Going to venture into saltwater for the first time
 

I'm going to take my 1975 Airslot 165(Johnson 120hp VRO outboard) into St. Andrews Bay in Panama City, Florida for the first time soon.

I would like to have some advice to a new saltwater fisherman.

What weather reports should I be checking?

I have an automatic bilge pump, life vests, air horns. I am not going to be able to afford a radio of any type, but I do not really plan on leaving the bay at all in this boat until I am much more experienced. Is there any other important safety equipment I should look into?

Additionally, I am new to saltwater fishing in general, although I bass fish regularly. Where can I get some good info on setups to use while bay fishing?

I'm going to rinse the boat off thoroughly after use as well as flush the motor.

fish finder rig is a basic setup works for pretty much anything that feeds near the bottom. depending on the size of your gear, basically a weight slides freely up and down the line and a leader on the other end. weather wise you want to look for wave hieght and wind speed. not much different then freshwater, no clue what your boat is like, just take it out and see waht she can handle. safety gear is the same except i recommend a second anchor and carry your cell phone just incase if you dont have a vhf, and dont get stuck on a sandbar bieng anchored when the tide is going out lol,

Here's a good place to start...get familiar w/this site and read FORECASTS THOROUGHLY...then find and study all the CHARTS you can of the area you plan to fish...visit local tackle shops and don't be afraid to ask...if you can, fish w/a friend who knows the area and techniques before taking your own boat out...always helpful...tide forecasts as well...yer wise to stay inshore for a while...let someone know the general area you are fishing before you go and make sure your Airslot is FLORIDA LEGAL...take a digital camera and post up some pics of your trips, so we can see 'em

http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=pclf1

I will be inshore until I get a new boat! Sticking to the bay while I'm in a 16' boat for sure. Thanks for the tip about Florida legal, a few different requirements than Alabama where I live. Where can I pick up some charts from?

sax, let me know what local info i can provide for you. boat should be plenty for bay cruisin. where are you staying and where are you looking to launch.
http://www.halfhitch.com/ is a good tackle shop for info and supplies. i have been slacking on the fishing in july & aug we go into scallop & crab mode.
i will be glad to help any time

pd

That right there is what makes this board AWESOME

Absolutely awesome. Thanks for the link. I haven't picked anywhere in particular to launch from, I was looking at St. Andrews State park to launch, but I am 100% open to suggestions. I live in alabama, but its an hour and a half drive to PCB.

I am super new to saltwater fishing, went deep sea fishing on a charter a few weeks ago and I was instantly in love. I enjoyed it a lot more than bass fishing which I do 2-3 times a week!

I really need some ideas of where/what I should look for in a fishing spot. What kind of fish are the best to eat from the bay? I will visit that tackle shop as soon as I can for some advice on setups. We just grilled up some scamp and trigger fish I caught from the gulf last week and they were amazing.

I also want to find a chart or list of types of fish around there and legal limits for keepers.

Picture of my boat!

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-c...TPY/image.jpeg

Bingo!!...:clap:

OK..here ya go...this will answer all the size limits, what's out there and how to catch 'em...

http://myfwc.com/

Not to mention licensing and other requirements...sorry...gotta do it...

Thankfully I'm military so I can get an annual permit for $20 at a tax collectors office. Just have to find some time this week to go grab one.

Invite yer CO to go fishin w/you....you'll get to go all you want!!...take COLD BEER...:beer:

...AND i BET YOU CAN GET THAT PERMIT ONLINE...

if you are not staying at the beach, i would try to avoid the state park ramp. it is very convienent tothe pass, but cost about $12 every time you use it. i'm guessing you are coming down from ft rucker and the beach is closer than town, but there are no good public ramps at the beach. you can cross the bridge and there is a ramp of the east side with good parking and easy launch. further in town there is the ramp at the st andrews marina, and a good one at the downtown(panama city) marina. either one of those is going to put you about 3 miles from the pass. right now with all the fish closures in the gulf, about all that is going on is trolling for kings. triggers and bee liners are available, but you need gps & bottom machine to get on the structure. the next big bay thing is the fall run of pompano,flounder, & reds starting about mid sept until mid nov.
i would suggest a fl sportsman chart for this area, gives you a nice overview of the bay and has some pretty good info on bay spots

pd

Thank you for your service!! The Airslot is a great boat... built for lake and river cruising. Being a tri-hull it tends to pound a little when in a salt water chop, so sticking to the bay is a good idea. Keep a weather eye on the weather.. a bay can get real ugly real fast due to their shallow nature. Check NOAA website before going out. Extra anchor, cell phone in waterproof bag, bug spray, cooler filled with food and drink. Bimini top is pretty nice to have, but an umbrella will also provide much needed shade. Great looking boat. :love: Welcome to the site :beer:

http://www.floridainsiderfishingreport.com/ - fishing report....check for your area.

http://myfwc.com - for boating requirements, follow them or pay the price...these guys check down here.

http://www.floridasportsman.com/ - go to their store and look at the charts they have for sale. VERY good and reasonable. Also have something called the "Florida Law Stick" that has all of the size limits for fish. Two flavors are the actually foldable stick and/or a decal you can put on your boat somewhere. They are great.

This is the home page for all marine weather forecasts

httphttp://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/marine/home.htm

You can navigate thru to find the zone you want. I think this is what you want..

http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick...=329&map.y=178

Save it in your Favorites and then check it every day, all day long, while at work....
It has the radar which you need to look at also.
And find a local webcam that shows the water where you will be fishing. A picture is worth a thousand forecasts!!!

The main thing to learn is where is the channel and where are the flats and what happens at low tide! Tides go from high to low every 6 hours and 20 minutes. That means it will be different on your way in...
You might see a guy running WOT across the bay and think you can do that too. But he knows the exact place and tide to do it and you don't....yet!

Have fun!

You guys are awesome. Thank you for all the links. PD you just saved me about $16 on boat launch! I think I'll be heading to PC Marina now to launch. I can come down on 231 instead of using 79, should drop me right on top of the ramp. I think this weekend I'm just going to launch and explore a little bit. See what looks like good fishing areas and probably hang out at shell island with the wife for an hour or two.

I have the bimini top and hardware that was on my boat originally but it is in kind of rough shape, I really need to look around and find someone that can repair it and clean it. It has one rip about 6" or so in it. It would be really nice to be able to cruise around in the shade!

The boat was in really really rough shape when I bought it. Had to replace stringers, deck, and transom. Learned that lesson well! It came out pretty nice though and we are very happy with it.

if you are coming down 79, you can launch at west bay bridge. there is a new, nice public ramp under the south side of the ramp. you would have a 15-20 mile run to the pass(one-way). if you launch at west bay, that is real close to some of the hottest trout & redfishing in the bay. this time of year, the afternoon showers seem to pop up north of the bay and drift down into town, so you have to keep a sharp weather eye out up there. they hardly ever reach shell island, so island time is a good idea right now.

as far as the bimini rip, dental floss does wonders

pd

Would you mind recommending a tackle shop as well? I'd like to stop by one on my way to the bay to pick up the basics for catching some spanish mackeral, trout, and/or redfish and of course get their advice on good spots! I only own freshwater stuff right now. I am leaning towards launching at the Panama City Marina right now.

there is one on 79 right before you get to hwy98 called sunjammers ( i think). i have never been there, but have heard they are very helpful and well stocked. i live in town and go to howell on 98 in st andrews. half hitch is located on thomas drive past the navy base and before bay point.

the ramp at the city marina is a local favorite and tends to get a little crowed on the weeked. it has room to launch or retrieve 2 boats at once and nice finger piers on either side. be careful of how far you back down. the ramp is off the bottom about 4 feet, so if you back your wheels off the concrete, the trailer will bottom out. usually not a problem with boats under 20 ft and only in the winter when the tides are real low.

pd

You need to get some flares too (minimum of 3). Even if you aren't going into the ocean side you will still need flares, I got popped in Cedar Key for that last year you can get the hand held ones (bag of 4) at Walmart for $20.

Thanks for all the advice!

Stopped by half-hitch tackle on my way in and got some advice from them. I ended up VERY short on time due to getting called into work early but I still got to fish for a little bit! Used a mackerel tree and trolled for spanish. SO MUCH FUN!

The boat was very capable in the bay. I was definitely being a little too worried. It was smoother than the lakes I usually boat in!

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-y..._6429884_o.jpg

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-m..._4533963_o.jpg

Thanks again for the help. I'm actually headed out again tomorrow with a buddy on his boat. :beer:

GREAT PICTURES!! My favorite all time fishing.... I live to Spanish Mack fish, went Sat and only caught a couple....they havent come in the bay that good this year. We troll #1 planers with 00# Clark spoons, gold and silver. What is a Mackerel tree?

http://www.tackletuna.com/clarkspoon...kerel-tree.jpg

It was recommended to me by the local tackle shop. Just a swivel followed by 4 hooks with some fluorescent surgical tubing and a spoon at the end. Trolled it right below the surface. It definitely worked really well! I'm trying to go again today and tomorrow. I'll post more of whatever we manage to drag into the boat!

Thanks for the info, I will look for them around here! Going out Sat with friends on a booze cruise all day(buddys Regulator). Hope to Spanish fish with my dad on Sun on the V!

good job sax, glad it's working out. make sure you can tell the difference between a spanish & a king. lotta juvie kings run with their spanish cousins. on a spanish the very front of the dorsal fin is black, on a king it is a solid color. also try running one rod with a 1-2 oz egg sinker ahead of the tree. they might be deep this time of year.

X2 that happened to me a couple years ago. It was a $250 mistake!
As for your boat, I as well as almost everybody on here, have seen smaller boats offshore. Is it smart? No. But if you are prepared right, it aint that bad. I have been fishing with a friend in his 60 year old 17' wooden boat and we have been going 25 miles offshore!

Hell we were 75 miles offshore in a friends Hatteras and there was a pontoon boat trolling around like it was nothing. :oh:

Not really related to the saltwater fishing and such, but I got my bimini top installed this week and took it out on the lake.

WOW! :clap:

I should have bought a bimini top a long long time ago! What a huge difference it is cruising around the water in the shade all day! I can't wait to get back out on the bay again with the top up and cruise to Shell Island and just generally cruising around exploring.

I should have bought a bimini top a long long time ago. Got a good deal on it and it was stable/steady cruising at 24-25mph even up to 30+ for a little bit.

My buddy used to take his flat bottom leaky aluminum boat 10 miles offshore by himself when he lived in Key West. No bilge, used to scoop the water out with a cup. Not something I would.

Up North we use that same rig, with a diamond jig on the bottom, to jig Boston Mackeral