Sunshine State Sparks Sailfish
Story/Photos by Matt Badolato
'Tis the season to be singing carols, lighting candles, opening presents and trolling for sailfish off Florida's east coast.
Winter traditionally has been acknowledged as prime sailfish season for the Sunshine State, thanks to a large migration that head south with the birds every year. Cooling water temperatures and a frigid northeasterly flow drive the population of "spindlebeaks" our way until they head back north in spring.
The sheer number of sailfish catches off Florida's east coast has soared in recent years, thanks to an almost 100 percent catch-and-release rate among recreational anglers and professional captains. Factor in the coastal net ban that provides baitfish stocks the chance to multiply, and you've got an equation that equals excellent sailfishing.
Most conservation-minded fishermen have switched to strictly using circle hooks to fish for sails. A circle hook will almost always roll right into the corner of the mouth, as opposed to in the gut, facilitating an easy release and ensuring the fish's survival.
Circle hooks have been used exclusively for years by captains in Costa Rica and other Pacific destinations, where sailfish and marlin are valuable not for their meat, but for the anglers and business they attract. Many billfish tournament committees have banned the use of J-hooks completely and have converted to the catch-and-release format.
These lightning-fast gamefish already are taking up residence in our waters. This past weekend, anglers from Ponce Inlet to Fort Pierce reported seeing sailfish cruising in the Gulfstream swells, their sickle-shaped tails protruding from the water, and a few of those trolling got hooked into some nice ones.
Chip Gaines, from Wedgefield in East Orange County, released the first sail on his boat, the "Double C," last Sunday while trolling out of Port Canaveral.
"After about 20 minutes of trolling, the sail came into the spread," Gaines said. "He hit the flatline first, disappeared, then came back and hit the right rigger."
The crew of the "Double C" was also hooked up to another sail not long after, but after a short fight, it spit the hook.
Jimmy Schick of Merritt Island was aboard Brad Spalding's 28-foot Whitewater, the "Brassy Hooker," when he hooked into an acrobatic sail. Braving the 5-foot seas, the crew ventured out to the 27-fathom line for some bottom fishing, and switched to trolling later in the day.
"I watched it come up and hit the short flat line, then it dropped back and hit two other baits before coming back over and picking my bait up that was in free spool," Schick said.
They, too, hooked into and lost a second sail shortly after the first.
Sailfish also were reported being caught and seen in schools of three to four fish between 180 and 240 feet off Sebastian last weekend.
Even though the fish may be eager to bite this time of year, the weather usually doesn't cooperate. When the chance arises to venture offshore this season, take advantage of it.
Continue on with or start a new holiday tradition this winter and give sailfishing a try.
Matt Badolato from Whitey's Bait and Tackle
www.whiteysonline.com
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