Spanish Mackerel is a broad term. There are over 18 species in the genus Scomberomorus. Some varieties only stick to the Atlantic Ocean, while others only stick to the Pacific.
Note: While there will be some generalizations about the various types in this article, I intend to separate them out into separate guides in the future.
Fishing For Spanish Mackerel From a Boat
Don’t grab the Spanish mackerel by hand right away when they’re on the boat or ocean fishing kayak. There are one or two additional feathers below that will probably snag your hand while they are kicking and struggling.
Catching Spanish mackerel from a boat requires holding the lead so that the fish are hanging horizontally, like a clothesline. Depending on the size of the barb, you can either take them off by hand or turn the hook upside-down as you lower them over your fish box while maintaining a tight seal.
You should be able to flick them off. This prevents the slime and scales from getting all over your nice rod handle.
Use a chum bag, if you have one, to keep the mackerel near the boat. Let the feathers down in six-foot increments. To catch Spanish mackerel, drop, stop, wait, drop, stop, wait, and repeat until you have covered the entire water column.
When you reach the bottom, stop turning after five or six turns. Then, you can work your way back up.
A good skipper on a charter boat will advise you on the depth at which to drop them. Ask the person catching all the mackerel on the boat where the water level is and what type of feather he is using. You might want to alter the weight, number, and color of the feathers, as well as other factors.
Spanish Mackerel Rig
Around 28 feathers are strung on a line by commercial mackerel anglers. Although you won’t have to go that far, having a few feathers on your line will enable you to land several fish at once.
A word of caution: Be aware of your surroundings when you’re on a boat. Compared to other hook types, mackerel feathers cause more accidents. Depending on how much you want to fight the fish, just about any outfit from light to heavy will do for gear.
Spanish mackerel can be very simple to catch because they are aggressive feeders and will strike a variety of natural and synthetic baits. By trolling or keeping an eye out for birds diving on schools of baitfish, which frequently indicates that mackerel are forcing the bait to the surface, many anglers can locate Spanish mackerel. Trolling or casting with tiny, shiny spoons, dusters, or jigs are two methods of fishing. Because of the mackerel’s razor-sharp teeth, a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader is necessary in addition to light spinning or baitcasting gear with 10 to 15 pounds of monofilament line.
