Fishing For Other Sea Fish

( Originally Published 1912 )

DEEP sea fishing for the gamey amberjack, bluefish, weakfish, and other denizens of the deep is exciting sport and interesting to all anglers, whether they have an opportunity to indulge in it, or whether they must be content to only read of it and live in hope, and I regret that for the purpose of this work I must confine this great branch of angling to a single chapter. I can only give brief descriptions of the fish. and tell in a few words how they are captured.

Many fine game fish are found off the Pacific coast. The tuna has already been described. There are several smaller tuna, good game fish, but a description of these cannot be given here. In the Pacific along the coast of California and southward is found the black sea bass or jewfish, an ocean monster running up to 800 pounds in weight. It resembles the black grouper of the eastern ocean, but is a finer fish. In appearance it is very much like a monster black bass. It is caught by still-fishing from an anchored boat in about fifty feet of water, tuna tackle being used. Albacore is used for bait. The fish puts up a great fight, but is not to be compared with the tuna.

The yellowtail of the Pacific is not the little fish known by that name along the Florida coast, but is a larger fish, running up to sixty or eighty pounds in weight. It is a splendid fighter. A light salt-water rod is used for them, and a nine thread linen line. Linen line is the only thing for ocean fishing as silk will not stand the salt water. The bait used is sardine, and it is taken with a rush that will surely break the tackle if allowance is not made for this. From seventy-five to one hundred yards of line is used, and the fish may be caught by trolling or still-fishing.

A fish found on the Florida west coast and the coast of the Carolinas, called the amberjack is very much like this western yellowtail. It reaches about the same weight and puts up a fight equal to that of a tarpon of the same weight, perhaps greater. A medium salt-water rod, good sized reel and 200 yards of line will be needed. Bait with small fish or use one of the salt-water spoon baits.

To tell what kind of tackle to use for each kind of fish when fishing near the Florida coast is not a practical way or rather it is not practical to give advice on tackle for this and for that fish. Down there one never knows what kind of fish he is going to catch, but as most of the ocean fish found there will run from twenty to eighty pounds in weight it is wise to use something that will handle these largest fish. All such fish as the black grouper, barracuda, amberjack, etc., are great fighters, and large reels equipped with long lines of suitable strength must be used. I will only mention what is considered good tackle for each fish and those who are thinking of going there can boil it all down strike an average, and select something just a little heavier. An outfit can be chosen that will answer for everything from the tarpon down.

The striped bass is one of the best game fishes found on the Atlantic coast and may be caught from Nova Scotia to the Gulf of Mexico. It sometimes reaches a weight of sixty pounds, but those taken in brackish water at the river mouths usually weigh only from three to ten pounds. It is found mostly along rocky shores. It is taken by surf casting all summer long, but the fishing is best in August and September. Shedder crab is used mostly for bait also eel tail and blood worms, but menhaden, shrimp, etc., will also catch them and in the South mullet is used successfully. For fishing in brackish water a regular black bass bait rod, a twisted linen line and a 2/0 Sproat hook is commonly used. A good sized reel and a long line are always safest. The striped bass is a desperate fighter.

The weakfish or squeteague is weak only in name. It is found all along the coast from the New England states to Florida. It grows to a weight of twelve pounds, but the usual weight is two or three pounds only. It is a surface feeder and is caught in the bays and channels mostly by trolling with the artificial squid and light tackle. It may also be taken by surf casting. The best fishing in channels is at flood tide or just before. Out in the open water the best fishing is at ebb tide. The best natural baits are shedder crab, killie, shrimp and worms. A linen line and 1/0 to 3/0 Sproat hooks and gut leader are the right kind of tackle. The weakfish has a soft mouth and must be played carefully. Use a landing net to get the fish into the boat. Perhaps the most successful way of taking them is by casting from an anchored boat, keeping the bait constantly in motion, as rowing is likely to frighten the fish. They are also taken by casting tin or bone squids with a hand line. They sometimes take the artificial fly. In the South a variety of this fish is called the sea-trout or spotted weakfish.

Channel bass or red drum are found from New York southward along the coast to Texas. It reaches a weight of seventy pounds, though the usual weight is from twenty to forty. It is abundant about the. Carolinas and Georgia. It is taken by surf casting and by deep fishing. Light or medium salt-water rods, medium linen line and 4/0 hook is about the right outfit. Shedder crab and shrimp are the most favored baits ; menhaden and clam are also good. It is caught mainly in mid-summer, from July to October.

The black sea drum is found in the same waters as the channel bass. It is caught by surf casting, using clam bait. The size of this fish is about the same as channel bass.

The sheepshead is another Atlantic fish found from New England to Mexico. The average weight is about ten pounds in the North and six or eight pounds in the South, but it grows sometimes to a weight of eighteen or twenty pounds. It is a bottom feeder and a good food fish but not a long fighter. On light tackle it makes good sport. It frequents the shallow waters near rocky shores. A No. 2 Sproat hook, linen line, leader and regular black bass bait rod and reel is about the right thing. The large wooden reels are much used. It may be caught during flood and ebb tide from March to October on crab and clam bait.

The bluefish is the wolf of the sea as it is exceedingly voracious, preying on all kinds of fish smaller than itself. It sometimes grows to a weight of twenty-five pounds but averages about ten. It is found from Nova Scotia southward to the tropics. It may be caught on menhaden or killie bait by fishing from a boat and sometimes a grinder is attached to the side of the boat and one of the occupants grinds fish for bait, letting the minced fish fall into the water. This is called "chumming" and the minced fish attracts the bluefish to the scene. They may be caught by trolling a bone or metal squid at a lively clip. The bait must be kept in rapid motion or the fish will not take it. The squid may be cast from shore beyond the surf, using a stout linen line and a metal leader. The fish when hooked is simply hauled out onto the beach. After the squid is cast it is drawn in rapidly. For rod fishing use a light salt-water rod, and a good sized reel holding 200 yards of No. 12 linen line. Use a three foot metal leader and a 4/0 Sproat or O'Shaughnessy hook. The fish must not be allowed to get any slack line after he is hooked. Young bluefish or snappers as they are called may be caught on trout tackle and No. 4 Carlisle hook by fishing about three feet deep, keeping the bait in rapid motion. The fish run only from six to ten inches long. The best fishing is in early morning.

The red snapper is a bottom feeding fish of the South, common off the Florida coast. It frequently reaches a weight of twenty-five pounds. It is found near the rocky reefs and may be caught with light salt-water rod, 12 thread linen line and No. 4/0 O'Shaughnessy hook baited with crab, or shrimp or strips of shark or bluefish flesh.

The black grouper resembles the black sea bass, but it is found in the Atlantic from the Carolinas southward. It is caught by bottom fishing on heavy sea tackle baited with mullet and crab. It grows to a weight of 400 pounds.

The red grouper is found in the same waters. It is a bottom feeding fish reaching a weight of forty or fifty pounds. It is caught on medium tackle with crab and fish bait.

The great barracuda is a long, slender fish, reaching a length of six feet. It is found in southern waters though other species of barracuda are found as far north as the New England states. It is a surface feeding fish and is caught on tarpon tackle baited with mullet; or by trolling an artificial squid or a spoon bait.

A smaller game fish of the southern coast, and sometimes found as far north as Massachusettt, is the ladyfish. It weighs about two to four pounds. It is caught on a regular fresh-water bait rod or a light salt-water rod, 9 thread line, 2/0 O'Shaughnessy hook and wire leader, baited with crab or mullet.

The kingfish is caught on the same tackle, from New Jersey southward along the coast to Texas. It grows to a weight of twelve pounds. In northern waters the kingfish is not the same as these southern fish and does not get as large, seldom going over five pounds, and usually much smaller. For these common bass tackle may be used. The bait may be sand worm, shedder crab, shrimp or clam. The fishing is done from an anchored boat near rocky places.

The cunner is a small fish of about a half pound weight found in the North Atlantic and common on the New England coast. It is the same in salt water as the sunfish is in the streams, the delight of the boy fisherman, though despised by anglers who are after larger game as it takes the bait of any kind all too readily. Any kind of light tackle may be used for these fish.

The sea bass is found all along the coast from Massachusetts to Florida. It grows to about ten pounds, but the more common weight is from one-half pound to two pounds. It may be caught by bottom fishing near rocky reefs, baiting with clam, shedder crab or sand worms. Light salt-water tackle should be used, and a No. 1/0 or 2/0 hook.

The tautog is a popular bottom feeding food fish, common along the New Jersey coast, and known usually as blackfish. It is fished for from the rocks and precipitous shores, and from boats anchored near reefs. Clams, crabs and worms are used for bait. The fish weighs two or three pounds in near-shore waters, though it sometimes weighs as much as ten, and as high as twenty when caught in the open ocean. The best fishing is in April and May. The best time is during flood tide. Medium salt-water tackle and stout hooks, about No. 3 Virginia pattern, should be used for open sea fishing, and the same hook but somewhat lighter tackle may be used along shore.

A small fish called the spot or Lafayette is found in abundance all along the coast from New York southward. It seldom, if ever, goes over a pound in weight. It is a fine food fish and a good fighter. They are caught in large numbers in the brackish water at flood tide in spring and fall, and in less numbers during summer. A light bait rod, 9 thread linen line and No. 6 Pennell hook, with a light sinker six inches above the hook is a nice outfit for them. The hooks should be baited with small bits of clam or sand worms, and sometimes they take shedder crab. The bait should be just large enough to cover the end of the hook.

The porgy is another very common and very abundant fish, found all along the Atlantic coast. It is known also as scup, and scuppaug. It weighs up to three pounds and is caught by bottom fishing in the channels, baiting with clam, small crabs, and sand worms. Light tackle and No. 6 hook is used.

I might go on and speak of hundreds of other sea fish but all I could say would be of little value to anybody, as the limits of this work make very brief mention necessary. Those living near salt water know far more about salt-water fish than other people do, and if one is going there to fish he will do well to take advice from these anglers and note closely the methods employed.