20 for 20

The fishing had been very good and with brisk north winds there was no reason for it to slow down! After catching bait, we decided to look for tailing sailfish right off the bat. Within minutes we spotted a pair of sails and Mike presented two baits with pinpoint accuracy. Both fish raced over and engulfed the frisky live baits. The brilliantly colored billfish put up a tough battle, but were released quickly to fight another day. We resumed our hunt and just like before, we found two more hungry sailfish that were quickly released. For much of the morning our team continued sight fishing the sails until the wind switched out of the east. It was time to put the kites up. Before Mike could get all the kite baits out, we hooked a triple header of sails! I was in awe of how smooth everything was going and how easy Mike made it look. Over the next hour our anglers for the day caught 8 more sails and a couple nice dolphin. By now everyone was tired and relaxing in the air conditioned salon of the L&H. I asked if we could put the baits out one more time and they agreed. Minutes before it was time to go, two feisty sails came to the kite baits. As we had done so many times that day, we hooked both fish and Mike coached our anglers so they were able to release both fish successfully!! This made an incredible 20 sailfish releases out of 20 sailfish bites. It was truly an amazing day and one we will not soon forget!

26 Sails

With west winds out of the north and clear skies everyone was excited about what the day aboard the L&H might bring! We left the dock eager with anticipation and as we crossed over the edge the conditions looked promising. As soon as the baits went out they were bit immediately. First, the right short, then right middle and just like that our team was hooked up to a double header sailfish! Both fish danced across the surface of the water as the morning sun peered over the horizon. Our anglers successfully released both ends of the double header sailfish and the action would remain hot for most of the morning. Singles, doubles and triple header sailfish were the norm rather than the exception and the crew stayed busy releasing fish and resetting the lines. Around midday the action slowed and we moved up the line a few miles. Once again the kites were set out and the sailfish came up to feed! With several multiple hookups, we had released 10 sailfish before the wind completely died. Two helium balloons were used to help keep the kites aloft. I decided to run back to where we started in the morning in hopes of catching sailfish number 20. It was the right move! In the last half hour of the day, our crew successfully released 7 sails to bring the total to 26 sailfish releases for the day! It was an outstanding day of sailfishing aboard the L&H and a day our clients will not soon forget!