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Skyway fish release tips?

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squidwontons33

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Hey all, 

 

I have a lot of experience in the keys, usually rent a boat a few days, for sharks on the flats, and then fill in the rest of the time on breachways etc. 

 

Ill be in Tampa for ten days in Feb. Planning on fishing the skyway. Really wanted to test some canal rods on medium sized sharks. Haven't really been in to many situations where there was no space to land them and get the hook out. 

 

Is there a way i can burn some drag and have some fun with the girlfriend, by safely popping the hooks out when I get them close? If there isn't i'm going to respect them and back off. Just curious? I fish barbless already, I just want to be sure the hook can be removed as ill be high above the water. 

 

Thanks! And thanks for answering every stupid question we have here....

Edited by squidwontons33
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I fish the west coast area a lot for sharks, not so much the Skyway because, to answer your question, there's no way to safely land one by the bridge because there's no beach. From the entrance of the fishing bridge a rocky seawall runs the entire length on both sides. What we usually do is yak baits off the wall from the end of the bridge and then leader them by the seawall, which requires getting into the water with them to take the hook out. There are some areas by the wall where you can do that --- but I don't recommend doing this kind of release unless you have extensive experience being in the water with pissed off sharks....especially at night. Most of those sharks at the Skyway are MONSTERS.....medium sized does not exist there LoL.

 

The other way you mentioned, popping the hook for the sake of a thrill, I'm not inclined to agree with that. For me, at least, catching sharks is a package deal, meaning the fish MUST swim off safely with no piercings. Hope you heed to that advice.  

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6 hours ago, zcoker said:

I fish the west coast area a lot for sharks, not so much the Skyway because, to answer your question, there's no way to safely land one by the bridge because there's no beach. From the entrance of the fishing bridge a rocky seawall runs the entire length on both sides. What we usually do is yak baits off the wall from the end of the bridge and then leader them by the seawall, which requires getting into the water with them to take the hook out. There are some areas by the wall where you can do that --- but I don't recommend doing this kind of release unless you have extensive experience being in the water with pissed off sharks....especially at night. Most of those sharks at the Skyway are MONSTERS.....medium sized does not exist there LoL.

 

The other way you mentioned, popping the hook for the sake of a thrill, I'm not inclined to agree with that. For me, at least, catching sharks is a package deal, meaning the fish MUST swim off safely with no piercings. Hope you heed to that advice.  

 

Thanks! Im pretty sure you misunderstood, I would never leave a hook in a sharks mouth, I was theoretically thinking of crushing the barbs and hoping slacking up would let the shark spit it, but thats wishful thinking. 

 

hmmmm, im going to have to so some research and think land based. I wont have a kayak or boat. Any pointers in a fishy direction? Regionally, no spot burning I mean, I really admire your heavy duty shark work!

 

Casting shouldn't be to much of an issue,  Im planning on bringing stellas and twinpowers between 4-14000 sizes. All on stiff jigging rods, The 4/6 should cover any inshore species that take the bait. 

Edited by squidwontons33
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12 hours ago, squidwontons33 said:

 

Thanks! Im pretty sure you misunderstood, I would never leave a hook in a sharks mouth, I was theoretically thinking of crushing the barbs and hoping slacking up would let the shark spit it, but thats wishful thinking. 

 

hmmmm, im going to have to so some research and think land based. I wont have a kayak or boat. Any pointers in a fishy direction? Regionally, no spot burning I mean, I really admire your heavy duty shark work!

 

Casting shouldn't be to much of an issue,  Im planning on bringing stellas and twinpowers between 4-14000 sizes. All on stiff jigging rods, The 4/6 should cover any inshore species that take the bait. 

 

Yes, wishful thinking. Just the height on that bridge, way up there with a fish way below slapping around in the current...no way it's just gonna slip out. I fish barbless exclusively and never have had a hook slip out. Sure, it happens, sometimes. Just not all the time. 

 

That entire bay area is very shallow (with the exception of a few places) so your options are limited for sharks, especially during low tide. Can practically walk a mile in some areas which normally look deep at high tide. Cold weather is good, though, for places like Apollo Beach, the TECO power plant where the hot water dumps into the bay. That place is LOADED during the colder months with all kinds of action. Plenty of places to park and fish around there without the need of boat or yak. There's a park right on the water by the discharge area. Not spot burning, either, because that place is well known over there. Ft. Desoto is another good option, plenty deep with a good current. Very nice park! Have caught a lot of sharks over there near the Fort. Also, Bean Pointe on Anna Maria Island is nice, about the deepest casting area around. I have a depth finder on my yak and I see 30 plus feet some 20 feet from shore, a cliff that drops strait down...just perfect for casting. West coast hit or miss during daytime; I usually fish at night over there. Bait is the key. Get some good fresh bait and you should be good to go. Have fun breaking-in those Stellas! Just got an 18K for casting and LOVE IT!  

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12 hours ago, squidwontons33 said:

 

Thanks! Im pretty sure you misunderstood, I would never leave a hook in a sharks mouth, I was theoretically thinking of crushing the barbs and hoping slacking up would let the shark spit it, but thats wishful thinking. 

 

hmmmm, im going to have to so some research and think land based. I wont have a kayak or boat. Any pointers in a fishy direction? Regionally, no spot burning I mean, I really admire your heavy duty shark work!

 

Casting shouldn't be to much of an issue,  Im planning on bringing stellas and twinpowers between 4-14000 sizes. All on stiff jigging rods, The 4/6 should cover any inshore species that take the bait. 

Don't get me wrong--bridge fishing for big sharks is doable and very rewarding. It's a crazy, insane way to catch them and takes a LOT of planning to get right. Teamwork is your friend! Many obstacles to overcome but that's just part of the challenge. What I usually do is dry run a new bridge, scoping out the surrounding areas for possible landing zones. Also gotta bare in mind that when you do fish, you'll must likely have other people around, yes, with lines out, yes, and have to toggle round them to leader in the shark. Can get frustrating as hell at times. They don't always want to pull in their line while your leadering away on an 10+ foot shark. Seawalls don't always mean you can't have a safe release, either. Sometimes the release is just as easy as on a beach. The seawall by the Long Key Bridge, for example, is very shallow sandy bottom, quite easy to step into and work away on a big fish. Bridges are home to some very large sharks, as you may know, so I only recommend big Senators or Avets or whatever with heavy line, 200lb test. I run 1000lb mono leader off bridges.

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4 hours ago, zcoker said:

Don't get me wrong--bridge fishing for big sharks is doable and very rewarding. It's a crazy, insane way to catch them and takes a LOT of planning to get right. Teamwork is your friend! Many obstacles to overcome but that's just part of the challenge. What I usually do is dry run a new bridge, scoping out the surrounding areas for possible landing zones. Also gotta bare in mind that when you do fish, you'll must likely have other people around, yes, with lines out, yes, and have to toggle round them to leader in the shark. Can get frustrating as hell at times. They don't always want to pull in their line while your leadering away on an 10+ foot shark. Seawalls don't always mean you can't have a safe release, either. Sometimes the release is just as easy as on a beach. The seawall by the Long Key Bridge, for example, is very shallow sandy bottom, quite easy to step into and work away on a big fish. Bridges are home to some very large sharks, as you may know, so I only recommend big Senators or Avets or whatever with heavy line, 200lb test. I run 1000lb mono leader off bridges.

Thank you so much for your time. I really respect these animals and want to see them off personally after the fight. Im going to start doing my research, you have given me some great tips. 

 

The skyway seems like the easiest place to hook up, but Im not going to have the manpower to help with the unhooking part. I have moderate experience with big game, but i dont feel great about getting in the water with them yet. 

 

Ill keep you posted, thank you so much, and you are going to love the stella 18k.

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