Never compromise your crew’s safety

After a harrowing trip through a thunderstorm last week, I am now particularly mindful of the weather. So, I double checked the radar and marine weather forecast before heading offshore early Saturday morning. Unfortunately, a line of strong thunderstorms was a few miles offshore and moving towards my planned fishing area. Running through the storm and then fishing while the storm caught back up to me did not seem like a good idea. Rather than cancel the trip, I decided to fish inshore of the weather and monitor its movement.

 

After a quick run to a small ledge in 75 feet of water, my son Elliott and Jake Somerville from Shimano began vertical jigging for cobia. I kept a wary eye on the weather. The bite was slow, but Elliott and Jake did manage to catch and release some cobia.  

 

As forecasted, the line of thunderstorms continued to move offshore. We decided to follow the weather and moved to another ledge in 100 feet of water. Unfortunately, this ledge produced nothing but big and mean amberjack. After fighting and releasing a few, no one wanted to fish anymore. Thus, we had a dilemma: Go back to 75 feet or push out to deeper water. 

 

A quick check on radar showed the storm was dissipating. We decided to run offshore to target sailfish and blackfin tuna. Ocean conditions were calm and the Yellowfin 32 made easy work of the 20-mile run.  

 

Upon arrival, Elliott and Jake deployed a spread of small trolling lures. After pulling them for a couple of hours, we had zero strikes. I asked the guys to clear the line so we could move to another location. As Jake reeled in the way-back line, a blackfin tuna crushed the cedar plug lure. We managed to catch a few more before heading home. 

 

On the ride back, we talked about missing the early morning tuna bite due to waiting on the weather. However, we all agreed we made the right call.

 

Lightning is no joke. No fish is worth the safety of your crew. Do me a favor and keep reminding me!

 

Contact Captain Greg Peralta at capgregp@gmail.com or call (843) 224-0099.