Post by GoinDeep on May 18, 2008 22:35:07 GMT -5
Well folks, it finally happened for me today, the elusive keeper grouper. Heres the edited cliffnotes from today at the SSP
A couple of friends came with us today...got to the pier about 9:15am. We wanted to make sure our friends got on some fish so we went to our usual spot near the end Gulf side to do some snapper fishing. Rip and Knotty set up shop right by us for a while while Rip looked for some jumpers. Within the first 15-20 minutes our friends caught some fish, so mission accomplished there. We got lots of short red and gag grouper from 4" to about 15", some Mangos (3 keepers), a short black sea bass, and a 15" seatrout (all on cut greenbacks and threadfins). After that, the bite slowed, and our friends left about 2pm.
Fast forward to about 6:30pm, and after a few short grouper in a few long hours, me and the GF decide to try another spot before we leave....at the new spot, she hooks a monster Cobia. As she gets it close, it starts thrashing on top of the water and putting up a heck of a fight. I get the pier net down and the fish dives down towards a piling and breaks her off about 3 feet from the net.
It was 3+ feet long easily, so that sucked to lose him. So I figure Id try dead threads as well. Maybe 2 minutes after I cast, rod bends....a minute or so later, Im putting my first ever keeper gag in the cooler, measuring in right at 22". The sting from losing the cobe was instantly gone. 
So I re-rig and send another out. The gf heads to the bathroom and right when shes out of earshot her rod bends. I reel in.....guess what....keeper gag #2
. This ones 22 and a half. I couldnt believe it. Few minutes later got a 21 and a half incher, so back in he went. Yet another big one rocked me up before the bite slowed and we left.
So it was gags gone wild from 7 to 8pm today. The last hour of fishing more than made up for an otherwise mediocre day.
Before we left we saw a guy to our left get a keeper gag and another guy on our right land a small blacktip.
Sorry for rambling, but Im phyched right now. Heres the proof:
A couple of friends came with us today...got to the pier about 9:15am. We wanted to make sure our friends got on some fish so we went to our usual spot near the end Gulf side to do some snapper fishing. Rip and Knotty set up shop right by us for a while while Rip looked for some jumpers. Within the first 15-20 minutes our friends caught some fish, so mission accomplished there. We got lots of short red and gag grouper from 4" to about 15", some Mangos (3 keepers), a short black sea bass, and a 15" seatrout (all on cut greenbacks and threadfins). After that, the bite slowed, and our friends left about 2pm.
Fast forward to about 6:30pm, and after a few short grouper in a few long hours, me and the GF decide to try another spot before we leave....at the new spot, she hooks a monster Cobia. As she gets it close, it starts thrashing on top of the water and putting up a heck of a fight. I get the pier net down and the fish dives down towards a piling and breaks her off about 3 feet from the net.
It was 3+ feet long easily, so that sucked to lose him. So I figure Id try dead threads as well. Maybe 2 minutes after I cast, rod bends....a minute or so later, Im putting my first ever keeper gag in the cooler, measuring in right at 22". The sting from losing the cobe was instantly gone. So I re-rig and send another out. The gf heads to the bathroom and right when shes out of earshot her rod bends. I reel in.....guess what....keeper gag #2
. This ones 22 and a half. I couldnt believe it. Few minutes later got a 21 and a half incher, so back in he went. Yet another big one rocked me up before the bite slowed and we left.So it was gags gone wild from 7 to 8pm today. The last hour of fishing more than made up for an otherwise mediocre day.
Before we left we saw a guy to our left get a keeper gag and another guy on our right land a small blacktip.
Sorry for rambling, but Im phyched right now. Heres the proof:
And thanks Knotty for the quick ID on the trout. That kid knows his stuff. 
