Went out behind the house this morning...

  • While the boat is getting a little preventative maintenance, I decided to check out the reef behind my house this morning. Went out around 11:00 and walked about 500 yards up current and got in the water. I've got a few honey holes that I like to check out once in a while. Started out seeing some medium-sized triggers right away but left them alone. On my first dive I came across five lobsters sitting under a ledge but left them alone since the season is closed until July. I drifted over to a hole that can be fairly productive with black groupers but came up empty. Water is around 80 degrees and the vis was probably 50 feet. The reef I was diving is no deeper than 30 feet. I made my way to a ledge that had a 10 lb black grouper under it a few days ago. I went down on a tough angle and flushed a 20 lb black out of it. No shot but I followed for about 50 feet where he went into a cave in the coral. I could not find him although I never saw him leave that coral. Oh well... I came up empty on a few more spots although a saw a few more small lobsters. Then about six muttons passed by me well out of range. I followed for a few seconds but they were quickly out of sight. I moved over to another grouper hole but nothing was there. I went down again to lie on the bottom and wait to see what happens. I stirred up the sand a little and waited. I was kind of zoning out a little when this mutton came back to me. I lifted my gun while he did a turn and was able to put the spear through his spine, no fight whatsoever. I have a reel on the gun but it was unnecessary. I wasn't using a buoy, so I strung her on a piece of wire I keep coiled on the butt of the gun. This way, I swim with the fish under my belly. No other snappers came back, but four 20 lb barracudas came in to check me out. At first I was going to leave them alone although I had an easy shot. I changed my mind and dove to the bottom to see if one would come back, but I didn't see them again. Oh well... Two minutes later a five pound Spanish mackerel swam by, but just out of range. Too bad... So, I spent maybe ninety minutes poking around. All together, I swam maybe 600 yards along the coast with the current, a nice and relaxing time. The mutton weighed in at 18 lbs and she was full of eggs. We love to eat them here fried in garlic and butter! I kept one half of a fillet, the other fillets went to neighbors, as did the head and stomach. Not much left for the frigate birds.

  • Yes, he will stand on the wall and watch me. He also has an instinct for when I'm returning. He actually did eat a little of that fillet for lunch. Scoobie Doo is fearless, maybe because he's half poodle and half Doberman. Or maybe it's because of the name he was given by the neighbor kids.

  • What a great day. I also think scooby looks quite cool. I can tell from the pic he is a dedicated little buddy. I would love to have a puppy waiting for me on the beach. As Dan said, it is like a little cheering committee on stand by

    i like to spear fish

  • Wow. I'd never looked at Isla Mujeres on a map. Talk about being on a point...the gap of the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. Do you get ripping currents in there? Unreal.
    Maybe I can convince me wife to let me and Jake come up there for a few days. How is it for Belizean residents bringing "fishing":D gear into Mexico?

  • Yes, we're just about at the confluence of the Gulf and the Caribbean. I think that is why it is pretty fishy around here. Normally, we have 1-2 knots of current flowing south to north, so we do a lot of drift diving from the panga. We'll get in about 200' up current, drift, dive, shoot and land the fish by about 300 feet past the spot. The whole evolution takes 10 minutes.


    We'll run up north of Isla Contoy for a day of fishing, it might be about 70 miles round trip. Up in that area we get lots of amberjack, plus cobia, African pompano, grouper and snapper. Ran into some black tip sharks about a week ago. There were five or so of them around while we were going crazy on a school of 1000 amberjacks. We decided to leave since we were working right on top of a murky layer. You never know what you don't see...


    We're about six hours north of the Belize/Mexico border and I've never had a problem traveling into Mexico with my equipment, guns and all. ADO runs a nice bus service from Chetumal to Cancun if you don't want to drive.

  • Hows the Wahoo fishing? I ask because Hank is a wahoo virgin and way over due to have that cherry popped :D

    A bad day at sea is better than a good day in the boatyard
    George Steele

  • Really nice report! Now is mutton spawning season it lasts until end of June. They become particularly active during "cuarto menguante" moon.


    Nice combination Scooby doo... Dobbermann + poodle! :laughing:


    Do you also call Pargo Cebadal the muttons in Mexico?


    Keep your reports coming. :)

    Marco Melis

    A bad day fishing is ALWAYS better than a good day at work.

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