February 5, 2009, 9:50 pm
Capt'nTom
The second half of January saw some good fishing on Pier 60. As long as the wind was not howling right before the arrival of the cold fronts, or during some of the torrential rains we had in the past week or so, fishermen were able to do well after sundown. Lots of good-sized Whiting were caught on cut squid, and many nights saw up to 35 fish per angler. Most of the Whiting were over 12 inches in length, and a few nights the fish averaged 16 inches, with a couple of fish measuring 18 inches!
There were also a fair number of Sand Seatrout and Spotted Seatrout taken at night on live shrimp. Small Silver Trout were also caught on cut bait.
Anglers armed with small hooks and cut shrimp or small crabs were able to catch quite a few Sheepshead, but not as many or as large as a few weeks ago.
Small Blacktip Sharks have shown up in the past few days, and a 3-foot Lemon Shark was caught and released.
Good Luck Fishing!
January 18, 2009, 9:36 am
Pier 60 Fishing Area
The New Year started off with a bang at Pier 60!
Abundant sunshine and warm temperatures brought the water temperature up into the low 70’s, insuring a variety of species caught in the first two weeks of 2009.
During the daytime, Spanish Mackerel have been thick at times, with multiple hook-ups on large sabiki rigs. Mackerels ranged in size from 8 inches on up to keepers at 14 or so inches.
Live shrimp fished under a bobber also work, but the hordes of small Pinfish become a nuisance to having any success with whole shrimp during the days.
Sheepshead fishing has also been respectable, with nice fish up to 5 pounds landed on cut fresh shrimp, free-lined on a small stout hook. Small crabs work great too, if you know where to get them.
There have been a few Spotted Seatrout caught during the day, but the best action has been well after dark. Along with 15-inch and above fish, a few Trout over 20 inches have been caught. Remember, the current rules allow you to keep 4 Spotted Seatrout, minimum 15 inches, with only one fish above 20 inches allowed per fisherman.
Silver Trout and Sand Seatrout have been abundant, with catches of foot-long Sand Seatrout most impressive.
