Gorgeous, acrobatic, and lit-up, Sailfish rank as the # 1 sporty catch of south Florida. But there is a lot mixed up in catch and discharge of these desired game fish, in the end their not the most effective table fare. Just how much vacuum packed smoked Sailfish can you eat? So what's involved with catching the Sailfish? What sort of bait? What is the best rod and reel set-up? What are some of the techniques to use on the water? Let's move on out and learn from the end result and work our way to the beginning.
The fact is Sailfish fight their heart out, displaying themselves entirely view acrobatics over and over again. Did you ever run the 100 yard dash in secondary school? What happened when you finished? Should you be like me, you stood there along with your head between your knees and tried to catch your breath. A Sailfish doesn't always have the luxury of a slave to and catching his breath, they are going to sink. Just what exactly do you do when you're getting a Sailfish that appears half dead at the boat side? You have to resuscitate him! You should get some gloves, grab his sandpaper like spindle beak, remove your hook and hold him boat side, preferably with the boat in gear. You have to revive him for 5-10 minutes before you decide to let him go. This could take some patience, nevertheless the reward is fantastic when your prize catch swims away in a healthy body ready to fight another day.
The above scenario is a bit traumatizing for the Sailfish, don't you think? Not to mention somewhat novice. Many instances when a Sailfish must be resuscitated it is because the fight was prolonged. Fighting your Sailfish on anything under 20 lb. test will prolong the battle until you chase down your fish. Personally I like to fight my Sailfish with no help from the boat, but I additionally have that luxury since i have fish from a center console. My clients have on numerous occasions commended me because of not chasing down their fish, they appreciated catching fish all on their own. As an example, if your using a 12 lb. set-up, you need to hold a minimum of 400 yards on your own reel, and also you might still get spooled out of your average Sailfish if you don't chase him down. Even though you don't get spooled what fun can it be seeing your fish jumping 300 yards out of the boat not to mention all that line dragging in water increasing the risk for this to break. Last but not least you might have your fish boat side an hour or so later.
Fast reels, Hot baits
One of my favorite set-ups for Sail fishing is a Shimano TLD 20, spooled with over 400 yards of Berkley Big Game 30 pound test, associated with a seven foot, medium action Oceanmaster rod. This fishing rod and reel set-up has caught a lot of Sailfish over the years and remains unbeatable offshore. Keeping 4-5 pounds of drag set in the strike position, most Sailfish stay inside 150 yards in the boat and are brought to the stern within 20 minutes. I use Berkley Big game fishing line of many reels, it doesn't have a large amount of stretch or memory and it is easy to tie with, it also is abrasive resistant. With experienced fishermen up to speed I'll tie a 5/0 Lazer sharp Eagle Claw Salmon hook directly to the main line. You can bring in the fish within 20 minutes and the line holds up very well, and also you get a many more hits like that. You will need to retie your hook after each fish caught safe from any nicks or chaff on your own line.
Putting the proper bait on your hook is critical to your success. I have caught Sailfish on Ballyhoo, Pilchards, and Threadfin Herring, but my best success will be the valuable goggle eye. ( Literally at $50. to $100. twelve) They are a soft bait with big eyes and strong swimmers causing them to be great baits for those techniques. You can catch this bait on size 12 sabiki rigs but only during the night, that's when the Goggle-eye becomes active. You will find them around structure as much as about 80 feet of water and around anchored ships. Once the sun comes up the bite is off unless there is a full moon setting as the morning light breaks, then a bite will last just a bit longer. So prepare to catch these Goggle-eyes 2-4 hours before sunrise giving yourself time for you to find them first.
The Technique
Setting up on the drift.
As stated earlier, on my flat lines I like to tie the hooks straight to the main line, otherwise I'll tie a short bimini to the tag end and fix my leader, 10 feet of 40 pound test Seaguar Fluorocarbon having an Albright knot. This knot takes practice, but when you get the feel of how this knot works you won't ever change. 2-3 flat line is usually deployed at 50, 80, and past 100 feet away from the boat. 2 down line is deployed at 40 and 80 feet down. The down lines are rigged different since weights are attached as well as the baits make more line twist, therefore I attach a stainless steel ball-bearing swivel to my Bimini and then 8 feet of 40-50 pound mono attached to 1 foot of # 4 wire Kingfish rig. You will possibly not want Kings, but ultimately your drift normally takes you over their zone, so be prepared for cut-offs. Most of the time I tie wire to all the rigs because the Kings bite on all lines. I take advantage of 4-6 oz weights around the down lines. The weight can be attached a few different ways. I enjoy insert the Bimini twist into the weight then tie on my snap swivel. You may also take a bit of dental floss, attach it towards the weight by leaving a long enough tag end to tie for the swivel. You can even use the breakaway technique in places you will lose the body weight. You take your line above the swivel and insert it with the weight so a loop appears conversely, then require a rubber band, put it through the loop once or twice and pull the mono slowly and so the rubber band gets stuck inside the weight. Each time a fish strikes, the stress on the line will release the body weight. Setting your lines for the kite is the same as the organization without the weights. Tie your bimini, attach your ball-bearing swivel rated for 75-100 pounds, tie 8-10 feet of 50 leader material towards the swivel and fix your tag end in the event you prefer, to a single foot of # 4 wire leader attached to your hook with a haywire twist. I then will take a 2 foot strip of red or orange ribbon and attach it to my swivel around the Bimini end, like that I can monitor my baits much simpler.
Slow trolling
This system is more advanced than drifting. It requires dropping your baits back about the strike. Sailfish are extremely sensitive as they pick up your bait, in case your bumping in and out of gear a Sailfish may come up on your bait, mouth it, of course , if your drag is tight the boat will pull it from his mouth and he might not keep coming back. I prefer to help keep my drags in free spool with all the clickers on, or on a spinning outfit I will leave the bail open, fasten a piece of copper wire to the arm that's attached to the rod making a small hook to hang the line on, using a gentle tug, the sailfish will pull the line from the tiny hook in the copper wire and set this reel into free spool since it runs using the bait. Let the fish eat for around 5-10 seconds, or until he takes off speedily, then put your drag lever within the strike position and reel down until line starts peeling off the reel. Once the kite bait gets hit, the Sailfish needs time and energy to eat much like above, when you reel down on the fish the line will pop off the clip, so reel fast to get tight before he jumps. If he jumps before you get tight, then chances are you missed him.
Prime time for south Florida Sailfish starts from November through April when these fish are concentrated in 100 to 200 feet of water. On winter days because the wind happens of the east it's not unusual to get 4-5 releases in the days fishing out of Ft. Lauderdale, 3 or more releases constitutes a good day. During the winter season make sure to present plenty of baits down deep, no less than 50 feet or even more down. We catch a lot of sails this way, it seems the top the main water column is a bit too cold for them especially on those times when the winds are blowing in the north.
When targeting Sailfish with Shimano TLD, look for the edge where the cobalt blue waters meets the green water. This is where the bait usually ends up as these two currents move against each other. This edge always changes, what happens if you not find blue water past 700 feet roughly. Don't neglect this area, many times We have put lines down from 75-100 feet and came up with a beautiful tail walker. Take notice of the current as well, a good 2 knot north current produces the best bites.
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