In the minds of many offshore fishermen who reside between Texas and Virginia, the king mackerel is the best fish to catch. Kingfish strike indiscriminately, battle fiercely, and grow to be quite large, so why not? Additionally, fish can be found in plenty of locations along the southeast coast of the United States because fishery managers wisely eliminated drift gill nets in the 1990s, saving the kingfish stocks from collapse.
Due to a confluence of factors, the Southern Kingfish Association, one of the most popular tournament series in history, was born. As a result of this series, a vast number of men and women gained expertise in locating and catching large kingfish. It also brought much-needed relief to the Southern charter fleet, allowing fishermen to regularly catch kingfish as part of a mixed bag from the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico.
Kingfish can be caught on a variety of rigs, but for the really large fish, the majority of pros use live bait. Big king mackerel bait is necessary. And while rigging for kingfish is undoubtedly not rocket science, there are a number of deceptive techniques you can use to increase your likelihood of success. Recently, we had a conversation with three such professional fishermen—two SKA experts and a charter captain—and asked them to share some of their best fishing tips with us. Advertisement.
Bill Butler co-owns Venice Marina in Venice, Louisiana, one of the most well-known king mackerel hotspots in the world, with his brother Mike. Some of the most and largest kingfish can be found worldwide in the thriving waters of the northern Gulf of Mexico off the mouth of the Mississippi River.
The Butlers, who operate the 42-foot Invincible Crawgator, have racked up numerous victories on the SKA trail and have organized a number of competitions out of their marina. In that region of the world, live-baiting has developed into an art form, and the availability of kingfish bait is occasionally beyond belief. Advertisement.
Butler explains that during the fall, “we occasionally get schools of pogies (Atlantic menhaden) that reach as far as the eye can see.” “Pogies are always one of our top baits because the kingfish follow them in massive schools,” a fisherman said. But compared to other baits, pogies don’t offer as much of a chance to land big fish. ”.
Butler enjoys blue runners (hardtails), bluefish, and Spanish mackerel for the large kings. He explains, “We find the bluefish in the fall, and occasionally we’ll fish for five- or six-pounders.” The big kings love them. When roe mullet arrive in their yearly migration during the fall mullet run, there is also opportunity. The big kingfish follow them in.
Butler claims that hardtails surround every platform in the Gulf. “We fish around the rigs a lot, and before we start, we’ll put 70 or 80 baits in the well.” We can always throw a sabiki rig up by the well and catch a few more if we need more. ” Advertisement.
King mackerel fishing relies heavily on structure, and the thousands of oil rigs in the Gulf provide a natural location for kings to hold. He prefers to use downriggers to fish for two king mackerel baits deep and at least two more on the surface in the prop wash. Strong blue runners are excellent live bait for slow trolling for kingfish.
Butler asserts that experience teaches you where big kings are most likely to be. “You’re likely to return to that same spot next season if you kill a big buck deer hunting,” he says. The same is true of kingfish; large fish remain in the same areas. ”.
Try slow trolling for king mackerel using the strategies and recommendations in this article. You’re sure to find it highly entertaining!.
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You can try some other locations by consulting Top Spot fishing charts N-218 (Cape Canaveral) or N-220 (offshore in east Florida). Some of the more well-known locations are the Southeast Shoal, The Bull, Hetzel Shoal, the 8A Reef, and Pelican Flats. But if you want to go there, you’ll need more than just a johnboat. In some of these locations, you’ll be 10 or more miles from the beach.
Try fishing near the bait pods if the fish are dispersed. Attempt 15 or 20 minutes of slow trolling in the area of the bait. If this doesn’’t work, go to the next plan.
Bait Kingfish typically don’t start showing up in large numbers in central Florida waters until April or May because they prefer water temperatures between 70 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit. The Port Canaveral parking lots fill up quickly once word gets out that the kings have arrived.
The Butlers, who operate the 42-foot Invincible Crawgator, have racked up numerous victories on the SKA trail and have organized a number of competitions out of their marina. In that region of the world, live-baiting has developed into an art form, and the availability of kingfish bait is occasionally beyond belief. Advertisement.
He shared with us a fishing tale from Canaveral: Before dawn, as he launched his boat, he heard bait flipping beneath a bridge. He threw his cast net and caught a lot of silver mullet, another excellent kingfish bait. He clarifies that it depends on the season, but to take advantage of opportunities Use them when the fall mullet run is in progress because you can be sure that kings will be following the mullet. ”.
Wire leaders are necessary when rigging for kingfish because the fish have strong teeth. Kingfish rigs are typically straightforward affairs with a lead hook, frequently a J-hook, and one or more treble stinger hooks that can be inserted near the tail of the bait or left to swing freely. The size of wire used often varies with water clarity. “I fish 90- to 130-pound wire exclusively,” Butler says. And we fish a lot of drag, unlike some other guys.” We frequently catch up to 50 fish a day around here, so there is simply no time to mess with the smaller fish. You want to let them in so that you can release your baits and look for that one big one. ” Advertisement.
Due to a confluence of factors, the Southern Kingfish Association, one of the most popular tournament series in history, was born. As a result of this series, a vast number of men and women gained expertise in locating and catching large kingfish. It also brought much-needed relief to the Southern charter fleet, allowing fishermen to regularly catch kingfish as part of a mixed bag from the South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico.
King mackerel fishing relies heavily on structure, and the thousands of oil rigs in the Gulf provide a natural location for kings to hold. He prefers to use downriggers to fish for two king mackerel baits deep and at least two more on the surface in the prop wash. Strong blue runners are excellent live bait for slow trolling for kingfish.
Rig Your Boat for Success
Serious kingfish anglers place a high priority on proper boat rigging. Depending on the time of year or coastal region, rigging must be able to accommodate a wide variety of techniques, such as downrigger trolling, kitefishing, slowtrolling, drifting, or even anchoring.
The boat’s deck must be snag-free for cast-netting because catching live bait can also be extremely important. Having a lot of livewell space makes it possible for the boat to have enough good live bait to fish all day.
Using a variety of marine electronics, one can find schools of bait as well as important structure spots like wrecks and reef edges to catch king mackerel. Leading kingfish anglers claim that a high-quality GPS/chart plotter and fish finder are essential tools in this endeavor. Advertisement.
The best teams also have their boats fully stocked with all the live-bait hooks, kingfish rigs, leader material, and terminal tackle they could possibly need. Once on the fishing grounds, they can quickly adjust to any feeding patterns they may encounter because of this.
Research represents the most critical element in king mackerel fishing. About five days prior to the competition, Smith says, “I start looking at the Internet for local fishing reports.” Additionally, I monitor patterns of chlorophyll and sea surface temperature on websites like sst-offshore. com. Finding temperature breaks and the proper shade of water (known as “king green”) that may contain schools of bait is the goal. Find the bait and you’ll often find the kings.
While speaking with local anglers is an essential component of your research, Smith advises that you shouldn’t always take their statements at face value. Prefishing is the only way to confirm anything, suggests Smith. “Use the knowledge you have and fish the areas to confirm the accuracy of what other anglers are telling you. ” Advertisement.
Almost all of the top tournament anglers agree that silvery live baits like pilchards, threadfin herring, menhaden, mullet, and blue runners are preferable to dead baits. These same anglers also bring frozen baits like cigar minnows, ribbonfish, and Spanish mackerel because live bait is not always readily available.
While there is disagreement regarding the best kingfish bait, there is agreement regarding the size of the bait for trophy kingfish. According to Dean Panos, owner of the Double D, a 34-foot SeaVee Open on the tournament circuit, “the bigger kings seem to favor the bigger baits.” Panos is also a charter captain based in Miami.
Smith agrees. “Big baits equal big fish,” he says. Smith also has a method for making natural baits seem even larger: He adds some “flash” to a twin-treble bait rig with a wire leader that is typically used. The captain places a live bait in front of a blue Private Stock Skirt from Blue Water Candy Lures (see illustration below). When combined with the bait’s frantic vibrations, the shimmer from the reflective material not only increases the size of the bait but also draws a king’s attention from a distance.
Because dead baits cannot swim, trophy hunters frequently pair them with swimming lures. The Pirate Plug from South Chathum Tackle is one of the best kingfish lures (or bait rig arrangements). When slow-trolled, the lure is positioned in front of the nose-hooked bait to create a seductive swimming action. With this kingfish rig, Smith has triumphed in two competitions (see illustration below).
The more baits you use when fishing, the more opportunities there are for hookups, and the greater your chances are of landing a trophy fish.
Smith says, “I try to fish with as many baits as I can.” “We fish up to six lines at once, two off the T-top 150 feet away, two more from the transom 100 feet away, and two on downriggers. ”.
Flying a kite is another way to increase the spread; this method is used by many successful tournament anglers. Kites allow you to present baits far from the boat, which can help you tempt line-averse kings to bite.
Victor Jensen, whose South Florida team fishes the Reel Tension, a 29-foot SeaVee powered by twin Mercury Verado 300s, says his favorite technique is a combination of three kites on one side of the boat and flat lines on the other. “Since I don’t believe the bait behaves naturally with more than one hook when fished on the kite, our kite baits are single-hooked,” ”.
You can’t set and forget when fishing a spread. The best anglers constantly check their baits because kings are known to nibble at them without becoming hooked. Making frequent checks on the baits makes sure they are swimming normally and free of slash marks.
There is much to consider when trolling for king mackerel. The best tournament anglers believe that trolling too quickly is one of the biggest errors anglers make when pursuing trophy kings. When trolling live bait, Smith explains, “dead idle is all that’s needed, and sometimes that’s too fast.” On these occasions, Smith turns off one of his twin outboards, slowly navigating the boat with just one engine.
When trolling for bait, some tournament anglers find any speed to be too fast. Doug Stanford, owner of Pirates of the Bay charters aboard his Everglades 243 based out of Port Aransas, Texas, says that he enjoys drifting around oil platforms in search of monster kings with live baits like blue runners, croaker, or menhaden. He drifts dead 20- to 24-inch ribbonfish with a quarter-ounce egg sinker in the head of a pink hoochie skirt when there isn’t live bait available.
Leading competitors claim that while downriggers are indispensable in the hunt for trophy kings, they also need special rigging and a fish finder to achieve the best results.
According to a prominent team captain, one of the rigging tricks is to swap out the downrigger’s wire cable for 200-pound monofilament line. According to Jensen, who thinks that the twangy noise of the taut wire cable is unappealing to big kings, using heavy mono eliminates the hum in the water that wire cable generates.
Additionally, Jensen uses a downrigger to fish two baits at once, clipping one line at the weight and another line from a different rod halfway down the line. Usually, he will begin trolling one downrigger weight at a depth of 60 feet and the other weight at a depth of 40 feet until he discovers a feeding pattern.
Focusing on the fish finder allows you to locate schools of bait, which in turn directs where to position the downrigger depths. The majority of the tournament participants that we spoke with attempt to troll the baits through or just above the bait schools.
FAQ
What is the best speed to troll for king mackerel?
How to Catch King Mackerel. King mackerel can be lured and caught using a variety of techniques, such as straight trolling at seven to ten knots. You can use a variety of baits, but Spoons, Halco, and Clark are well-liked baits that catch a lot of fish.
How do you rig for trolling king mackerel?
Attempt 15 or 20 minutes of slow trolling in the area of the bait. If this doesn’t work, go to the next plan. Structure is provided by the Canaveral buoy line for both baitfish and predators. Stay out of the way of large vessels by zipping across this line or slowly trolling up and down both sides.
