Jennifer and I

Well the weather is perfect right now. The winds have laid down. There has been quite a bit of rain the last few days. Sorry I have not posted anything in a few days. The tide is switching to outgoing around 8 a.m. Jen and I got down there around 7 a.m. and caught our pigs, bait is plentyful. I guess there is a few croakers being caught as well. We had some fat pigs with in a hour.

When we showed up at the inlet, there were 5 other boats anchored up. I got lucky and grabbed a spot on the end. Jen tossed a bait out first and hooked up first. That was not a good situation, there were some eguipment problems. The Snook got off, oh well. I quickly got a bait out and hooked up pretty quickly with a nice keeper 31″ Snook. That was fun, one down one to go. Jen and I hooked into the same Redfish. The fish had inhaled both our baits, Jen’s hook was deeper. That was a trip, both of us were hooked up and our lines were moving together in sinc. It took a second to realize we both were tugging on the same monster Redfish. The bite was weird, it was taking a few minutes of bait soaking to get hit. I caught and released 3 Snook that were oversive, 35″ range. The Snook moved a little and we stopped getting hits. I moved us twice and got us a little closer to the tip. Finally, Jen got our 2nd Keeper and a shorty as well. It was a great day with Jen. We got to spend some time together and catch some fat fish.  Game #1 Tonight ALCS, GO RAYS!!!

Al and Stacy

Al and Stacy are from Orlando and come over once a year and vacation at Oyster Point. They know the inlet well and were looking to hook up on the Snook. The weather was raining most of the afternoon and it was questionable if we would be able to do the trip. When I picked them up at Capt. Hiram’s the rain was coming down pretty hard. Al and Stacy were up for fishing rain or shine, hardcore. The bait is really thick. We are catching perfect size pigs and lots of them. The tide was switching to incoming around dark.

After a quick stop so Al could get some dry clothes on, we made our way into the inlet. The tide was incoming and we went right to the drifts. After a couple of drifts, Al was first to hook up. He landed a nice a nice big Redfish. Al landed two other big Reds. Stacy took a bit to get a hit. On her first hit she hooked up and landed a nice keeper Snook. Al was caught a several short Snook before finally catching a keeper Snook. Stacy also caught another slot size snook. This was a great trip. There were only four other boats fishing and the weather cleared up to be a nice night. Thanks Al and Stacy for fishing with me, it was a pleasure to meet the both of you. I hope you enjoy the fresh Snook and the Pictures. I’ll see you two next year. Thanks again.

Chipper and Jim

Jon A. and Jim

Allen and Art,

Today is the first day that the winds have laid down, they blew 25-30mph most of the week. Actually, it was a beautiful day. Allen and Art are locals in Melbourne Beach. I picked them up at the Inlet. Bait was no problem. A lot of pins and pigs. Its nice to see the water coming back to normal. It seems like the water has been cleaning up. The tide is incoming right now through the early evening. It switched around 9 p.m. to outgoing.

After bait fishing we moved into the inlet and spotted the Jacks feeding on the schools of greenies. I rigged up a topwater plug and Art and Allen each caught a few small Jacks. I noticed the Snook doing cartwheels through the schools of mullet. We fished them but couldn’t hook up. It was getting dark and I was thinking maybe a few Reds with the incoming. Art was first to hook up and land a nice big Redfish. He caught a few Reds through out the night. As the tide started to lighten we started to hook up with the Snook. Allen figured it out pretty quick. He caught 2 or 3 before getting a keeper Snook and few others. Art took a bit longer to get the feel for it but once he figured it out it was on. He caught his share and put a keeper in the boat. He ended the night with a fat oversized Snook and a few big Reds. It was a good night of fishing. I hope you guys enjoy your fish. Let me know how you cook it up! Thanks again!

Red and Josh

Red is from Long Island, N.Y. Josh is from there as well, but has recently moved to Melbourne Beach. Red and Josh have heard of the great Snook fishing in the area and were wanting to give it a try. We met up at Capt. Hiram’s. We went straight to the bait spot and had no problem catching our pigs and pins. The weather was nice with a light wind and clear skies. The tide was outgoing in the evening and switched at 9:00 p.m.

When it got dark the tide was moving pretty fast, it was difficult to fish. We tried the tip and set up a few drifts. After about an hour the tide started to slow. The bite was on. Josh hooked up first catching one that was just a bit short. On the next drift he put a nice keeper 32″ Snook in the box. Red was getting in on the action as well. He put a nice 31″ Snook in the box. We continued to make a few drifts and Red and Josh caught a few more Snook. Josh also caught a big Bull Red. Josh was on fire, he really had the feeling for the inlet fishing. Most of the Snook were too big, 34″ - 36″ range. Josh put the 3rd keeper on the boat, it was 29″. It was a great night of Snook fishing. Thanks again Red and Josh. It was really fun to take you two fishing. It was my pleasure and hopefully we can do it again.

Thom, Justin, and Suzie

Bait is still a problem. A lot of small pins and pigs. The tide was incoming till 9:30 p.m. The weather was decent winds were still quite strong out of the south. We played with a few small Jacks that were hitting the schools of mullet. We tried the back of the inlet for Snook and did not have much luck. As it got dark we moved into channel and began to work the fenders. Thom was on fire he caught his share of small Snook and a decent Redfish. Justin and Suzie each caught a few Snook as well. Overall, there was some action but they were a lot of small fish, no keepers. Oh yea, only 20+boats in the inlet.

Jay, John, and Glenn

These three, Jay, John, and Glenn are from my old stomping grounds, Pinellas County, Fl. They are staying at the oyster point time share next to Capt. Hiram’s. I picked them up at 5 p.m. and the winds were strong 15 to 20 out of the SSW. The tide was incoming at the Inlet and slack was around 8 p.m. Bait, that is the question it’s tough. Catfish were thick, they were everywhere it seemed like we couldn’t get out of them. We managed to get about a dozen baits. Luckily, Capt. Curtis was just finishing fishing and gave us his left over baits. All together, we had about 2 dozen.

We tried a few spots before dark and no luck. I noticed a few schools of mullet moving through and seen some fish popping on them. We made a few drifts threw and Glenn hooked up with a Snook. It was a smart fish swimming right at the boat it managed to give a gill plate. Glenn also had another good fish on and was doing everything correctly. I can’t explain it but, it got off some how. The line came back like have never seen. Maybe a rock or structure of some sort? Once it got dark we moved to the fenders and the tide was starting to slow. John missed a nice snook. Well, the fished jump ran and jumped about the same time the boat Signed In pulled into close and ran John’s line over. Enough said on that. On the first drift on the new tide Jay and John doubled up. I thought for sure it was two nice keeper Snook. John landed his first and it was a 31′ Snook. Jay was a few seconds later and pulled in a nice 17-18lb. Red.

It was a tough night overall, the winds were strong the bait situation was limited and the water is still high and dirty. Thanks again Jay, John, and Glenn. Glenn you will get that trophy you just got keep fishing and don’t let it bother you’ That is just the way it goes sometimes. Every fisherman goes through there hot and cold cycles. You know the saying, it’s fishing not catching. I say, what fun would it be if fishing was easy.

Thom (2nd night of Snook season)

The fishing was hot on the first night and hopefully it would be the same this night. We went right back to the inlet to catch bait. Once again I am the bait champ. Thom almost had me but I made strong comeback near the end and finished with a dozen first. The real skill is in the bait catching. Just kidding, but it is fun! The tide was was slacking at dark and incoming after dark. We were ready and I had the rods ready to go. we just needed the tide to turn.

Once the tide started to come in, Thom began to hook up. He put a nice 32″ keeper on the boat right off. He also caught a Redfish that was 29″. He caught a few more Snook that were a bit short, one of them was just 28″, but I decided to release it in hopes of a bigger keeper. Thom pulled it off, he was on fire. He landed another 32″. That was it 2 keeper’s. We even made it back to Capt. Hiram’s for a quick dinner. That was another great night. I love that inlet when the fishing is good. Thanks again Thom for everything!

John, Nate, and Adam

John and Nate are good friends and neighbors. They split the trip with Adam who is a friend of mine and has fished with me before. The weather was perfect all day, no winds. The sun was shining the whole day. We met at the S.B.I. boat ramp. I was wondering what type of day we would have with John wearing his Boston Red-Sox hat.  When we started off, we went right to catch some Croakers. The Croakers were , we loaded up in about 1 hr.

We took off and headed towards our fishing spot for the day. No one was there and it was to be ours for the day. John was first to put a fish on the boat. After missing a good Snook hit he hooked up and it was a monster Jack. John definitely got a work out on that one. Adam caught the next fish. A Redfish that was just over the limit. It took Nate a few times to get a hang of setting the hook but when he did, Nate put the first keeper Redfish in the box. There were a lot of blue runners caught. Nate caught a big Snook that was his biggest fish ever. Adam caught 2 more Reds. John got one nice Red as well. This was a good day, perfect weather, good fishing, and good people. Thanks again, John and Nate it was a pleasure to meet you and fish with you. It was a lot of fun.