Captain’s Corner: Dave Zalewski

Captain’s Corner for March 29  Dave Zalewski  460-9893

Spanish mackerel and their much larger cousins king mackerel along with bonita and some blackfin tuna have invaded our coastline and can be targeted in several different ways. The most common is by trolling spoons or plugs behind a boat moving at about 5.5 knots. This speed enables the artificial lure to wobble and flash which simulates a baitfish in distress. Trolling at a faster speed diminishes the action of the hardware. Spoons and plugs come in many sizes and selection of the proper size is critical to putting fish in the box. Small 00,0 or #1 sizes are generally used to catch Spanish mackerel, while the larger spoons and plugs are used to target the kingfish and tuna. Observing bait size in the water may help in determining what size lure to use. If the bait appears to be small such as glass minnows or juvenile white bait it is best to start small because even the larger fish will be feeding on the small bait and a large offering will seem out of place.

Various live baits can be used with the most commonly used being white baits for Spanish mackerel and Spanish sardines and hardtails for the larger kingfish, although both species are opportunistic feeders and will devour what is available. Live baits can be nose hooked and slow trolled at as slow of a speed as the boat will go. Often it is necessary to bump the engine in and out of gear to maintain a slow enough speed. Anchoring the boat and deploying several baits along with chumming slivers of cut sardine will draw the fish to you and often results in multiple hookups. When using live bait the use of a light wire leader is necessary to prevent cut offs from these toothy predators. An often over looked live bait is a shrimp freelined in the chum slick. Both Spanish and king mackerel find it hard to resist this offering.