Captain Bryon Holland Fills the Boxes

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Captain Bryon Holland Fills the Boxes

Last weekend the Florida Fisherman ll, Hubbard's Marina, arrived home Sunday morning, 2/12/17, with a huge load of snapper and amber jacks:

This weekend a front is due to hit mid-day Saturday with wind and driving rain. Absolutely no problem for a 72' catamaran, but what it will do for fishing remains to be seen. The Friday 1/2 day boats returned with a fine catches. The man himself, Captain Dylan Hubbard, was on board:


The hogs were most impressive:


As we board our home away from home for the next 39 hours, the Florida Fisherman ll, a huge crowd gathers to send us off. Front or no front, our expectations are high. Remember!  This is Florida:

Our Captain is Captain Bryon Holland; one of the best of the best. Captain Holland was born in Western New York, fifty miles South West of Buffalo. He graduated from High School in 1979 and spent four years active duty in the United States Army. Mr. Holland moved to Florida in 1984. He fished commercially for 25 years from his own boat, named after his Mom, the "Sarah Louise". Finally he sold his boat,  earned his 100 ton Captain's license, and started working at Hubbard's Marina. Captain Holland has fished in Belize, Nicaragua, Columbia, and extensively in the Gulf of Mexico. This man, this man of the sea, reports that since 1984, " I've spent more time looking at a fish finder than a television." And it shows:
Captain Bryon Holland:


First things first! Mr. Brendon Baldwin knows that when Tammy goes Mexican, we all win:

Friday night we will be targeting, among other things,  the elusive, hard to fool, and even harder to catch, mangrove snapper. When first mate, Will, and the Florida's fishing coach, John Martin, talk, we listen:


Hubbard's long time 'Regular's Club' member, Mr. Larry Miller, is one of the best. Look at the size of that mango snapper:

Eat and run without paying for your dinner? NO way!

Another real expert is Mr. Brendon Baldwin. Brendon is one of the very best snook fishermen in the entire state. He has a guides license:

Brendon's lure of choice is the Nickolas Castellano locally hand tied 'Professional Fishing Jigs' using Mustad's best 8/0 hook:

Wonder what this jig will do off shore? Well! It's looking impressive:


Looks like the yellowtail are hungry also:


Don't leave the mangos out:

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Captain Bryon joins the action:

These mangos are running big and hungry:





Since we are fishing well over 120 feet, this beauty will be sent home to fight again:

Sun up. The night fishing has been good. Hope that front does not hurt us too much.

Will & Jon re-pack and ice down the night's catch:

Brendon goes to work. Looks like that 'Nickolas Castellano' jig will catch a lot more than mangrove snapper. This is a BIG boy:

Even Captain Bryon is proud of Brendon:


What a fight:

Good thing we have a two day limit:

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The AJ's are winning many of the battles, but not all. Many, like the mangos, are paying for their dinner:

Captain John knows what to do with amber jacks. Smoked AJ dip is hard to beat:

Mr. Ron Linker, Ontario, Canada, has proven he can catch yellowtail snapper, but that's no yellowtail:

Like to be Ron's next door neighbor in Ontario? Only one slight problem...the current temperature is -2 degrees and predicted to get much colder. May be a good idea for us 'crackers' to think a little more on that one.
Mr. Jacques Remy, a proud native of Haiti, is all excited about his red grouper:

The gags are hungry also:

That front hit us hard. Strong wind, pouring rain, and rough seas can't stop us. After all, we are on a mission, a mission to catch fish:

Tammy is an 'all around' girl. In addition to serving the finest meals imaginable, she is our nurse, shoulder to laugh-cry on, and fishing advisor:

Roger and Justin are not only real gentlemen, but expert fishermen:


The gags and American reds have been hungry all night and day:

Looks like they are not the only ones. Chef Tammy, here we come:

After a fine dinner, let's see if the fish are still hungry. Well !

Major problem! The 'endangered' American red snapper will not leave us alone. They are so aggressive:


OK! So how well did that Nickolas Castellano jig work for Mr. Baldwin? Brendon reports;
12 keeper gags
40 big American reds
20 mangrove snapper to 6 pounds
02 big AJ's
Talk about a real winner:

That does it. We are still a very long ways from home. Take us home Captain John, home to beautiful Madeira Beach, Florida. Now that was one quick, comfortable, ride home. Our four inch thick foam rubber bunks are our best friends.
As we approach John's Pass Bridge Captain Bryon takes over:


Think it's difficult to dock a 72 foot long 25 foot wide boat at a small dock? Easy if you are Captain Bryon Holland:

Back home Brendon (L), and Justin are all smiles:


As usual, many of the larger fish were not in the jack pot. The winning AJ hit the scales at 46.0 pounds:

Mangrove snapper, 9.4 pounds:

Finally, our mystery fish, or whatever, of the day. Ever see anything like this before?


Catch the short video of our trip: (click on the Youtube link)

 
https://youtu.be/-wtmbiKbI3g

Bob Harbison  Florida Outdoor Writers Association

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   THANKS!   Must admit it got a little nasty out there Saturday. In addition to rain & wind it got really cold; all the way down to the high sixties.