May 11
Today we had the boys from Toronto Canada out for a morning of deep sea fishing. We had Denis, Claudio, Magnus, Patrick, Tom and Salim.
We started out trolling the reef with two planners down about 45 feet and three top baits skipping across the surface. We ended up catching a box full of king fish and a nice dolphin got away at the boat (RATS)
Now it was time to go for the big one so we sent out both kites with 3 live baits suspended from them along with two deep baits. One was a dead kingfish down about 150 deep and last but not least a dead kingfish on the bottom about 350 feet down. It took a bit of waiting but at last our deep line started peeling off line and we were Hooked Up.
It took a good 25 minutes to finally get this SEA MONSTER to the boat. It turned out to big a nice bull shark.
Way to go guys and thanks again for a fun morning on the rip.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344
May 13
Today we were fishing with a bunch of guys from Dallas Texas. We had Steve, Frank, Guy, Enrique, Glen and one more Steve.
We started out trolling the reef with our 2 deep lines and 3 lines on top and the fishing was good. We caught the kingfish well and it seemed we got our limit of kings in no time along with a couple of bonitos.
Than we set out our kites hopping to hook into a sailfish. We sent out both kites and suspended our live goggle eyes from them. We finally got a sailfish to come up and look at one of the live baits but sorry to say this fish was not buying it and swam off. All in all we had great time fishing and guys I guess you'll just have to come again to get your sailfish.
Thanks again guys and we are looking forward to fishing you guys again next year.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344
May 14
Today we started out fishing with Robert, Hector, Tamar, and Antler from parts unknown.
We started out trolling the reef looking to get a few fish in the box before we went looking for the BIG ONE. We had no idea that trolling was going to be as good as it was. We could not even get all the lines in the water at one time We ended up catching a box full of kingfish and bonitos and even caught a couple of big barracudas trolling.
Now that everyone had caught plenty of fish we decided to devote the last hour of the trip to seeing if we could get a big one to bite. So we set out both kites with 3 live baits suspended from them and one dead king fish also suspended from the kite along with another kingfish down about 150 and last but not least one more dead kingfish down on the bottom about 350 down.
We really did not have a lot of time left on this trip but as it turned out we did not need a lot of time. It seemed just minutes after setting out all the baits our deep rod bent over and line was peeling off the reel.
This was no little kingfish this thing was peeling line off and this was going to be a team effort to catch this one. Everyone pitched in and in about 25 minutes we got this nice hammer head shark to the side of the boat. We did manage to get 2 out of the 3 hooks out of him and watched him swim away in great shape.
Way to go guys but now we got to get back to the dock for our afternoon trip.
Now our afternoon trip was supposed to be a late afternoon trip till it got dark and then we were going to fish for sword fish all night. However due to the seas we knew that it was just too rough to fish for swords all night.
Once Shane, Trace Megan, Will, Shannon and Matt all got to the boat we talked about the fishing and what we all thought would be the best fish to target. As it turned out they had all flown down from Atlanta Georgia for Shannon's birthday and these guys all had BIG FISH on their mind.
So we went right to it. We set out both kite with 3 live baits suspended from them along with the token dead kingfish also suspended from the kite. We also sent down 2 dead kings one down about 150 and the last on the bottom 350 feet down.
Now the trap was set and the beers were flowing down very smoothly for the gang but what the heck this was a birthday party. It wasn't long before we got our first bite out of the kite a nice dolphin fish. Than we got the bite we were waiting for. Our deep rod bent over and line was peeling off the reel as if it was never going to stop till we ran out of line. But after a few minutes it did finally slow down and the big back and forth tug of war was on. Trace jumped in the chair and was giving it his all. He was doing a good job but I'm sorry to say that after about 25 minutes of fighting his fish the hooks pulled out and this one got away. (RATS)
Ok time to keep our chins up and just go right back to it. And that was just what we did we set our kites right back out there and sent down our dead baits and once again the trap was set.
This time it seemed that the wait was long and we were all a little set back by the one that got away. But soon enough our deep line bent over again and YES we were HOOKED UP.
At first everyone was getting their turn on the rod but it was Trace that really wanted to get his revenge after losing the fish earlier in the trip. There was no way he was giving up and he was going to fight this one till either he gave up or the fish gave up. And to make matter worse we got a bite on one of our kite baits and we now had a MONSTER fish on the big rod and a big dolphin fish on the other rod. We finally got the dolphin fish in the boat and out of the way and now we could try to get this Monster in the boat for a quick photo and a measurement. Finally we got him to the side of the boat slide him threw the tuna door got a couple of quick measurement and slid him right back out the door.
Way to go guys.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344
May 15
Today we started out our day fishing with Derek, Greg, Sam, Roman, James and Brandon. We once again started out trolling the reef to get a few fish in the box before going for the big one. But once again the reef was full of all kinds of fish biting so we ended up trolling the reef longer than we expected to but it worked out well for us we ended up catching a box full of king fish an bonitos.
Then we went to live bait fishing with our kites and this also proved to be working very well for us today we ended up catching four nice dolphin fish and at last the fish we were looking for a nice big sail fish.
What a great morning of fishing and we still got another trip to take out this afternoon.
We got back to the dock and picked up Chris, Barry, Arian and Eric from Boston and from North Carolina. Once again if it ant broken don't fix it. We trolled the reef and caught some king fish and bonitos and went right to kite fishing and once again caught a sail fish. Man o Man when you're on a roll I guess just roll with it.
Thanks to all of our anglers today and I sure hope tomorrow is half this good.
Guys fishing has just been great so give us a call and let's get you Hooked Up.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free at (877) SEA-4344
May 16
Today we took out Ken, Kerry, Jessie and Todd all from New Jersey and as we did the day before we started out trolling the reef and yes once again it paid off for us with a box full of king fish and bonitos. Then once again we set out our kites with live baits suspended from them and now the trap was set and all we needed were some big game fish to come around and eat our baits.
It did not take long till we got our first strike and it turned out to be a nice dolphin fish. Right after we got the dolphin in the boat here comes a big sail fish and he was all over our right long kite bait. Ken jumped in the chair and the fight was on. It took Ken about 15 min to finally get his catch to the boat and we were on the board with some real nice fish. Now I've got to take a second to say that Todd was not feeling very well in fact he was feeling downright shitty and under most conditions I'm sure that all the guys would have been ok with calling it a day a bit early but today the fish were biting and sorry to say for Todd that there would be no coming in early today.
And good thing because before we knew it here comes along another big sail fish and this time Kerry jumped in the chair. It also took him a good 15 min to get his fish to the boat and right after that here comes another nice dolphin fish. They just kept coming one after another what a great day of fishing for everyone except well you know who.
When it was all done for this fishing trip we had a box full of king fish and bonitos and dolphin fish and a couple of big sailfish top boot.
Guys thanks soo much for a fun day of deep sea fishing today.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 17
Today we got a call at the last min from a Denise who was down from Longmeadow Mass visiting her son Brent and his soon to be wife Brianne who both live down here in Sunny South Florida or should I say what supposed to be Sunny South Florida is. Today was not such a sunny day down here in fact after we got out there the weather got downright nasty. We ran down to the south off the coast of Holly Wood Florida and set out both our kites with live baits suspended from them and now we just needed a big game fish to swim up and eat one of these live baits. After fighting with our kites a bit due to the rain and wind we finally got a big sail fish to bite. Brianne wasted no time jumping in the chair and the fight was on. It was a back and forth tug a war for a good 20 min till Brianne finally got her big catch to the boat. We got a quick measurement and a couple of quick photos to have a replica mount made of her fish and watched him swim away in good shape to fight another day.
At this point the rain was coming down on us pretty good so I started running to the north to get out of the rain storm but at this point everyone had enough of the rain and we had caught a big game fish and decided to call it a day.
We may not have caught a lot on this trip but what we lacked in quantity we made up for in quality.
Nice going Brianne
Captain Taco 99540 764-4344
May 18
Today we had brothers Pete and Mike and their sister Julie down on vacation in Florida to get away from the weather in Philadelphia. They had had a full week down here they spent some time in the everglades riding airboats and seeing gators and snakes and all other stuff in the Glades then they went and spent some time in Key West but I would like to think they saved the best part of their vacation for last.
Julie was the one who had made all the reservations and she had told me that one of the other charter boats had quoted her a cheaper price but they had decided to go with me instead. Ok so now the pressure was on. I needed to produce fish so first thing we started with was trolling the reef and caught some king fish. Ok but not good enough so we set out our kites with live baits suspended from them and the catching was great today.
By the end of our trip we had caught a sail fish a Big Hammer Head shark a nice dolphin and a monster barracuda talk about catching a bit of everything.
Mike Pete and Julie thanks soo much for choosing to fish aboard the Hooked Up and I know we will be seeing you guys again next year.
If you are thinking about coming to South Florida to do a little fishing your timing could not be better hotel rates are way down air fares are down and the fish are biting so give us a call and let's get you Hooked Up
Captain Taco (9540 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 20 The one That Got Away
Today we set out on our fishing trip with a few of the guys from Horizon liner and a couple of their clients. We had John the CEO out of Dallas Texas Scott out of Jacksonville, Joe from Delray Florida, Bobby from Boca Raton Florida, Diego from Weston Florida and Sergio also from Boca Raton Florida.
So we started out trolling the reef looking for some king fish and that was just what we got and some. The kings were biting like mad dogs and we had our limit in no time. So we knew that since a lot of these guys were from down here in South Florida that they really wanted some good eating fish to take home. So off shore we went in search of the dolphin fish. When we first started trolling off shore we caught a couple of dolphin right off the bat and I thought we were going to crush them. But after a couple of hours of trolling without a bite I knew it was time for a change.
We had a well full of live goggle eyes and I figured that if we set out our kites with live baits suspended from them and a couple of big dead shark baits out it would better our odds of catching a BIG fish.
After quite a bit of waiting we finally got a bite on our deep line that was on the bottom 350 down. Joe was eager to catch and mount a big shark so he wasted no time jumping in the chair and the fight was on. I've got to say while the fish pulled hard he never really took much line off the reel and I figured it was a big reef shark of some kind.
Than the leader popped up and our mate Andrew (AKA Sheep Dog) reached out and took the lead off. Now I could see something down there but I could not figure out what it was. THEN IT POPPED UP A MAKO. All of a sudden the whole mood on the boat changed and thing got real serious real quick.
Sheep Dog ran down inside the boat and came running out with a fly gaff in his hands. Things were going so smoothly and the shark just sat there next to the boat UNTILL Sheep went to stick this big fly gaff in him. Than everything changed. The fish went nuts and took off but no big deal we still had him on and we figured we would just let him calm down a bit and then we would stick him.
(THAN THE LINE WENT SLACK.) He was gone All I can say is that is why they call it fishing and not catching. Well you could hear a pin drop on the boat but let me say no one did anything wrong remember the fish is trying to get away so let's give him a little credit for doing his part.
THE END
Sorry not all fishing stories have happy endings but that is what keeps us coming back 4 more.
Ok take a good look at this picture you can see the one that got away
I think it weighed between 175 and 200 pounds
Guys thanks again and I know we will be fishing you guys again soon.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 21
Ok today we had Milton and Steph from North Dakota Taylor and Taylor also from North Dakota and Dustin and Lauren from Huston Texas.
Once again like I said before if it ant broken don't fix it. So we started out trolling the reef with two deep lines and three on top. And once again it paid off for us. Everyone got to catch fish we ended up with a bunch of king fish and one nice dolphin fish.
Ok now that everyone has caught some fish it was time to switch up and do some kite fishing. We got all the trolling lines in and out went the kites with live baits suspended from them. We had our kites out for about 5 min when I seen a big rain storm heading right for us. So back in come the kites and we ran just a bit to the north. Now that we were a bit north of where this rain was coming back out went the kites.
I knew that we were about to get the word to head back to land because the only angler on the boat that was not sick was Taylor and I guess he had talked all the others into this fishing trip in the first place. At this point I was sure we were going back at any second when Milton lifted his head and looked at me and said well what do you think Captain are we going to catch anything with these kites?
I said well I don't know about the kites but our deep rod with a dead king fish on the other end just got bit! And having said that the rod bent over and line was screaming off the reel. Taylor who had talked everyone into this fishing trip in the first place jumped in the chair and the fight was on. Now the rain was on us and the wind started blowing a bit harder and with that and us fighting a Sea Monster the boat was starting rolling pretty bad. As I looked up to make sure both kites were staying in the sky I seen a big sailfish coming after one of our live baits.
All of a sudden Milton seemed to spring to life and jumped in the chair. Now we had our hands full. We were fighting a big sailfish a big shark and big waves all at the same time.
Somehow it all came together just like it is supposed to. The shark stayed deep and that fight was just straight up and down and now Milton's sail fish was leading up to the boat just right. As the fish got close to the boat Andrew reached out a got hold of the fish. We got a couple of quick pictures and a measurement to have a replica mount made of the fish and watched him swim away in ok shape.
Ok one down and one to go Taylor was doing a great job on his shark. Finally got his catch to the side of the boat. We did not bring him into the boat just got close so we could get a few pictures and we did manage to get 2 out of the 3 hooks out of this big bull shark's mouth and watched him swim away in great shape. NOW IT WAS OK TO GO BACK TO THE DOCK (LOL)
Guys' great job hanging in there and Taylor I think you need to take everyone out to dinner since they all lost their cookies because of your great idea to go fishing. (LOL)
Guys we are having a ball deep sea fishing down here in South Florida so give us a call and let's get you Hooked Up.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
May 22
Today we had an old customer Matt from Norway who has been fishing with me for over 15 years now and he was joined by Tom and Shane from Pittsburg for a morning of deep sea fishing off the coast of Fort Lauderdale.
We started trolling down the reef looking for some king fish or some bonitos but they just were not biting for us. So we decided to go off shore and try to find some dolphin fish. As it turned out we made the right decision. As soon as we got to about 550 feet of water all the rods got hit at the same time. We ended up catching 5 black fin tunas. What a way to start out.
As we got further off shore the action was pretty none stop. It was one dolphin after another and before we knew it we had a box full of 5 to 7 pound dolphin. A good dinner would be had by all.
Thanks again guys for a fun filled morning of deep sea fishing.
Captain Taco (9540 764-4344
May 23
Today we started out our day of fishing with Harvey and his son Jason and his nephew Steve all from parts unknown.
We started out trolling the reef with our 2 planner s down deep and 3 lines on the surface. The kings were not biting real well but we did manage to catch a few. Than we headed off shore in search of some dolphin fish.
As we headed off shore we got a real good bite on one of our planner rods. At first we thought it was a bonito but as Greg started bring in the leader we noticed that this was no bonito it was a nice Wahoo. It was a bit of a tug a war on the leader but once the fish got close enough Greg sank a gaff into him and there was no getting away at this point. Or so we thought. I'll get back to the Wahoo that got away in a min. So once we got off shore we did manage to catch one dolphin but that was it. We had heard of some of the boats way off shore had found some but we just did not have the time to get way out there at this point. Besides we had plenty of fish for them to eat. We had a 6 pound dolphin a few kings and a nice 20 pound Wahoo.
Once we got back to the dock Captain Greg was cleaning all the fish for the guys before heading out on our afternoon trip. Now we clean these fish everyday and it has become such a routine for us that we could do it with our eyes closed. However today as Greg was filleting the fish and throwing the filet to the side to be trimmed up after all of the filets were cut off the fish. But I am sorry to say that one of the Wahoo filets went right down the shot and into the water where the jacks at the dock had a great meal.
Guys sorry about that hope you still had enough to feed the rest of the gang.
This afternoon we had Kith and Michael from Marry Land and from New York spend a few hours fishing with us. This was just a 3 hour trip so we knew we would have to produce fish fast. So we went right to trolling the reef with our planners and our top baits and this time the fish were biting.
We ended up with our limit of king fish in no time and a couple of bonitos to boot.
Guys June is right around the corner and the dolphin fish are already starting to show up so give us a call and let's get you Hooked Up.
Captain Taco (954) 764-4344 or toll free (877) SEA-4344
