02-27-2003, 03:49 AM
[font "Times New Roman"]![[Image: Scott_and_Phils_fish.JPG]](http://www.cruisebrevard.com/fishreports/images/15/Scott_and_Phils_fish.JPG)
![[Image: Scott_and_Phils_fish.JPG]](http://http://www.cruisebrevard.com/fishreports/images/15/Scott_and_Phils_fish.JPG)
Cobia Have Arrived !!!! [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"][/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Well, the time of year that local fisherman have been waiting for has ARRIVED. The Cobia have landed off of Brevard County Beaches. Within the last few days, anglers have been finding and catching the brown beauties outside of Port Canaveral in 40-60 ft. of water. Inshore temperatures have reached the magic number of 68f and that is what signals the start of the spring Cobia run.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Today I had Scott Nickels and Phil Woodham of Titusville with me as we searched the calm waters outside Port Canaveral. I caught a few dozen pogies (menhaden) on our way out of the Port this morning, just in case the Cobia turned their noses up at the chartreuse colored lead-head jigs we were going to throw at them. As we made our way out to buoy 2,which is about 10 miles east of the port, water temperature was 66.5f. I was looking for 68 degree water , so I headed south toward Patrick Air Force Base.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]The water temp varied between 66 and 67.9 for the next several miles. Suddenly, Scott yells, Cobia!!!!. I turned the boat around and came up behind a nice fish of about 25lbs. The fish was oblivious to our presence ,lucky for us and Scott throws a jig out in front of the fish. The Cobia saw it immediately and went after the jig. Scott hit him once , but the fish wasn’t hooked up. Now it comes back after the offering right up to the boat, but won’t eat. I grabbed the live bait rod and stuck a pogy on it and pitched it out to the fish. It circled the bait for a second or 2 and made a move on it. I went to set the hook, but the fish had other plans. It spit the bait back out, damn.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]This seamed to excite the fish or get it P O’d , but it now went after Scott’s jig again and this time he drove it home with success. A few minutes later we had our first Cobia of the day in the box. Well, the water temp was 67f, not 68 so that theory went out the window. I gave a call to another Captain to see how he was doing and he was Whacking Em, right back where we were 2 hours ago. The water temperature where he was , had made its way up to 69f and we needed to run back up to buoy 2 where the action was heating up.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]We stopped on the way and caught 2 Cobia, but they were short of their minimum length of 33inches to the fork, so we released them to grow some more. I called out , there’s another one but it took off before anybody could get a cast off. Suddenly, Phil makes a cast in the other direction and hooks up on a keeper.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Well, by now everybody and his or her brother was there. We counted 25 boats from where we were, and I knew it might get dicey should some fish show up with all these boats so close together. Yes, combat fishing was here. We decided that wasn’t for us, so we kept our distance from most everybody and a 3 pairs of watch full eyes on the water as I motored us around looking for another keeper. It was not to be this afternoon. We headed in ahead of the flotilla with 2 in the box and 2 more released to fight another day.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"][/font]http://www.cruisebrevard.com/fishreports/images/15/Scott_and_Phils_fish.JPG
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Cobia Have Arrived !!!! [/font][font "Times New Roman"][/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Well, the time of year that local fisherman have been waiting for has ARRIVED. The Cobia have landed off of Brevard County Beaches. Within the last few days, anglers have been finding and catching the brown beauties outside of Port Canaveral in 40-60 ft. of water. Inshore temperatures have reached the magic number of 68f and that is what signals the start of the spring Cobia run.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Today I had Scott Nickels and Phil Woodham of Titusville with me as we searched the calm waters outside Port Canaveral. I caught a few dozen pogies (menhaden) on our way out of the Port this morning, just in case the Cobia turned their noses up at the chartreuse colored lead-head jigs we were going to throw at them. As we made our way out to buoy 2,which is about 10 miles east of the port, water temperature was 66.5f. I was looking for 68 degree water , so I headed south toward Patrick Air Force Base.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]The water temp varied between 66 and 67.9 for the next several miles. Suddenly, Scott yells, Cobia!!!!. I turned the boat around and came up behind a nice fish of about 25lbs. The fish was oblivious to our presence ,lucky for us and Scott throws a jig out in front of the fish. The Cobia saw it immediately and went after the jig. Scott hit him once , but the fish wasn’t hooked up. Now it comes back after the offering right up to the boat, but won’t eat. I grabbed the live bait rod and stuck a pogy on it and pitched it out to the fish. It circled the bait for a second or 2 and made a move on it. I went to set the hook, but the fish had other plans. It spit the bait back out, damn.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]This seamed to excite the fish or get it P O’d , but it now went after Scott’s jig again and this time he drove it home with success. A few minutes later we had our first Cobia of the day in the box. Well, the water temp was 67f, not 68 so that theory went out the window. I gave a call to another Captain to see how he was doing and he was Whacking Em, right back where we were 2 hours ago. The water temperature where he was , had made its way up to 69f and we needed to run back up to buoy 2 where the action was heating up.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]We stopped on the way and caught 2 Cobia, but they were short of their minimum length of 33inches to the fork, so we released them to grow some more. I called out , there’s another one but it took off before anybody could get a cast off. Suddenly, Phil makes a cast in the other direction and hooks up on a keeper.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Well, by now everybody and his or her brother was there. We counted 25 boats from where we were, and I knew it might get dicey should some fish show up with all these boats so close together. Yes, combat fishing was here. We decided that wasn’t for us, so we kept our distance from most everybody and a 3 pairs of watch full eyes on the water as I motored us around looking for another keeper. It was not to be this afternoon. We headed in ahead of the flotilla with 2 in the box and 2 more released to fight another day.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"][/font]http://www.cruisebrevard.com/fishreports/images/15/Scott_and_Phils_fish.JPG
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