5 Fishing Vacation Destinations that Non-Anglers will Love
byWe get asked countless times to recommend fishing vacation destinations for couples or families. What people are really asking for is a way to…
Fishing
The Secrets Of Tarpon Fishing
byWhen figuring out areas a tarpon swims you need to take this into consideration along with the tides.
So when you make your cast, you must anticipate where the fish will be in 20 feet and deliver the fly to that spot.
When casting at strings of fish, I like to position the boat where my angler can take a shot at the first fish on a direct line.
When the fish can’t see the fly land 10 feet in front of them, it’s OK to be more aggressive, but you still don’t want to drop the fly right on their nose.
It’s best to give them a 6- to 8-foot lead and be ready to work the fly as soon as the fish comes up behind it.
If the fish are rolling fast and swimming, lead them more and cast in an angle that allows your fly to cross the tarpon’s path as they approach.
If the fish are rolling slowly and going down, look for bubbling close to where they last rolled and put the fly close to it.
When it’s overcast and windy, I find that tarpon tend to swim shallower and, in a protected area, roll later into the day.
If I cant find this situation, I look for basins sheltered from the wind where I can get shots at rolling fish.
When coming into an area to look for rolling tarpon, be patient and use caution if there’s already another boat fishing.
The Los Cabos Billfish Tournament Is 20 Years Old
byThis year, the Los Cabos Billfish Tournament celebrates its 20-year anniversary of promoting billfish catch and release and its support of a top sport-fishing destination: Los Cabos, Mexico.
With advancements in photography, the tournament will utilize a streamlined catch, video and release system to determine billfish releases.
As part of the tournament’s 20th anniversary celebration, the tournament will take the next step to make billfish releases a bigger part of top team determinations.
“Going forward, the point system will be 300 points for blue and black marlin releases, and 50 points for striped marlin, sailfish and spearfish releases,” says tournament director Dan Jacobs.
“Weighed blue or black marlin meeting the 300-pound minimum will receive one point per pound in the team division.
All undersized marlin brought to the scales will be penalized 300 points, plus two points per pound the fish is underweight.” The tournament will continue to offer optional jackpots, including daily billfish release, daily largest marlin, overall billfish release points, daily heaviest tuna, wahoo and dorado, as well as the largest marlin of the tournament.
The Los Cabos Billfish Tournament will offer amateur teams an opportunity to enter the daily meat fish jackpot or the daily billfish release jackpot in lieu of the base entry fee.
The Los Cabos Billfish Tournament has set the industry standard with its participant-focused format and provides the highest return of team entry fees.
“For that, we are extremely grateful.
We look forward to our anniversary event and the next 20 years.”
Remember What It Was Like To Fish Like A Kid?
byWhen we finally reached the bank of the spillway, I gathered up my charges: four freckled, tow-headed boys, jabbering with excitement, all hyped up on soda and candy, rods at the ready.
We’d stopped at the convenience store for nightcrawlers, where the kids begged for drinks.
But then, what the heck, I figured, it’s summer, and you’re only 9 years old once.
Next, we picked up bobbers at the Five & Dime, which has an entire aisle devoted to novelty candy.
I insisted that they all share just one package—so they chose a complete gummy meal, with gummy cheeseburger, gummy hot dog, gummy fries, and gummy condiments.
We walked right past the ice-cream shop on the way to the water, but I had to stand my ground somewhere.
At the spillway, on a muddy bank, the boys caught one bluegill after another, faster than I could unhook them, untangle lines, and take pictures.
It was chaos.
Then, to each of their main lines, I tied a dropper and added a Hare’s Ear Nymph from a fly box in my vest.
The madness doubled as the boys hauled in fish two at a time.
INDUSTRY NEWS | FISHING
Easy Illumination for Your Livewell
byLive bait is the life blood of many fishing trips, and a number of those trips start before daylight.
That’s why most livewells now feature illumination so you can see how your liveys are faring.
A light also helps keep the bait from bumping into the walls of the well.
But what happens when the light malfunctions?
First thing, turn it off, because a corroded connection or loose terminal can lead to an overheated wire and a possible fire.
To illuminate the livewell in the meantime, carry a handful of Cyalume 6-inch chemical light sticks (about $0.40 per stick in bulk).
It floats and casts a soft glow into the water.
Blue is the preferred color for livewell lights, but any color you have on board will work in a pinch.
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One Deck Brush Two Bristles
byIn the past, I used two deck brushes when scrubbing the boat with soap and water after a day of fishing.
A brush with soft bristles covered 95 percent of the boat, but I had a stiff-bristle brush standing by for stubborn spots of dried blood and tracked-in dirt on the deck.
Today I use only one brush — the Combo Deck Brush from Shurhold (about $34).
A ring of long, soft bristles cleans most of the deck and the smooth fiberglass surfaces, while a core of short, tough fibers rests in the center.
I deploy these stiffer bristles simply by pressing down on the brush when I need the extra scrubbing power.
Combine this brush with a Shurhold 9-foot telescoping aluminum handle (about $38), and you can wash just about every spot on your boat with one tool.
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Emergency Hand Pumps
byBoating safety dictates that you have a means of dewatering your vessel.
That usually means a motorized bilge pump.
However, if the bilge pump fails or drains the battery, you might need to manually dewater the boat.
You can turn to an ordinary bucket to bail water, but buckets don’t fit well into small lockers or crowded bilge compartments.
That’s where a manual pump comes in handy.
The West Marine 36-inch manual bilge pump (about $55) has a narrow tube that fits into any compartment.
It pumps 13 gallons per minute or 780 gallons per hour at a nominal pace.
The lightweight pump and 72-inch hose are easy to stow; you can also use it to pump rainwater from boat covers and compartments.
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Your VHF Antenna While Trailering
byIf you’ve ever followed a trailer boat down the highway, you might notice its 8-foot-long VHF antenna flailing about with every bump in the road, even though the antenna is folded down for towing.
Clips are available to help secure these antennae, but my friend Steve Bowcott showed me a relatively simple solution.
He fashioned a ³/16-inch-diameter cord with a loop on the end.
He cinches the loop around the tip of the antenna, then belays the bitter end to a stern cleat.
A slight bend in the fiberglass antenna maintains enough tension to keep it from whipping about wildly under tow.
He removes the cord and tilts the antenna up when he’s ready to launch.
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