Memorial Day weekend brought some great fishing opportunities. I caught tons of grouper and snapper at the Merry Pier on Saturday and Sunday. But the real fun was on Monday, when I was joined by Cap’t. Dick and three of his friends for an extended day trip offshore on the Getaway.

We were all a bit hung over, and the seas were unforgiving in the morning. After a couple of quick bait stops, we had a bumpy run in 2-4 footers out to 105′ due west of the Don Cesar. First up on the agenda- amberjack! As soon as the engines were cut, and a handful of greenbacks thrown out, the reef donkeys appeared in force. A freelined live bait was taked immediately, and the fight was on. We quickly boxed our limit of 5 fish, up to about 35 pounds. My arms still ache.

Next up – grouper and snapper. We made a few drifts, and a few anchor sets. There was a nice show of fish at each stop, but the bite was a bit slow. No problem- we still managed plenty. Using a variety of baits including cigar minnows, pinfish, lizard fish and whitebait, as well as frozen sardines, we managed 2 keeper reds, 3 nice gags, 4 large mangrove snapper and a giant lane snapper.

As always, the Captain and crew on the Getaway were fantastic, working hard to make sure everybody had a great time and caught plenty of fish. The boat performed flawlessly in some fairly demanding conditions. And the weather was perfect, except for that pesky 15-20 knot East wind.

So, tonight it’s grilled amberjack, and tomorrow fresh grouper fillets. Thursday will be a snapper dinner, then anything left (and there will be plenty left) will be vacumn sealed for the deep freeze.

And, just so eveybody knows that not ALL of the big grouper are offshore… here’s a 23″ gag that was caught Sunday morning on the Merry Pier, using frozen sardines:

In typical May style, the Merry Pier in St. Peterburg is loaded with grouper and mangrove snapper. And they’re highly cooperative. Fishing on Saturday, I managed a limit of snapper, and threw back over a dozen. Gag grouper, ranging from a foot up to 19″, were mixed in. They were hitting live, tail hooked shrimp, small pinfish and mud minnows.

Sunday was more of the same, and I stopped counting after 30 fish. I got slammed a couple of times, but the big grouper made short work of my 20 pound test spiderwire. Interesting, for the third week in a row, I caught ‘the’ tagged grouper again. Same spot, same time, same bait, same technique- and the same fish. I also saw a tagged snapper caught- but the tag was half missing. Poor thing had probably been mobbed by the rest of the school, and they chewed the tag off.

There was a giant sheepshead prowling the pilings, but I couldn’t tempt him into biting. Tarpon continue to roll in the mornings, and there are lots of jacks around- but surprisingly few macks, for some reason. I landed a couple of huge filefish- maybe next time I’ll remember to snap a picture.

Sunday evening’s fish fry consisted of beer battered grouper fillets, and blackeded redfish. I’m cleaning out the freezer, now that the snapper are back in force!

As the water continues to heat up, so does the fishing. I spent a few hours both Saturday and Sunday hanging out at the Merry Pier in St. Pete Beach. Live shrimp was the bait of choice. The technique- tail hook a medium shrimp on a #2 Owner hook with a foot of 30″ flourocarbon leader and a 1/4 ounce weight, and drop down next to the pilings of the Pier. And I mean RIGHT next to the pilings- a foot or two away, and you’d get no action.

The bite consisted almost entirely of gag grouper and mangrove snapper (no snook around, although I did pull in a 20″ filefish). The snapper bite was the typical tap-tap-tap, while the grouper would announce their presence with a heavy ‘thud’. My friend Tim ventured down from Tampa on Sunday, and we probably caught 50+ fish between the two of us. The grouper ran to around 19″ (no keepers- yet), and the snapper were in the 8-12″ range. Plenty of keepers mixed in with the smaller fish. Pictured above was a fat 16″ mangrove snapper that I caught on Saturday.

Tarpon were rolling, although individually and not in schools. Lots of Mac’s were popping the clouds of glass minnows that hung by the dock, but they seemed oblivious to a freelined shrimp. Odd. A manatee family grazed by the pilings north of the pier. I had a report of a ‘true black’ grouper caught on the dock last week- very unusual for inshore, and much rarer than the occassional red grouper that I pull in. There were a few Jack Cravelle caught, but no big schools showing yet. Won’t be long, though…

It’s a great time of the year to be a Florida fisherman! The weather is fantastic, the water is clear, and the fish are biting. Fishing this weekend in St. Petes Beach, I caught, hooked, or saw just about everything that swims. How’s this list:

-Grouper
-Mangrove Snapper
-Lane Snapper
-Snook
-Sheepshead
-Spanish Mackerel
-Sailor’s Delight
-Atlantic Spadefish
-Ladyfish
-Jack Crevalle
-And the usual trash fish

I caught my first tagged fish ever- a 12″ gag grouper. Tarpon were rolling within 30 feet of Merry Pier. I had a few ‘freight train’ hits that must remain unidentified. Yes, it’s a great time of the year…

On a different note… my company is participating in the American Cancer Society Relay for Life on May 16. This 18 hour event raises funds for cancer education, treatment and prevention programs, and is a VERY worthy cause. This marks the third year that we have participated. If you’re reading this, I would invite you to come to the event (Stetson University, Gulfport Florida) or make an online donation. Any help is greatly appreciated. Here’s a link: http://main.acsevents.org/site/[…]team&fr_id=4974

So, I had a big hunk of grouper to cook this weekend. Cap’t. Dick provided an outstanding recipe. In a large aluminum pan, add 2 cups of chicken broth. Place grouper fillets in broth, and season with Everglades seasoning. Cover the fillets with sliced onions, green peppers, tomatoes and mushrooms. Cover with aluminum foil, and place on the grill at medium heat for about 45 minutes. Enjoy!