Adventures in Florida #17: 50+ Miles Offshore for American Red Snapper
Climb Aboard Folks, We're Fishing Offshore
...for the coveted American Red Snapper
Take those motion sickness pills if you need 'em...were headed out for a 2 to 3 hour ride offshore 50-75 miles to find some fish!
I could hardly contain myself as I looked over every knot, hook, leader and each link that played a vital part in my fishing gear making the best of this glorious opportunity. Just like every other individual surrounding me, I was poised to take advantage of the small window provided for recreational anglers to catch and harvest American Red Snapper (ARS)!
The chatter aboard was focused on who might have the hot hand today and what the lowest length above keeper size we might throw back would be to maximize our efforts. For years, the ARS recreational season was limited to ONLY 3 days each year while certain corporate contracts with the state and feds made a select few rich....Thankfully, regulations were somewhat relaxed this season, but that's a can of worms we won't open right now.
Current regulations as of posting
myFWC.com
Enough with the rhetorical and boring bureaucratic BS....let's fish! After reaching our destination we chummed the waters with cut squid, shrimp and a special chum mix to get the snapper to rise of the bottom. A heavy weight (4oz+) was needed to drop your bait the 90+ feet to the bottom before cranking the reel a few times to suspend the bait in the water column and BAM!
my buddy Tim's 1st ARS!
Tim also ended up with the BIGGEST ARS of the day...lucky SOB. At least Ryan and I were hooked up at the same time he caught it, the bite was on fire!
Our poles were doubling over non-stop but the snappers weren't the only things biting. There were plenty of by-catches like this Almaco Jack...
The Red Grouper came through in a wave and seemed to eat every bait dropped for about an hour.
I even dropped an artificial squid jig to make it interesting and it worked just as well as live/cut bait if not better!
Too bad this species is OVER-REGULATED!!!... We easily caught over 100 keeper-plus sized fish (but only kept our limit) in a couple hours before heading in. They say the species is heavily regulated because they're depleted...LIES!
Thanks for stopping by...get out there and enjoy life!
until next time...
Please upvote & resteem if you enjoyed this post!
In case you missed the last post in this series you can see it here: Adventures in Florida #16: Rainbow Springs State Park
wow! The catch of the day !! They look awesome , I love fishing , thanks for sharing your trip with us ! mabe you can catch whale now !!!! LOL!🐳🐋🐳🐋🐳🐋🐟🐟🐟
lol @karemckersie! That would be awesome for sure!
Looks like a great outing. Snapper fishing or what I remember of it was some of the most fun per minute fishing there is. I have never seen more action (as in hitting the line often) than from Snapper or maybe Piggie Perch but they don't count(Pin Perch are great in a skillet). You are right the "regulation is B.S." but as you say let's not get into that quagmire. This is too positive a post for that. Good size Snapper too. You and your friends are going to have some good eating. Glad you got out to get your fill for a day the fisherman's way. It feels good to be out in nature doing what you know is natural(fishing) and not worrying about what others think or what society is doing. Good to take a Snapper trip with friends. Great photos as always, the fish were beautiful and your group looks like fun. I enjoyed the tour and coming along for the ride @liberty-minded. Great post amigo
oh yes we ate good! The Aremican Red Snapper aren't as tasty as the Mangrove Snapper but they are still very good, appreciate it friend!
Upvoted & RESTEEMED :]
wow....thanks @madam!
Wowie thoes look beautiful!
Thanks @ladygray! Where have you been hiding?
Out here in South Korea with my family on a little island called Jeju. Trying to find someone who will take me fishing!
very cool, my dad worked in SK for years!
Beginners luck @liberty-minded, don't worry. When he learns fishing, he'll have to learn photoshoping also 😊. That was an interesting day and many real photos! Upvoted, resteemed, followed & DPS.
Please state clearly in the comments how would you like to be featured in the “Daily Photo Selection”: with a linked photo, or with link only without a photo. We are making a list of photographers who are ready to improve the visibility of their work through the DPS.
Many thanks...a credited linked pic is fine!
Thank you @liberty-minded.
no, thank you for finding this content worthy @photo-trail!
Good post my friend nice to me you i am @djnoel ;)
thanks for stopping by @djnoel!
Wow! Big Red snapper...good day for you guys 👍🏼👏
it certainly was, appreciated @julee!
How I love fishing @liberty-minded! Seems you all had a great time and the catch was great too! Lovely pics!
Cheers
@progressivechef
I'd love to see what tasty concoction you could come up with fro some snapper @progressivechef!
I will make a nice recipe soon with some local red snapper! But our's is not that big, it's small!
I like 'em blackened...can't wait to see what you come up with!
Looks like on heck of a day brother! Lots of big ol' fish! Somebody's eatin good! Lol. Wish I could have been out there with ya man! Need to get back to the ocean!
come on down..we'll get you out!
Maybe someday I'll take you up on that one bro! 😀
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