Mobile, AL USA

Any reports of tuna showing up at or near the Petronius Rig?

Friday, November 21, 2008 @ 11:32:25 AM

Pelham, AL USA

It does not look like much is going on at the Gulf State Park Pier construction project.  Has anybody heard any recent news.  I know they said they would finish on time, but I don't see how they can if they aren't working on the end.  It will take a large cluster of piles for the octagon on the end and I see no sign of progress there.

Monday, November 17, 2008 @ 3:49:59 PM

os, MS USA

thanx-

we normally try to have plenty of livies before we
cross the shelf as well as plenty of fresh caught trash
fish to chunk with..... poppers are always the
preferred way..... love that    "oops a volkswagen  fell
off the rig" strike anyway.      will post upon return

tight lines

Thursday, November 13, 2008 @ 8:06:37 PM

Orange Beach, AL USA

The past two trips the bite was very different. The last trip was all chunking except one that was caught on a popper (blue frenzy popper). The trip before that was all poppers. I saw from the SST report (today) that the Marlin rig was at a temp break which should mean alot of flying fish. Usually when alot of flyers are there its popper time. Also the blackfin were eating up the new butterfly jigs. But who knows. If you make the long run be prepared with both and we were chunking with spanish sardines. I have not used live bait either time. I hope this helps.
Max

Thursday, November 13, 2008 @ 1:23:19 PM

os, MS USA

max-

we're planning on making the run to RP/marlin/horn- as soon as we get the next weather window.   do you mind divulging how ya caught the yellers?   was live bait a must? last time we were out it was all poppers and chunking. just like to get as much info as possible before we drop a grand on diesel.

thanks in advance

Thursday, November 13, 2008 @ 11:45:25 AM

Orange Beach, AL USA

We went last Thursday on the new 52 Cabo "Born2run" to the deep floaters off Mobile. The tuna were going off and we caught about as many backfin as you wanted and had 6 yellowfin over about 75#. Skip caught his first tuna ever which was one about 100#.

 Born2run TunasSkips Tuna

Thursday, November 13, 2008 @ 10:01:45 AM

Ft. Morgan, AL USA

If you haven't tried overnighting this time of year you are missing out. When the weather is right the tuna are thick and hungry. I don't really remember ever hearing of to many dissappointing overnighters this time of year. On my annual pilgrimage to Venice last Thursday we decided to fish our way over. We did not leave Fort Morgan until 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. We arrived at the Ram Powell at 11:00 pm. They was not any signs of life at that time. No tuna busting, no flying fish. There were a lot of fish marking starting at 50' feet. Our plan was to jig for blackfins until we had at least a dozen. Then we would chunk with the blackfins to fish for the yellows. If the yellowfins did not cooperate we would go back to the jigs and fill up with blackfins.

I only had two anglers. The first drop with the jigs both anglers hooked up with blackfins. That was the way it went for the next hour. They were having so much fun I had trouble stopping them from jig fishing. We were now starting to see some fish bust the surface. So we moved to where most of the surface action had been. We ran our chunk lines out twice and got nothing. So we picked up and went back to where we had been catching the blackfin. First drift out double on Yellowfins. The first fish to the boat was around 80 lbs and escaped by diving around a prop. The second yellowfin took a little longer to get in but was a solid 120 when he hit the deck. For the next three hours we simple pulled up to our spot put out our chunks, hooked up and drifted off while fighting yellowfin. My two anglers did a great job and we filled all the coolers without giving out. Two speed reels with the proper belt and harness set up can make all the difference in an anglers stamina. I had two guys each mid-fifties fill up 900 quarts of cooler space with 9 yellowfins and 8 left over blackfins. They were still ready and willing when we had topped off.

It was now 3:00 a.m and we started easing west toward South Pass. We checked a few rocks after daylight and all we could catch were Red Snapper. We pulled into Venice Marina after lunch and spent a few hours cleaning fish and cleaning up the boat. We are now in Venice until sometime next spring. We would encourage anyone wanting to catch yellowfin between now and January to give an overnighter a try. Ask about our winter specials for special pricing.

Till next time,

Capt. Gary Bryant
Red Eye Charters
(251) 540-6982

Sunday, November 9, 2008 @ 6:00:36 PM

Mobile, AL USA

Does anyone know if the specks are biting in the industrial canal or dog river yet??

Monday, November 3, 2008 @ 7:12:31 PM

Gulf Shores, AL USA

Bull reds were woking the beaches from Perdido Pass to the east this past Saturday. We caught and released as many as we wanted. Most were close to large balls of bait showing up on the bottom machine but several times we came on schools on top busting bait. All we checked were in the 24 to 30# range. caught on pink stretch Mann and dropping live pinfish on the bottom. Most were close (500 yds out) from color change at the beach.

Monday, November 3, 2008 @ 2:22:12 PM

Dauphin Island, AL USA

Here's what's being discussed at todays meeting at the Fishery Management Council in Mobile:
As you know there has been a flurry of communications going back and
forth to a wide range of individuals regarding the recreational red
snapper fishery.   In many of these communications there are a host of
opinions and misrepresentations of facts.  We would like to get the
communication moving in a direction based on facts and what can and
can't be done.  We feel that setting up a dialog between the managers and the stakeholders that includes factual information will benefit
the stakeholders and management and will help to dispel some of the
panic that has developed.
In order to work toward this goal we need some information from your
staff so we can lay out all of the possibilities we have to better
manage the recreational red snapper fishery.  The last SEDAR red
snapper assessment includes information on a possible split of the management of the recreational fishery into two areas, TX/LA and
MS/AL/FL.  You have received a request from RFA to investigate the
splitting of management into 3 areas, TX/LA, MS/AL, and FL.  There is
talk of a possible further split into 5 areas, waters off each state.
Further complicating the issue is the discussion of splitting the
recreational sector into a charter/headboat and private recreational
quota and even a charter, headboat, and private/rec quota.  There has
also been discussion of IFQs, stamps, and a host of other measures.  I
understand that some information may not be available to provide the
information necessary to provide complete options for next year but
surely something can be put together to provide the stakeholders
reasonable options to consider so that everyone can see what may be
best for them to support.

Looks like the Charter boats want a bigger bite than everyone else that recreation fishes

Friday, October 31, 2008 @ 8:57:39 AM

Orange Beach, AL USA

Max,
You forgot the part where that big yellowfin kicked my a$$! Theres a first time for everything I guess. I'm just glad that we are out of the perfect storm!

Wednesday, October 29, 2008 @ 11:18:44 AM

Orange Beach, AL USA

Sunday afternoon my cousin Jim Durham asked me if I was interested in going fishing. His boat “The As Is Where Is” was full of fuel which some of the diesel was purchased when the fuel prices was about $5.00 per gallon. The boat is for sale and Jim did not want to sell her with a slam full tank of fuel. The weather was warm and there was not even a puff of wind. Jim said to get on the phone and find any one who wanted to go on a short notice and lets get ready to go. My old friend Chad, his wife Vicki and two of their friends Matt and Karen and Crystal said yes. I called my good friend and deck hand Chris Hood and after a call to his work and said yes. A few more people we called could not go.
The boat, “As is Where Is” and I go back a long, long time. She is a 54 Bertram that was once the “Sheer Bliss”. My first trip on this boat she was the “Risen Star” named after a very famous Louisiana breed race horse that had done very well on the race tracks in the United States and the triple crown. I had fished this boat while it was the “Risen Star” with the past chief of the Choctaw Indians, Chief Phillip Martin. Then she was the “Bill Collector” and for the past four years has been the “As is Where Is”. I have been involved with catching tons fish on this boat including a big dolphin in the Mississippi Billfish Classic worth $86,000.00 and many, many blue marlin including 3 blues in one day which is pretty rare in the northern gulf. It would be hard to guess how many cobia I have spotted from her tower which wound up in the oversized fish box in the cock pit and then to the cast iron skillet and some hungry belly’s.  Being a 1984 model she is an older vessel by boat standards but has been very well kept over the years. Being a 54 Bertram I have known her as one of the best fishing platforms that has ever been built. Her hull is wide, cockpit big, the hull is over built and tough. I can recount hundreds of fishing trips on her but I will get back to the trip this past Sunday.
After getting our things ready about 9.00 p.m. we left Sportsman Marina headed for the deep floating rigs south of Mobile. On the ride out there was not any wind and was one of the calmest, clearest nights that I have ever run out. In fact it was so calm you could actually see the reflections of the stars on the water. It was so clear that the rig lights seemed much closer than they were and I had to verify this on the radar several times. Chugging out at 15 knots for 100 miles we got to Horn Mountain at about 2.30. As I approached the rig there was no doubt what we were in for. The flying fish were there and as a flying fish would get air born, a big tuna would crash it when it hit the water. The flying fish were there and the nice tunas were too. Catching a nice tuna on a popper (top water chugger) and a spinning rod and reel is about as much fun as any battle on a rod and reel. The tackle is usually over matched by the tunas you are catching. Until recently with custom designed rods and braided line you would not even try to catch 75- 150# tunas on a spinning rod and reel. Once you catch a nice tuna on a popper and spinning tackle (or see it caught) you would agree that that it is about as much light tackle sport as about any fishing. I’m sure that for my deck hand Chris, popper fishing is one of his favorites. To any one who have seen very aggressive yellowfin chasing and eating flying fish and squid sends the heart rate to a new level. With popping rods in hand Chris, Chad and Matt casting the popping lures and I knew it would not be long before someone was hooked up. Chris hooked up and caught 2 and Chad caught one. Then Chris and Matt threw pretty close to each other where they had seen big splashes and both of them hooked up to big tunas. With two fish hooked up on light tackle handling the boat can get tricky. To me the rule is handle the boat and help the angler that needs the most help. Trust me there is usually a angler that needs more help that the other angler and then it may shift to the other angler. Sometimes you back and spin the boat, sometimes you can  do nothing but watch the anglers battle their tunas. After close to an hour fight Chris had his tuna close to the boat to where we could see color in the underwater lights. My first view of the fish I noticed the long Allison fins that I know to be on the older, more mature yellowfin. We did everything we could to get Chris’s fish to gaff but could not get it done before the fish broke off. Then Matt fought his for close to a hour longer before it broke off too. Two hours and we did not catch either of those fish but they had done a great job battling very large yellowfin that we entirely too big to be dealing with on this spinning tackle. By then it was starting to get daylight and we put out the trolling gear and the ballyhoo. We caught a fair mahi and then a smaller tuna that Karen caught. Then had a nice bite that got off that we never identified. The whole we had been at the rig it had been slick calm. Then a little after daylight I felt a slight breeze from the north. I called Jim to the bridge and mentioned that that little wind was not good. We had three very nice yellowfin and some dolphin and smaller tunas in the box and we should be thinking about heading north. The wind was getting stronger the waves were building and getting rougher by the minute. Heading from the Horn Mountain rig north the Marlin rig is about 20 miles. Almost to the Marlin rig Jim and Chris talked to my old friend Manual May who is captain on the Edison Chouest offshore work boat the “Amy Chouset”. Manual checked his weather and said the seas were going to continue to build to 14 feet. We then had to make a decision. It was about 80 miles to Orange Beach and  about 50 miles to the mouth of the Mississippi River and South Pass. The seas were continuing to build from the north wind. The mouth of the river would be a better compass heading but heading dead into the wind and waves would only add 30 miles to the trip. If we chugged to south pass then we still had a very long trip to get the boat home. Manual was heading the “Amy Chouest” to south pass and said he had something rolling around on the back deck of the big work boat. After thinking it out we continued north to Orange Beach.
I have been on and around this 54 Bertram for so many trips. Once about 6 years ago in the Isle of Capri Billfish Classic we were caught out in a super bad squall with 65 knot winds. In that squall I was able to turn the big Bertram down sea until the rain and winds died down. But this day was different and we were going to have to take the waves on the nose of the Bertram for a long, slow ride. With the waves getting bigger and stacked closer together and the wind blowing harder we were calling on the 54 Bertram to do what she had done so many times before and the most important task of any boat. GET US HOME SAFE.
I have been is some rough conditions on different boats in my life. “Stuffing the Bow” is what happens when you turn a big boat into big waves and usually high winds under power which makes the bow of the boat go through a big wave. It is something that you do not want to do but sometimes if it too rough you can not help it. I have had to nose into big waves on a 65 Hatteras (in the gulf)  and a 78 Garlington somewhere between Isla Mexico and San Andres Columbia. Both times it was very rough and we had no choice but continue he journey. Sometimes you can alter your heading and get the waves more on the side of the boat which makes a better ride. The other thing you can do is get the speed of the boat the best foe the waves. Sometimes speeding up just a little will keep the boats hull passing on top of the waves rather than through them. In all of my fishing time on the “As is Where Is”  I had never seen her big bow stuffed. On this day she and we were facing 10-12 foot seas, heading dead into the wind and seas and she was going to have to do this for close to 80 miles. After we got that perfect slow speed into the waves the boat was doing good. Not to say that it was good conditions but the boat was performing very good in these bad conditions. This was some kind of different northern cold front. No rain just bright sunny skies, with one heck of a north wind and the temperature was dropping fast. With Jim at the helm for most of the day the wind just did not let up. It took us about 8 hours to go about 80 miles and was rough almost all the way to the beach. After getting to the dock the temperature had dropped about 25 degrees and it was still blowing hard out of the north. After going through what was the roughest conditions I have been on (in the gulf) there is no question about the toughness of the 54 Bertram. With the boat for sale and who knows what or where the boat will go I never will forget what could have been the last trip on this boat. The super calm, clear, night  ride out. The big tunas just busting and going crazy eating flying fish and squid at the rig. Chris and Matt in very long battles with big tuna on light popping rods. And of course I will never forget the roughest ride home that the big 54 Bertram lived up to reputation as being one of the best rough sea boats ever built.

Tight Lines
Max

 Tuna

Wednesday, October 29, 2008 @ 8:28:34 AM

Mobile, AL USA

Wanted to share with those who really like non-stop action. A friend of mine told me that he got into some of the largest Spanish that he had ever seen- 3-5 lbs a couple of weeks ago at the rigs south of sand island. Needless to say, I have been trying to get out since. Unfortuanately, I have not been able to go or the wind has been blowing. Well, the window opened Tuesday and WOW! We found the big Spanish and had a tremendous day. All the fish we were catching were in the 4-6 lb range and lost a few that I am afraid to guess what they would weigh. While we started with drifted cigar minnows, we ending up casting various jigs and plastics on light tackle. It was amazing to see 5,6, 7 big fish chasing the lure. Talk about fun, catching 5 lb Sapnish on light tackle is a hoot. I have been fishing for Spanish for many years and I always enjoyed the fall run. However, I personally have not seen this many big fish in over 10 years during the fall. In fact, one of the fish I target during the ADSFR is Spanish. This last rodeo, in 3 days I caught one Spanish of any size. I do beleive the netters have hurt this species and the fish coming through are available because the netters have had to deal with the wind too. On the way out, I saw two net boats heading towards Dixie Bar area so I am sure  they will be looking too. I am going to try and get out again as I want to try some action on a fly rod if I can find the fish again.

If you really like action, you may want to try finding the fish around the close in rigs off sand island if the wind decides to lay down again.

Remember, these fish are migrating through so really not sure how long they will be around.

Good luck!

Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 3:15:35 PM

Orange Beach, AL USA

Yesterday I went fishing with my friend Michael Turnbough and his daughter Peanut.  Peanut brought two of her school buddies, too.  Michael keeps his boat at the Eden condominium in Perdido Key.

As I drove across the bridge early yesterday morning, I was greeted with a welcome sight:  Pelicans and seagulls wheeling around in the air over Perdido Pass, and also to the east and the west of the pass.  Right then I knew the day was "on."

We left Eden in Michael's 23' Grady White at 7:30 a.m. and headed down Old River towards the bridge.  The wind was blowing a little out of the east/northeast, but I knew if we just stayed near Perdido Pass we could duck in quickly if the wind kicked up.

As we left the no-wake zone under the bridge, I dropped the planers and spoons out the back of the boat.  By the time we reached the end of the rocks, a big fish hit the biggest pink Drone spoon, but after pulling out a little drag, it got off.  That was OK, because in short order we hooked another fish.  It was a Spanish that one of the girls reeled in.

To make a long story short, we experienced some great trolling action under the diving birds and around the numerous bait schools upon which they were feeding.  The girls caught a 20-pound bull redfish, a nice king mackerel, and several Spanish before the wind kicked up and we headed in.

All in all it was a great trip that ended with a quick exploratory trip on the sandy beach on the south side of Old River.  The girls hunted around and found several beautiful seashells that were destined to be taken home as treasures.

It was a great day to be on the water.

If you need any advice about fishing this fall, give us a call at Sam's Stop & Shop in Orange Beach (251) 981-4245.  Good luck, everyone.

 The Turnbough Clan's CatchPeanut's RedfishCharlotte and the King MackerelFunny Faces and Some Fish

Tuesday, October 21, 2008 @ 8:05:51 PM

SEMMES, AL USA

what up guys? hasnt been fishing but have seen some good pictures of some nice tuna's. tucker girl and I, have been working at the hunting camp, she has 2 nice 8 points scope out and ready for the taken, there seem to be a lot of deer this year, we are looking forward to the kids weekend, wish you all well and god bless, tucker out

Tuesday, October 21, 2008 @ 1:53:08 PM

Daphne, AL USA

I am planning on heading out of Dauphin Island this weekend to try and get into some of this King action I have been hearing about.

I was hoping you guys could give me some idea of how far I would need to go out and how to fish them.

My plan was to try to catch some live bait first (any ideas where the best place to catch is?), and then head out to either find some shrimp boats or out to some of the rigs around 5-10 miles out and drift/troll with the live baits

Tuesday, October 21, 2008 @ 10:02:23 AM

Orange Beach, AL USA

Bryan,
Thank you for the viewing instructions for the photo. Without them I would never have seen the fish.

Saturday, October 18, 2008 @ 4:23:41 PM

Orange Beach, AL USA

Bryan,
Was that a king mac in photos you submitted? Nice bathing suit.....I'm proud of you ole boy.

Ricky B. on the "Outaline" fished yesterday and today and came in this afternoon with 3 real nice wahoos, a tuna about 60# and they released a blue about 400....He said they lost a huge wahoo.

Friday, October 17, 2008 @ 8:32:34 PM

Gulf Shore, AL USA

Does anyone have any experience in gigging flounder near the mouth of the Bon Secour river?  The flat to the north of the Intracoastal looks interesting, and I wondered if the area was productive.

Thursday, October 16, 2008 @ 8:57:55 PM

gulfport, MS USA

Help Raise Money

Long Beach Fire Dept. Dive/Water Rescue Team

The Long Beach Fire Dept. Dive/Water Rescue Team is unfortunately under funded. The dept. is not able to help to their full potential. Our Ms Gulf Coast volunteer water search group is raising money for this cause. This extra money will be invaluable to buy needed safety equipment. We are selling these 5 year outdoor Emergency Boating Stickers for this cause. So please help raise money by buying one of the stickers. An increased donation will also be accepted.  

$5.00 Emergency Boating Sticker

For questions call Colin Rayner 228-365-5469

Boating Emergency Sticker

1. Man overboard throw life vest’s or flotation device’s toward victim.

2. Drop anchor and secure anchor rope to boat cleat.

3. Call 911, if within cell phone range, describe situation and location.

4. Tune VHF radio to channel 16.
 4a. Press microphone button and say “MAYDAY, MAYDAY, MAYDAY”, then       
       vessels name. Wait 30 seconds and repeat. (Remember one person speaks at a time)
 4b. When Coast Guard or another vessel responds, say MAYDAY and vessels name.
 4c. Describe your position by GPS longitude and latitude or general location.
 4d. Describe nature of distress (Remember only one person can speak at a time).

5. If victim is in the boat and unresponsive.
 5a. Perform CPR if qualified, if not then drive boat to nearest harbor and seek help.

Thursday, October 16, 2008 @ 5:59:01 PM

Jackson, MS USA

Swordfish Recapture! On June 22nd, 2006 I was
fishing the Orange Beach Swordfish Classic at the
Spur on the Orange Beach charterboat Annie Girl.
About 9 pm that night I tagged and released an
estimated #30 swordfish. Just found out from
NOAA that the fish was recaptured on May 23rd
2007 (presumable by a longliner) approximately
250 miles north of the Azores in the North
Atlantic. Thats a travel distance of approximately
4300 miles in about 335 days. The fish weighed
60#.

Although just an isolated anecdote, this gives me
a couple of things to think about. First the ICCAT
considers there to be two distinctive stocks of
swordfish that do not interbreed and are managed
separately. Someone better tell this to the
swordfish making 5000 mile jogs in a year.

Second, this also goes to show that the northern
Gulf serves as a migratory fish nursery for the rest
of the world. Even with our longline closed areas
and careful catch and release management, we
cannot protect billfish stocks from exploitation
around the world. One earth, one ocean.

Thursday, October 16, 2008 @ 5:50:51 PM

Mobile, AL USA

Oh but she has next to nothing as far as tackle is concerned.  You might be better off getting your tackle somewhere else or just going to Southern Bama for bait and tackle.  

Thursday, October 16, 2008 @ 4:18:52 PM

Mobile, AL USA

The only place to get live bait in the Dog is Hoppes and you have to be lucky to get them there.  Im pretty sure she is still selling bait over there.  But if you dont catch her early all she will have is bull minnows.  She usually always has dead shrimp.

Thursday, October 16, 2008 @ 4:15:02 PM

Mobile, AL USA

Does anyone know of a bait/tackle shop at or near the Dog River (DIP) Bridge (accessable via boat)?  I am looking for live shrimp mainly, and I like to put in at Navco Park and run down to the bridge...

Thursday, October 16, 2008 @ 10:29:30 AM

Gulf Shores, AL USA

In response to Walter:

The Launch on Ft. Morgan Rd. is operational, but is "at your own risk" I have used it several times, and it is fine. Just pay attention driving thru the lot. Its is clear from the most part. And as far as I know, Its the only Public Game in town for the Lagoon......

Good Luck!!!

Wednesday, October 15, 2008 @ 11:47:21 AM

Orange Beach, AL United States

In response to JL

You should know that I consider October to be one of the best months of all to catch king mackerel along the Alabama coast, provided the weather lets you go fishing.  Although we catch kings April through November, and the summer months provide quick action with schoolie fish, kings of all sizes actually become more numerous as water temperatures cool slightly in the early-to-mid-fall.  The first thing you should grasp is that king mackerel are driven by the need to feed, like any other predatory fish.  This means that they will follow bait wherever it goes.  Right now we have a preponderous amount of bait around:  alewives (scaled sardines), blue runners, juvenile jack crevalles, threadfin herring, cigar minnows, the list goes on.  Find the schools of bait and you will find the kings.  This is so true that on an incoming tide with mid-to-high level range, you can even catch them while standing on the seawall at Perdido Pass.  Do a search of the pictures for photos submitted by me to see the proof.  Why do they come in to the pass?  Following the alewives that school up along the wall there.

If you want to catch kings easy-like, try the following.  Get you some small sabiki rigs, sizes 6 or 8, with gold hooks and green, red, or white feathers.  Get up early and scout the area around the Perdido Pass bridge, both the north and south sides.  Soon enough you will see the baitfish flipping around.  Cast the sabiki into them and load up the livewell.  The best baits are small runners (hardtails) and herring.  Alewives are a great runner-up.  Ditch the baby jacks, as they are really too hardy and will outrun a king, to be honest.  Next, rig up two large spinning rods or mid-size conventional reels with 20 to 30 pound monofilament line, in the following way.  You will need some 40-lb. single-strand wire, some #1 Eagle Claw 4x strong treble hooks, and some #1 Sea Striker Rosco-style barrel swivels.  Cut the wire into roughly two-foot-long pieces.  Follow the instructions on the back of the package on how to tie a haywire twist to connect the hooks and swivels to the leader.  You should make stinger rigs, with a treble on the business end followed by a 4-6 inch piece of trailer wire to which you will attach a second treble hook.  The swivel on the rod-tip end will connect the wire to the monofilament.

Go on out the pass and hook up a couple of live baits.  The way to do it is with one prong of the lead treble hook; run it sideways through the baits nostrils.  You can let the trailer hook free-swing or you can lightly imbed one prong in the back of your live bait.  You only need to run two rods.  Let the first one out long, about 75 yards, and the second one short, maybe 30 to 50 yards back.  Make sure your drags are set with a moderate amount of tension so that when the king bites he can strip line on his initial, powerful run, but not so light that it will cause the spool on the reel to overrun and cause a backlash.

I like to drag out to the sea-buoy and just kind of look around.  Look for diving birds and flipping bait.  Look for schools of Spanish mackerel, because a big king will feed on Spanish in a big way.  Look for "fishy" sign, and just troll your baits about 3 mph by the GPS.  Make wide turns so your baits don't tangle.  I usually get most of my bites going down-sea, as this presents the baits more naturally.

Watch your rod-tips.  They should pulse fairly rhythmically with the beat of the baits' tails.  However, if the tip starts jumping erratically, guess what?  You've got a king eyeballing your bait and you better get ready.  Wait for the rod to bow over and the drag to start singing.  Don't worry, the pair of treble hooks will find purchase 9 times out of ten.

If you're lucky you will get to see the king sky-rocket on the bait; talk about an adrenaline rush!

Anyway, hope this helps.  If we can help you further, call us, or stop by Sam's Stop & Shop in Orange Beach and we'll do what we can.  Good luck, Bryan Bennett--Sam's (251) 981-4245.

Check out the pictures section of the site for further proof of recent king mackerel captures.

Sunday, October 12, 2008 @ 5:09:08 PM

Mobile, AL USA

In Response to JL:

This time of year, the kings are normally patrolling the beaches.  If you like rig fishing, get a chum churn (or slick) working with a few flat lines out the back with cigar minnows, pogies, or live bait.  This technique can potentially provide you with a lot of good action, and frees you up to do some bottom fishing or jigging as well.  The tournament guys will always troll live baits around the rigs and beaches to bag the money fish.  It's always good to get at least one bait down while trolling too, if you have a downrigger available.  Quantity vs. Quality will be the choice you'll have to make.  Good luck!

Sunday, October 12, 2008 @ 3:21:03 PM

Mobile, AL USA

In Response to Scott:

I bought my throwable rig hook at Boater's World in Mobile.  I have had great success with it.  Although many of the long-handled ones are used, they are more dangerous when hooking and dehooking from the rig(s).  I know this rare, but there have been some bad accidents out there with those. In my opinion, the throwable type is a lot safer!

Sunday, October 12, 2008 @ 3:07:54 PM

OS, MS USA

Can anyone provide any tips on king mackeral fishing in oct out of gulf shores or fort morgan.

Sunday, October 12, 2008 @ 11:35:07 AM

Mobile, AL USA

Hi All,

I have been looking for an anchor hook to tie up to the oil/gas platforms in the Bay and Gulf.  I am not very good at fabrication, so would like to buy one instead of making one.

Anyone know where I might buy one around the Alabama Gulf Coast?

Thanks,

-Scott

Sunday, October 12, 2008 @ 11:19:56 AM

peachtree city, GA USA

I was driving past the little lagoon on fort morgan rd yesterday and noticed all the construction on the old ramp.  Where else can I launch my boat into the lagoon until the old ramp is ready.

Friday, October 10, 2008 @ 7:50:39 AM

chunchula, AL USA

Went to Ohio for opening week of bow season. We got there in time for the first cool snap of the season. Killed this nice 8 pt. on the second day. Small for the area but my best bow kill yet.

Friday, October 10, 2008 @ 12:21:04 AM

Mobile, AL USA

Had a decent time on the water last Friday out of D.I.  Didn't find any live bait so headed on off with what we had.  Threw back countless endangered red snapper up to 12-15 pounds.  Iced 1 nice cobia and 1 king.  Another cobia was enticed to the top of the water column, but he pulled the classic sniff & bump.  Had a few breakoffs on heavy tackle, but the fresh Ling made the trip a success.

 Nice Cobia

Thursday, October 9, 2008 @ 9:04:00 PM

Mobile, AL USA

The data from Bouy 42040 for Sat night-Sunday would seem to support it sure got ROUGH!
Glad I keep my feet on terra firma ;-)

Pic attached is the actual graph from the data bouy 64 nm offshore.

 SWH

Thursday, October 9, 2008 @ 12:44:28 PM