VIRGINIA

Virginia Beach

Boaters were bailing striped bass, and charters were usually limiting out every trip, said John Crowling from Virginia Beach Fishing Center. The fish were running 20 to 50 pounds and were often schooling in the ocean 4 miles south and 1 ½ miles offshore. But sometimes they were a mile or two from the marina. Anglers were usually trolling for the rockfish with umbrella rigs and Mojos, and two charter boats that were exclusively practicing catch and release were jigging the fish.  If an angler wants to join a charter but doesn’t have enough people for a trip, the center will take the angler’s name and try to put the angler together with others. Head boats from the marina were bottom fishing every Saturday, and 14-hour trips were producing lots of sea bass, including citation fish 5 pounds or heavier. The head boats also started tog fishing this past weekend on 6-hour trips on Saturdays, and the tog fishing was okay and sporadic. Visit Web Site.

NORTH CAROLINA

Oregon Inlet

Rockfish were nonexistent, and rockfishing was finished for the season, said Jenny Lippincott  from Oregon Inlet Fishing Center. Two boats from the marina sailed offshore and came back with good catches of yellowfin tuna and a wahoo. As the season continues, tuna fishing will keep improving, and more wahoo should show up. Closer to shore, speckled seatrout and flounder fishing should start to turn on during spring. Visit Web Site.

Hatteras

A few puppy drum were dragged from the surf on cut bait, and one confirmed striper came from the suds on a chunk of bait, said Dave Hissey from  The Roost Bait & Tackle at Teach’s Lair Marina. Fresh menhaden is usually the bait of choice for both, if the bunker can be found. Drum fishing will come into its own during spring, and a huge school of the fish was already seen ¼ or ½ mile off the beach from Cape Point to Ocracoke. No boaters really fished for them, because the weather’s been blowing. The air temp was 35 degrees today and was supposed to drop tomorrow. But more fishing should start to take place within a couple of weeks as the weather warms. Whenever charters fished offshore, they got into yellowfin tuna and scattered wahoo. Visit Web Site.

LOUISIANA

Venice

After some slower fishing and rough weather toward the end of February, the bite turned back on at the Midnight Lump last week, and big yellowfin tuna and other fish were boated, said the fishing report on Paradise Outfitters’ web site. On Saturday four boats from Paradise sailed on charters, and their catch included a 170-pound yellowfin, a couple of 150 pounders, other big Allisons plus smaller yellowfins, blackfin tuna and snappers, and the fishing had become great. A trip Thursday nailed four yellowfins to 184 pounds, six blackfins and a wahoo, and other trips during the week bagged similar catches. Another outing last Tuesday took advantage of the right conditions to try a winter swordfish trip that the crew had been hoping to do. The boat left port at 7 p.m. and arrived at the sword grounds in 3 hours under a cloudy, drizzly sky with a half moon. On the second drift the anglers were clearing the lines when they got a big strike on the last line that was being picked up. The sword made a huge run and then settled down after 15 minutes, and was boated after 45 minutes. It turned out to be dead as a door nail and was hooked in the anal fin and weighed 99 pounds when it hit the scale at the dock the next day. On the next drift the shallow line was the first to go off, and the 60-pounder was landed after a half-hour fight, including two circles around the bow. The fish jumped on the hook up and was apparently attacked by another sword at some point, because it was slashed around its tail. One other bait was struck when it was being reeled in, and two baits proved to be slashed up when brought back to the boat. On the final drift on a building sea, there was one small bite before the crew picked up and went home. Fishing at the Midnight Lump, a 200-foot mound in 400 feet in the Gulf of Mexico, gives up triple-digit yellowfins and also blackfin tuna and wahoos during winter, before the fish push off to deeper water. Vermillion snappers and such fish are also bagged for the dinner table on the trips. Paradise Outfitters fishes for big game and also targets rigs and wrecks for snappers, cobias, groupers, amberjacks and such species. Call: 985-845-8006. Visit Web Site.

FLORIDA

Clearwater/Tampa/Tarpon Springs

The beginning of the pilchard migration and water temps nearly 70 degrees were jump starting fishing prior to spring, and snook were beginning to turn on big-time until a weather front at the end of the week, Capt. Rich Knox from Absolute Flats Fishing said in an e-mail. The snook are now moving out of the back waters from their winter refuges, and pilchards are the best baits, and top-water plugs, artificial shrimp and jerk shads are second best. Tom Nevin and friend were aboard and nailed three keeper snook that were 6, 9 and 18 pounds and a dozen speckled seatrout to 5 pounds on a half-day trip. Their buddies were weathered out on a trip the next day. Specks to 7 pounds have been holding on the flats, and redfish to 10 pounds were on the same flats, biting pilchards, live shrimp and artificials like 5- and 7-inch jerk shads and gold spoons. Capt. Rich says he’s optimistic about spring flats fishing, and he’s booking giant tarpon charters from world famous Boca Grande during May and June, and tarpon from 100 to 200 pounds can be battled! Call 727-376-8809 or 800-890-9373 or Visit Web Site.

Jupiter

Sailfishing was mostly finished for the season, but dolphin fishing was phenomenal this past week, said Capt. Tony Matarese of Showtime Sportfishing Charters. A trip with Showtime landed a sail yesterday, and a boat from the marina scored one the day before, but the sails mostly migrated away for now. But dolphin fishing was awesome, and sometimes anglers could practically sink the boat with the number of those fish they could catch. The bigger ones ate live bait, and the smaller ones were hooked on the troll, and those smaller mahi mahi would really cover up the baits on the troll. The dolphin were found on the edge of the green water and blue water, and that edge’s location constantly changes, but it’s about 3 or 3 ½ miles offshore. It’s late in the year for good mahi fishing, and fishing generally is usually in transition between winter and spring and slower by now, but the fishing season’s been running about a month late this year. Both sails and mahi normally turn on best during January and February. Amberjacks started showing up at the deep-water wrecks and reefs in 120 to 260 feet between 2 and 4 miles offshore. The a.j.’s were big, so they were biting on big live baits, such as goggleyes. Showtime was also fighting a few king mackerel, and the kings weren’t numerous, but they were large, and trips landed one on the troll yesterday and another on live bait the day before. Cobia were few and far between lately, but some could be found, and although usually the cobia are caught near the beaches while they follow manta rays, the lemonfish were farther offshore lately. Call: 561-743-6942. Visit Web Site.

Miami/Fort Lauderdale/Boca Raton

Fish seemed to turn around and start migrating north this past week, so spring has sprung, said Capt. Ron Mallet from the Just Add Water. All the fish that had been migrating south for the winter will now head north through local waters, and those fish include sailfish, king mackerel and false albacore, and the action will be peaking during the next two or three months, before the summer doldrums kick in, probably toward mid June. Sailfish will be the first to disappear, usually in May. The fishing currently is changing from day to day, offering a different flavor daily. A charter yesterday scored very well on king mackerel, and false albies were mixed in on recent trips, and sailfish were occasionally fought. All the fish were grabbed 1 ½ miles straight offshore on live pilchards. Big hammerhead sharks looked like they were moving in, and the biggest ones will be hooked on bigger baits like albies or mackerel, and the smaller ones will be tricked with pilchards. The ocean yesterday was 76 degrees or fairly warm. When the weather prevents ocean trips, charters often fish the inlet and back waters for loads of barracudas and jack crevalles. A charter Friday bailed the fish. Call: 954-423-8700. Visit Web Site.

Islamorada

Rick and Billy for Ocean City, Md., hopped aboard Wednesday and mopped up on about 15 dolphin from 15 to 20 pounds and probably three amberjacks to 70 pounds, said Capt. Bruce Anderson from Captain Easy Charters. The season’s early for dolphin fishing and will peak from April to June, but the fish are starting to be seen. Charters catch them fairly far offshore, including toward the Hump a dozen miles from land and farther, and this charter found them along the edges of Sargasso weeds. A charter Sunday with John, Bob and Larry from Fort Lauderdale limited out on king mackerel to 20 pounds and reeled in big yellowtail snappers to 4 and 5 pounds, a large mutton snapper and a 40-pound amberjack. The kings and snappers get hooked at the reef 4 or 5 miles from land in 80 to 150 feet, and the kings attack live cigar minnows, and the snappers chomp down on cut bait. The amberjacks roam around the Hump and chase live blue runners or speedos. Sometimes blackfin tuna show up at the Hump, but lately they were scarce, but that could change at any moment. The blackfins come and go, and they might show up for a day or two, or they might turn on for a week, and it always changes. Sailfishing season isn’t technically finished yet, because sometimes sailfish bite until April. But for the most part, sailfishing is done this year, unless someone wants to specifically target them. Sailfish season was off this year, and the bite never really materialized.  Call: 305-451-9578 or 305-360-2120. Visit Web Site.

Loads of cobia were hitting on charters on the Pretty Work throughout the week, Capt. John Oughton said. The fishing was outstanding, and charters pitched live grunts and cigar minnows to the cobia as the lemonfish chased manta rays along sandy bottoms 3 miles from shore. Charters were also hauling in big mutton snappers, including a couple of 12- and 13-pounders and a couple of 18-pounders, and they were also pinning down large, smoker king mackerel on live bait. Both the muttons and snappers were tackled at the reef 6 miles offshore. Charters with Pretty Work did no dolphin fishing yet, and that action will probably begin in a couple of weeks. Charters will troll the dolphins on ballyhoos along the Gulf Stream 14 or 15 miles from land. Call: 305-481-6527. Visit Web Site. 

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