SW FL-Bonita Beach: winter sheepshead bite strong

[fishbuster]

[cool][font "Arial"]Large sheepshead were definitely the catch du jour on Monday when I fished with Leon Dargis and Bob Rose, in 30 feet off Sanibel. We caught a total of twenty five, and kept the biggest five, which ranged from 17 to 21 inches. We had fun with those until the goliath grouper moved in to eat all the fish. Heading back in, we had heavy for with zero visibility—glad I have radar![/font]
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[font "Arial"]The fog was still thick Tuesday morning, when I set out after more sheepshead for Mike & Lee Connealy and friend, Dick. We fished hard bottom in 40 feet off Sanibel with live shrimp, and caught a total of twenty sheepshead, releasing all but seven of the largest, to 22 inches. We also released mangrove shorts and a four foot goliath grouper we had fun wrestling for a while. The water was so clear, we could spot the goliath on the bottom, so we decided to throw a bait out for him, and he obliged.[/font]
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[font "Arial"]The sheepshead bite was strong again on Wednesday, fishing in 38 feet off Sanibel with Brad Clemons and his girlfriend, Amanda McCrackin. We again caught a total of about twenty-five, and kept seven of the largest, which ranged from 18 to 22 inches. Amanda caught the 22 incher, which was her first fish ever! (see photo). We released red grouper shorts, mangrove snapper and triggerfish.[/font]
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[font "Arial"]Thursday, seas started off pretty calm, when I fished in 35 feet off Sanibel with Ron Musick and friends Alan, Dick and Hank. By noon, it started getting pretty sloppy out there, with winds picking up to 20 knots and seas building to above three feet, so we headed in about 12:30. By that time, we had had plenty of fun catching and a keeper snapper and twenty six sheepshead to 18 inches. We released half of them, along with triggerfish.[/font]
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[font "Arial"]The seas that started building on Thursday continued to increase into Friday morning, and with small craft advisories issued for Friday, I cancelled my offshore trip. Conditions were less than favorable in the bay, with low tide and gusty winds, so we decided against backwater fishing too.[/font]
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[font "Arial"]Saturday was another one of those days between two weather fronts. The morning might have been calm enough to fish the reefs, but my anglers were a bit squeamish, with 2-4 foot seas predicted and fears of sea-sickness, so they decided to pass.[/font]

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[CaptJoeVerdino]

Dave,
Nice report as always, I can't tell if that fish looks so HUGE because Amanda is so pettite or if it just a real whopper. I've never seen a sheepie that big, I'd say she will be hooke for life after a trip like that. Good Job.
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[fishbuster]

Thanks Joe--Yep, Amanda, who weighs right around 90 pounds, definitely makes the fish look more impressive! But, it was a good one--22 inches and about 7-8 pounds[cool]
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[Tarpon4me]

Hey there fishbuster, i've got a good question for you. When you clean a sheepshead, how do you do it? When I say that, I mean do you fillet through the rib cage or around it. I catch hell trying to cut through the rib cage because they are so thick, and i'm a little hesitant about cutting around it because i'm affraid of hacking up the fillet.

I've got a buddy that fillet's them with an electric knife, but I can't do it. Every time I try, I end up cutting the fish nearly in half. LOL Filleting a fish, in my opinion, is an art. I do it by feel.

Also, do you have a good recipe for them? I'm going to keep more this season, as I also target them. The sheephead action will be at it's prime this month through april. I'll start hitting the water off the coast here in about 2 weeks. [cool]
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[fishbuster]

[cool] Hi Tarpon4me, about those sheepshead...I fillet up to the rib bones from the top and all the way down toward the tail. After making the cut from the top of the head down to the stomach area, like you do in normal filleting, slice up to the back bone down toward the tail on the bottom side. I use a heavy fillet knife that is thin but very stiff. With the fish's back facing you, lift up the top part of the fillet and stick the knife down between the rib bones to break the rib bones along the backbone. Then remove the bones after slicing off the skin. I wish I could draw a picture online because it would probably be clearer that way--hope this helps you, though.

They are very tasty with olive oil and lemon and garlic, sauteed. My favorite is breaded and fried, though.
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[Tarpon4me]

That sounds pretty close to how I do it now. I suppose I need to look into getting a knife with a little more "back bone." LOL, ironic eh?

Also, when you sautee the fillets in olive oil, you're leaving skin on right? I know some species you have to leave the skin on or the meat will flake apart. I've always left the skin on myself, but i've found some species are better on the table if it's possible to prepare them skin off.

Like spanish mackerel, flounder, etc.................They don't touch a piece of foil, enter an oven, or sizzle in grease until the skin is off. The quality of the taste is 10 times better with the skin off.

And of course, there are a few species I prefer cut into sashimi, like Wahoo and yellow fin. I think Capt Joe likes raw amberjack, I can't remember. LOL, just pickin' on ya Joe![cool]
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