Last week - Billfish near da Beach!

[Plan B]

Well last wednesday night my buddy Rob of Coastal Fish Charters had the "day off" & asked me if I could take off thursday to fish with him (the dude's dedicated), to hopefully head offshore (nearshore reefs)... "Hell yeah"

After an extended effort to net live bait, we headed east to public 9 mile #s and started to put lines out when ZZZZZZZZZZ. "FISH ON!"

1st Pogy in the water gets hammered and after a hook up, the fish goes airborne behind the boat....... "SAIL!" A sailfish starts tailwalkin behind the boat. After a battle a some yelling at other boats My buddy brought her boatside, I grabbed the leader and gave it a "Palm Beach Release" and it swam off, hopefully to make babies and do battle again in the future.

After some HI-fives and the excitement of landing a billfish within sight of the beach waned, we went back to business and proceeded to boat our 3 person limit of 6 Kingfish with a quickness. Broke off two nice fish that were most likely free swimming cobes based on their behavior.

Anyway, it was a good day... here's a shot & some poor video frame grabs from the event (In reverse order?)

too bad it's a bit out of paddle range with my kayak

[guanagator]

Awesome.

[jmdesignz2]

Onshore winds have pushed pogies right up to the beach

[gumby]

WOW!!!

[Ring King]

A buddy of mine landed a 60lb wahoo at 9 mile this morning while kingfishing! Lots of goodies out there in the ocean and none of them really know the rules! LOL

[Plan B]

A buddy of mine landed a 60lb wahoo at 9 mile this morning while kingfishing! Lots of goodies out there in the ocean and none of them really know the rules! LOL

D@MN!!! I had to turn down another invite today due to work......

Ha. This time of year for a brief period, the ocean temp is in that "ideal" pelagic range from here to the ledge..... they're coming in looking for easy prey, as the E winds blow in some of that nice water.

A boat near us caught a gaffer dolphin the day we caught that sail.

[StarzOfChaos]

That's pretty good that they come in this close. I've alway been told that you have to head out to the gulfstream to get the pelagics. Maybe when I get my boat ready, ill start looking for them next year.

[jmdesignz2]

Kingfish have been caught at the jax beach pier every now and then.

I am almost certain I hooked one late fall a few years ago

Whatever it was took off like freight train pulling 14lb line off my abu 6500 like it was nothing. It hit a live bait on wire leader.

Same drag setting I was pulling in 30+ inch reds in the surf was melting off like butter on a hot tin roof. I've caught 4ft+ sharks, 30lb Jacks and a near 5 ft cuda from the beach and none of those have pulled this hard and fast. It was frightening.

I put my thumb on the spool to increase the drag and immediately was truly burned as if I had laid it on a hot frying pan.

About to be spooled, I turned up the drag a bit and POW the line exploded - lost the fish.
But I don't think I had a chance anyway...

This year - I am ready. I've got a Squall loaded up with 50LB braid. Spheros 8000SW loaded with 30lb too.

With the strange winds, the pogies have gone from the beach. I still see birds working the breakers here and there so they're out there.

[StarzOfChaos]

I've been told the best time to get kingfish is when the bait fish is pushed up against the beach, normally around July - August timeframe. How true that is, I dunno. Not at the beach too often to see whats going on.

[jmdesignz2]

Was just surf fishing the beach last night. Conditions were nearly ideal with a slight onshore wind and nearly flat conditions.
The water had cleared up nicely.

Caught several bluefish on a top water pencil plug.

[jmdesignz2]

PS- when I released one bluefish at the shoreline it spooked several baitfish out of the water that appeared to be small pogies.
That only happened once so there was not a mass number right on the beach but they are around. Also sighted dolphin at dusk and a sea turtle.

[Plan B]

I've been told the best time to get kingfish is when the bait fish is pushed up against the beach, normally around July - August timeframe. How true that is, I dunno. Not at the beach too often to see whats going on.

That is correct. The big "SMOKER" kings move in close to the beach during the dog days of summer

Rt now mostly smaller "snakes" are on the wrecks and live bottom areas...... but there are bigger pelagics waiting to pick those guys off.

My buddy Rob (Coastal Fish Charters) put his customers on another NICE Sailfish yesterday (considerable bigger than the one we got last week), and they missed one other..... Also a nearby boat got a stud of a wahoo. never heard of it this wide open this close in.

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