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Casting a lure in January
Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2005 2:04 pm
by Mandy E
Hi everyone and a happy new year to all.
My husband and I will be staying in Tobago at the end of Jan.
My husband intends to do some fishing .Is anyone interested in doing some shore fishing with lures and sharing the costs of a few days inshore lure fishing. Can't wait to get out there.
I hope you all had a great Christmas
Mandy
Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2006 8:23 am
by Steve Pitts
Hi Mandy
I would love to share a trip with you and your husband - but sadly I'll be stuck here in damp and dismal Bristol during January.
Don't let that spoil your fun though. Have a great trip and please drop me a line (no pun intended) and let me know how you get on.
I hope that you've found the fishing pages informative. They could do with an update - when I can find some time.
Nice picture in this month's Sea Angler magazine of a guy with a good Tobago tarpon. He says he caught it after reading an article that I had a hand in writing. In fact I am just putting the finishing touches to a DVD film on fishing in the Caribbean and Tobago is heavily featured.
It won't be out in time for your visit, but should be available by April 06. I'll let Steve have a copy for review.
Tight lines
Steve
Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2006 9:47 pm
by Mandy E
Hi Steve
Thanks for your reply . Your fishing pages are excellent and have been very informative .
My husband says, the talks Mike and yourself give at the B A S S AGMs are consistently entertaining and informative. He looks forward to the dvd release.
Mandy
Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 7:59 pm
by Steve Pitts
Hi Mandy
I didn't know hubby was a BASS member.
Mike and I may be doing a slide show on our recent trip to Belize at the AGM (12th March), so maybe we'll see you there.
Have a great trip
Steve
Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2006 11:59 pm
by Stephen Hull
Hi Mandy
I'm "stuck" in Tobago on sabbatical for the next 8 months so have plenty of time for fishing and would be happy to arrange a trip with your husband.
If you contact me on my email, I'll provide you with further contact details.
Steve
Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2006 7:40 am
by Steve Pitts
Quote -
I'm "stuck" in Tobago on sabbatical for the next 8 months so have plenty of time for fishing
What a bummer eh?
How did you manage that?
Cheers
Steve
Posted: Sat Jan 07, 2006 6:56 pm
by Stephen Hull
Steve
Yeah it's tough out here - I've lost three double figure fish in the last couple of weeks - grouper, jack, tarpon. Guess I'll just have to try again this afternoon!
Steve
PS Dr Mike taught me all I know about lure fishing!
Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2006 6:05 pm
by Steve Pitts
Steve
We may be out in June, so keep in touch with the occasional fish report please.
Are you using poppers? The jacks, barracuda and tarpon love 'em.
Tight lines
Steve
Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2006 6:17 pm
by Stephen Hull
Steve
Not caught anything on poppers but then I've not seen much surface action with baitfish. Shallow divers seem to work best - Bombers and Rapalas. Best of all was a cheap silver/blue Bomber Mullet but a grouper stole that one and I can't find any source for them on the web - I don't think they're made anymore
If you send me an email I will be happy to send you reports, although I can't claim to have mastered the fishing out here - I've had as many blanks as successes. Been fishing at Black Rock and Bacolet mostly plus one (fishless) trip to Sandy Point.
Steve
Re: Casting a lure in January
Posted: Mon Jan 09, 2006 10:23 pm
by Houle
Mandy E wrote:Hi everyone and a happy new year to all.
My husband and I will be staying in Tobago at the end of Jan.
My husband intends to do some fishing .Is anyone interested in doing some shore fishing with lures and sharing the costs of a few days inshore lure fishing. Can't wait to get out there.
I hope you all had a great Christmas
Mandy
Hi Mandy.
I, my wife and our 2 girls will be there from the Jan. 20 for 2 weeks.
I'm very interested in doing some shore fishing. Have been reading the fishing pages with interest. Am even bringing different rods and reels.
Would like to hear more about your husbands proposal.
Best regards
Houle
Posted: Mon Jan 09, 2006 10:23 pm
by Toine & Lia
Hi Mandy, Steve and Steve,
Short update from a Dutch fishing addict. Worked very hard and as a reward for the hard work I was able to stay in Tobago during Christmas time. Fishing was slow (in and offshore) on five occasions only 4 kings, 3 wahoo’s, 2 barra’s, an amberjack and a two red snapper and the occasional bonitos. Lost a lot of kingfish in the Plymouth bay in front of Rex Turtle hotel. They only took small lures. The small hooks were straitened several times (big kingfishes).
Fished a couple of times early morning at mount Irvine, next to the rocks at mount Irvine hotel; small floating Rapala; three mouton snapper, two small jacks. A few jacks got away. Lost a few lures to the rocks, picked them up later….snorkelling.
Fished one evening at No man’s land after having a lovely day snorkelling, barbecuing etcetera..
Fished with a Rapala popper and caught within an hour an African pompano, two small barra’s and a nice jack al within less then 4 meters of the beach/mangroves. There was a lot of activity in the water every time the popper reached the line between the sea grass and the sand.
Later that night while waiting for a ride home a threw a few times right in front of Mt Irvine Beach bar. I don’t know what hit my lure but it took off like a rocket, probably got down and snapped my monofilament leader.
So far for now. Later I will file a full report on the fishing part aboard the Alpha Lime owned and skippered by Barry St. George and aboard Cherrio IV, a 33ft Bertam, off Trinidad owned and skippered by Antony Cherrie.
Regards,
Toine & Lia van Ierland
Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2006 8:46 am
by Steve Pitts
Having visited Tobago in January and/or February 5 times now, I think that these months are some of the best, when compared to our summer months.
Almost everything that you could catch from the shore is available and hungry.
Sandy Point (aka Crown Point) is a hot favourite for the locals and you'll always find a few people there at dawn and dusk, with the expectation of a jack bust or tarpon cruising the surf line.
Take a look at photos 27. 28 and 29 in the aerial photos section (in the drop-down, in the Miscellaneous tab in the header - above). There is deep water in the channel that runs around the point and then a really shallow reef area in front of the beach. Ideal conditions for herding the baitfish that congregate along the beach and the jacks and tarpon know this.
If you get a hook-up (I would expect to catch something here on nearly every trip or at least see fish busting bait) get your rod held high as the coral and sea fans can cut your line, so you need to get the angle of the line as vertical as possible. The locals know this and fish from the concrete wall. This gives them a considerable height advantage.
If you can get them, shallow diving plugs like Yozuri crystal minnows, Maria Chase (15cm) and Maria Angel Kiss (13cm ) will not snag the rocks and coral.
Storm shads will work here for tarpon and the single hook is very effective at holding the fish, where as the treble hooks on plugs normal fly out of their glass-hard mouths.
Poppers like Rapala Skitterpop, Aigle magnet sliders and Storm Chug Bugs will be like a dinner gong to a big jack. All of these are available from
http://www.veals.co.uk on-line catalogue and you'll get next day delivery (maybe a week to 10 days if you order from Tobago Steve).
Make sure that you have at least 200metres of line on your spool (30lb / 14kg braid is best) I use a 50lb mono rubbing trace or 30lb wire (although I've never seen a barracuda caught here) to avoid cut-offs.
I can't emphasise enough that the crack of Dawn is the best time to fish from the shore. Get on the beach when it's still dark (5.30am) and fish as the sky lightens. This gives you around an hour and a half of prime-time fishing and even if you don't catch you'll see the most wonderful sunrises and still get home in time for breakfast and have the rest of the day ahead of you.
Cheers
Steve
Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2006 6:39 pm
by Stephen Hull
Steve
Thanks - I'll give Sandy Point another try - it's just twice as far as my usual haunts. Like you I prefer dawn fishing, although some of the locals say Sandy Point fishes well in the afternoon too.
Thanks for the tip about the concrete wall - I was wondering how I would avoid getting snagged if I hooked anything - as you say it is very shallow reef. Last time I fished along the beach to the pipeline - the pelicans were feeding 80m offshore - presumably along the edge of the deeper water - and there was no sign of batfish activity inshore.
Having been bitten off a few times, I am using 18" covered wire traces (60lb). These affect the performance of the lure a bit - I'm just a bit worried if I go back to nylon that the same thing will happen again.
I took your advice and tried a popper the other day down at Bacolet - caught a small jack first cast - beginners luck!! - and had a few chases after that. I've seen lots of big fish down there but persuading them to eat is another matter. When you're over you can show me how!
Steve
Fly Fishing
Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2006 9:02 pm
by Dan
Steve,
Thanks for all the info you have posted on this board. My wife and I will be visiting Tobago from late Jan. to mid Feb. It appears that a majority of the good fishing is in the Crowne Point area. We would like to stay away from this area and head north (Caribbean Side) I will be carrying a 12, 10 and 8wt. We are willing to go on 3 or 4 guided trips, who would you reccomend for Fly Fishing? I would also like to fish from shore with poppers and decievers, is there places other than Crowne Point to do this? I have decent knowlege of what to use as I have fished extinsively through Central America, Mexico and Los Roques. Any advise would be greatly appreciated. This board has been a great source for our last minute booking of Tobago., other than the fact it appears most places are booked up in Casara.
Dan In Alaska
Posted: Tue Jan 10, 2006 9:21 pm
by Mandy E
Hi all
Thanks Toine & lia for your fishing update update .
Steve , thanks for the info regarding Crown Point . A great looking spot to try .
Looking at the aerial photos, Is it possible to drive right down to the concrete wall or is the road next to the runway private access only?
I have contacted Stephen Hull in Tobago , all things being well we are going to have a few fishing sessions together and hopefully some fish to show for our efforts. Can't Wait to get over there.
regards Laurence
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2006 4:52 pm
by Steve Pitts
Hi Folks
This thread is developing.
Toine - nice to have an update from your recent visit. Glad to hear you made it back.
Steve - keep at it with the poppers. Crank e'm back as fast as you can and you might get the attention of a barracuda or two. There are some good ones along Bacolet and Minster Bay. They seem to like the edges of the coves, around the rocks, so always a good place to try.
Mandy - You can drive around the outside of the airport perimeter fence and park up right by the beach, then just hop off the wall onto the sand. Handy if a thunderstorm threatens and you need to beat a retreat to the car.
Alternatively you could take a packable rain jacket and tough it out. The fish don't seem to mind a bit of rain and we've caught quite a few fish during tropical downpours. Take a look at the photo of Mike with a nice snook.
http://www.mytobago.info/photos/fishing ... return.htm This was just after hurricane Ivan had been through in Sept 04. It bucketted down for an hour non-stop just before this fish was caught.
Dan - welcome to the thread.
Crown point isn't the only place to fish by a long chalk, but it is consistant.
If you go back over the other threads in this section, I've been asked about fly rodding on Tobago many times before, so there should be a few answers to your questions. Also I've posted several items on the subject of fly fishing on Toabgo on
[Editor: Broken link removed] forum. You can check these out in the
International section. You don't need to be a member. The current postings are in the thread
Low, Low budget swffing abroadand others headed ''Tobago'' (go back over the past 12 months of postings) should point you in the right direction.
Just to reiterate the point I made to Oliver some time ago - there are no flats beyond Buccoo on the Carribean side, or Lambeau on the Atlantic side, so bones and permit are generally restricted to the Southern end of Tobago.
Further North, there are plenty of steep surf beaches to fish from on both sides of the Island for jacks, tarpon, houndfish, snapper and cuda. Don't ignore the jetties and piers either, as there are usually tarpon and snook hanging around some of them. They'll all take a deceiver and would be a blast on your 10wt.
I'll send picture of a shore-caught tarpon to Steve and hopefully he'll be able to post in this thread. On second thoughts, you might need your 12wt.
Cheers
Steve
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2006 4:53 pm
by Steve Pitts
Steve Pitts wrote:Hi Folks
This thread is developing.
Toine - nice to have an update from your recent visit. Glad to hear you made it back.
Steve - keep at it with the poppers. Crank e'm back as fast as you can and you might get the attention of a barracuda or two. There are some good ones along Bacolet and Minster Bay. They seem to like the edges of the coves, around the rocks, so always a good place to try.
Mandy - You can drive around the outside of the airport perimeter fence and park up right by the beach, then just hop off the wall onto the sand. Handy if a thunderstorm threatens and you need to beat a retreat to the car.
Alternatively you could take a packable rain jacket and tough it out. The fish don't seem to mind a bit of rain and we've caught quite a few fish during tropical downpours. Take a look at the photo of Mike with a nice snook.
http://www.mytobago.info/photos/fishing ... return.htm This was just after hurricane Ivan had been through in Sept 04. It bucketted down for an hour non-stop just before this fish was caught.
Dan - welcome to the thread.
Crown point isn't the only place to fish by a long chalk, but it is consistant.
If you go back over the other threads in this section, I've been asked about fly rodding on Tobago many times before, so there should be a few answers to your questions. Also I've posted several items on the subject of fly fishing on Toabgo on
http://www.ukswff.co.uk forum. You can check these out in the
International section. You don't need to be a member. The current postings are in the thread
Low, Low budget swffing abroadand others headed ''Tobago'' (go back over the past 12 months of postings) should point you in the right direction.
Just to reiterate the point I made to Oliver some time ago - there are no flats beyond Buccoo on the Carribean side, or Lambeau on the Atlantic side, so bones and permit are generally restricted to the Southern end of Tobago.
Further North, there are plenty of steep surf beaches to fish from on both sides of the Island for jacks, tarpon, houndfish, snapper and cuda. Don't ignore the jetties and piers either, as there are usually tarpon and snook hanging around some of them. They'll all take a deceiver and would be a blast on your 10wt.
I'll send picture of a shore-caught tarpon to Steve and hopefully he'll be able to post in this thread. On second thoughts, you might need your 12wt.
Cheers
Steve
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2006 4:55 pm
by Steve Pitts
Dan - you can access the ukswff Tobago thread at
http://ukswff.proboards26.com/index.cgi ... 1136461110
Steve
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2006 6:09 pm
by Steve Wooler
Attached below is a picture of Steve and a tiddler tarpon that he has asked me to post on his behalf.
Steve, you've certainly got a whopper there.
Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2006 11:35 pm
by Stephen Hull
Steve
Made it to Sandy Point this morning - only 5 minutes late - I blame the traffic! It was dead quiet all the time I was there - even the 3 pelicans were just flopped on the tanker buoy - not a baitfish in sight or any other fishermen.
I worked my popper like a mad dog amongst the breakers but not a sniff. When you say crank like mad, do you really mean that? I tend to fish it in short jerks (couple of feet at a time) as this looks more realistic of the baitfish activity I have seen and creates lots of lovely spray and droplets - well I thought it looked good anyway.
I was fishing towards low water, but it's neap tides at the moment and tidal range is a paltry 30cm so I can't see that being a factor. Must be me!
Steve
PS Love the tarpon photo. Can't work out whether you or the tarpon has got the biggest smile!