Sound report. How to catch a trophy red fish in the sound!

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1 Captain Judy Helmey Kicking Fish Tail Sine 1956! 124 Palmetto Drive Savannah, Georgia or fax March 24, 2015 Saltwater Inshore, Offshore, Blue Water fishing reports, Freshies Suggestions, and Little Miss Judy s Believe It or Not story! Thanks for Reading! Fishing statement: To try to insure that fishing stays in the hearts that love it and to help the ones that are going too Inshore Report Inshore light tackle bite has been light! We have not been setting the world on fire with large catches of inshore red fish, spotted sea trout, or flounder. About the only fish that seemed to braving the springing tides was the old whiting. I would like to report that some of these fish have been a little on the large side. (Sometimes referred to as bull whiting) Not only did we have raging currents we had tons of floating marsh grass involved in the mix. While bottom fishing in the sound I landed more stick fish than the real thing. And if I had kept the stuff, dried it, and made baskets with it I could have made quite a few dozens of all assorted sizes! If you happen to catch the one hour between tides change this might have been the only time that your chances for catching a fish exactly prevailed! The best news is there is always opportunity to do better next week! Sound report How to catch a trophy red fish in the sound! When we go fishing in the sound, especially during this time of the year, plain old bottom fishing comes to mind. With water temperature on the cold side you really don t know what you might catch. It can be anything from a whiting to a cold water shark to a big trophy red fish. It is truly amazing just how big these reds do get. Just thinking about them making way though the rivers and sounds it almost not believable, but it happens almost every year. When the water temperature is less than 60 degrees the sharks and smaller fish bites is at its minimal stage. With

2 this being a said, your bait can stay on the bottom for longer periods of time without being picked to death by crabs, smaller fish, and sharks of all sizes. The gives the old red fish time to smell and then find your bait offering. The absolute best bait for trophy red fish is fresh whiting. It is simple bait for sure. All you do is cut the head of the whiting while leaving about 1 inch of meat attached. Here s why this bait is so good especially to a red fish. A fish head holds lots of inviting smells and as the water flows through it these aromas are carried with the current. Then bottom currents push down the scent causing it to travel in its own little special layer in the water column. That layer of water would be right at the bottom level. Red fish are basically bottom feeders that root as they go. Once a fish picks up interesting scent they swim towards it. The closer they get to the source of the smell the stronger it gets. At ground zero (the whiting head) the red fish is going to want to eat for sure! This is a whiting head that I have put on a hook, which is my favorite trophy red fish bait while fishing in the sound! Artificial Reef Report March 15, 2015 Sunday

3 Believe me when I say, It was a family bottom fishing affair! Buffington Family Catching Affair! Here s how the catching and keeping went. While bottom fishing at the artificial reef L the group caught their limit of nice size black fish. Then we decided to give offshore trophy red fish fishing a try! We jigged three assorted jigs at a time, had a few hit, and misses. As if clockwork was on our side the bite began. Front row left to right: Hannah Buffington, Alan Godwin, and Hannah s brother John Back row left to right: Shannon and Jamie Buffington (Hannah and John parents)

4 Red Fish Catching Tagging Mania Well, I have to say, This past week has been so catching interesting! And I will be so sad when it changes and of course it will! For the past few weeks I have been telling offshore customers that if they want to catch fish they would need to book at least a 6 hour offshore trip. The reason being is that the current colder water ocean temperatures has moved the black sea bass from the near shore artificial reefs to the next set, which is an additional 10 mile boat ride. The best news is that when we get there we catch lots of black sea bass, which is a lot of fun. Not only fun, but these fish are great to eat! After the fishing for black sea bass is over, which means we have caught our limit I offer yet another catching opportunity. Most customers don t think much about what I am saying, because they know it just might not happen. And I am always saying, We could try to catch a trophy red fish, tag it, and release it back to wild. And that is exactly what we have been doing!

5 Jamie Buffington and his son John are both sporting fish catching smiles. Jamie s red fish couldn t pass up the way he worked his diamond jig. This trophy red fish could not pass up the old diamond jig movement trick. It s so simple, cast out, let jig free fall to the bottom, retrieve it using you favor twitch, cast out again, let it free fall to the bottom, and repeat. Pretty Hannah Buffington is holding up a nice red fish that she caught while working a diamond jig. As you can see this red fish has been tagged and is just about to be reintroduced back into the wild! Best Baits While jigging over the wreck located at artificial reefs, located in 55 feet of water, the trophy red fish bite has been very good. Best lures to jig are diamond (with or without trailing tubes) and assortment of butterfly jigs. Another type of jig that will work is a jig head/white hair rigged with screw or paddle tail. My preferred and most used jig is designed by Captain Cefus s and made by the Whoop Ass Tackle Company. No tackle box should be without them! This

6 lure can trigger a more than serious fish hit! They work on all sorts of bottom to top water fish. How to work these baits when fishing an underwater structure Best ways to work your jig is to start up current of wreck, which means where you don t see any structure on your fish finder. Then I suggest dropping your lure all the way to the bottom and then reeling up pass the height of the structure. This means if your structure is up about 10 feet into the water column I suggest reeling up about 12 feet. Once achieving this goal I suggest working your lure by simply moving rod up and down. This action will bring your lure straight up and then when you lower your rod the lure free falls. It is a known fact, proven by me at least when fishing from the Miss Judy Too, that a red fish normally hits the lure when it is falling. I don t suggest dropping back to the bottom until after you have passed the structure. This keeps you from getting hung on the wreck. As you know jigs are expensive with some costing over $20.00 each. However, as my daddy used to say, There is no reason for crying over lost lures especially if they are catching fish! This is kind of like the other old saying, If you aren t losing tackle you aren t fishing close enough to the structure! Some fishermen while waving up and down with their lures will add a twitch or two. This is when your lure movement becomes signature only to the fisherman working the rod. I have seen this on my boat many times. Some fishermen can dial in a fish s bite pattern better than others. The secret to reaching this goal is to always be confident in regards to personal moves made! Laugh if you want, but negativity runs right down your line and ruins your chances for catching a fish! I call this old school logic!

7 Captain Kathy Brown and Alan Godwin (with the Buffington Family) He is holding his just caught, fought, landed, tagged, and released red fish. March 16, 2015 Monday Red fish catching affair Caught, fought, and tagged seven red fish!

8 Jordan Depenbrock is holding up a nice just tagged red fish. Captain Judy is happy for sure! Jordan caught, fought, tagged, and released three trophy red fish. Steve Depenbrock (holding a nice red fish) and Captain Judy are taking a look at all of the birds that are feeding on the leftovers from the down under feeding frenzy!

9 Zack Schaible is holding a 28 ½ inch red fish that he is just about to release. I am sorry to say that there was so much commotion going on that I didn t get a picture of Zack s 39 inch red fish! It was a beauty for sure! Jared Depenbrock is holding a 33 inch red fish, which was tagged and released. Captain Kathy sure is looking proud! Two nice fish catching smiles for sure!

10 Jarred Depenbrock, Jordan Depenbrock, Steve Depenbrock, and Zack Schaible Gulf Stream Report! Captain John White holding up a nice Mahi Mahi! Check out the blue water! Captain John White and his blue water fishing friends gave it a college try. While making way to the stream on Monday March 16, 2015 the group had great catching possibilities on their minds. Upon arrival everything looked good from water temperatures to prefect sea conditions. However, as all real fishermen know sometimes prefect situations don t produce a serious fish bite. This seasoned blue water fishing team knows this can happen to anyone and were willing to let us know that the bite was light! So what does Captain John s report boil down too? It is a simple answer, It s definitely time to go, because the bite is really going to turn on! Here s little about Miss Judy s Gulf Stream Trips 14 hours trips Back in the old days we proved catching fish at the stream wasn t just good in during May and June, but also all the other months. Our nineties Gulf Stream motto was, If the weather s good, let go! With that being said, Blue water catching history is repeating itself!

11 Captain Ryan Howard s 31 Sea Vee Center Console (this is a boat that was built for especially for offshore big game fishing!) Miss Judy Charters along with Captain Ryan Howard is offering a 14 hour Gulf Stream trip just like we did back in the good old days! Captain Ryan s boat is a 31 Sea Vee center console with cuddy cabin powered by a single engine diesel, which cruises at 26 knots. As you can see from the photo shown above this boat has lots of fishing maneuverability. For seating Captain Ryan is going be offering bean bags along with cushioned seats. However, when riding in a boat like this you most likely will want to do a lot of standing and watching, because you certainly don t want to miss anything. Since this boat offers a full 360 degree of ocean viewing opportunity you really never know what you might get to see! Believe me over the past years I have seen some sights from flying fish to mermaids! A little about the fishing trip Once arriving at your destination you could find yourself trolling or bottom fishing. It is all about the bite and what s best at the time of your arrival. As far as trolling you could find yourself catching Mahi Mahi (also known as dolphin) Wahoo, tuna, mako shark, and bill fish such as marlin or sailfish. When it comes to bottom fishing I can assure you that you really never know what you might catch when you drop to the bottom. The reason being is there are so many different kinds of species swimming on the bottom at 150 plus feet of water that

12 sometimes we even have to get out the fish identification book. You can choose which type of fishing that you prefer. We are prepared to change up at any time. The trolling as well as the bottom fishing is very good in this area, but I guarantee you this, if one type of fishing doesn t produce Captain Ryan will switch it up! Cost $2, (15% tip included for first mate) the only extra cost would be for fish cleaning. Departure times: All Gulf Stream trips depart around 6:00 AM and should around return 8:00 PM. Now if you want to return earlier we certainly can! What we furnish and what you need to bring: As always our boats provide bait, tackle, (rods and reels) ice for fish, and fishing licenses. As you can see there is not much cover/shade on this boat so therefore I suggest bringing hats, sunglasses, foul weather gear, and sunscreen. As far as your drinks and food I suggest packing it in 120 quart coolers or two 60 quart coolers. As with all of our trips fishing cleaning is extra and runs about $.40 cents per pound. As the Propeller Turns Captain Buddy shows you how to operate your boat and Miss Judy Charters shows you how to catch fish! A winning combination! If you want to get your best chance at learning serious and safe boating skills, this is a great place to start! Give Captain Buddy Lee a call! It s time to wet a line. Bill Vanderford is Lake Lanier s Legend! Lake Lanier Fishing Secrets Revealed [Kindle Edition] Bill Vanderford (Author, Photographer) If you want to go, it s time to make your spring time plans! For more about my long time friend Bill Vanderford as well as his accomplishments, his freshwater charter trips or wildlife tours, books written and his special line up of tackle offered, please visit his site for all the details! For more details go

13 Little Miss Judy Believe It or Not! Well, this is me, Captain Judy, making ready my father s boat Miss Jerry so that he could head out to sea. Let s see what story does this picture bring to mind first? Firstly, I wish the picture has been taken in color. The reason being is my father boat was painted the color of no passing lane yellow! It was painted with that particular paint, because my father was given this gift by the highway department. According to this tale, the paint was out of date, at least this was his story, and they were going to throw it away so my father graciously took it off of their hands. Once he got the 50 gallons of no highway passing lane yellow lots of things got painted this color. Just to name a few, his rod/reels, his boat, his coolers, and if his dog Judy happen around her too! He tried to paint my boat yellow however, I refused oh so vocally! See the grapple anchor on the bow? Well, this was made from old car parts and this is where I got my idea about my anchor that I use when going Sheepshead fishing. It was my father s signature anchor, which worked like charm. The bow rails were made from galvanized pipe, which we screwed together our selves. It might look like it was an easy job, but believe me it was not. To the right of my head is my father s siren that he had either gotten off a wrecked police car or ambulance. If you happened to be sitting on the bow when he blew this thing, it was would cause deafness for a few minutes. The raft on top of the boat was

14 emergency orange. I quite often would climb up there and sit in the raft. It has netting in the middle, which I assumed that when in the water it would keep you from falling through. Well, I couldn t have been more wrong about that. The net in the middle was made only to hold supplies and the people while in the water were to hold on to the ropes that lined the outside of the raft. I counted the loops one day and found out that supposedly 12 people could hang on to the raft so as to keep from drowning. I just always assumed that we all would get in the middle of the raft and boy was I wrong! Once I found this out I basically stayed away from it and hopes we never had to use it. On the starboard side of the boat is a fiberglass marine antenna, which has black markings on it. Well, those black markings are electrical tape, which is basically holding the antenna together. And how do I know this? Well, there was this bolt of lightning that somewhat hit it and kind of split it! My father, after the smoke cleared, got out the roll of black tape, wrapped a few times, and we were off once again without a care in the world. Thanks for reading! Captain Judy