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Sailboat Fishing

37K views 48 replies 25 participants last post by  downeast450 
#1 ·
Hi,

I am look for tips for fishing from a sailboat. I sail in the FL panhandle area, and for the most part, I have been bottom fishing with shrimp while at anchor. We have caught most pan-sized fish: gulf kingfish, cats, and small sharks. I have also trolled (3-4 knots) using a silver spoon. Been lucky less.

I search the forums, and was surprised that I did not find much sail-fishing info.

Does anyone have a tips or suggestions to better join sailing and fishing. My youngest kid loves fishing, and because of our better success on the hook, we find ourselves spending now actually sailing.


Thanks.

Paul
 
#2 · (Edited)
as a matter of course i have significantly more success w/live bait--while there is more a 'skill' factor w/artificial. i tend to use live (or at least 'real') bait, as i find its much more fun to go 'catching' instead of 'fishing.'

the hotmaps (fishing hot spots) card for the GPS has A LOT of underwater features marked, even classifying some as 'fish attracters.' you can also get them on paper. im also an avid believer in sun/moon calculations affecting fish activity as well as water temp. generally i have the most luck at dawn/dusk in temps significantly cooler than summer surface temps.

the humming bird helps a lot in finding bait balls.
happy catching!
 
#35 ·
Haven't read it yet, but the second I read this post (and reading the reviews here and @ the amazon link provided) I went out and ordered this title through the Barns & Noble down the street. as an avid fish fiend, and a wannabe sailor, this title appears to be a great read, with good straight forward directions/suggestions.

although this is not my thread I would like to thank you for this suggestion.:)
and to the OP for starting this thread, :p and everyone else for there personal experience: this thread is an fun read:D
 
#4 ·
I always troll a line and now exclusively with a spoon lure. (must be clean - no stain or rust at all). I use a game rod as the tricky part is to land the fish into the boat. For me thats when they will fall off the hook. We use a net as well.

Often have to let out the mainsheet to try and slow the boat to make it easier to bring in the fish. I dont fish in bad weather or at night.

We use metholated spirits in a pump spray - a few squirts down their gills will kill them quick. Bleed the fish in a bucket. Gut and behead it immediately, fillet it straight away and into packets for cryovac or fridge for the nights meal.


mmm, licking lips just thinking off fresh fish.

We have to tether the cat away as she will walk on the rails to get some fresh fish. She gets enough off cuts to keep her happy, but she would really get in the way.
 
#7 ·
Hi,

I am look for tips for fishing from a sailboat. I sail in the FL panhandle area, and for the most part, I have been bottom fishing with shrimp while at anchor. We have caught most pan-sized fish: gulf kingfish, cats, and small sharks. I have also trolled (3-4 knots) using a silver spoon. Been lucky less.

I search the forums, and was surprised that I did not find much sail-fishing info.

Does anyone have a tips or suggestions to better join sailing and fishing. My youngest kid loves fishing, and because of our better success on the hook, we find ourselves spending now actually sailing.

Thanks.

Paul
Try this:

Sail Delmarva: Yo-Yo Fishing

We have many rods, but we catch more with this minimalist gear, because we use it more. As for lure types and locations, local knowledge rules.
 
#8 ·
While you can troll from the stern of a sailboat, there are other options. Me and my crew regularly flyfish or cast from the ama decks of my boat. Having a boat that is 18' wide has some advantages there.
 
#9 ·
I doubt that a flyrod and a beamier boat is helpful advice for the OP.

What works for me (I hestitate to say every time) while trolling is to use a small down rigger ahead of the spoon. This gets the spoon below the surface commotion and is killer on blues and Spanish mackeral here on the banks. While not as "sporting" as flyfishing perhaps, I eat fish often. Nothing however equals fishing around structure. Structure equals fish. The boat doesn't matter at all.
 
#11 ·
I was trying to see if the OP would clarify his post... most sailboats fish via trolling, something you should know all about... if he's trying to fish from a sailboat by spinning, baitcasting or flyfishing, it really isn't a good platform for it, as most sailboats are rather cluttered platforms for that kind of activity and snagging sheets, sails, etc with a hook kind of sucks.

I doubt that a flyrod and a beamier boat is helpful advice for the OP.

What works for me (I hestitate to say every time) while trolling is to use a small down rigger ahead of the spoon. This gets the spoon below the surface commotion and is killer on blues and Spanish mackeral here on the banks. While not as "sporting" as flyfishing perhaps, I eat fish often. Nothing however equals fishing around structure. Structure equals fish. The boat doesn't matter at all.
 
#12 ·
I do a lot of fishing. Less maybe with a yacht, because it takes four times as long to get anywhere, though fishing your feet is an adage that can pay off. Room is a bit restricted but still fine for 2 people.
I have never found trailing a lure to yield much.
On the other hand I have caught a limit of nine in a couple of hours just motoring out for an hour when raising the sails was too much of a hassle. One can also stop a mile or so from one's destination and pick up a feed. I don't bother catching more than I can eat unless going home when I can give away the excess. Even at anchor in say 7m one can get dinner while having a sundowner.
Bait can be a problem depending on space and refrigeration. Two approaches are to use soft plastic baits and jig which is popular and also feasible in calm patches. I prefer fresh bait if possible. This can be caught on a simple hand line using a sabiki rig, (small hooks with bits of stuff on them).
I used to have the fishing spots pretty well sussed using a runabout. However then it was easier to go some distance and change spots a few times, and fish in the evening while getting home quickly.
With a yacht less so and if one is going to stop it seems more sense to me to make it where the fish are, particularly if one is sailing over them to a more distant fishing spot. So I have just been putting in a good quality fishfinder plotter combo with a swing arm to shift it into the companionway. The cheaper ones are not much use.
Hopefully this will work well. I still have a few friends who would be keen on a day or half a day of fishing who would be less available for longer sailing trips.
I guess what one catches depends on your area, and even the common names differ. What we generally catch snapper is a different fish from what americans call snapper. It is a bream most like the med silverhead bream rather than the US species. Sizes range up to around 70 cm and 1.5 lb - 25 lb with anything over say 8lb being a good fish but rare to catch very much bigger though in a fishing contest some 20lbs will turn up mostly by going to waters not accessible to most.
 
#13 ·
Hi,

I am look for tips for fishing from a sailboat. I sail in the FL panhandle area, and for the most part, I have been bottom fishing with shrimp while at anchor. We have caught most pan-sized fish: gulf kingfish, cats, and small sharks. I have also trolled (3-4 knots) using a silver spoon. Been lucky less.

I search the forums, and was surprised that I did not find much sail-fishing info.

Does anyone have a tips or suggestions to better join sailing and fishing. My youngest kid loves fishing, and because of our better success on the hook, we find ourselves spending now actually sailing.

Thanks.

Paul
Not familiar with your area. We fished San Francisco Bay
which can get very crowded, and outside. When trolling
suggest you use enough weight to keep the lure deep or
close to the boat so as not to catch another passing boat.
Same concept when bottom fishing, whether anchored
or drifting, try to keep the line from drifting out to the side
where other boats may snag it. I would imagine that your
local bait shops can give you some tips, after buying some
bait and beer.:)

Good luck, Dabnis
 
#15 ·
oh, and i was just in kahoots with my offshore p/b fishin pal... when hunting red snapper--cigar minnows and squid... kind of like a sandwich.

hmmm.... cigar minnow and squid sandwich for fishy, snapper sandwich for me...
 
#16 ·
If you're planning on trolling with either a rod or a hand line, you will probably want to use a planer on the line to bring the lure down to a depth more likely to have fish.
 
#18 ·
We use a trolling line with a diving spoon in deeper water and in shallower water a spinner. Flashy and green/yellow trailers works best... but we are no experts. The problem we have is that the big fish like big lures so rigging them up requires a hire test and steel leaders which are really bad for the smaller fish.

You can spend a gazillion dollars on this stuff!!! Penn makes pretty good stuff, but I really prefer Shimano over them. For a spinning rod (open), I think Daiwa is my preference.

So to do it right, yo uhave to have several different rods and a lot of different lures. But to save money, just get one troller (will end up being the most expensive too), then a cheaper spinning (open face). For the docks and kids, just get a cheapie from Walmart.

Now if you really want to catch fish all day long for fun, use rib meat. Catfish love that stuff and it is hard for them to pull it off the hook. But since saltwater catfish are nigh near unedible, it is just for fun. Snapper will hit almost anything and love the docks - but the bigger snapper like to be closer to wrecks or pilings or stuff further offshore.

SO now that it sounds like I know what I am talking about, here is the biggest fish I have caught this year:



That is a really tasty great barracuda (don't eat them... dangerous). SO I am no expert. In fact, my little boy told me last weekend that, "Catching a fish in a sailboat while trolling is very rare, right daddy?"

HEHE!

Brian
 
#19 ·
Wow CD...that would take two grills in parallel to cook up..........

Really shouldnt eat Barracuda as you have a greater risk of Ciguatera poisoning. Is a toxin produced by dinoflagulates which are ingested when predatory reef fish eat other fish

Dave
 
#20 ·
Yep. Don't eat Barracuda or large grouper or Jew fish (protected) or parrot fish, which was why I put it is dangerous. Actaully, one of the safest is tuna and Mahi-mahi which do not feed so much off of reefs. But Barracuda are fun to catch and reel in! We caught this dude in the tender and he nearly pulled us into the reefs!

Brian
 
#25 ·
Smaller fish are always safer when it comes to toxins...they've eaten fewer other fish, so have less of a concentration in them. Large apex predators, like Barracuda are the worst, since the smaller fish they eat act as toxin concentrators for them.
 
#26 ·
Absolutely correct for SD. However you are still eating toxins when consuming even the smallest of apex predtors. Poisons even in the smallest concentrations for an adult are different in children with smaller body masses.

Stay with the tuna and mahi...I wouldnt even eat small barracuda, because even if the toxins dont kill you you can get very sick
 
#27 ·
not much point trying to be sporting if you are looking for a main course, so the yoyos are by far the simplest way to go. i have caught numerous kingfish and small tuna trolling small green squids with lead heads. use a rubber bungee tied to a cleat or stanction and a clothes peg on a piece of string - shorter than the bungee - to give you a warning. works perfectly, the only problem is dealing with the fish when you get it on board. i have tried filleting them in a bucket holding them by the tail - not recommended - and eventually settled for a 5 x 2 feet rubber matt. don't step (read slip) on the matt when it's wet though!
 
#30 ·
I used to use Cuban yoyos but a few years ago switched to a rod as it makes it a bit easier to land the fish. Also the rod was a gift. :) My favourite lure is a cedar plug but in the past I have used the shiny bags from box wine for homemade lures. Just cut them up and wrap around a big hook. Unfortunately the bags in box wine are no longer shiny now. A cedar plug usually lasts me the season. Usually get mahi if they're running, some tuna and the occasional wahoo. The photo is a mahi I caught off Cat Island. Too heavy to hold up so I filleted it first. :) Actually I didn't think of a photo until after I had filletted it and realized how big it was.
 
#31 ·
nice mahi mate! but how did your wifey like the newly painted deck?? that's the problem! thing about a mahi is when it's brought on board it better be well sedated!! some people will surely be able to relate to that one - i have some serious stories about mahis. on another note, cedar plugs are tried and tested, and they last longer than plastic squids if a barra decides to log on. and you can be certain that it will, probably more than any other fish in the sea!!
@ cruisingdad, thanks for the comment, i'm affraid i was desperately trying to get my post count up to 5 so i could respond to a PM. actually, what i do with all fish i am lucky enough to catch is use the long gaff (v. important if you carry some freeboard), lance the throat behind the gills with a sharp knife, noose tail with an old piece of braid (core removed - grips much more securely) and return it to the water. there it will bleed away from my decks. tuna only need a couple of minutes, as do wahoo and mackerel family. but i wouldn't trust a mahi after an hour. those fellas have an admirable survival attitude - lots of you think it's dead but in a brave last show it flips a slippery flip out of your hands and back to the deep blue!
 
#32 ·
nice mahi mate! but how did your wifey like the newly painted deck?? that's the problem! thing about a mahi is when it's brought on board it better be well sedated!! some people will surely be able to relate to that one - i have some serious stories about mahis. on another note, cedar plugs are tried and tested, and they last longer than plastic squids if a barra decides to log on. and you can be certain that it will, probably more than any other fish in the sea!!
The blood washes off fairly easily. In rough conditions I fillet them in the cockpit. I sedate the little fishies with a squirt bottle filled with good Dominican rum. I could use a longer gaff as my freeboard is pretty high and the gaff is a tad short. When I first started years ago I used to sedate them with a kid's baseball bat. First time I tried it I missed the fish and hit my topsides (no damage, CS36 is a tough boat). The second shot I took at the fish I dropped the bat into the ocean, had to go back and get it. Rum is easier, both for the fish and myself!
 
#33 ·
keep your eyes peeled for bird activity - the gulf is fairly expansive and seeing a bunch of birds diving is worth diverting your course to troll by. certain fish, like tuna and mahimahi are often, if not always, given away by birds. there's nothing more exciting than anticipating a big strike!
fishing is a great thing to be interested in, as it can never be fully satiated, a real fisherman always wants to catch a bigger fish, and if he's caught the biggest already, then he starts trying to do it on lighter tackle or using more skilful means! and fishing is intricately linked to boating, so if your son continues to be into fishing, he'll be boating with you for a while yet!
 
#34 ·
yeah, not just the gulls--the other morning i was out fishin and saw an osprey just flippin dive bomb then fly right over my head with a fish in his talons... pretty awesome sight. when dockside, the blue heron keeps me informed--he is one of the most patient fisherman ive ever met
 
#38 · (Edited)
[Fitted my new combo fishfinder with an in hull transponder so keen to try it out. Was going to head off for a few days but when I rang my old fishing mate (87) he was hoping that I was going to ask him out as he loves fishing and through various health problems for him and his wife hasn't been out for about a year.

So I agreed to an afternoon fishing. Naturally I hoped that the $2000 and some days trying to fit this thing in, when the deadrise is greater than the max allowed, would pay off.

Nada, various fiddles and it only showed .4m intermittently. Not many fish in the top .4m. Back to the drawing board.

So motored a few miles and stopped in 15m. The old guy had 3, then caught a double header in the first 15 minutes while I was messing around with soft plastics and a reel that wasn't behaving. Swapped back to pilchards and started to catch them. We put back about 6 which were legal but too small and kept 16 snapper and 1 kahawai . Nothing huge but nice fish. We could have got our limit of 2 more easily but left after just over two hours to squeeze through the channel before low tide to avoid waiting another 2.5 hours or so.

Who needs fishfinders? So one happy old fella.

The rest of the story. Sigh. He tied the bow lines. I let go the midship line and tried to attach the sternlines. Stern swung out and I couldn't hold it even in only 10 knots or so. Hanging on by fingernails to the boat and the dock with my toenails I became nearly horizontal.

The conversation went "Harry I wonder if you mind pulling on the midship rope."
"Why?"
"Because if you don't I will fall in the next 30 seconds."
Splash. Problem I couldna get out.. Some yelling and sending him looking eventually saw a very brawny bloke turn up and haul me out. Thanks mate. Pity you left the dock before I had re-gathered my wits sufficiently to give you some fish. Lucky I had taken my cellph and wallet out though not the carkeys.

My fault though it would not have happened if I was on my own - like that anyway. I adjust the lines from on the boat and know the lengths.

Might happen other ways though, despite safety harness, and having bought a waterproof bag for the hand vhf that morning. Must get or make an accessible rope ladder. I had it on the list. The thing is while when younger I could swing my legs up, now I really think it has to be long enough to go at least a few feet under water so will have to be fairly long.

IMG]http://i547.photobucket.com/albums/hh472/chris_gee_photos/IMG_0141.jpg[/IMG]
 
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