CJ Floyd & Crew went shark fishing in South Florida this March.  Unbelievably they caught 40+ Sharks from 2-9 foot. This is CJ Floyd’s first trip shark fishing and they got it done. Lemon Sharks, Bull Sharks, and Blacktip Sharks. For the trip they decided to plan their shark fishing trip south of Tampa to the area of Fort Myers. This place is loaded with all sorts of big sharks. Here is CJ’s report:

Only one glitch so far… I knew I was pushing it for time but still decided to go ahead and get a new custom rod built in all hopes it would arrive before we left. Given all the time I had on my hands through the winter, the previous one I had made just wasn’t gonna cut it for what I needed. Throughout the last month or so, always anticipating “CATCHIN’ that JIANT”, I tested my rod for exactly that and decided it needed to be tweaked. With no hesitation I decided on a super seeker blank at 5’3″ 80-130lb. It didn’t arrive by Tuesday like I had hoped. Trisha ended up getting it overnighted for me so basically it arrived in Fort Myers before we did on Weds around 4 pm. I barely got out my hello’s before I heard her Dad say, “Hey T, a box arrived for CJ & it’s on the lanai”. I opened that box and put that 80w on there before they even knew what happened. It looked awesome & I was now 100% ready to rock.

The next day after some rest we headed out to look at the spots I planned to fish and get prepared with our fishing license’s etc.. After some drive by’s and calls referring to renting a kayak for the week we basically decided it was out of the question. The amount of $ they wanted on Sanibel/Captiva to rent a floating device without a motor would be equivalent to highway robbery. This had me a little worried but I new I would figure something out. With the late start of the day we went ahead and hit the beach to chill in the sun. Parking near the spots I wanted to fish was nowhere to be found. We ended up parking as close as we could to one of the spots I picked out from looking at charts and satellite pics. I grabbed a few bait poles and we walked down the beach to one of those spots. I could not believe how calm the water was. I set up a bait pole, handed it to Trisha and before I could get another pole out she had fish on! Got a little lady fish. We caught fish on almost every cast like.

I was happy to see so much bait every where. The only thing that had me worried was a few old crab pots left behind with only about 100 yards in between them. With all the bait action I went back to the truck and grabbed a 50w. With no yak I rigged up a bait and waded through the first gut then over the sand bar swam it out a bit and dropped it off. We had a late start so it was getting dark quick. Trisha walked around a bit and got into some friendly conversation with a homeowner near where I wanted to fish. She was able to get us permission to park at there house which was only 75 yards from the beach, the people where very nice and ended up fishing with us over the next few days. As the sun went down we packed up with good feelings of what the next day would bring.

The next morning Trisha’s Mom told us that her friend had a sit in kayak we were welcome to use but that they typically only used it on the canal. As calm as the ocean was the day before, I was sure it would work if the ocean would just stay that way. After picking up the yak and some nice 12-14lb Bonita’s from the bait shop, we hit Sanibel Island for the rest of the day. Trisha’s father came along with us with big doubts that you can “CATCH JIANT” sharks from the beach. Parking was sweet and carrying all the stuff to the beach was no problem. Before I could get set up Trisha was catching fish I finally got set up and yaked out 3 rigs (1 on single strand wire, 1 cable and 1 blocker rig). As Trisha and Mike (her pops) were having a blast with the bait rods catching Pomps, Ladyfish, Sheep’s head, Whitting and Catfish, I got to sit in my happy place for a minute. It was not long before I heard the old familiar sound of a drag screaming!!! I was pumped… I ran over, picked up the rod, slammed the lever over to look up and see a beautiful shark about 5-6 foot launch from the water and spit the hook. Oh well I was super pumped just having line peeled off a reel no longer then an hour after getting baits out. We where joined by the homeowners nephew Matt, who was just seeing what was going on with all this big gear. We told him I was shark fishing and was getting ready to put a “sheepshead” on for bait and take it out about 200 yards in the Kayak. He was looking at us kinda funny until I opened the cooler and grabbed the sheep’s head fish out… He told us he literally thought we had a real head of a sheep in there & was prob thinking who are these freaks we are letting hang out in our backyard? LOL Aww man, did we have a good laugh at that one!

As the big bright moon came up I heard the buzzing drag of one of my casted spinning rigs, I hooked up and had a blast fighting this shark. I am not 100% on what it was. After having a cold one for getting the first shark of the trip, I soon heard the deep sound of the 80w alarm. I ran over, stepped into my harness and pushed the lever over… feeling good pressure I gave a couple jerk backs on the rod to make sure the circle was in deep. Fish on! I was worried about the crab pots so I did not give a thing to the shark. I basically just horsed it to the beach in 7 minutes. Nice 7’2 Bull Got a clean dehook and release.

Next day we had a B-day party for Trisha’s nephew Gabriel. After the party we met up with Fullstrut Scotty and his girlfriend at the same spot on Sanibel as the night before. Fullstrut and his girl where good company. He brought along his big 12/0 and a bait rod. After the night we had before, those damn crab pots had me worried. I decided to move down the beach a few hundred yards where there was only one pot. After the set up I yaked out 4 baits, not long after I got the last one out I was hearing the drag scream on my 80. Stepped into the harness and had a solid hook up to a good fish. I started the tuna pump with heavy drag for a short time then “POP”… GONE! I got cut off from something. After getting re-rigged I was hooked up again on another solid fish, same thing… cut off. Now I am thinking the move down the beach was no good, as another rod goes screaming. I missed this hook up. I said one more try so I rigged the 80 back up and yaked it out. As me and Scotty swapped some story’s I get slammed again. This time, I just horsed in a nice Bull with the help of fullstrut and Matt we got it tail roped dehooked and released. Fullstrut packed it up after his bait got snagged and he fought his 100lb mono till it broke. I ran one more bait out and got cut off again so we decided to pack up also.The heck with that spot.

The next time we hit the beach around 10pm and stayed all night. I cant thank Matt the homeowner where we parked (who spent a great amount of time with us & I truly consider him a friend) enough for helping me drag all the gear to the beach every time we were there. It was slow through the night with big baits but I did catch a smaller Bull on the blocker rig and a some nice shark on the casted bait. The morning bite was hot for pup sharks we got Matt on his first shark and beating his PB a few times. Trisha and I had a blast catching smaller sharks 20 yards from the beach The little black tips would jump like crazy it was really fun. The day flew by with afternoon naps and all the action. The sun dipped and we had a little more wind that nights previous. Trisha and Matt decided to grab an old canoe from the house to block the wind from us I was glad they did because the waves were a little choppy and it was a super low tide with white water on the sand bars. The small sit in yak was not the most stable thing I have ever been in and it took on a bit of water. LOL I ran the baits out in the canoe. Had never been in a canoe by myself, I paddled out with the wind at my back and was thinking to myself this is not bad at all… I dropped 2 baits and started to turn and head back in. LOL I was sitting all the way in the back of the boat and when I tried to turn the wind just keep me heading out to sea! I was paddling my butt off but still going out. I started to get a little nervous, I had to climb up to the front of the canoe spin the nose around toward shore then kneel in the middle of it to keep it going toward the beach. With the wind on me I had to paddle my butt off to make back to shore. Trisha and Matt thought I was just out there cruising around for fun… “Shoot!” I was wore out paddling that thing!!! After a little rest I heard the clicker going. I jumped into the harness and hooked up. We where back in the spot with the crab pots so I Tuna pumped this 8’3 Pig of a nurse shark to the beach That is my first Nurse…what a pain! They’re like catfish on the bank just gator rolling the leader and tail rope up as I dehooked it. With the help of Trisha and Matt we got it dehooked and released.

After some rest we where back at it, there was action of bait in the surf so I casted the net out a few times and got a bunch of smaller fresh baits. Trisha’s Dad and Matt joined the fun catching little sharks and bait fish. Mike also got his first shark on the sand. During the afternoon I was finally able to catch a sexy, bigger bait. I ran fresh baits out before it got dark and Trisha and I just chilled out relaxed by ourselves. The tide was super low and I was getting ready to fall asleep when the alarm went off. Boy I was awake now watching line strip from the Avet as I got into my harness. 12 minutes later I see the double dorsal of a nice lemon… Trisha is already at waters edge with the tail rope loaded and ready. She missed the first shot but got it on the second shot, as I put the rod back in the holder and ran down to help her drag it up on the sand a bit… Wow a very pretty 8’8 lemon We tagged and released a healthy Lemon.

The last day on the sand Trisha’s family came over to join us. I ran what was left of my Bonita’s on the Avets and had a blast catching small sharks on the bait poles. I’ve got a new “sharker” in Trisha’s nephew Gabe. He had fun catching his first sharks I even taught him how to kayak some.

Well that’s the report… Sorry I took so long getting it up. Hope everyone likes it.

I had a blast and I think for my first Gulf report and first report of 2011, it was a awesome start. I was able to REALLY test all the things I played with over the winter… Like the tooth buster leaders, the easy tail rope, the blocker rigs and much more. Oh, the Suffix 832 was awesome it casted great and I did not have a single cut off. I will post more on the Blocker rigs soon.

CATCHIN’JIANTS

Thanks to my awesome Girl for making this trip GREAT

HERE IS THE REPORT…

This south florida shark fishing report was written by the great CUDAMAN, a.k.a., Herbert Mueller from his recent spring fishing trip. The guys got in black tip sharks, lemon sharks, and some big cudas off the bridge and beach.

HERE IS HIS SHARK FISHING REPORT…

We have been going out fishing but had very bad luck lately. I started by catching the bait some cudas and some in my group did an excellent job on collecting big baits from other sources such as charter boats.

Sample of the bait:

This is the pic of a nice 30 pounder barracuda caught on a plug a month ago. (Unfortunately that bait did not produce).

This other one is of a 25 to 27 pounder

This is the kind of bait I like the most. It did yield one blacktip from a bridge by Luis “picua”. A kingfish carcass yielded another blacktip from a bridge, and a dolphin fish carcass yielded a nurse shark. I got a decent 8’10” lemon also, and then another blacktip on a jack fish belly (10 lbs chunk).

On the first trip (first week of April) the goal was to catch a big shark so we used whole bonitos and big chuncks of Jack fish, big enough to not allow smaller sharks to take the whole thing. Since we were using big baits we lost 3 sharks that day and then on the 12th hour of waiting for something big an 8’10” male lemon hit. I rig using a 20’ homemade 250 lbs test red line wind-on leader, a 950 lbs American Tackle swivel and 4 to 5 feet of #19 single strand wire with an 11/0 J hook. As you will see the red balloon that popped is what I use to keep the bait at mid (it is just slightly inflated and at the end of the wind-on leader) then I tie a rock with about 10 feet of string.

Here are some pics:

The rods

Pic of the fight

Pic of the lemon

De hooking the lemon

Here is Brad on one of the blacktips from a bridge:

Here is Luis’ blacktip

On the second week ( Friday April 10th) we went to a hole that we know had produce some decent sharks in the past.

Here is Brad trying it out:

After that it was my turn but I got hit quick so no pick of me fishing the whole, it ended being another blacktip

Brad on the release

Until next time, keep catching them guys.

This south florida shark fishing report was written by the great CUDAMAN, a.k.a., Herbert Mueller from his recent summer fishing trip. Cudaman has fished up and down the east coast of Florida for years and years and knows all the patterns, the shark migrations, how to fish the tides, and how to plan for success as the seasons come and go. Herbet has also developed several great shark fishing crews and taught countless people the fundamentals of Land Based Shark Fishing. He is a great fisherman and a great guy.

HERE IS HIS SHARK FISHING REPORT…

Hi all, I have been very busy in the past few months only being able to go gather baits on 1 or 2 occasions but was finally able to out and fish.Here is my weekend fishing in South Florida report:

After not getting a single bite the first time I went out, we tried it again and we put the baits out right at the reef line, we got one hit and one hit only but it produced a nice lemon. As you can see on the pics she had been mating, she did not fight much at hook up so I thought it was a nurse shark, but then she peeled some line and I felt her power, but on the 14/0 it was just crank, crank until she felt the sand and all hell broke loose. My drag was hammered to the max and having no one behind me to hold me down, she took a surprisingly fast run back to deeper water and pulled me in the air making me fall forward and making me eat some sand, LOL. This has happened to me on a short rod as well, goes to teach us to always be aware of what the shark’s power is like ( I am 250 lbs and was lifted like I was 10 pounds). All in all it was a lot of fun until the noseeums came out in full cloud forces. Thanks Mark, family, and friends, it was great fun fishing next to you.

All was ok

I thought she was under control and then by surprise,ZZZZZZZZZZZZZMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM BAAAAAMMM! I eat the sand, look at the line in the sand, that’s from my rod, and behind me my foot marks as I was taking in the air by the pull, LOL

Brad and Mark helping with the landing

The overall length of the shark, it was 8’6″ but a very chunky one. If I would have gone over the hump and lowered her tail maybe a few inches more.

Brad and I pulling her back in the water to release her (notice the tag we placed on her top side)

Brad reviving her, very carefully he helped her regaining her strength, great job dude…

This Shark Fishing Report was written by Christopher Deaver, a.k.a., Power Fisherman, the founder of the worlds largest shark fishing community. The guys went shark fishing in the Florida Panhandle just south of Alabama. The guys got seventeen sharks, including two tiger sharks in seven days of fishing. They were looking for another massive big tiger shark and made contact, but did not get a chance to put anything 500 lbs plus on the beach. Christopher is the author of the SHARK FISHING HANBOOK which has helped thousands of people understand fundamental land based shark fishing techniques.

HERE IS THE REPORT!

Fished 7 Days and Nights looking for TIGER SHARKS.

Bauer285
4 Bull Sharks over 6 feet
7’9″ Bull Shark
8’8″ Nurse
7’6″ Nurse
8’3″ Tiger

Deaver
4 BT’s
4 Bulls
8’9″ Tiger

Lost two nice tigers on screwups going 10+ feet.

One was on a sliding trace that I had caught several sharks on and cut the hooks off, and attached a new hook on. Piano wire was only 6 feet long. Shark played with bait A for a few minutes and moved onto bait B. Shark swallowed bait B past the wire and bit the leader off at the weedeater line.

Next Big Shark lost was a knot failure on a windon leader. Shark picked up and started moving out strong and steady. Put the 12/0 in gear and locked it down. Shark jolted me forward and the knot failed. Well we were making contact and that was good news.

One other significant run came on Bauer’s 12/0. Some time after midnight, this reel took off. I got to it first, and it looked like the rodspike was going to pull the shark was moving so fast. Shark got about 40 yards and spit the hook. This fish had some incredible power. Might have been a big hammer, but it was strong as the devil and fast. Sorry he missed that fish.

We ran 4 big rods every night. Kayaked lots of bait after dark and after midnight. Both tigers we got came on baits kayaked after midnight, picked up the next day.

Trip was good, 17 sharks altogether. Enjoyed fishing with Spencer and glad to see him get his first tiger. Unfortunately I did not get a picture of Spencers 7’9″ Bull. The 7’9″ Bull was a really impressive fish.

This was my 3rd trip to Florida and each time got a tiger on a bait kayaked after midnight.

Here are some pictures:

Bauer’s 8″3″ Tiger

Deaver’s 8’9″ Tiger

Here is another great report from TROY COUPEL, a.k.a. LaSharkhunter. The guys headed to a spot just east of Panama City, Florida and fished for several days. The caught eight sharks over 6 feet in one trip. The report is just incredible. They really got into the sandbar shark action. Sandbar sharks generally show up when the water temperature drops below 70 degrees and stay till the water reaches 60 degrees. Their diet consists largely of boney fish, stingrays, and small sharks. They are one of the slowest growing species with the lowest reproduction rate. We encourage all anglers to release all sandbar sharks. Here is the report by Troy!

After a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner we get set up on Mexico Beach for our first afternoon of fishing. Beautiful sunset! but it’s not near as warm as it looks!

Travis hooks up with the first fish of the trip a very nice 6ft 9in Sandbar

As we were all freezing we call it a night after about 4hrs of fishing feeling very pleased to have landed a very good fish in not very good conditions.

The next morning we sleep in hoping the temps would rise and bait would be easily found…neither happened.

We hit the beach with TWO baits….

My dad hooks up on the penn 80 and catches a very nice 6ft 8in sandbar

I get into the action with a 6ft 3in Sandbar…and yes I am FREEZING!!

Well, we were once again freezing and out of bait so the night of fishing was another short 4 hours!

The next morning we were all up early, anxious to get to the beach. We pulled out all the tricks to find bait and finally we found a hole and caught 18 whiting. Not big ones but big enough. What followed once we got to the beach was truly spectacular. We got to fish a whole 7hrs this time!

Travis gets us started as he hooks up with our largest fish of the trip (again!)


I’ve never seen a 7ft 6in Sandbar in person before this thing was awesome!

My dad hooks up on his Okuma 50 and it is one hell of a battle with a 7ft sandbar

Check out the moon while he is fighting his fish

Travis runs the bait out and before he is back to the beach the Okuma 50 is screaming again. I get into a serious battle with this 6ft 11in sandbar on the 50lb tackle…what a fight!

Travis is up again with a nice 6ft 1in sandbar

Then my dad catches this 6ft 10in extremely heavy sandbar

I end our trip with this 5ft 10in sandbar…check out the set of teeth on these things

Hoping you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving,
LaSharkHunter

THIS REPORT WAS WRITTEN BY TROY COUPEL, A.K.A. LASHARKHUNTER, FROM THEIR RECENT SHARK FISHING TRIP TO PENSACOLA FLORIDA. TROY AND HIS SON TRAVIS HAVE BEEN ON A ROLL ALL YEAR LONG WITH SEVERAL NICE TIGER SHARKS GOING 10 FEET PLUS. THIS IS ANOTHER GREAT TRIP WHERE THE GUYS GO TO WORK AND RUN THE LINES AND THE BAIT.  HERE IS THE REPORT!

We got there plenty early to start the bait hunt. When I stepped out the truck I realized how cold it was and I wasn’t too enthused to get in the water but off Travis went.

It wasn’t long and he had a nice 30lb ray on the beach We hunted and hunted until the water and cold winds chilled us to the bone. We warmed up in the truck for awhile and then decided to share the ray and cut it into 4 sections. We each had a sweet piece of bait on.

Greg showed up right as the last bait was going in the water. It sure was good to have him on the beach with us again

We knew it was going to be a productive trip as my rod was hit before I ever got back to the beach!!

All night the small sharks slacked our lines are gave us a small click here and there but we all waited patiently bundle up in our cots and sleeping bags…

Right at daylight Travis hooks up with a solid fish. The camera acted up for some reason. It’s not as dark as it looks in the photos.

Luckily one of the pictures came out of the Shark….It was a beautiful 7ft 3in bull

The disappointing factor about his catch was that we all realized the green slime grass crap was still in the water. We loaded up the truck and headed to hunt for rays and think about what to do.

The ray hunt went well I finally had a good ray hunt!!

Well given we couldn’t find a stretch of beach clear of the slime we opted for the bay. Its late in the year for the bay but we gave it a shot anyway.

I had a talk with Mr. Koolaid since it’s been a while since I have caught a good shark…..hoping for some of the good luck to rub off (it didn’t work )

Beautiful water to kayak in

Greg gets us going with a small BT on the casted gear. Sorry no fight pics Greg. Never seen us all so happy to have a small shark on the sand.

Trav having some fun with the camera

Night Time seem to fall quickly…we ran fresh baits…we waited and we waited

Well morning came….did I mention it was cold!! Nobody wanting to get out of their sleeping bags

We told Trav if he bought and drank this relaxing purple/pinkish drink we would show the whole world….He obviously didn’t believe us

We had a good time. It was a fun trip. I laughed alot on this one. Hopefully we get one more trip in this year but if not it was a fine way to end a GREAT year.

Wishing you all sharks on the sand,
LaSharkHunter

This report was prepared by East Ten Sharker from their Florida shark fishing trip last 2009. They got 6 sharks over 6 feet on a weekend trip. This report shows what TEAM TSF is all about.  Just an unbelievable report.

So, here we are, on Wednesday Night, trying to decide where to go for a weekend of Sharking and finally LaSharkHunter and LaSharkHunterJr decide that our best bet would be to go to a place they like to call JURASSIC BEACH. We leave Friday afternoon and finally meet after 10 hours of driving. Travis is already scoping out the area and thinking about fresh bait. Troy had brought 2 nice rays and some spade fish to get us started.

We take only a few minutes to set up camp with the help of “lady fisher” and immediately run 4 lines between 125 and 200 yards out using the rays that Troy brought.

By 11:30 am, itrap shows and we get his line in the water too. Then we go on the hunt for fresh bait and Troy scores a 20lb ray..

Well, as all of us who fish with our wives or girlfriends know, it takes a good woman to break the ice and this time was no exception. In the early afternoon, Lady Fisher (Tricia) locks up to a nice 6′ 6″ Bull. Guys, none of us has anything on this young lady. She is just downright GOOD. She takes care of business when the fish are on and knows just what to do. My time on the beach with her was enlightening to say the least. Plus she makes sure we don’t all die of starvation and is equally concerned for everyone in the camp.. If you ever get the chance, do yourself a favor and share a camp with her, I promise you will not be sorry.

About as soon as that shark is released, LaSharkHunterJr’s rod starts singing it’s tune and he gets a nice 7′ Bull (a new PB Bull for Travis). This guy is a joy to watch. When he is fighting a fish, he leans so far back that his shoulders are almost on the ground. At 130lbs soaking wet, I guess that’s the way you have to do it. I have never had that problem!!

We get that shark released and then it is my turn, I get hooked up, but it’s not fighting like Tricia’s fish or Travis’s fish and being completely over-matched on my 12/0, I land a 5′ 7″ Blacktip, nice, but not what I came to Jurassic Beach to get.

Saturday Night was uneventful except that Troy got a hit that, when he set the hook, pulled out strong drag for about 20ft and then pulled off.

As the sun was coming up on Sunday, I decided to try my luck for bait in the surf. I walked down the beach beyond where itrap was sleeping. I got a jack, a flounder and a ladyfish. Itrap looked so peaceful, all covered up and warm. His bait had been soaking for more than 16 hours. Then it happened, his rod hit and covers went flying. He set up on a strong fish and we all knew it was a good one. Nearly an hour later he landed a 7’11″ Bull. A Big Fat Healthy Bull. We all did our thing and this shark will live to fight another day. This is a new PB Bull for Jeff too.

We struggled most of the day looking for bait, then late in the day Travis gigs a dinner plate size ray. Now this kid was 3/4 of a mile from the camp and had been walking the surf for 5 hours. He told his dad that “this ray is for Mr. Greg” and he walked that ray to camp and told me to reel in my line. He said he had the “LUCKY” bait and that he was sure the bait would get hit that night. We prepared the ray and he got in the yak and took it out. He told me to stay near the rod because something special was going to happen. This young man’s strength, enthusiasm, and confidence is simply endless and he is an amazing shark fisherman.

Now, I don’t know what Travis has learned in his 16 years that I haven’t learned in 57 years, but within 1 hour I was on to a strong fish. He fought hard but differently than the Bulls I had been watching get caught. In about a half hour I had the fish close. Troy yelled that there was about 40 or 50 cobia still with the Lemon I had on. Troy & Travis got a tail rope on it and I was just thinking, “just let it be over 6″. When we were posing with him, Travis taped the fish and asked me if I was ready and then yelled 8′ 8″. If you don’t think a one-legged man can jump, you should have been there to see me go airborne. This is an overall PB for me…

As my adrenalin level got back to normal, we got new baits set for the night. At 1 AM I got a really good hit, but being totally out of it asleep in my chair, I missed about half of a 20 second run on my rod and by the time I realized where I was and what I was doing, I set the hook on a chewed-up piece of bait.

Now you notice that Troy had not caught a fish as of now. Well, at 6:00 AM on our final day he finally got a solid hook-up, we all took up our positions and spent the next half hour watching Troy win his battle with a 6′ 8″ Bull. Then Jeff hooked up right at daybreak with his second Bull at 6′ 6″.This was a total of 6 sharks over 6 foot in a 48 hour period. Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And with 3 new Personal Bests.

This group of people are THE finest people I have ever had the pleasure of sharing a beach with. LaSharkHunter, LaSharkHunterJr, Lady Fisher, and Itrap. All of you changed my life this past weekend and I will be eternally grateful. This is a tough team and I am looking forward to our next trip when we can get even more SHARKS ON THE SAND!!!

Personal lessons learned this past weekend:

Your team makes it happen!

Without them you are just a whiting fisherman using over-sized bait on over-sized gear!

Never, ever give up!

Be serious and confident!

Again, your team WILL make it happen……THEY DID IT FOR ME!!!!!

Greg Sowder

EastTennSharker

This Florida shark fishing report was written by Elwin and Shirley Jane Sharp. They live in north Arkansas and have been married 31 years. Elwin has been a member of TSF since December 2009. After much help and advice from the members of TSF, Elwin, Shirley Jane and good friends, Robert and Trisha Stafford, made their first ever shark fishing trip to Alligator Point, FL. in May 2010. Here is their story.

We left north Arkansas Friday May 7th around 2:30 pm and drove strait through to Alligator Point Florida, about 730 miles.It was me and my wife Shirley and two of our best friends, Robert and Trish. Our Chevy Trail Blazer was loaded to the gills. We had a reciever hitch luggage carrier on the back, things strapped on the roof and every space taken up inside. We looked like the Beverly Hillbillys gone fishing. The only thing missing was granny’s rocking chair on top.

We arrived at 8:30 Saturday morning, unloaded and fell into bed. Slept most of the day and then got up and put rods and reels together. No fishing Saturday. We did’t plan to shark fish until Monday. We wanted to let the weekend crowd clear. Alligator Point has a lot of houses but not many people on the beach during the week. Alligator Point is a long narrow penensula, the house we had rented, the property stretched from gulf to bay, so we had the best of both worlds. We bait fished a little Suday but caught very little.

Monday rolled around and tried again on bait and caught a small butterfly ray which I ran out on one of our 6/0s. Something stoled it in a couple of hours. By that after noon we headed into town to find some bait. We bought frozen mullet. So now Tuesday was going to be the big day. Tuesday morning we woke up to howling winds 25 to 30mph on the gulf side and seas 4 to 6 feet. Very high for the area.  

This was my first few days in a kayak and I wasn’t ready for this yet. We decided to fish the bay. I was hesitant about fishing that side because we had docks on both side(about a 400′ opening) and three mooring buoys in this opening also. It gave us a pretty small opening to get the fish through, but with the gulf rolling, it was our only choice if we wanted to fish.

We started bait fishing and was catching stingrays and lots of bonnet heads. About 9:00 am,we cut up the stingrays and ran out 1-6/0 wide and 1-6/0 about 800 to 1000 ft. 11:00 something picked up the 6/0 wide and made a short run. We reeled the line in and the 400 lb test mono leader had been cut off on something.

We rerigged and ran out fresh stingray. Lunch time rolled around, we decided to eat in shifts. The house was only 200′ away. Shirley and Trish ate first, then me, then Robert. While Robert was gone my 6/0 wide takes a run like I could only have dreamed of. It was screaming.

The side plate was too hot to touch. All the reading, all the studying, all the questions had come down to this moment and what do I do, I go blank. I just stand and stare at it for what seemed like minutes. I know it was only a few seconds, but it seemed like a long time.

Finally things come rushing back. I pick up the rod, put my thumb on the spool and with very little room to back up, take a few steps back to set the hook. The spool slips free under my thumb and wow was that hot. Shirley comes over and helps me with my harness. She holds the rod while I try to remember how this thing goes together. Now I’m wishing I had practiced with the harness a few more times. I finally get it on, my wife hands me the rod, I get it strapped in and the fight is on. 

The fish is still taking line but has slowed down. It is just me, my wife and Trish and I’m thinking, we can do this. None of us have ever landed and shark before but, we will make it without our other team member(Robert). Well thats when things get real interesting.

The other 6/0 takes off screaming. I look at my line thinking my shark has tangled up the other line, but they are going in two different directions. That’s when it sinks in on me, WE HAVE TWO SHARKS ON. I told the girls that one of them would have to get that rod. They did not hesitate. My wife got her fighting harness out and between the two girls, got it on and adjusted for the first time.

I would love to have had video of them but there wasn’t enough people to go around.

 They get the rod hooked up and her fight is on. At one point I looked over and Shirley’s was holding and Trish was craking. I’m fighting my fish and trying to coach her at the same time. Talk about the blind leading the blind. First shark ever and we have a double hookup.

After about 20 minutes I send Trish to get Robert. Lunch times over for him. We need help. Atleast our sharks go different directions. I’m fighting to keep mine away from a dock and a mooring buoy and Shirley is dodging a dock, two mooring buoys and a crab trap.

Robert arrives and starts putting on gloves to leader mine in. We get mine close to shore and I can see it is good size. Robert grabs the leader, I put the rod in the holder and go for the tail rope. By this time my wife is saying something about arms feeling like jello. Her shark has wrapped arond a mooring buoying. I told her to just keep presure on it and we would be there a fast as we could.

Robert and I went work on my shark. First we tagged it. Measured it, a 6’6″ bull shark.

Then start removing the hook. The 20/0 Mustard circle hook has done its job and the shark is hooked in the corner of the mouth. I make an attempt to get it out with the channel locks but no luck. I grab my bolt cutter and make two attempts to cut the hook.

Something is wrong. The hook won’t cut.

Not a good time to find out your bolt cutters are junk. I through them on the bank got out my knife and cut a little slit next to the barb and we were able to twist out the hook this time. I walk the shark out into knee deep water, it comes to life and speeds away.

It amazed me how shallow the water was when it disappeared.

Now with my shark gone and Shirley’s wrapped around the mooring buoy, I jumped in the kayak and paddle out to it. Luckly it was the 400 lb mono part of the leader that was caught on the buoy. I caught the line with my paddle and flipped it up over the buoy.  

Most of the fight was out of the fish by now. It had been on the line for 45 minutes. With some much welcomed help from Robert, Shirley gets her fish in. A 5’10″ Blacktip.

Shirley was tired but pleased and I was very proud of her.

Robert and I went to work tagging and getting the hook out.

I did learn in a split second that if a shark tail whips you on bare skin(ankle), that your skin will just come right off.

I walked her shark back out and off it went.

Behind us was a new house being built. By the time we got our sharks in, all 12 of the works plus some passerbys had come to the edge and was watching the action.

We got ourselves back together and ran out fresh stingray on both rods.

We had 4 6/0 but after that run we decided to just stick with the two for now. It took about an hour and Trish’s rod took off. We got her in the harness and the fight was on for her, maybe, well we are not sure.

The shark had picked up the bait, ran out and then turned and head strait for us. Robert and I thought it was off but Trish was reeling like mad and thought it was there. It got about 100′ from shore and blew up again.

Trish cranked it on in. Robert and I dragged it out of the water. A 5’4″ Blacktip. It had been a very short fight for Trish and the shark was mad and full of energy. We tagged it and went after the hook.

This hook was in the gill. Maybe thats why it came in so easy.

Trish did’t want to get very close.

We walked it back out and away it went. I really kept an eye on this one. It thrashed us on the bank and swam off in a hurry. I just wanted to make sure it didn’t turn around and come after me.

We only had one more run that afternoon and I got in a hurry and pulled the bait away from the fish trying to set the hook too early. We called it a day and what a day it had been.
Wednesday we brought all four 6/0 out and started about 8:00.

We had some leftover stingray and ran them all out. We could not catch anything for new bait. We had a couple of rods that kept going slack. We finally reeled one in to find a six or seven pound gafftop catfish on it. We ended up catching 3 gafftops about that size on a 20/0 hook. I was amazed. We had fished hard all day and the sun had cooked us. We wrapped it up.

Thursday we tried the bay again and still nothing. Around noon we moved everything over to the gulf side. The surf had calmed down and I felt safe enough to run out bait. We had went back to town Wednesday evening looking for bait. We bought more mullet, some northern mackeral, and a fish they called LYs. We ran a little of everything out.

Mid afternoon we had a line go slack. Robert reeled it in and had a 37″ blacktip. The hook had not gone past the barb, but it somehow stayed hooked long enough to reel in. We ran another round of baits out. We found a piece stingray in the ice chest that had been hiding from us and ran it out. An hour or so went by and then we get the run we were waiting for (on the stingray).

Robert suits up and I hand the rod to him. He has a good fight on his hands. It is very low tide. The first bar only has about 6 inches of water on it. He reels the shark to the first bar and it won’t go over. So I say no problem, I will go out and tail rope it on the bar and then we will drag it on in. Sounded good until I got out there.

Still would have been a good idea if our tail rope was 75′ long, but ours was about 15′ long. Just the right lenght for the shark to turn around and get me while wading through the gut. So plan B, I got the leader and pulled the shark up on the bar and to the back edge. Then I made a quick break for the shore. Robert pulled the shark off the bar and fought it on in. A 5’11″ bull shark.

We dragged it out, tagged it and removed the hook.

Things went a lot smoother on this one. Our team was starting to figure things out.
We had met our goal for the trip. We wanted everyone to catch and shark over 5′. It had been a lot of work on everyones part but we got-r-done.

We called it a day for Thursday. We stll had Friday but we spent that day packing to go home and picking up shells. We found some big ones.

For our first trip it had gone fantastic. I can’t wait to try it again. Our green team had become a real team. We had learned so much. I found out you can and need to read all you can about it, but there is no substitute for doing it.

We were sad to go but we left Saturday morning at 5:00 am and got home at 9:30 pm. A long drive.

I want to thank all the people here for the help you all have given me. I hope to be of help to someone. I can tell you things not to do. That will take up a whole post by itself. This is my first report, so hope it makes sense.

Thanks to all!

Elwin Sharp

THIS FLORIDA SHARK FISHING REPORT WAS WRITTEN BY TROY COUPEL AND POSTED ON THE MAIN

HERE IS TROYS REPORT…

There is so much I want to write about this report I don’t know where to start It was unbelievable and awesome and I’m so happy to have shared it with SharkGirl and LaSharkHunterJr.

After a basically uneventful first night we made a move the next morning that I was second guessing myself on until darkness came. The big reels came to life!!

I will write more later but the story is below in the pics….hope you enjoy

The morning bait haul

Rigged up

Calm conditions

SharkGirl HOOKED UP ON A HAND THROWN RAY:cheers

Wouldn’t quit pulling line off of the 12/0. The strong fish pulled over 300yds off of the Reel with tight drag!!

1hour into the battle

After an 1hr and 10mins The biggest, strongest, meanest LEMON I have ever seen is put on the beach!

Congrats SharkGirl!! YOU CAUGHT A 9ft 4in LEMON!!!!

Travis Hooked up with a nice 7ft Bull!

Travis Hooked up with another bull This time a 7ft 7in one
HE IS ON FIRE!! Everything he puts in the water is getting smoked!!

TRAVIS HOOKED UP WITH HIS TIGER!!!

One of those moments as a dad that I couldn’t hardly watch! I was so excited, happy and nervous all at one time!!!

11FOOT TIGER ON THE SAND!!

Travis Congrats Son!!! This is the most deserved fish I have ever seen caught. Not once this year did you ever stop running stud baits. Not once did you give up! Not once did you let the close calls beat you down. You just moved forward like a machine….I AM SO VERY PROUD OF YOU!!! WELCOME TO THE TIGER CLUB!! You got your pics this time

Me on the phone after the catch calling everybody I could wake up early in the morning

When the good luck charm is working don’t stop using it!!

Wishing you all sharks on the sand,
LaSharkHunter