Weekly Column - August 14th

I really enjoy fishing, as you probably have noticed.

It seems I never get tired of trying to outsmart those bait stealers. Nor do I get fatigued spending the entire day in the hot sun chasing an elusive king mackerel or dolphin fish.

It only takes the slightest suggestion to get me to go fishing. For instance, if my wife says, "Honey your fishing rods look good in the new rack" -- that’s it. Out of the rack and off to the water they go, and me with them.

However, if my fishing buddies ever diagnose me with fishing fatigue, I now know the prescription. Take a child fishing!

This weekend I had a chance to take a 6-year-old and a 13-year-old fishing. Wow!

First there were the hours before we went to the boat ramp, listening to their happy chatter in anticipation of catching a fish. Then as we loaded the gear on the boat and launched it, you could see excitement in their grins.

When that first bobber went under water, you would have thought a sailfish had just jumped behind the boat! But that paled to the level of enthusiasm and excitement I witnessed as a proud 6-year-old reeled in his first fish and held it up for the camera.

It didn’t matter that it was a common pinfish. Not one bit. It was a fish. It was on his line and he pulled it in. SMILE -- another fisherman created and hooked for life!

Sure I spent most of my time replacing lost hooks and sinkers, baiting hooks and then removing hooks from fish, untangling lines and other chores. None of that mattered. Nope, not one bit.

Yup, if you need a boost, take a kid fishing. It’ll put a smile on your face!

Speaking of smiles, I know one young man that was smiling ear to ear last week. That would be one Garrison Lore, age 9, pictured on the left. Not only did he catch his first ever King Mackerel, he caught two last week. The first one weighing in at 15 pounds with the second topping the first at 20 pounds. Both were caught from the end of Surf City Pier. Congratulations Garrison!

Catching Report

he piers are reporting some kings being caught in the 15-pound range as well as an occasional tarpon. The fishing is slow due to the heat, but anglers are seeing occasional catches of drum, speckled trout, sheepshead , blues and Spanish mackerel.

Inshore, the flounder are biting around the lower part of the tide cycle with some nice 20-inch-plus fish being caught. The drum bite is still strong near the marsh grass and docks in the waterway and creeks. Big drum are being reported near the shoals around the inlets, especially at night. Some nice-sized sheepshead are being found near dock and bridge pilings. Try some fiddler crabs or sand fleas on a Carolina-style rig.

Offshore the kings and large Spanish mackerels have moved near shore. Live bait is most anglers’ first choice for targeting these fish, but dead cigar minnows and ribbonfish have also been working well. Bull dolphins up to 20 pounds are being caught in the 15 to 20 mile range. Some nice sailfish have been caught in the same range. Not many reports have come in from the Gulf stream, but the few I have heard are reporting a good wahoo bite and nice sized grouper on the ledges.

Tight lines to all!