Haulover Small Boat Report

[jrlsail]

Keep trying different things and keep taking notes. Our report from Saturday from our other forum:

With a few hours before a beer can island cook out, we ran out the inlet at 8 AM hoping for livies knowing the bite was on with the big outgoing tide and recent weather. After one look at the inlet, we moved to Operation Troll.
Put out the lines and immediately picked up a phin at 110 outside the inlet on a pink/blue feather leadhead lure on the rigger. Turned North and picked up a hoo in 160 on a red/black feather chaos lure over a ballyhoo on the rigger. Lines back out over the same spot and picked up another hoo on pink/yellow mylar seawitch on the flatline weighted ballyhoo.

Moved back toward the inlet and out to 400 after listening on 68. Had a cow hit on the rigger with the pink/blue feather in 360. Saw the bull come up and tried to put the jig on him , but couldn't get the bite. Brought in the cow and worked our way back to the dock at 10 AM.

After a poor showing at the Boynton Fire Tourney, it was nice to get the OneFishTwoFish back on fish!

[jrlsail]

Originally Posted by GrandSlam

Thank you everyone for your advice and tips. They truly were noted and appreciated. I can always take more. Nothing would make me happier then to come back to the marina with fish blood all over the boat.

You mentioned the problem with finding live bait. If you cannot find any and are willing to try the kingfish bite, try to slow troll dead bait:

Go get a couple of packages of Capt Hank hook-up jig heads 4/0 black nickel with white, yellow or red heads. Pick up a few dusters (mylar or rubber) in the same-like colors. #4 wire, #4 treble hooks and 50# spro swivels.

Swivel--2ft#4wire--duster--CHjig--6inch#4wire--#4treble

Make a few and store in quart size sealable baggies.

Connected to 20 pound test rod (spin or conv), hook a dead sardine from bottom to top of the head with the jig and put the treble in the anus. Troll one up and one down with the boat in gear over the reefs (50 to 100 feet). The kings will eat it up.

[GrandSlam]

The best feeling in the world is heading through the Haulover cut as the sun is rising and the ocean is calm like glass. I was hoping for this moment today but unfortunately it was cold, rainy and windy.

Did that stop me? No. We headed NE out of Haulover and quickly ended up in 380 feet of water. The ocean was a little rough so we put out a spread and headed SW in toward 80 feet to determine where the fish were at. After an hour of trolling at various depths we ended up in front of the Twin Towers.

My ballyhoo on the long line had a bite but not at the hook. This was my fault for not placing the hook in the proper spot. But I do attribute the bite to properly preparing the ballyhoo the night before. I ordered Mark Sosin’s book on rigging ballyhoo for trolling. Hopefully, If it arrives before next week, I can learn how to properly put the hook into the ballyhoo.

For the second half of the morning we drifted live bait at the NE corner of the fish sanctuary and drifted towards shore. But no fish landed. By now the seas were pushing 3 to 5 feet so it was time for the Haulover Small boat to head for calmer water.

Unfortunately, I we were not able to get the job done today. Not to worry the warmer days of summer should be sooner then later.

I dont think I will be going Sunday. Rough seas ahead. See you next weekend.

Here are a few questions for you.

North or South out of Haulover? How do you decide?
Should I troll with the current or against the current?

[jrlsail]

Originally Posted by GrandSlam

Here are a few questions for you.

North or South out of Haulover? How do you decide?
Should I troll with the current or against the current?

Those kinda questions get bar fights started. Everyone has their own theories. Mine is pretty straight forward in South Florida if I have no idea/care on what I catch (hoo/phin/king/tuna/sail)..

I like to pay attention to charters and drift boats. They fish more than us. if it is outgoing tide, you will see quickly how fast/strong the current and I drop my lines in and begin to work the outgoing tide edge. Then, rather than troll with or against, I go out (east) and pay attention to current changes, color changes and keep an eye on the temp for breaks. Usually go out to 400 and make a call. If it's fishy, I turn around. If not, and calm, I will go out to 600 or maybe pick up and run out looking for weeds. Until you KNOW where the fish are, fishing 120 feet up and down the current will get you a whole lot of slow days in the long run.

Last week, we picked up two phin and two hoo in 2 hours (including leaving the dock and coming back). This was all based on working the area until we found them.

[reel fishy]

Originally Posted by GrandSlam

North or South out of Haulover? How do you decide? Should I troll with the current or against the current?

Well you really just have to look around and find the water holding debris, weeds or rips. If there is a defined color change concentrate on that or a .5 degree temp break, birds diving, frigates, bait on finder, fish busting the surface. As you fish the area you will get an idea of where the fish go during different wind conditions. If there are charter boats fishing an area and you are going to do the same style of fishing give a little room and join in. Try not to troll through the guys kite fishing. 90'-240' is a good range to troll through but sometimes the bite is out beyond 600'. If ya ain't fishin, ya ain't catchin. Join the SAIL club and make tons of friends.

[Tuna Meltdown]

Grandslam, I am going to try and add my two cents here as I runa small 20' center console. The one thing I have been told is that when you are in a small boat you have to make it look big. Up here in the northeast I typically troll 5 to 7 rods depending on the sea condition. Everything I troll is either a daisy chain or a spreader bar with hook baits in them. I do not run them as teasers. I'm not sure if you have the ability to troll more rods or if the lures I mentioned work well down there but you have to make you presentation to the fish look as big and appitizing as you can. Let me know how that big teaser works. I bought one this winter (Play Action Big Kahuna) and can't wait to pull it under my short rig. Good luck and I hope I helped.

[GrandSlam]

The wife and I went fishing today. We were out on the water by 8 AM and quickly made it out to about 180 feet. We saw some fish breaking the surface and birds diving down. I quickly put out a live pilchard and with in a minute my line started screaming off the line. I put my thumb on the spool to control the drag and burned a blister into my thumb. I pulled my thumb off because it felt like it was melting and we lost the fish.

The Dolphin were moving from the north to the south today and they were running in small schools in about 280 feet of water. We decided to stay in at 280 feet and there would be several schools moving through.

Fish on. Nice dolphin. We brought the dolphin near the boat and it brought the school with it. None of the other lines hit and the school move away quickly. I think the fish were very picky about what they would bit. We had live pilchards out and I was wondering if maybe some ballyhoo chunks would worked too. We gaffed the dolphin on the line into the ice box.

The mid day heat set in and the fishing went cold for us. We headed in. The water temperature today was 75 degrees. Two feet or less wave height and about a 5 mph breeze. No current to speak of. Day was over.

[GrandSlam]

Went out today at 7AM to catch some dinner.

Went North out of Haulover so I could end up in a good spot to see some of the airshow. Made it to 380 feet of water nothing out there so I headed in diagnally towards the Westin Diplomat. Notice the water temp changed at about 130 feet of water so I set up a drift from 130 into 80 feet. There were several large fish on the fish finder.

I hooked a nice Dolphin at about 125 feet of water. I was using a live pilchard on 6' florocarbon leader with a bait hook through the nose and I cut off the bottom rear fin so the fish would dive down. Seems to work. This was a tip I picked up off of television.

I think this year's dolphin has been feeding on fish smaller then the pilchards and they are a little picky about what they eat. However, as far as live bait goes pilchards are my only choice right now. At least in the Haulover area.

I am planning on going out in the evenings this week to try and get a tuna. I was thinking of bringing the fly rod and pitching out something that looks like a mino.

Thanks everyone for your tips. It has made me a better fisherman and a happier fisherman too.

[GrandSlam]

It has been almost 2 months since getting out. Bad weather, new job, etc.

I did get out last weekend and this weekend.

Last weekend I got out late and was told I had to move because the navy had a new submarine the were running in the area. I felt uncomfortable because I would notice some huge waves come from nowhere. Could this be from the subarine?

Yesterday, I went out in from of Hollywood in 80 feet of water. I put a live pilchard down about 50 feet and another on the surface. I landed a huge snapper about 17 to 18 inches.

On the way back from to Haulover I saw some tuna breaking the surface on bait fish so tried to troll some baits across thier area. Unfortunately, another boat drove over my line, snagged the line in their prop and spooled the line out of the reel.

That is it for me. I will be reading your reports because it is June now and the ballgame has changed since a month ago.

[GrandSlam]

Ran south over the fourth of July to catch some dolphin. We shot out of Haulover in front of the Twin Tower and found a weed line at about 550 feet. We made it off the dock at 6AM. Using a weighted squid and casting along the weed line my friend hooked into a school of dolphin all chicken size.

We followed the line south had hooked a barricuta on a live pilchard until it broke the line.

The sun began to get hot about 9AM so we ran about 10 miles south below fowley rocks light and chumed up for some yellow tail.

Overall a good day. Burned lots of gas. It is great to have a 90 HP Yamaha Four Stroke. Otherwise it would cost some serious cash to run all over town.

Lobster season is coming up. Any ideas on that one?