Bonito VideoHi-Speed Only
My friend Dave and I went on a search and destroy mission for Bonita. Sun up at the dock we board my 28’ express cruiser, not a fishing boat but good transportation. Out the pass to the light markers to cast for bait (chumers). I just got a new casting net with some instruction and mastered the throw. So I thought… Off the stern first throw. Perfect! I pull in the net NOTHING. Dave tells me to let the net drop to the bottom. I try again NOTHING. A boat comes by first cast he fills the boat. Turns out my net is to small. Ok the captain of the boat that got all the bait was nice enough to give us a cooler full. Dave and I jig with a bait rig for live bait (more chum) . Off we go to find the Bonita. First stop is over the “Cuba wreck” chumming looking for any fish we drop live bait and fly cast of the bow and swim platform. In a few minutes one of the live bait rods goes off. I grab the rod to feel a giant pull I fight the fish and bang it’s gone. That fish broke 50 lb mono! No Bonita on the surface we start our hunt in open water. Six miles or so off Doctors pass(where we started from) the Bonita and Spanish Mackerel were everywhere ! I put the boat up wind so we could drift into the school. Dave on the bow casting into thousands of fish but no takes. “ I can’t strip fast enough” All he was getting were short strikes. My disbelief, we set up again. I’m on the stern Dave is on the Bow. We drift into the fish both of us casting like pros and nothing but short strikes! This cat and mouse game went on for over an hour. Plenty of fish, great casting, multiple files, speed stripping, you name it we tried it. Sometimes they just don’t take. The wind blowing 25mph we finally quit. We had a fun day of hunting the fast moving Bonita but all we had to show was a dirty boat and a few bruises. See ya on the Southwest Florida Ocean Joe-m
This never happens to me. 🙂
Have you used sinking or intermediate lines? Any idea what the fish where feeding on ? I guess it was time well spend in the great outdoors. If I was on your boat you could probably have filmed me while I was swimming towards the shore (after I fed the fishes).
Sometimes, in salt water, you have to put your “flies only” mantra aside and start chucking meat. Of course even in salt water I would NEVER do that! It looked like a great time anyway.
Yup – sometimes those Bonita have lock jaw. they won’t touch a thing. i remember casting to a few of them on the west wall and my fly landed right in their face – wouldn’t touch it.
Mike and those guys fish Marthas Vineyard for them alot and somedays they hit everything and other days they can’t get em to touch a thing. ????
Well no more bonito around at the moment, water temp must be around 62 degrees, friggin freezing!