Rickenbacker 2009 -10-11-12-13-14-15 Fishing Reports Only

[xtremeh18]

Really? Everyone swears by the red / white from what I read. I guess I'll be buying a silver one this afternoon. lol

[sweetmerlin]

I used the red head / silver body gotcha because that was the only kind available from walmart at the time I went shopping and it worked really well for me...
I used the 7/8 oz to go with my 50 lb fluoro leader tied to 10 lb test mono in a 7ft rod and it was the perfect combination.
I tried the 1 ounce gotcha red head / white silver body but casting distance was mediocre..but that was just for me.

Good luck and if you see a chubby Asian guy fishing the Rick on a gotcha, let me know who you are!

I would love to fish together with members of the forum!

[xtremeh18]

I used the red head / silver body gotcha because that was the only kind available from walmart at the time I went shopping and it worked really well for me...
I used the 7/8 oz to go with my 50 lb fluoro leader tied to 10 lb test mono in a 7ft rod and it was the perfect combination.
I tried the 1 ounce gotcha red head / white silver body but casting distance was mediocre..but that was just for me.

Good luck and if you see a chubby Asian guy fishing the Rick on a gotcha, let me know who you are!

I would love to fish together with members of the forum!

Thanks man!

So far the setup that I'll be using this Sat. will be my Penn Spinfisher v 4500 with 12# mono, uni to uni knot, to a 20# fluoro on a 7ft med. rod.
I definitely get a red / silver gotcha tonight and give it a try on Sat.

Will do! I will have 3 other people with me. I'll be wearing a blue Bass Pro hat and a white Pelagic long sleeve.

[bigyellowtuna]

wouldn't even bother with 20lb fluoro they will cut through that like butter, but you may get lucky and avoid cutoffs every few bites.

[HJared]

Macks like shinny silver. I use 20 or 30 flouro I bring 5 gotchas though. Lighter line means you get cutoff but more hits. I never see anyone using the white one ever ever ever but I'm sure if they are eating it would work

[xtremeh18]

Thanks guys, I appreciate all the tips! I guess I'm going to risk it for now and use the 20 fluoro. I did go ahead and buy the silver gotcha after work.

[xtremeh18]

Went out there today from 7:30am to 1:30pm. When I got there I started with the gotcha after no action I switched to bottom fishing. The only people out of my group that caught anything were my gf and cousin. Gf caught a short mutton that went back and cousin caught a 3 ft nurse shark on a live small grunt. Also meet sweetmerlin on the bridge. Nice meeting you man!

[sweetmerlin]

Hey Xtremeh18!

It was so nice meeting you and your GF at the Rick!
I was there between 5:40 AM - 12 PM then 5PM - 7:30PM. A fellow to my left caught a decent sized Spanish Mack around 9AM using live bait. I tried Gotcha, Crappie Jig and Spoon but I didn't get anything other than houndfishes. I also saw two Macks cruise by the pier but they weren't interested in any of the live/dead baits that littered the pier on floaties or lures. It was a bit windy today but got calm in the evening.

Today I learned not to fish the Rick on weekends.. just simply because the googans have absolutely no manner whatsoever. There were plenty of spaces today and these two gentlemen threw floaties or fish finder rigs that kept getting in my way.. In the evening, this family shows up and decides to cast a bottom rig just 10 feet to my right and there were a bunch of other free spaces... and ppl parked illegally everywhere... Like someone mentioned earlier, if fishing and parking regulations were enforced at the Rick... FWC or Miami-Dade would've generated quite a sizable income.

I'll keep trying early mornings for Spanish Macks and report what I see.. but so far every time I have been here so far, there has been at least one Spanish Mack caught on live/dead bait but not on lures..

[swordfish]

Hey Xtremeh18!

It was so nice meeting you and your GF at the Rick!
I was there between 5:40 AM - 12 PM then 5PM - 7:30PM. A fellow to my left caught a decent sized Spanish Mack around 9AM using live bait. I tried Gotcha, Crappie Jig and Spoon but I didn't get anything other than houndfishes. I also saw two Macks cruise by the pier but they weren't interested in any of the live/dead baits that littered the pier on floaties or lures. It was a bit windy today but got calm in the evening.

Today I learned not to fish the Rick on weekends.. just simply because the googans have absolutely no manner whatsoever. There were plenty of spaces today and these two gentlemen threw floaties or fish finder rigs that kept getting in my way.. In the evening, this family shows up and decides to cast a bottom rig just 10 feet to my right and there were a bunch of other free spaces... and ppl parked illegally everywhere... Like someone mentioned earlier, if fishing and parking regulations were enforced at the Rick... FWC or Miami-Dade would've generated quite a sizable income.

I'll keep trying early mornings for Spanish Macks and report what I see.. but so far every time I have been here so far, there has been at least one Spanish Mack caught on live/dead bait but not on lures..

Awesome... Keep at it. i promise once the wind stays ENE and it cools down you will score there. Keep at it, thats the most important part... Also, be very very careful at the Rick if you ever go in the afternoon / evening or night. Lot's of creepy crawlers and I ain't talking literal lol.

-Swordfish

[baseball4life702]

Today I learned not to fish the Rick on weekends.. just simply because the googans have absolutely no manner whatsoever. There were plenty of spaces today and these two gentlemen threw floaties or fish finder rigs that kept getting in my way.. In the evening, this family shows up and decides to cast a bottom rig just 10 feet to my right and there were a bunch of other free spaces... and ppl parked illegally everywhere... Like someone mentioned earlier, if fishing and parking regulations were enforced at the Rick... FWC or Miami-Dade would've generated quite a sizable income.

Yea the Rick can be a rough place I'm suprised you didn't mention the bridge residents lol, the reason you don't always see LE is because it's "county owned land, in the city of Miami, on the island of key biscayne", too many different regulations by different groups. Yet you should see Miami dade police there when the sun goes down to enforce parking that's about the most though. I personally have never seen FWC there but we won't go into that lol.

[xtremeh18]

You guys aren't kidding about that place. That place is hell between the googans and the parking, it's a b*tch. I was all the way at the end of the bridge with plenty of space and the old guy next to me cast over my line more than once. I even saw him keep a 3 to 4 inch mangrove. Then people complain that the fishing is poor in Miami. No sh*t, you guys take all the little ones and don't give them time to grow. I did not see FWC out there. I guess they are busy with ATV riders that ride on dirt. I agree with sweetmerlin they would make a killing out there.

[Green Tide]

I can feel the pain from john lloyd as well. Current ripping sideways and people cast a 1/2 oz out on 20# test only to have it drift into my lines from 40 feet away. Mean time they are standing in the spot I would like to be in to begin with. I still managed 4 blues and a gut hooked grover that I kept. The largest blue of probably 3-4 lbs was cut off by rock barnicals after washing under the rocks just before I tried to lift him up. No big loss but disappointing just the same.

[Kingofthesea]

At least, you are out fishing somewhere

[HJared]

I believe God intervenes when the googans get spooled and caught on rocks and have no more tackle and line and have to go home

[Kingofthesea]

I believe God intervenes when the threads holding the crotch of a thong together pops.

[sweetmerlin]

Went to the Rick early morning between 5:30 AM till 8:30 AM. A guy caught 3 decent sized Macks freelining bait... his companion, on the other hand, only caught houndies. I used crappie jig and gotcha plug but didn't catch anything. I saw two Macks follow my gotcha but they didn't go for it. Sea was really calm today.. no wind and was around 74F.

Also I wasn't too sure how to correctly work the marabou crappie jig.. (I cast, let it drop to the bottom, jerk and slowly crank twice... then repeat until close to pier then retrieve fast) but saw a guy in green shirt and a nice sun-glass cast the marabou jig and do a steady retrieve working the surface.

Will try the Rick again later this week and post a report again.

[xtremeh18]

What bait was the guy using?

[Green Tide]

[quote="sweetmerlin"]Went to the Rick early morning between 5:30 AM till 8:30 AM. A guy caught 3 decent sized Macks freelining bait... his companion, on the other hand, only caught houndies. I used crappie jig and gotcha plug but didn't catch anything. I saw two Macks follow my gotcha but they didn't go for it. Sea was really calm today.. no wind and was around 74F.

Also I wasn't too sure how to correctly work the marabou crappie jig.. (I cast, let it drop to the bottom, jerk and slowly crank twice... then repeat until close to pier then retrieve fast) but saw a guy in green shirt and a nice sun-glass cast the marabou jig and do a steady retrieve working the surface.

Will try the Rick again later this week andm

[sweetmerlin]

Hey xtremeh18!

I believe it was a pilchard or greenback. He freelined it close to the pier.

[xtremeh18]

Hey xtremeh18!

I believe it was a pilchard or greenback. He freelined it close to the pier.

Awesome, thanks man! I'll be back out there once it gets cool. If I see you out there let's fish together. Keep us posted on what you catch at that bridge.
Good luck out there!

[Green Tide]

I have seen both methods be effective. I prefer steady retrieve with small jerks or reel reel jerk reel reel jerk. Then let it sink down just before the bridge. Sometimes that is where they are hangin.

[sweetmerlin]

Hey xtremeh18!

I believe it was a pilchard or greenback. He freelined it close to the pier.

Awesome, thanks man! I'll be back out there once it gets cool. If I see you out there let's fish together. Keep us posted on what you catch at that bridge.
Good luck out there!

Ok! No Problemo!

I have seen both methods be effective. I prefer steady retrieve with small jerks or reel reel jerk reel reel jerk. Then let it sink down just before the bridge. Sometimes that is where they are hangin.

Hey GreenTide! Thanks for the input! So I guess, it really depends on where the Macks are... surface or bottom.. Thanks!

[sweetmerlin]

I couldn't resist... so I went to the Rick again between 5 and 8:30 AM. Water was calm, not much wind and temperature was around 74. There were around eight people fishing myself included. Three people were fishing near the second handicap ramp and they caught around 5 Spanish Macks and several blue runners and jack crevalle. They were using live pilchards and freelining close to the pier and throwing chums periodically. I used gotcha plug, spoon and crappie jig but I only hooked houndies and a Jack crevalle with the gotcha.

It seems that the Macks prefer live pilchards close to the pier at daybreak. Not much luck with artificial so far. I can't wait until the cold front hits and the Macks go crazy.

[Green Tide]

Are they getting live bait on the bikis or cast net

[sweetmerlin]

Are they getting live bait on the bikis or cast net

I am not too sure. They were already there with their live baits in the 5 gal buckets by the time I got there and I did not get a chance to see how they got their baits. Also I didn't see any cast nets with them or biki rigs/rods for the matter. There were two people close to the entrance of the pier (where kids usually jump off) with cast nets chumming the water and trying to catch some baits. They were not doing that great in terms of catching baits. They were hopelessly watching the water and kept chumming instead of casting their nets..

I am going to get me some pilchard sabikis this saturday and hope to jump in on some live bait freelining action.

[fishnfool73]

From what I have seen and heard the pilchards mostly are caught at night on sabikis in hung lanterns. There is an old Cuban guy that pretty much lives out there that sells them live.

[Old School]

I couldn't resist... so I went to the Rick again between 5 and 8:30 AM. Water was calm, not much wind and temperature was around 74. There were around eight people fishing myself included. Three people were fishing near the second handicap ramp and they caught around 5 Spanish Macks and several blue runners and jack crevalle. They were using live pilchards and freelining close to the pier and throwing chums periodically. I used gotcha plug, spoon and crappie jig but I only hooked houndies and a Jack crevalle with the gotcha.

It seems that the Macks prefer live pilchards close to the pier at daybreak. Not much luck with artificial so far. I can't wait until the cold front hits and the Macks go crazy.

Spoons and gotchas seldom work there for some reason. I believe one factor for this is the shallow depth of the water (Ten feet). The Gotchas and spoons sink to fast for a mackerel to intercept them before they reach the bottom. Most of the 100 mackerel i have taken there from the structure, in the past three years have struck Crappie Jigs that are slowly sinking. I also switch between Crappie jigs behind floats, below a split shot, and no weight at all. I have also used small plugs with limited success. I still have some original sidewinder jigs but never landed a single mack on one there, but did hook a monster mack or kingfish on a sidewinder that nearly spooled me before the hook pulled. A couple of weeks ago i took two Cero Mackerel there on a #2 Clark Spoon trolled behind my boat before heading offshore

[sweetmerlin]

From what I have seen and heard the pilchards mostly are caught at night on sabikis in hung lanterns. There is an old Cuban guy that pretty much lives out there that sells them live.

I believe I saw the guy you're talking about on saturday evenings. He hangs a green lantern on one of the pier, chums, and casts what appears to be a 10"-12" net to the other side of the pier facing the land. He did catch a good number of pilchards with each cast. I didn't know he sells them live. Does he have a bait shop around?

One day, I saw a guy use his sabiki in the morning and catch pilchards but it wasn't that great... I believe he caught less than 5 the whole time I was there (like 3 hrs).

I couldn't resist... so I went to the Rick again between 5 and 8:30 AM. Water was calm, not much wind and temperature was around 74. There were around eight people fishing myself included. Three people were fishing near the second handicap ramp and they caught around 5 Spanish Macks and several blue runners and jack crevalle. They were using live pilchards and freelining close to the pier and throwing chums periodically. I used gotcha plug, spoon and crappie jig but I only hooked houndies and a Jack crevalle with the gotcha.

It seems that the Macks prefer live pilchards close to the pier at daybreak. Not much luck with artificial so far. I can't wait until the cold front hits and the Macks go crazy.

Spoons and gotchas seldom work there for some reason. I believe one factor for this is the shallow depth of the water (Ten feet). The Gotchas and spoons sink to fast for a mackerel to intercept them before they reach the bottom. Most of the 100 mackerel i have taken there from the structure, in the past three years have struck Crappie Jigs that are slowly sinking. I also switch between Crappie jigs behind floats, below a split shot, and no weight at all. I have also used small plugs with limited success. I still have some original sidewinder jigs but never landed a single mack on one there, but did hook a monster mack or kingfish on a sidewinder that nearly spooled me before the hook pulled. A couple of weeks ago i took two Cero Mackerel there on a #2 Clark Spoon trolled behind my boat before heading offshore

Thanks for the info Old School. I was trying to figure out water depth, underwater structures, rocks, reefs or vegetation along the length of the pier to try to get a sense of what kind of fish could be caught where etc.. (I am fairly new to the Rick since I started fishing here two weeks ago) Shallow depth could explain why the spoons and gotchas are not working great but I don't know.. I use a fast retrieve with spoons and gotchas to work the surface and caught a Mack with the Gotcha one saturday but maybe this was beginner's luck... Regardless, kinda explains why I am not landing any Macks when others are catching them with live baits. Maybe I will have better luck with the crappie jigs..

[Moose]

the rick is his bait shop lol

[sweetmerlin]

the rick is his bait shop lol

Hahaha ok!