Fished the Capt Stacy yesterday for the first time. I had only been on a headboat once before in Florida, so I didnt really know what to expect. Along with me were my buddy and his wife and another friend. I had posted a few threads looking for advice last year and followed everything that was said. Got to the dock at 330am hoping for a spot on the back. At 330 there were already 9 people in front of me. We boarded and took off a few hours later with 76 fishermen on board.
Our first couple stops produced scup, trigger fish and silver snapper for us. As the day went on we also caught beeliners, american snapper, grunts, black sea bass, scamp and gag grouper and some other smaller things I cant remember. Other people also caught the same as above plus several amberjack were landed and an albacore.
Highlights of the day were the grouper I caught, being they were on my "to catch" list since getting the NC and this being my last summer here. I took home a scamp grouper and a gag, both just over the minimum size. My buddy also got a huge sea bass. Ended up measuring barely under 23". I also was reeling up something small at one point and got it halfway up when the fish was smashed and my rod double over. I fought it for a few minutes where it took several runs, but eventually it ended up under the boat and I was caught up on other peoples rigs. Wish I could have at least seen what it was because it sure did have some power.
Lessons learned from this were;
1- I will never go again during a holiday or a weekend trip. With 76 people on board, you would spend more time tangled with others than with your bait on the bottom. While I'm sure the owners of the boat are thrilled with the money they are making, most everyone agreed that there is no way that many people should be fishing that close together. It is what it is though, and I guess if I want less people Ill have to pony up at least double the money for a private charter.
2- Their rods, reels and rigs, while usable, are not user friendly. It took 3 rod combos for my buddy's wife before she got a working one. The rigs were fine if you wanted to catch the smaller fish, but before we even stopped the first time, I took their hooks off and put on my own 4/0 circle hooks. My catch rate was better than the rest of our group so between stops I switched out everyone's in our group. Eventually I got tired of using their rods and not feeling anything. I had brought a smaller spinning rod with me in case dolphin came by. It was a 6'6" rod rated to 4 ounces with a Penn 750 that had a 100 yard top shot of 30 pound mono and then 300 yards of braid. I tied up a double hook bottom rig with 50 pound leader material and used that the rest of the day. 12 ounces was too much for the rod, but it handled anything I caught that day just fine, minus the one crazy run. I will bring a heavier rod when I go back though. I recommend not using theirs if at all possible.
3- Cigar minnows were a day saver. I had brought them to light line out the back with, but not getting a spot there meant that they sat in the cooler. After a while I put on a 9/0 circle and hooked a whole cigar minnow by the tail and dropped it down. Immediately I pulled up a grouper. I started doing that with one of the hooks for the rest of the day and hooked several times into nice fish.
I had a great time at least, was sore by the end of the day and had some fish to take home for dinner. I think next time Ill do a private charter though so I can cross a few more species off my list with less people to fish around. Overall it was a way better day than if I had just stayed home and mowed the lawn.
Our first couple stops produced scup, trigger fish and silver snapper for us. As the day went on we also caught beeliners, american snapper, grunts, black sea bass, scamp and gag grouper and some other smaller things I cant remember. Other people also caught the same as above plus several amberjack were landed and an albacore.
Highlights of the day were the grouper I caught, being they were on my "to catch" list since getting the NC and this being my last summer here. I took home a scamp grouper and a gag, both just over the minimum size. My buddy also got a huge sea bass. Ended up measuring barely under 23". I also was reeling up something small at one point and got it halfway up when the fish was smashed and my rod double over. I fought it for a few minutes where it took several runs, but eventually it ended up under the boat and I was caught up on other peoples rigs. Wish I could have at least seen what it was because it sure did have some power.
Lessons learned from this were;
1- I will never go again during a holiday or a weekend trip. With 76 people on board, you would spend more time tangled with others than with your bait on the bottom. While I'm sure the owners of the boat are thrilled with the money they are making, most everyone agreed that there is no way that many people should be fishing that close together. It is what it is though, and I guess if I want less people Ill have to pony up at least double the money for a private charter.
2- Their rods, reels and rigs, while usable, are not user friendly. It took 3 rod combos for my buddy's wife before she got a working one. The rigs were fine if you wanted to catch the smaller fish, but before we even stopped the first time, I took their hooks off and put on my own 4/0 circle hooks. My catch rate was better than the rest of our group so between stops I switched out everyone's in our group. Eventually I got tired of using their rods and not feeling anything. I had brought a smaller spinning rod with me in case dolphin came by. It was a 6'6" rod rated to 4 ounces with a Penn 750 that had a 100 yard top shot of 30 pound mono and then 300 yards of braid. I tied up a double hook bottom rig with 50 pound leader material and used that the rest of the day. 12 ounces was too much for the rod, but it handled anything I caught that day just fine, minus the one crazy run. I will bring a heavier rod when I go back though. I recommend not using theirs if at all possible.
3- Cigar minnows were a day saver. I had brought them to light line out the back with, but not getting a spot there meant that they sat in the cooler. After a while I put on a 9/0 circle and hooked a whole cigar minnow by the tail and dropped it down. Immediately I pulled up a grouper. I started doing that with one of the hooks for the rest of the day and hooked several times into nice fish.
I had a great time at least, was sore by the end of the day and had some fish to take home for dinner. I think next time Ill do a private charter though so I can cross a few more species off my list with less people to fish around. Overall it was a way better day than if I had just stayed home and mowed the lawn.
