Live-Lining for Fluke (AKA Summer Flounder), by Alexi

"Excuse me, do you have a snapper zapper?"

We're at Dick's Sporting Goods.  The guy working the fishing department looks like he's 12 but he's probably 18.  He doesn't know what I'm talking about, so I look around and find a snapper zapper and show it to him, and explain what it is.  Usually Dicks does NOT have the things you need, but this time, just this once, they did!

Ari and Elias (my nephews)  and I slayed the snapper blues in Snake Ditch at the Sedge Islands last week.

To fish with live bait can be tricky.  Especially if you're catching it.  First you need confidence that your bait of choice is easily accessible:

( from a previous trip)

Elias with a snapper

Ari with a snapper

paddle paddle paddle

...and so it was...


.....then you go back without the gremlin munchkins nephews:


I met Steve there. (at the Sedge Islands, IBSP, NJ)  He had done an overnight and had caught millions of short bass on Fly ( But really it might have just been three or four.)

first of many short fluke in snake ditch

We had made radio contact early on, but I was having success in Snake Ditch and he was having success in Oyster Creek Channel, so for most of the day we just chatted on the radio occasionally.  If you were on 68 you might have heard us.  We say such stupid things.

 "I'm in the washing machine" Perchman
"What?"  Castro
"The boat wakes are enormous" Perchman
"I've caught a million shorts"  Castro
etc.....


Before this day I had never successfully caught a fluke live lining snappers.  I didn't bring my bait bucket.  My plan was to catch and live line, then catch another, and there were so many snappers around this plan worked out just fine.

On previous attempts this had happened:

half of a snapper from the great bay trip

And so that got me thinking, whatever chopped this in half would have eaten the whole thing if given the chance. So, this time around I was going to keep my thumb on the spool, bail open, and let the fish take tons of line.

It worked:

nice day in Snake Ditch

23" Fluke on live snapper blue

23"blue on bluefish snapper

Barnegat Inlet fishing

snappers were at the rocks (and everywhere)

I ended up with two keeper Fluke and a Blue, all on live Snapper Bluefish and a single circle hook.  All fish were hooked in the corner of the mouth, and very well hooked.  There is really nothing like letting a fish take line, waiting as long as humanly possible, then engaging the reel, and hoping that the weight on the other end stays.  Because there is that moment, when you feel the weight, and even fight the fish, but it's just holding on to your bait and it lets go...