nice big amberjack on the wreck. I’m sorry about the bad weather. We look forward to seeing you guys next year.