Murray family fishing team catch enough fish to feed 13-hungry people!

Posted on December 31st, 2013

Spanish Mackerel can be located effectively by just rolling spoons about 100' back from the boat at 4-5 mph. — Spanish Mackerel can be located effectively by just rolling spoons about 100′ back from the boat at 4-5 mph.

I had the pleasure of taking out the Murray family again yesterday. Tides were even lower when we started out around 9am, but we still managed to catch a whole bunch of good eating saltwater fish that fed 13-hungry people!!

Pinfish come in different sizes. This Spottail Pinfish is like catching a big freshwater panfish...fun to catch and tasty! — Pinfish come in different sizes. This Spottail Pinfish is like catching a big freshwater panfish…fun to catch and tasty!

After trying one of the near-shore reefs, and coming up empty handed, we stopped to fish the Gasparilla Pass, FL and caught a few small snapper, jacks, and a spottail pinfish. I used the Minn Kota Riptide 80 lb. AP , to hold us on the proper tidal drift in 20′ of water where most of the action took place.

Bluefish often feed in the same waters as Spanish Mackrel and also hit spoons really well.

From there we headed into Charlotte Harbor, Fl to troll for Spanish Mackerel. The Murray family instantly started catching fish trolling Blue Fox spoons and using the Rapala rods & Rapala reels loaded with Sufix 832 braid line & Terminator Titanium leaders.

Jack's can be caught in all depths of water along the Florida coast with fish this size plentiful and often feeding in large schools. — Jack’s can be caught in all depths of water along the Florida coast with fish this size plentiful and often feeding in large schools.

We used the Hummingbird 800 series sonar to to keep us on the right trolling track and reef-break which produced consistent action.

Way-to-go Steve!! He landed this trophy Spanish Mackerel using his new "Christmas present"...great way to get a fishing outfit acquainted with fish!! — Way-to-go Steve!! He landed this trophy Spanish Mackerel using his new “Christmas present”…great way to get a fishing outfit acquainted with fish!!

Steve Murray was able to land the largest Spanish Mackerel fishing a gold spoon on his new “Christmas present” rod & reel outfit. We ended up catching a nice mix of Bluefish & Spanish Mackerel before heading off to some mangrove shorelines to try for some more Redfish.

[nggallery id=918]We arrived back at the dock about 6pm, cleaned & cooked the fish quickly and enjoyed an amazing meal that included appetizers, salads, sweet potato fries, and of course fresh fish!!

Italo’s Blog