Post by nestornaz92 on May 17, 2015 17:10:05 GMT -5
Got to the SSP at 4:45am on 5/15, and immediately hooked up on two small Spanish back to back on a gotcha lure, but both spit the hook as I brought them out of the water. From there, went back and forth between the north and south pier all day with a buddy of mine... We finally left around 8pm after coming and going. Was hooking up on fairly decent sized grunts on dropper rigs with 1 and 2 oz weights, a small bait hook, and strips of cut squid. Died down for most of the day so we left to go get some food and get out of the sun, came back at around 5, and started hooking into lane snapper all the way at the very end of SSP. They were all very small though, all caught using the same dropper rig. All thoughout the day with these dropper rigs out, we were also putting out sabikis tipped with squid. Caught greenies, spots, and pinners, all of which were thrown out live either freelined or with a 1oz weight and a 4/0 circle hook. Got hit multiple times, never managed to hook up. Watched a large sheepie attack the sabiki at one point when I threw it at a piling, which I've never seen happen before. Ended up ruining the rig. We left once that big storm started rolling through.
For 4/16, I got there around 8:45pm with my girlfriend and one of her friends from Orlando that doesn't get to fish much. Neither of them had fished off a pier before, so it was a slow start as I taught them how to rig their lines, how to cut the bait, etc. Nothing but grunt after grunt all evening on the same dropper rig setup. Surprisingly, I ended up hooking a nice little trout on a sabiki rig... Had some dudes looking at me weird when I swung it over the railing, guess they've never seen it before either.
All in all, both days worked well as a learning experience, as I have only been to the skyway pier once before. Got used to how the tides work, where the rock piles are, and noted a couple different areas along the pier that I like better than the rest. I'll be trying some new baits, new rigs, and new techniques next time I head out to see if I can't have a little more luck with some substantial sized fish.
For 4/16, I got there around 8:45pm with my girlfriend and one of her friends from Orlando that doesn't get to fish much. Neither of them had fished off a pier before, so it was a slow start as I taught them how to rig their lines, how to cut the bait, etc. Nothing but grunt after grunt all evening on the same dropper rig setup. Surprisingly, I ended up hooking a nice little trout on a sabiki rig... Had some dudes looking at me weird when I swung it over the railing, guess they've never seen it before either.
All in all, both days worked well as a learning experience, as I have only been to the skyway pier once before. Got used to how the tides work, where the rock piles are, and noted a couple different areas along the pier that I like better than the rest. I'll be trying some new baits, new rigs, and new techniques next time I head out to see if I can't have a little more luck with some substantial sized fish.