Topsail Angler's Fishing Blog

Grouper Slaying! (5-22-2011)

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

On Sunday, I finally got my first chance to get out and do some serious grouper fishing since the season opened on May first.  It paid off! 

I was with my friend Scott on his boat the REEL DREAM and our friend Tanner.  We left out of New River inlet and headed out to some nice bottom in about 120-130 feet of water and began dropping out baits.  we used a variety of lures including Bluewater Candy Roscoe’s and something Tanner calls the “after school special”, it’s a squidhead and some bling with an attached J hook and a stinger hook. 

The first drop resulted in Tanner bringing in a citation sized Red grouper (weighed 26 pounds).  He later caught another citation red grouper at 21 pounds.  Scott and I didn’t get any citation size fish but we did catch some nice reds, scamp and a trigger fish.  We also caught a few bailer sized mahi on poppers.  A pair of them followed a fish be had hooked, the others we ran across at weed lines as we moved between spots.

Fish that didn’t make it home with us (cause the season is closed):  A handful of huge Black Sea Bass including one knot head that was 22 inches long!  And a very nice sized American Red Snapper.

The ocean was flat, the sun was bright and the water was blue! We had an AWESOME day on the water with good fishing and friendship!  (and of course Tanner couldn’t quit talking about those groupers…..........)