No Sharks Yet. Got several pickups last night, but nothing solid. Had a red on Bob's 9500, but the hook pulled. John caught this nice Red right before sunset.
best of luck daron, enjoy your vacation and give those senators a workout. tight lines my friend
That's a really nice redfish. Same spot?
Harry
How are you doing & what hospital are you in?
Mike
hi mike, i'm in southside hospital in bayshore. might be leaving in a day or two to a re-hab facility, boy this sucks big time. two, t.i.a. 's in a three week period and they still don't know why, they are just anxious to discharge me so i can go home in a week and a half or so, have a third one and possibly fall and break a hip or something, they all suck. we take every day for granted, when some thing like this happens, you realize your not such a tough guy. thanks for asking mike, take care my friend
Be patient Daron, you will get your chance ;). I had no idea John was keeping you company, nice fish John, but I want to see something bigger ;D. Is that the 9/0 with my finger prints?
Good luck down there guys and be safe. Is Bob stopping by?
Patience Grasshoppa ;D
That is a huge red, I hope to get some lines wet in Oct when I'm down there!
What lake are you fishing on? :D
Stop by and see me if you get a chance. When you come back across the beach bridge take the first left hand street. 1311 Soundview Trail.
Daron go to the gulf side the Tigers are running hard.me an brad both had runs there Sunday. Mine ran out about 200 yards of line in less than 30 seconds on my 9/0 with it locked down at 50lb drag. He missed the hook but from what I learned from NMFS today about the bite mark it left, it was estimated at 12-14 feet long.
Hang in there, Daron... I got a good feeling things are gonna pick up.
Nice red, John. That would make a heck of a good bait ;)
Be safe,
Dom
Good luck mate
out there doing it!!!
You know what they say " the worst days fishing....."
Rgds
Mark
Are those big reds any good to eat?
We fished the Gulf side today and finally got into a few fish.
My son Nathaniel managed to land the first shark out of all of us, he got the skunk off us.
He also managed to whup up on some Blues.
(http://i.imgur.com/HoJAWtz.jpg)
Mike dropped a Bluefish for me out past the second bar, approx 350-400 yards.
Awhile later my reel's clicker starts screaming, gave him a few to eat and it was fish on.
I stopped the initial run, then he realized he was hooked and took off again.
I cranked as much drag as I could handle and stopped him again, then began a long give & take tug-a-war.
This fish damned near took me off my feet a couple of times, very strong, rod & line humming under the pressure.
At one point I had another angler's line around mine after he went down the beach, thankfully no braid & my much larger mono held up.
Forty five minutes (?) later we finally see a dorsal in the surf, no mistaking the species, it was a Greater Hammerhead.
And he was a whopper... 137", yes that is eleven feet five inches (11' 5") of pissed off shark. :o
Trying to leader and tail rope him was very exciting.
Tried to get some pics (they suck), verified sex, got a FL/TL measurements, cut the leader and had to forego tagging due to a minor cluster----.
This is where the story goes bad.
We finally get this monster back in the surf for release and were unable to revive him enough to swim off.
I tried to help, but was so danged tired from the fight I gave up after maybe 10 minutes and collapsed panting on the beach.
Daron & Mike went on with efforts for quite some time, thought he was going to make it several time, but it kept getting worse.
This species is well known for fighting till exhaustion & death, add in an extra minute or two of handling and, well it happens.
We were not happy about this, this is an endangered species. :'(
I've made a decision, henceforth with big Hammers after long fights, I will never do anything but immediately cut the leader/hook and release the fish.
Hooked In
Reel: Penn Senator 116L 12/0, spooled with 1000 yards of 100# Sufix Superior.
Rod: Penn International V TS/TF Stand Up, VS5010TS60
(http://i.imgur.com/8cvSqkH.jpg)
Shark on the Sand
(http://i.imgur.com/UcDLFCn.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/lBQxx82.jpg)
(http://i.imgur.com/vP3Nd3J.jpg)
Quote from: erikpowell on September 22, 2014, 07:12:58 PM
That is a huge red, I hope to get some lines wet in Oct when I'm down there!
Oct is a great month for big Bull Reds ;)
Quote from: erikpowell on September 23, 2014, 06:09:47 AM
Are those big reds any good to eat?
Yes, contrary to some other's opinions.
Fried
Fillet, remove all blood meat, cut into nice strips, coat/season & deep fry.
Consistency of chicken but taste like fish.
Chowder
Fillet, remove all blood meat & cube the meat.
Make chowder... Fantastic!
http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=7859.0
On the Half Shell
Fillet meat off fish, leave skin & scales on, season meat with whatever you like.
Place skin/scales side down on BBQ grill, cook till done.
Meat flakes off & blood meat easily seperated.
Quote from: Alto Mare on September 22, 2014, 04:40:15 PM
Be patient Daron, you will get your chance ;). I had no idea John was keeping you company, nice fish John, but I want to see something bigger ;D. Is that the 9/0 with my finger prints?
Good luck down there guys and be safe. Is Bob stopping by?
Daron & Mike will get theirs, just have to pay their dues... And run those baits out in the Gulf, out past the 2nd bar.
We have your
'Bigger'... "Back home we got a taxidermy man. He gonna have a heart attack when he see what I brung him. "
Yes, thats the one, works great now, thanks again ;)
Yeah, Bob came over & joined us. Put a couple of rods out and we all jack jawed & ogled bikinis.
Bob is out gator hunting tonight... Wish him luck for a big one.
Congratulations John, that's a monster. Now I want to know, how are you going to ship that shark back home, I'm not sure it will fit in a flat rate box ;D.
I'm happy for you my friend, thanks for sharing it with us ;)
Nice to see you guys getting together again.
Yes, I'm hoping Bob will do just as good as you did, it would be nice.
Well we are heading back out tonight to meet up with Daron, Mike, and Darons Brother hopefully. We have got to get Daron on a beast before he heads back...Daron I have a pass for the state park you can use.
Looks like fun.
This is a good shot of How Big this Beast is!
Beautiful fish and a great battle, but our over-stressed oceans cannot afford to lose such magnificent apex predators. (http://smileys.on-my-web.com/repository/Sad/sad-032.gif)
~A~
Yes Aiala,
I am trying to put it behind me. It is the chance we all take when we fish. I fish for sport, not to kill. It was an accident. My Son and Me did the best we could. We tried to revive him for 30 minutes. Not easy with a 400 lb plus fish. The main reason he didn't make it, was the leader had wrapped around one of his hammers. That is what did him in. I don't think he would have been reeled in if that didn't happen.
It is sad, but you have to move on. I know I gave it my all, and that is all you can do. ;)
That looks like a good time, pulling that beast out of the water. Good catch. Hoping some smaller sharks make their way towards Tampa once i get my kayak repair. Good effort trying to get the shark back on its way, sounds like you guys did all you could. Keep the pictures coming.
Aiala,
there were three of us at first, trying our darndest to get him revived.
I was so worn out from the fight that after 10 minutes I had to collapse on shore, imagine how the fish felt.
Daron & Mike worked for at least 30 minutes or more trying to save him, I know Mike and I both incurred shark rash trying to help the fish.
We are not out to kill, quite the contrary our goal is C&R, plus tagging for NOAA' Apex Predator tagging program.
Hammers are known for fighting till they die from exhaustion.
Forty five minutes is a long fight for these fish, we try to minimize this for the fish & ourselves.
I don't think he got wrapped in the leader till he was in the surf, he had several cuts/gouges.
Those are uncontrollable circumstances, please give us credit on that.
Nutshell... We feel bad too, especially since Florida law says we can't harvest the fish even if it dies.
Way to go guys. I am sure that one was quite a workout. Looking for more big fish pics tomorrow.
Quote from: ChileRelleno on September 23, 2014, 04:16:51 PM
We feel bad too, especially since Florida law says we can't harvest the fish even if it dies.
Of course I know that you are all dedicated catch-and-release guys, and you did everything possible to save him, for which I salute you. It's just that sometimes I wonder if anything will be left for our grandkids and their children... :-\
Is it at least allowable to have the shark mounted, or does Florida prohibit that, too?
~
A~
Quote from: Aiala on September 23, 2014, 06:57:54 PM
Is it at least allowable to have the shark mounted, or does Florida prohibit that, too?
~A~
You'd have to call FWC and try to get permission.
It is my understanding that normally they don't, can you imagine how many fish would just
'Die' if they did.
We know you guys did your best in trying to revive her, but did you try some of Dominick's Zinfandel? ...he swears by it ;D
Stay safe out there and good luck Daron, nail a whopper!
Tight lines,
Dom
Here are the state regs...
http://m.myfwc.com/fishing/saltwater/recreational/sharks/
And here are the Federal Regulations (taken from the commission)...
http://gulfcouncil.org/fishing_regulations/RecreationalRegulations.pdf
Also, you need to make sure the fins remain intact/attached to the carcass until you get her home..I think?
I'm sure you're aware of the regs already though.
Actually, If you look at my other post with a link to the federal status of the fish stocks report for the Gulf of Mexico region, most of these species have made significant strides towards recovery in recent years.
Although the State of Florida considers this species 'endangered' it has not been listed under the ESA. It is considered a SSC (Species of Special Concern) by NMFS. Recently NMFS has opened up a response to a petition to list this species under the ESA...
https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2013/04/26/2013-09943/endangered-and-threatened-wildlife-90-day-finding-on-petitions-to-list-the-great-hammerhead-shark-as
This will trigger a new comprehensive stock assesment if the species. The previous regional stock assesment was undertaken by NMFS (based largely on commercial catch data), in 2012..with the previous comprehensive assesment having taken place in 2002 (I believe?). It is not likely that this species will get listed, but the new stock assesment may very well trigger the modification/addition of federal species-specific CMMs (Conservation and Management Measured), which would lead to increased regulations for both commercial and recreational take of the species.
It will be interesting to see what the latest stock assesment looks like.
Beautiful animal...could have been 35-40 years old?
Quote from: Tightlines666 on September 23, 2014, 10:47:06 PM
Also, you need to make sure the fins remain intact/attached to the carcass until you get her home..I think?
That is mainly for sharks being
'Landed', i.e. brought in by boat.
QuoteSharks are to be landed in whole condition, this includes landing sharks with heads and tails intact
Quote from: Tightlines666 on September 23, 2014, 10:47:06 PM
Although the State of Florida considers this species 'endangered' it has not been listed under the ESA. It is considered a SSC (Species of Special Concern) by NMFS. Recently NMFS has opened up a response to a petition to list this species under the ESA...
https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2013/04/26/2013-09943/endangered-and-threatened-wildlife-90-day-finding-on-petitions-to-list-the-great-hammerhead-shark-as
This will trigger a new comprehensive stock assesment if the species. The previous regional stock assesment was undertaken by NMFS (based largely on commercial catch data), in 2012..with the previous comprehensive assesment having taken place in 2002 (I believe?). It is not likely that this species will get listed, but the new stock assesment may very well trigger the modification/addition of federal species-specific CMMs (Conservation and Management Measured), which would lead to increased regulations for both commercial and recreational take of the species.
It will be interesting to see what the latest stock assessment looks like.
Indeed it will be.
Quote from: Tightlines666 on September 23, 2014, 10:47:06 PM
Beautiful animal...could have been 35-40 years old?
QuoteThe average great hammerhead measures up to 3.5 m (11.5 ft) long and weighs over 230 kg (500 lb).
The typical lifespan of this species is 20–30 years;[2] the record Boca Grande female was estimated to be 40–50 years old.[6]
So this 11' 5" mature male was more likely around 10 years or more.
Finally back Home. Even though I didn't catch a single shark, it was an enjoyable trip. Had plenty of runs, but no hookups. Here is our first night. Chris on the left, my boy Mike in the middle, Chris's friend on the right. His name escapes me? They are looking at a spider weight I got from Bob and saying, What the Hell is this? :D
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4216/35025618864_3875e05c17_b.jpg)
John in all his Glory! Telling us stories of Yukon Jack. :P
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4259/35696043072_f1e91af855_b.jpg)
Nathaniel and John trying to get us some fresh Cownose Rays.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4287/35824582676_a2c4131380_b.jpg)
My Uncle Sonny and Me doing some surf casting.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4256/35865344725_d5cff822fb_b.jpg)
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4284/35696117252_94b757f6c3_b.jpg)
The Travel lodge in Pensacola is a real Dump! I suffered through it to be 5 minutes from our fishing spots. ;D
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4242/35477455970_186c763150_b.jpg)
Mike coming in.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4256/35696172032_8035665f7d_b.jpg)
Until next time. ;)
Daron, no shark, but I'm sure you still had a good time. Hey, I was working my butt off while you were on vacation ::) ;D.
The ones you missed are only getting bigger ;)...glad you're back safe.
hey daron, time away with friends and family sounds like you caught a whopper, i'm sure you all had a fantastic time being on vacation ,enjoying the sun, sea and sand, thank god for mother nature, great.
Looks like Chris and his friend are showing the early signs of Dunlop's disease.
No that not Dunlap disease, it is the re :Dsult of our love muscle workouts.
Good things come to those who wait, Daron!
Next time you should have mike kayak out hooked up to your rod.
He looks to be in good shape and should put up a good fight ;D
...then again, I've seen your behemoth 12/0's ;)
Glad you had a nice trip,
Dom
Quote from: Chris Gatorfan on September 27, 2014, 02:31:01 PM
No that not Dunlap disease, it is the re :Dsult of our love muscle workouts.
:D
Those Krispy Kremes wouldn't have a thing to do with that. You Notice there are no pictures of my Dunlop! ;D
Boy am I glad I do not suffer from that disease... ;) :D Dominick
Dang Daron,
you & Mike have anted up time & time again, y'all are past due winning a few pots.
Love the pics & follow up report.
I know it may seem lame to some, but my Hammer is y'alls Hammer too.
Landing that fish took teamwork, one person can not beach a fish like that alone.
Thank you again, for the invite to fish with ya, the camaraderie & putting that beast on the beach.
Whenever you wanna do it again, give us a holler.
Daron, I'm glad it was a good trip. Thanks for posting.
Quote from: ChileRelleno on September 28, 2014, 03:03:48 AM
Dang Daron,
you & Mike have anted up time & time again, y'all are past due winning a few pots.
Love the pics & follow up report.
I know it may seem lame to some, but my Hammer is y'alls Hammer too.
Landing that fish took teamwork, one person can not beach a fish like that alone.
Thank you again, for the invite to fish with ya, the camaraderie & putting that beast on the beach.
Whenever you wanna do it again, give us a holler.
Well said Chille
Glad you had a good time Daron
At least you were out there doing it
By the way its not Dunlops disease
those are Gimble flanges ;D
Quote from: ChileRelleno on September 28, 2014, 03:03:48 AM
Dang Daron,
you & Mike have anted up time & time again, y'all are past due winning a few pots.
Love the pics & follow up report.
I know it may seem lame to some, but my Hammer is y'alls Hammer too.
Landing that fish took teamwork, one person can not beach a fish like that alone.
Thank you again, for the invite to fish with ya, the camaraderie & putting that beast on the beach.
Whenever you wanna do it again, give us a holler.
Yes, I will be showing those pictures off at work. Tuesday night, I had a good run on a Ray. He spit it. When we checked the bait, it had some huge teeth marks probably 1/2 inch apart half way down all the way across. That was a big one that got away! :'(
Shall I start saving bait for the next trip?
My next trip is 9 months away. :'(
Here is a shot when Mike first got the leader.
Well schucks, that sucks.
Time to kill some big cats in the rivers then.
Give us a few months notice so we can budget for the next one.