Captain’s Corner for September 29 Dave Zalewski

Columbus Day (October 13) is almost upon us and that day traditionally signifies the start of the fall Spanish mackerel, kingfish, bonita and cobia migration through our waters. If you haven’t already, several things should be done to insure a successful trolling season. Line should be checked for strength and abrasion or simply replaced with new. Check guides by running a piece of nylon stocking through them to see if a crack or rough spot exists that will rapidly abrade even new line. Spinning reels should be checked for smooth drag by attaching the line to a fixed object and walking away to check for any sticking. The roller should be spun to check for binding. On conventional reels the side spool adjustment and drags should be checked in the same way.
Cobia have been historically at the front of the migration and it pays to have a rod rigged and ready to target them. A 30 to 50 pound class outfit will work well. Heavier tackle is often needed because of their tendency to orient to structure such as shipping channel buoys, artificial reefs and wrecks. Terminal tackle can be a length of 60# leader attached to a strong 6/0 hook for the use of a nose hooked pinfish or blue runner or a large curly tailed pink jig again with a strong hook. These fish are notorious battlers and have the strength to straighten out a hook.. It pays to check out any type of structure that one may be passing on the way to ones kingfish or bottom spot. It only takes a few minutes and the reward may be great.