By Terry Gibson
Sailfishing offers a challenging, intimate and incredibly exciting connection to a unique intersection of magnificent ecosystems here along the Treasure Coast. For many anglers, including me, this connection inspired a lifelong obsession with waters and habitats that give rise to “Sailfish Alley,” which runs from about Fort Pierce down past Stuart—the Sailfish Capital of the World–and off the Palm Beaches. It’s arguably the best water in the world to pursue sailfish, as well as many other pelagic species, including mahi, wahoo, and king mackerel.
Sailfish Alley
The name may conjure images of a long, linear, submerged canyon running along the southeastern coast of Florida, when in fact the “alley” is a lot less linear, more complex, and even more interesting than it sounds.
Caption Goes Here – Cpt. Sailfish
When we embark on offshore fishing adventure out of Martin County’s St. Lucie Inlet, we navigate an incredibly dynamic system, one that stitches estuaries and surf zones, as well as reefs and complex currents, into a broad mosaic of fish-rich habitats. The Atlantic and the Florida peninsula converge over the continental shelf, that part of the North American continent presently under water. Beginning just south of Martin County, the shelf begins to broaden rapidly, and strongly affects how currents play out over the coastal waters that sailfish prefer. While the Gulf Stream current—a warm ocean river–often sweeps in clear to the beach off Dade, Broward and the southern half of Palm Beach County, from Jupiter northward shallower waters typically keeps the Stream farther offshore, generally ten to twelve miles or so from the St. Lucie Inlet. The farther north you fish, the further a captain has to run to encounter the Stream’s warm, sapphire-clear water. But that’s not to say the fish are only found in warm, blue water.
Structure is another major factor. Long ridges of limestone reefs run along the shelf, from just off the beach clear out to the edge of the abyss. Current seams, or “rips,” often form over those reefs. Baitfish and invertebrates such as squid—many of which grow up on the estuaries inside the St. Lucie Inlet–get trapped in the rips, where they are right in the sights of foraging billfish and other predators. Manmade and artificial reefs also attract schools of bait, even in water that seems way too shallow and close to shore for pelagic fish. Let me put it this way: I have caught numerous sailfish within sight of surfers riding waves. There are no fences in the ocean, and predators will forage where they find prey, from the beach to beyond the edge of the continental shelf.
Temperature changes, and differences in water density, also create edges where sailfish and other predators forage. These convergences of water are often marked by what we call a “color change.” The greener, colder, heavier water inshore of the Gulf Stream’s edge is much richer in nutrients. Nutrients feed plankton, which in turn feed a wide variety of forage fish, from sardines and herring to squid and blue runners. The cold, heavy water plunges downward as it meets warm, stream water, making nutrients available to plankton, plankton available to baitfish in warmer, clearer water, and baitfish available to sails right in their temperature comfort zone.
Sailfishing success often depends upon recognizing subtle signs that you’re in a productive area, and details such as the tiniest pieces of seaweed floating in a thin trickle are often all that gives those fish-rich convergence zones away.
Peak Seasons
Undeniably, the coldest, roughest days of winter typically serve up the best sailfishing. By December, and through March, sailfish and other coastal pelagic species migrate will migrate south down Sailfish Alley. When the cold fronts push through, northerly groundswells and winds march down, pushing against the Gulf Stream’s northbound current. From the shore, the swells create a spectacle on the horizon that locals describe as “the elephants walking.” The swells also seem to push baitfish and other forage to the surface, where sailfish ball them into tight schools then slash into them with their sharp bills. On one such banner rough day in 2012, the crew aboard the Get Lit, Fishing in the West Palm Beach Fishing Club’s 75th annual Silver Sailfish Derby, released 35 sails in one day, smashing records.
Capt. Scott Fawcett (right) of Off the Chain fishing charters out of Sailfish Marina in Stuart
But wintertime sailfishing isn’t just for the hardcore angler willing to brave rough seas and cold weather. Warmer, calmer days will also produce fish. And thanks to conservation measures, there seem to be more sails in the Stuart area year round than anyone can remember. When I was a kid, if we caught a sail in the summertime we talked about it for the rest of the summer. These days, it’s not unusual to hook four or five fish in the middle of July.
Tactics
Experienced billfishermen either troll dead baits or use various devices to deploy live baits.
Trolling Dead Baits
Before the advent of aerated live bait wells, trolling dead baits and sometimes lures offered the only way to connect with sails. Trolling is still one of the most effective ways to find sailfish and release large numbers of them. Since the continental shelf is wider, and since the fish could be in so many different areas, many captains fishing along the Treasure Coast prefer trolling in order to cover a lot of water. Some tournaments mandate trolling only, to celebrate an art that will never become passé. Typically, the boat will pull a spread of teasers, dredges, and small, rigged “dink” ballyhoo fairly slowly, so that they appear to swim naturally. The dredges resemble the wires in an umbrella, and live or dead baits are rigged to “swim” school-like from the metal ends. It’s irresistible. And once the dredge or teaser draws a fish or multiple fish, the crew pulls them from the water so the fish focus on the baits with hooks in them. Usually, the angler needs to have the presence of mind and skills to drop back the bait the sailfish is pursuing, basically right into its beak. This type of fishing is incredibly visual and exciting, especially one the fish takes the bait and the spool starts dumping line of the reel. When you come tight with a sailfish, it almost always immediately takes to the air.
Live Bait
Thanks to our estuaries, as well as a number of artificial reefs near the estuary mouth, the St. Lucie Inlet, it’s usually fairly easy to catch your own live bait, even in the winter. You can use a large, heavy castnet if the bait is thick. More often, we use quill rigs that allow us to catch multiple baitfish at once.
Crews set up live bait spreads several different ways. The most exciting, visual way to present a live bait to a sailfish is to dangle it on the surface from a kite. Kite fishing provides a tantalizing presentation, and also allows you to use a trace of wire leader, so you’re more likely to land a toothy wahoo or king mackerel if one takes the bait. Kite fishing is an art, and challenging, but so much fun and rewarding.
Whether kite fishing or not, most of us set out at least one “flat line,” sometimes under a float from a rodholder near the transom. Outriggers are also used to set out baits at various distances and to separate lines so they’re less likely to tangle. Unless the fishing is just red hot, I always put a bait down behind a lead weight half to three quarters of the way to the bottom. Sailfish feed throughout the water column, as do other predators, and on calmer days they may not be so inclined toward the surface.
Plenty of sailfish are caught on live baits fished straight off the rod, without a kite or rigger, float or weight. Anglers fishing from smaller vessels usually approach sailfishing in this relatively rudimentary way. If you’re using conventional tackle, make sure the drag is loose enough that the fish won’t drop the bait, but tight enough to avoid backlashes. Many anglers prefer spinning tackle with “live liner” settings that allow the spool to revolve as well, allowing the sail to run freely with the bait until it gets the bait down its throat.
Top Spots
Anglers new to the area and/or sailfishing are encouraged to hire one of our top-knotch offshore captains until you get a sense of area waters and tactics. DIY anglers are well advised to fish around Martin County’s extensive system of artificial reefs, especially those in 6o to 80 feet of water and deeper. The shallower wrecks and reefs are good places to catch live bait. “Sailfish Alley” runs along natural reef systems in about 60 feet off Fort Pierce and then moves seaward to about 120 feet off of Stuart. That depth is particularly productive off of Jupiter Island, outside the natural reefs systems called the “Loran Tower Ledges.”
Laws and Conservation
The law requires you to use non-offset circle hooks in tournaments, which almost always find home in the corner of a fish’s mouth, instead of a lethal location such as the stomach, tongue or gills. Whether fishing in a tournament or for fun, we strongly encourage you to use non-offset circle hooks, because they catch more fish and cause less damage to the email. If fishing in federal waters (outside of three nautical miles), you are allowed to keep a sailfish and most other pelagic if fishing in federal waters and if you purchase a highly migratory species permit. Inside state waters, you are allowed to keep one sailfish per person if the fish is over 63 inches. That said, the billfishing community has long recognized that the fish are far more valuable alive and in the water than dead on the dock. Except for the occasional fish that is killed accidentally during the fight, we abide by a catch-and-release ethos for sailfish and other billfish. That’s a big reason why sailfish populations in this region seem to be much healthier than most other places in the world where they are targeted.
If you want to mount a sailfish, we encourage you to get a “blank mount.” You simply take the fish’s measurements, and the taxidermist creates an exact replica that will last far longer than a skin mount.
The Pageantry
As the catch-and-release ethos became accepted, anglers wanted a way to memorialize the fish they left in the water to fight another day, and charter captains wanted to show potential customers evidence of their prowess. So, in 1938, the West Palm Beach Fishing Club began promoting the red “release pennant,” which boats fly from their outriggers to recognize the successful catch and release of a sailfish. Other flag colors designate a fish that was tagged and released, or the release of a species of marlin. These flags are now raised universally, regardless of tournament, location or club affiliation.
Joining a local fishing club is a great way to learn how and where to catch a variety of species including sailfish. Clubs based in Martin County include:
Tournaments
Stuart attracts competitive billfish anglers from around the world, as well as many folks that simply enjoy the social elements of fishing in a tournament, especially the camaraderie.
Top tournaments include:
The Stuart Sailfish Club’s Light Tackle Tournament, as well as the club’s lady angler, youth angler, and small boat tournaments.