Keith Love
Location: Surfside, TX
Outlook for spearing in this region for the coming week:
With Low winds this time of year, there are many people at a lot of the rigs so there is more competition so the fish can be a little shy. Keep your dive flags up high and have your captain keep watch as there are 5+ boats flying around many of the rigs without a clue.
Visibility:
Offshore the vis is 50-100ft crystal clear bleater
inshore we have a surface murk to about 30 ft and but it opens up for about 10 feet before you hit the bottom murk.
Wetsuit this week
a rash guard is all that is needed at most spots but we did hit a rig that had an upwelling that was chilly enough for a 3mm.
Shark Factor:
A lot of bull sharks and blacktips are hanging on the outside of the rigs in the close and are starting associate the noise a firing speargun makes with lunch so however you rig your gun make sure you still have it in your hand to fend them away.
Weapon of choice:
A 110cm to 130cm is perfect inshore and offshore in case you see a monster ling inshore you will have more than enough power and be able to get some distance on some of the weary big big kingfish.
Best Bets
The king fish are thick right now at 10 t o 30 miles and are fun to hunt, you need to be away from the rig to hunt them and go for tail shots as it will hold better than a mid body shot.
If you want to shoot something big this week hunt: the rigs between 150ft to 250ft they are holding all kinds of fish and since the deeper water rigs are only holding aj ‘s (out of season) and small almaco jacks
If you are just looking for dinner hunt: hunt the rigs a couple miles out for grey snapper.
Open Seasons of note: red snapper just closed so back to Kings, ling, and other snapper species until amberjack opens
Regulations and size limits for your area:
http://www.gulfcouncil.org/fishing_regulations/index.php
Rumour has it: There are big bull dolphin within rang of small boats only 10 miles out. We had a guy the other day get his personal best right next to a rig in 80 feet of water and have seen some bigger ones in as shallow as 55ft of water
Upcoming events: Amberjack season opens up august 1st.
