Fantastic Day Fishing on the Pier, and a Picnic

[ChileRelleno]

Wow, what a day on the pier!



Nathaniel and I made a day of it, up at 0330am, at J&M at 0500am.
Pick up some shrimp and odds-n-ends , talk to John G. and checked the smoker, John's BBQ was looking & smelling great.
John showed Nate and I some custom rods being built, and a few other things of interest, chit chat and browse the aisles.
I love mornings at J&M.

To the pier at 0600, we encountered Mr. Roby going up the ramp and said "G'morning".
Those Specks better have said their prayers cause the Devil was coming their way with a smile on his face.

No wind, the water was like a lake and it was beautifully clear.
As the sun rose and lit it up, one could see the bar, the troughs/holes and deeper water going out with gem like clarity.
Looked like the freaking Bahamas almost, just gorgeous.
Lots of bait, some pods of Cownose rays cruising, dolphins, birds of all sorts and more.
Just an incredible morning to enjoy God's handiwork.

Get on and immediately see Spanish coming over the rail at the T, stopped and killed a few.
Make it to the Octi and it is practically a Chew Down, the action was hot-n-fast for awhile.
And that was the name of the game till after lunch, 10 minutes of madness about every 10-20 minutes as schools of Spaniards passed through and hit all manner of jigs, bubbles and live shrimp.
2-4#s was the norm, with plenty of 4-6# Axe Handles mixed in and few big'uns going 7-8#.
A couple of Bulls Reds were caught too.

Still early in the AM, I was working a gold Gotcha on the Octi when my line whipped tight and my drag screamed... People were like "King?!?!"
Then a majestic Tarpon tore through the surface, jumping high and shaking his head trying to dislodge the Gotcha.
I hollered "ONE!" and it was as exciting as fishing gets.
He jumped again, "TWO!" I yelled as the drag kept screaming, ripping the 12# mono of my little Penn 5500SS.
Well on my way to being spooled I tried futilely to slow him cranking up the drag.
"THREE!" and POP! went my line and the silver demon crashed back into the water, and he jumped at least once more trying to shake my jig loose.
What an experience, three jumps on a huge Tarpon... If I hadn't caught another fish all day I would've still been thrilled with the day.



The day continued on to lunch and the Pier Picnic got under way with a Blessing given in eerie silence for a pier so crowded with people.
The food... The food was awesome and a great buffet it was. Domestic and wild hog BBQ was the main course, Chilis, hotdogs, salads-n-sides of all sorts, desserts and drinks abounded. No one went away hungry. Late comers kept it going for a few hours and people kept grazing.
The camaraderie was really nice, everyone was happy and stuffed. Met so many people, put faces to names & nicks.
Very nice indeed.






The Rangers made their rounds with a thorough random checks of licenses during lunch, I bet half the people fishing were checked.

The wind finally picked up from the SW, but no Kings appeared.
There was a shortish Cobe landed, mixed reports on it's legality.
Another was caught later in the day, 28# IIRC.
Several more seen, and a few even hooked up but lost.

Saw four or five nice Reds come over the rail on the Octi, heard about and/or saw a few Flounder, Pomps and Specks in the shallows.
One Pomp was a real hoss, had to be pushing 4#.

The day progressed for Nate and I with more Spanish till they pretty much shutdown in the hours after lunch.
I landed a nice Red on a free swimming live LY and Nate got some Blues and Spades.
Twenty +/- Spanish, a Red, Blue and Spades in our cooler.
We finally called it a day 14.5 hours after stepping on the pier and our cooler was much heavier.
We'll be eating very well over the next week.

Again, a beautiful and bountiful day, a great picnic with hordes of familiar faces, new acquaintances and happy people.
What more could one ask for? KINGS! Bring'em on.

[steelfish]

wow,, those are too many rods in one place

looks like fun, congrats

those spanish macs are good eating, ceviche and meatballs are my favorites

[STRIPER LOU]

Nice! Talk about a piece of heaven      .

[conchydong]

That pier looks familiar to me. Is that Fort De Soto by any chance? Great day of fishing no matter where.

[swill88]

...very fishy!...

[handi2]

A wonderful report and pictures from someone who grew up fishing the beach pier in Pensacola, FL.

I can remember catching Cigar Minnows for the "old" men on the pier with a handline. I was about 5 years old.

[ChileRelleno]

That pier looks familiar to me. Is that Fort De Soto by any chance? Great day of fishing no matter where.

Nope, that is the Gulf State Park Pier in Gulf Shores, AL.


Spanish prepped for the broiler.



My kids hate fish.



Money shot.



Spades, before & after.





Dessert, homemade apple/caramel crisps

[BMITCH]

Chile, freaking awesome report. Really looks like fun. Fantastic pictures. The tarpon shot is epic. Thanks so much for sharing this with us.

Bob

[conchydong]

Chile, thanks for the reply. It sort of looked like a pier I went to many years ago in St. Pete.
I eat a lot of Grouper, Snapper, Golden Tile, Wahoo and Dolphin but there are times when I really, really crave fresh Spanish Macks.  And as I was just thinking about cutting back on sweets and losing some weight, I saw those apple crisps and now my stomach is yearning for dessert.

Scott

[ChileRelleno]

Chile, freaking awesome report. Really looks like fun. Fantastic pictures. The tarpon shot is epic. Thanks so much for sharing this with us.

Bob

I can't claim the Tarpon pic, I pulled it off the web and used it for story art.
But the fishing tale is true, http://www.gulfshorespierfishing.com/f28/05-07-2016-picnic-day-report-12240/#post104490

[josa1]

What an awesome day!!!  Thanks a lot for sharing it with the hoard here at Alan's Place.  I love to eat fish and your recipes are just fantastic.

josa1

[Newell Nut]

Sure looks like a ton of fun. Congratulations on a great day.

[doradoben]

Thanks Chile. Very nice day... and every time you post dinner pictures, I find myself wishing that I was at your house.

[CapeFish]

Excellent thanks, epic pic of that tarpon jumping! Why does no one fish with  heavier tackle if there are such beasts swimming around? Everyone seems to be using light spinning outfits?

[Long Enuff]

Awesome memories made there. My compliments to the Chef as well!