Jetty fishing April 3rd 2006

We started out at 6:00 am for the Galveston Jetties on a cool April morning. I had not been there in 6 years and was on Captain Steve Kraft 27 footer. With 2 - 250 HP motors I could not believe the power. We got into position on the channel side of the North Jetty and set up shop. Jim, Rick and I were going after Black Drum and anything else we could catch. The water temperature was 69 degrees and the tide was coming in.

I had picked up 2 quarts of large shrimp and Capt. Steve had some crabs. When I left home I had picked up a medium light rod and was not expecting to catch such a large fish on it. I also had a heavy rod but thought I would wait till we got into the drum before breaking it out. I felt a tap and then it was on.  My rod bent double as the drum took off in protest. My reel was singing as the drag struggled with the fish. I was worried as I had 12-pound test but what could I do now but hold on and reel when I could. With Rick and Jim yelling for me to quit messing around and reel it in I was holding my own and fighting for my rod. I was afraid it would snap any minute. Finally what seemed like an hour but was only 15 minutes I pulled it to the boat where Steve brought the drum on board. At 26 inches it was the biggest Black drum I had caught.  I tried my 12 weight fly rod with a fast sinking line but could not get a hookup. I had several strikes but missed them. 
My big Drum
Jim and I both got a few sheep's head and Steve got a 28 inch drum before we moved to the outside end of the North Jetty.  

  The waves from the incoming tide were washing over a broken part of the jetty where we set up and started fishing. We started seeing what I thought was Spanish mackerel shooting across the surface. I put on a wire leader after my line was cut above the swivel and I lost my rig. I finally got one but had to move the bait fast so the wire was above the water. Steve got another drum and Jim also got one that was oversized. I switched to no wire and tied on a yozuri stick bait in blue and white. I had a strike and brought in a nice Spanish. On my next cast I reeled as fast as I could and BAM a real hard hit and line was zipping off my reel. I worked my way to the back of the rocking boat and Rick reached in and tightened my drag down tight. The line kept leaving my reel till there was almost nothing left when I got cut off. An expensive lure lost and I still never saw what it was.

  Jim with a big Drum

I changed to a red and white but got nothing, so I tied a big B fly to my 8-weight fly rod. I could not move the fly fast enough by stripping but when I made my back cast I had several strikes. They were hitting the tail and taking bites of the buck tail but missing the hook. I changed to a gold spoon fly my friend Michael Michael Thornton ties. It had a short tail but I still kept missing them. With the waves rocking the boat harder and harder I was having trouble not hitting my friends on my back cast so I put the fly rod down and went back to my spinning rod. I tied on a gold "sprite" spoon from Johnson and started casting toward the rocks.
  Rick with an oversize Drum

All of a sudden Rick had a big fish on. He had a heavier rod than mine and it was bent pretty well and he was struggling. When he would gain a little line the fish would see the boat and bolt off again. It took him 15 or 20 minutes before we could see he had a huge drum. We left the 35 to 40 pound fish in the water and released it with no harm to the huge fish. A few minutes later I was on the Spanish again. Jim, Rick and I were losing spoons and rigs fast, I lost 7 spoons in less than an hour but caught 8 fish total.
  Rick with a big Jack

All of a sudden I saw Rick into a big fish again, this one was acting different than the drum and more like to one I had on earlier. After a while Jim and I went to the back to watch Rick struggle with this monster. When Rick would gain a few feet of line the fish would surge again and Rick was almost spooled. This went on for almost an hour when we saw a forked tail. Rick had the biggest Jack I had ever seen. This fish was well over 40 pounds and almost 4 feet long, its bright yellow color reflecting in the afternoon sun. The muscles in Rick's arms were bulging and I could see the strain it was taking on him. He had 2 huge fish to deal with in less than 2 hours and he was getting tired. With a last run from the boat, Steve had the leader and Rick's last gold spoon was hanging out of its mouth. Just as Steve was grabbing its tail the leader broke and off went the Jack with Rick's spoon.

  Jim cleaning the catch

I was still catching Spanish when Steve said last cast. We packed and headed for the dock with a box full of fish to clean. As we pulled into the yacht basin we were all tired but had a great time. Jim sharpened his fillet knife and started cleaning fish. I got my 8 wt and a small pink shrimp pattern fly and fished here he dropped scraps into the water. I caught 8 piggy perch, some were huge and one was record size. I love fishing for bream and these fight just like a bluegill. Maybe next trip I can catch something bigger on my fly rod. I am looking forward to my next trip with Captain Kraft when we go offshore. I will also be fly fish instructor for his boat on inshore and offshore trips this summer. Contact me for more information on planned trips or if you want to book a trip with the Krafty Angler Captain Steve Kraft.

Mark