First Cobia School Of The Season

For the sixth consecutive year the L&H has been the first boat in the marina to come back with a limit of cobia! This year we had young Chris Marlin David on his first ever cobia fishing trip and that would bring us the luck we needed. With my family on board we decided to catch bait for tomorrows trip and then look around for a little while. After catching the bait, we began to search for the cobias. About forty minutes into the hunt, James and I spotted them. It was a good school with some nice fish in it. Everyone went to work and before long, there were bent rods all over. Soon after, cobias began coming over the side and headed to the fishbox. About a half hour later, we had our limit and released a bunch more. Soon after heading the L&H for home I found another cobia school a short distance away. There were a lot of fish, but small ones mostly so we released a few and left the others to continue doing whatever it is that cobia do.

Another World Record For Laurel

My daughter Laurel David (9) caught her third IGFA world record for girls under ten. We caught two big african pompano the day before so I knew the fish were there. The next day we loaded up the family in the dark and headed out with Jim and Trav. After getting a bunch of bait we were the first ones to the spot. At first we got a couple small jacks then Laurel got a big bite on a flatline. The fish took a bunch of line and from the way it was fighting, I was sure she had the fish we were after. For twenty minutes Laurel slowly gained line back until we could see her big pompano circling below. A couple minutes later we gaffed the fish and pulled it aboard!!! A beautiful african pompano that would later weigh in at thirty-four pounds! Another record!! We fished the rest of the day and ended up with another pompano, some amberjacks, and groupers! It was a great day for Laurel and everyone on the L&H!!!!!!!!

Tom Kuljuus Day Two

After such a great day of fishing yesterday, we were very excited about what today would bring. Instead of worrying about sailfish bait, we began to concentrate on bait for dolphin and wreck fishing. As soon as we got to the deep water our team began to catch dolphin and it was looking like another great day. After getting some mahi mahi, we had a big strike on a trolled lure. The fish ran off a bunch of line and after some great angling by Tom, we gaffed the twenty-five pound wahoo and put it in the fishbox with the mahi. After the wahoo, we stopped at a shipwreck and were rewarded with three nice black groupers. When the groupers slowed down, our team picked up where we left off by catching more dolphin. A few miles to the south, I stopped the L&H near another sunken shipwreck. Just like yesterday, the action was fast and furious! When the baits got down, they got eaten. At first we were getting big amberjacks, then Tom pulled up a nice African Pompano. After the pompano we caught a few almacos before deciding to start heading back. On the way home the L&H found mahi almost the entire way. With all the mahi, bottomfish, and Tom's wahoo it was another great trip. We took some photos and cut some fish for our crew back at the marina, excited about tomorrows trip!

22 Sailfish For Diaz Family

The last time the Diaz family (Jennifer, Erica, DJ, and Dave) fished with us, Erica got a sailfish even though it wasn't the time when we normally find them. This time older brother DJ wanted one for himself. With high expectations, Jim, Trav, and I went the day before and caught bait so we could get an early start. The Diaz gang got to the L&H early in the morning and we were off. As Jim and I rode the tower on the way south the conditions looked great and we were excited about what the day had in store for us. Before long I saw two sailfish tailing down sea. Trav threw out two baits and we hooked both fish. DJ got one and Dave got the other. Now that DJ had his fish the pressure was off! We ran down a few more miles, put the kites out, and started getting bites immediately. For the first few hours as fast as the baits went out they were eaten by sailfish or mahi. Just before lunch, the wind switched more from the west and the sails stopped tailing, but we were still getting bites on the kites. By noon we had already released twelve sailfish, caught two kings, twenty mahi, a grouper and a nice wahoo! More and more boats started coming down to where we had been fishing to try and get in on the action. As the afternoon wore on , our team continued to catch fish. DJ and his father stayed on the rods all day and their extra effort played an important role in our success. By 4:00pm we were up to nineteen sailfish releases and Jim came up to the tower with his phone. Our friend Captain Paul Ross had called to congratulate us on the great day we were having. As I talked with Paul, another sail came up. LEFT SHORT!!! I yelled nearly blowing out Captain Paul's eardrums! This fish was very important to me as it would make sailfish number twenty for the day. In my years on the L&H I have caught twenty or more (As either captain or mate) five different times and no other boat at our marina has ever reached this magic number. It is something we are very proud of! DJ caught sailfish number twenty and he and his dad caught another double to finish the day with twenty-two sailfish releases!!!!!! It was even more special to have such a great day with a family like the Diaz's, because family is so very important to me!

Good Fishing For Max, Sheldon, And Alex

Our friends Max, Sheldon, and Alex joined us for a busy day of fishing on the L&H. The bait came easy and we ran out to the edge. Today the edge was out a lot farther than it had been, but when we got there we found good fishing for the mahi. Some of the fish were under birds, but for the most part I would see them swimming from the tower and the boys would cast live baits to them. For some reason the dolphin were not biting very well. We would see six or eight fish in a group and only half of them would bite. As we got further to the south, I started seeing more and more mahi, but the results were the same, catching half of the fish we baited. After a while our team decided to do some bottom fishing. As soon as the first bait got to the bottom, we began hooking up. Amberjacks and almacos were biting fast and furious and before long we had ten of these fish in the box. Pulling up these strong fighters from the depths really wore out our anglers! On the way home the guys got some more mahi. With over forty mahi, all of the amberjacks and almacos, we headed for home to clean fish for everyone. It was a fun day with a lot of action for our friends!

Four Sailfish And Big Mahi For Larry

Larry Puyanic is a fun loving, outgoing person who we enjoy having on the boat. Today, Larry had some clients with him and wanted to try for a sailfish. We got some bait and ran offshore to try our luck. Soon after setting up the kites, we hooked a big mahi that was jumping all over. After the fish settled down we were able to get close. Travis grabbed the leader and Jim gaffed the thirty pound fish and put it in the boat. For the next hour we had steady action with the dolphin on the kites, with some of them over twenty pounds. From my perch in the tower, I saw a bunch of flying fish getting chased inshore. I backed the L&H in shallow and as soon as we got to where the bait was, we raised three sailfish, all on the same bait. Trav hooked one of them and Jim quickly cast out a bait and hooked another. The third fish came to one of the kite baits and just like that we were hooked up to three sails. As we were fighting the sails, Jim hooked another one on the kite and we were now fighting a quad. After a lot of over and under by the anglers, laughter from everyone, and a few jokes thrown in from Larry we were able to successfully release all four sailfish. With a sailfish release for each of his clients and plenty of mahi for dinner, Larry decided to call it a day.

Tom Day 5

On the last day we had a good time catching 20 dolphin and a sailfish. Thanks for a great five days Tom!!!!!!