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Get ready to nab the big fish with this tip
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Howdy, folks. Tight Line Jr. here, and I hope everyone is doing well. By the time you read this article, the big Colonel’s Island St. Patrick’s Day parade will be over. I will have a report on that next week. For now, I think I have a few things that may be of interest to you, starting with some tips for the real sports fishermen out there and an hors d’oeuvres recipe.

I know it’s not warm enough yet for tarpon fishing but it will be soon. I know of a spot that I found out about from an "old salt." The knowledge of this spot was passed down to him from another "old salt." Inside McQueen’s Inlet on Saint Catherine’s Island, there is a creek called King New Ground. At the mouth of King New Ground there is a deep hole where tarpon like to congregate. When the tarpon are there, you can see them rolling on top of the water. For the best fishing results, use a special tarpon hook, five feet of steel leader and fresh-cut mullet. It takes a serious fisherman to land one of those babies, so make sure you have your camera or video recorder with you because if you nab one, it will be something you will want to remember. Tarpon is one of the most challenging fish in the sea and a video of the catch will be something you’ll want to view over and over again. Also, save some of the bait (mullet) to have for supper. Fresh fried mullet is delicious.

I have had some reports of spottail bass being caught out at Sunbury and some big catch-and-releases around St. Catharines. My buddy, Capt. Eric Moody, reported catching some whiting down around Jekyll Island. That’s a good sign we’ll have a fabulous fishing season.

My buddy Capt. Hippie and his grandson Carson Rouse caught three nice crappy and Carson hooked a big bass but it got away. Carson is only 2 years old but he had fun fishing with his granddad. Later in the week, Capt. Hippie and his friend Shawn landed 10 crappy and three nice-size bass. Then they all got together for a fish fry. These fish were all caught in a lake down off old Highway 17. That’s all the information I could get out of them.

Now here is the recipe I promised:

Baked jumbo shrimp

Ingredients

½ pound of raw peeled and deveined jumbo shrimp

½ tbsp of sea salt

2 tsp of lime juice

½ tbsp of cracked pepper

4 tbsp of melted butter

1.5 ounces of cream cheese

½ ounce of Roquefort cheese

Tabasco sauce to taste

Directions

Place the shrimp in a one-and-a-half-quart baking dish and sprinkle them with lime juice, salt and pepper. Cream together cooled melted butter, cream cheese and Roquefort cheese. Spread the mixture over the jumbo shrimp. Cover with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated oven for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. Enjoy.

If you’re looking for bait, Yellow Bluff has fiddlers and minnows. Sunbury Crab Company and Marina have fresh frozen shrimp, cigar minnows and ballyhoo. Big Rudy at the Sunbury Country Store has local frozen shrimp and local squid. Half Moon Marina has frozen shrimp.

Remember what Ol‘ Tight Line said and get out there and get fishing. And if you do, always remember to keep a tight line. I always say hit the docks, keep a sharp eye and watch that cork go down. It’s the best feeling ever. So until next time, wet a hook. It’s good for the soul.

 

Your buddy,

Tight Line Jr.

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