Anglers have a limited window of opportunity to catch red snapper in federal waters and we’re right in the middle of the season.
“You can catch plenty of snapper this time of year, but the best time is actually during the winter when we can’t catch them,” said Capt. Ryan Warhola.
“We have to live with what we’re dealt and that means fishing when you can,” he added.
Warhola recommends anglers seeking trophy-sized snapper avoid many of the rigs, especially those nearby the shipping lanes in the Gulf.
“Those areas are pressured extremely hard and by summer it can get difficult to catch the bigger fish there. You have a lot of recreational guys and the commercials hammer them too,” he said.
His strategy for success involves fishing wrecks, rocks and pieces of hard bottom off the beaten path.
“Snapper are not jus fish that hang around the rigs. Small wrecks and areas where you simply have a harder bottom than surrounding areas can hold lots of big snapper and that’s what everyone wants to catch, isn’t it?”
Warhola fishes with Snapper Slapper Pulsator jigs tipped with cigar minnows or Spanish sardines.
He is also a proponent of chumming to get the snapper off the bottom.
“What you want to do is to throw chunks of cut bait out there. Don’t use oil like you would for bringing in king mackerel because that’s what it will do bring in kings and sharks and that is not good for snapper fishing. Both of those species eat snapper and when they’re around the snapper get nervous,” he said.
You might want to find fish with cut bait and switch over to a bottom-bouncing jig. Any hint of blood in the water can bring in sharks this time of year and when you’re seeking snapper that can be frustrating.
Speaking of sharks, with snapper season so short shark fishing has become extremely popular along the Gulf Coast. Summer is peak shark fishing time with species like blacktips, spinners, Atlantic sharpnose, bulls, bonnetheads, lemons and hammerheads ranging from offshore rigs to the beachfront.
Land bound anglers should consider targeting the piers along the coast on high tides fishing preferably with oily cut bait like jack crevalle or bonita. Cut mullet and stingrays are also high on the shark’s list of favorites.
Large circle hooks rigged on steel leaders are the most popular terminal tackle for bagging sharks. Sharks cannot only cut a line with their teeth but also with their skin, which is sharp in its own right. One quick slap of the tail can cut even heavy-duty line with no problem.
Offshore, sharks are easy to find around the oil rigs. Simply pour out some menhaden oil or squeeze a few pogies and you will find yourself in ample supply of these voracious predators.
For targeting blacktips and spinners, my personal favorite chumming method involves bringing along a bucketful of small menhaden, grabbing a handful and squeezing. Some of them will float, others will sink quickly and others slowly. This creates a feeding frenzy situation with sharks that can allow you to sight cast to them with cut bait.
I once had more than 50 blacktips and spinners feeding behind the boat and ended up catching and tagging 30 of them for the Mote Marine Laboratory. These two species are highly acrobatic and rival billfish in terms of tail walking. I personally believe the spinner to be equal to the tarpon in that department.
The ideal setup for this kind of fishing is having one bait on the bottom for species like bull sharks and Atlantic sharpnose and a couple of free lines to get the species that feed in the upper level of the water column.
Jetties are also good spots to target sharks, especially bulls and Atlantic sharpnose during the summer.
Fish with big chunks of cut bait on incoming tides as they bring in sharks from out around the short rigs. Chumming works great at the jetties as well although you tend to not get as many of the smaller, schooling blacktips and spinners.
Chester Moore, Jr. is the Port Arthur News Outdoors Editor. To contact Chester Moore, e-mail him at cmoore@fishgame.com. You can hear him on the radios Fridays from 6-7 p.m. on Newstalk AM 560 KLVI or online at www.klvi.com.
