Fishing the Abacos for kids

[CrossPatch]

Hi Everyone,

We're doing a bareboat charter July 2007 and I have boys that will be 13 & 11 at that time. They love to fish but I'd have to say they prefer catching over fishing if you know what I mean. Any suggestions for high action, frequent catches from boat, dink, marina pier etc. They typically do catch and release. Would also like to know your ideas on what gear they can bring that will meet most needs without having to bring the kitchen sink?

Thanks

Paul

[Jerry S]

http://www.drralph.net/FishininAbaco2005.html

[CR]

CrossPatch,

If you just want to catch fish - snappers, grunts, triggerfish and the like you will have no problems.
If you are going to bring your own gear I would suggest bringing spinning reels loaded with 20# test and take-down travel rods to match.
Most fish won't be that big, but the heavier line will hold up better to contact with any structure the fish may go around or under.
Bring a handfull of 1 oz. egg sinkers and a bunch of size 1 to 2/0 hooks, and that is all you will need.
Conch, or pieces of smaller fish work great for bait and are readily available.
If you let me know what area you plan on staying in I can e-mail, or fax you some charts of where to start your search.
The boys will catch plenty of fish - no worries.

R.

[SamFamAustin]

Triggerfish! Yellow snapper! Mmm. Hey CR do you recommend a 30# leader with the egg weight on top of a swivel, or what's you're best rig to keep from fouling in the coral? -Sam

[CR]

Sam,

Slide an egg sinker on the 20# main line, and then tie on a swivel below.
I tie my hooks to a 4 to 6 foot leader with a loop at the end to hook to the swivel.
I use fluorocarbon leaders as fluorocarbon line is harder than mono, and much less visible in the water.
Tie up a bunch of leaders so when the fish are biting you can just unhook the leader and throw on another leader without having to retrieve the hook from each fish - I remove the hooks and re-rig them when fishing is slow.
When fishing around coral or rock bars the first few seconds are the most important - you need to pull the fish away from the structure quickly so he can’t get into a hole or cut you off.
When trolling I use a short cable leader to protect from the teeth of Cudas, Wahoo, and Kingfish.

Regards,
R.

[DrRalph]

For bottom fishing (triggers, yellowtail, hinds) we use 12-pound with no leader; slide an egg on and tie directly to a #1 or 1/0 hook. Look for frays, re-tie frequently.

[SamFamAustin]

Frayed knot or 'fraid not? [That was supposed to be funny:)]

I saw the darndest thing the other day, a guy was using a tarpon fly with a few split-shot sinkers up the leader a little bit. The fly was nothing more than a 2/0 or 4/0 hook with a few yellow hairs on it! I was doing OK in the surf using a Johnson Sprite gold spoon but this fellow was cranking in fish like no tomorrow ...

I did like the idea to have a bunch of pre-tied leaders, R, that's a good one.
Sam

[CrossPatch]

The old fly fishing hook and "a bit of belly button fuzz" hand tied fly huh? Maybe should go deep to the trout fishing well and do velveeta and colored mini marshmallows? :rolleyes: Thanks for all the info. My boys are reading all the input and getting fired up. PC