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More Snapper Fishing Tips
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More Snapper Fishing Tips
As the last weeks of Spring roll and thunder through and as Summer arrives, you can rest assured that it's snapper that are the hot topic of boat ramp banter.
Snapper have so much written about them, but still people crave more information. Information on snapper fishing is vast, yet actual clinical biological data is lacking. Only recently have studies identified breading areas, migration patterns and identification of sub-species (separate colonies).
Over recent years, snapper fishing has just got better, thus the increase in the fishing results is also at a time when fishing pressure has increased, so as responsible anglers, we must treasure and preserve this wonderful fishery.
Snapper have so much written about them, but still people crave more information. Information on snapper fishing is vast, yet actual clinical biological data is lacking. Only recently have studies identified breading areas, migration patterns and identification of sub-species (separate colonies).
Over recent years, snapper fishing has just got better, thus the increase in the fishing results is also at a time when fishing pressure has increased, so as responsible anglers, we must treasure and preserve this wonderful fishery.
Now how do I go about bagging a brace over summer?
Snapper are opportunistic feeders. They will some times eat any offering on any rig in any place, but these are not the times that make a snapper angler.
A snapper angler is defined by having an ability to bag a Big Red when the times are tough! To become a real snapper angler, you must put yourself in the fishes' mind! If you wouldn't eat a 6 week old hamburger, what makes you think that a fish wants to eat a manky piece of Bait?
Would you eat a steak if it had a dirty piece of wire hanging out of it? Would you carry around a hot dog in your mouth if it had an anchor attached to it?
Well, I'm tipping that the answer is NO, and so it goes for the old snapper, fresh bait is best, light rigs that are weighted as light as possible are best and a feeding mood is best set with a burley.
Snapper are a schooling fish. They move as their mood suits them, they move to breed, they move to feed and they move depending on nocturnal and seasonal habits.
So what does this mean to you the snapper angler???
In low light and night conditions, fish in close (8-14 meters), fish the reefs as the snapper comes in close to forage, as the sun rises, fish in about 18 meters as the fish move from the shallow water out to the protection of the deeper water, as for the middle of the day, the fish are hiding out in the deeper stuff, say, 19-21 meters.
To increase your chances, you have to fish where the fish are. You have to offer them the freshest bait possible, or the most realistic artificial offering, you want your presentation to be like to after-dinner mint with your coffee....You know you don't need it, but you know you're going to eat it!
A snapper angler is defined by having an ability to bag a Big Red when the times are tough! To become a real snapper angler, you must put yourself in the fishes' mind! If you wouldn't eat a 6 week old hamburger, what makes you think that a fish wants to eat a manky piece of Bait?
Would you eat a steak if it had a dirty piece of wire hanging out of it? Would you carry around a hot dog in your mouth if it had an anchor attached to it?
Well, I'm tipping that the answer is NO, and so it goes for the old snapper, fresh bait is best, light rigs that are weighted as light as possible are best and a feeding mood is best set with a burley.
Snapper are a schooling fish. They move as their mood suits them, they move to breed, they move to feed and they move depending on nocturnal and seasonal habits.
So what does this mean to you the snapper angler???
In low light and night conditions, fish in close (8-14 meters), fish the reefs as the snapper comes in close to forage, as the sun rises, fish in about 18 meters as the fish move from the shallow water out to the protection of the deeper water, as for the middle of the day, the fish are hiding out in the deeper stuff, say, 19-21 meters.
To increase your chances, you have to fish where the fish are. You have to offer them the freshest bait possible, or the most realistic artificial offering, you want your presentation to be like to after-dinner mint with your coffee....You know you don't need it, but you know you're going to eat it!
So do you use a depth sounder/ fish finder?? GPS? or follow the others?
One of the greatest sins buy the snapper angler is moving about, looking for that hot spot as the sun rise or sets, and as the tide changes, these are peak feeding times programmed into the fish through evolution, the snapper may only bite for a short period, therefore, you need your lines in the water at this time!
The second is the "He knows what he's doing" syndrome. This is where someone anchors up in a "likely place", the next person heading out has no clue where to go, so he anchors up close by, the third person heading out sees two boats close together, so he assumes that the "Snapper are on" for this spot, so he joins them! This continues, and before you know it, 50-100 boats are all fishing together over an area with no fish and really no idea why they are there.
If you have a fish finder, sound up a few fish, turn the fish ID function off on your sounder and the sensitivity up to the point just before your screen starts to fill with clutter. Now look for clumps/ clouds, blotches and other strong returns. The traditional symbolic fish return of a boomerang is nearly a fictitious being! This is because this is a perfect return, when the transducer passes directly over the top of the fish and is captured in the middle of the beam.
Now hopefully, you've found a few likely schools, so as you find these schools, mark their location on the GPS, continue sounding about for another 100 meters or so, this will give you a bit of a feeling for the area. Ideally, you will find a few more fish in the area and a bit of structure, tube worms ( typically 1 pixel wide by 2-4 pixels high) rocks, drop offs rises and so on. From here, return to your original school of fish and if they are still in the area and you have a bit of bottom structure, you're in business! Drop the anchor quietly and strap in for some snapper fishing fun!
The second is the "He knows what he's doing" syndrome. This is where someone anchors up in a "likely place", the next person heading out has no clue where to go, so he anchors up close by, the third person heading out sees two boats close together, so he assumes that the "Snapper are on" for this spot, so he joins them! This continues, and before you know it, 50-100 boats are all fishing together over an area with no fish and really no idea why they are there.
If you have a fish finder, sound up a few fish, turn the fish ID function off on your sounder and the sensitivity up to the point just before your screen starts to fill with clutter. Now look for clumps/ clouds, blotches and other strong returns. The traditional symbolic fish return of a boomerang is nearly a fictitious being! This is because this is a perfect return, when the transducer passes directly over the top of the fish and is captured in the middle of the beam.
Now hopefully, you've found a few likely schools, so as you find these schools, mark their location on the GPS, continue sounding about for another 100 meters or so, this will give you a bit of a feeling for the area. Ideally, you will find a few more fish in the area and a bit of structure, tube worms ( typically 1 pixel wide by 2-4 pixels high) rocks, drop offs rises and so on. From here, return to your original school of fish and if they are still in the area and you have a bit of bottom structure, you're in business! Drop the anchor quietly and strap in for some snapper fishing fun!
