Volume 8, Issue 12

Page 7

(Continued from page 5)

 

Inside Jupiter Inlet on Sunday, Eric Ellison caught finger mullet in his cast net, put one on a hook and set the rod down. When he looked away, the rod was snatched out of his boat by a mullet-munching fish.

 

Then Ellison and his 8-year-old son, Marlin, hooked something on another rod and fought it for 30 minutes on 10-pound-test line. It turned out that they'd hooked the line of the first rod. The Ellisons recovered the missing rod and caught the fish that pulled it out of the boat. Their snook measured 43 inches and weighed 35 pounds.

Juno Beach Pier anglers have been catching bluefish, Spanish mackerel and snook along with a few kingfish and redfish as schools of mullet and sardines move around the pier.

 

At Boynton Inlet, jetty anglers fished around small schools of mullet and sardines Monday. Boynton Inlet regular Hank Kertzman and others were cutting the sardines in half and using them to catch mangrove snapper. A frigate bird soared over the inlet, an indicator of bait fish in the waters below.

 

"This is the best," Dan Naples said as he stood against the jetty railing, watching snook following schools of sardines into shallow water near the sand-transfer plant at Boynton Inlet.

 

Bob Spickler of Perk's Bait & Tackle in Lantana thinks this is just the beginning of the fall mullet run.

"They're just starting," Spickler said. "They're real good when you can walk across the inlet on them."

 

Fall surf fishing

 

How to fish: Methods of fishing the mullet run vary from live-bait fishing with heavy rods to light-tackle fishing with plugs and spoons. When fishing with a live mullet, try using a weight to pull it down below the school or hook it through the tail. Cast to the edge of a mullet school or near structure where fish might be holding. Live mullet on circle hooks can be used to catch tarpon feeding on mullet in the surf. Snook have been hitting live mullet and plugs fished around mullet schools at inlets, bridges and sea walls, often at night.

 

Dead bait: Cut chunks or strips of mullet or sardines will catch bluefish, jacks and other fish in the surf. Try fishing dead bait with double 4/0 hooks and a 1-ounce sinker above the swivel.

 

Mullet limits: The daily bag limit is 50 mullet per person. A per-boat limit of 50 mullet applies from Sept. 1 to Jan. 31.

 

Safety: Look back to avoid bystanders before casting from piers, jetties and beaches. Wear hats and sunglasses to protect your eyes from hooks. When fishing from the beach, stay clear of swimmers and surfers. Fish outside guarded swimming areas.

 

What to bring: Money for parking (quarters are handy), rods, spoons, plugs, bait-fishing rigs, spare leader, a measuring device, long-nosed pliers for removing hooks, sand spikes for holding rods and a backpack to carry the gear.

 

Anglers planning to use finger mullet, sardines or other natural baits need a cast net and a 5-gallon bucket with an aerator. Those who plan to take home fish need a cooler with ice.

 

(Continued on page 8)