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Search Gulf Coast Fisherman's Web Site Past articles, specific places or fish, etc.	Run with the Cobia by Capt. Robert Brodie
	Barrier Island Big 'Uns Come April, the minds of saltwater anglers in southern Mississippi stir with the thought of doing battle with one of the most highly prized game fish that prowls outside the Magnolia State's barrier islands. Hey, no matter what you call them including: cobia, cobe, ling, brownies, big brown ones, lemonfish, crab-eater, or the Cajun lingo of limon, these beautiful brown hued game fish are the star of the show come springtime. However, this spring there will be many changes along the Mississippi Gulf Coast in the wake of Hurricane Katrina's path of destruction. Coastal bait shops that once dotted Mississippi's coastline providing all sorts of live and dead baits, chum, tackle, and other supplies required to seek out cobia probably won't be as plentiful, so anglers may have to spend more time on the water catching their own live bait. Plus, the barrier islands including: Petit Bois Island, Horn Island, East Ship Island, West Ship Island, and the famed Chandeleur Islands all took a heavy pounding from the storm's tidal surge and relentless wave action. Especially on the isle's major points and outer surf line, extensive erosion changed their look and composition, especially along the Chandeleur Islands located 25-miles south of Biloxi, MS, located in Louisiana waters. Will these changes in the barrier isle's outer bars, gullies, and points change fishing patterns? It seems only time will tell, and springtime anglers will have to make changes if need be as the cobia run unfolds.
Live Bait Is Lethal Cobia are somewhat scavengers by nature, and are known to eat all sorts of baits both dead and alive. But, it's a tantalizing live bait that seems to always fire up a slow prowling cobia, and sends them into a high speed chase after a live bait fleeing in a natural manner. One of the most popular live baits used to catch them off Mississippi's barrier island bars is a live catfish, more commonly known as a "hardhead". During the height of the barrier island spring run, usually running from around mid-April throughout May, a number of bait shops sold live hardheads. Now, anglers may have to catch their own. In the past, hardheads were easily caught around seafood factories discharge pipes, and in marinas where fish cleaning stations were located. However, this may become another situation where it may be a bit more difficult with the loss of coastal businesses. In the event hardheads aren't available try other live baits like pinfish, white trout, ground mullet, croakers, and mullet. Mullet can be caught near shore in cast nets or brill nets, and are extremely active baits. For acquiring live white trout, ground mullet, and croakers venture out to the nearest oyster bars and bottom fish with small hooks baited with pieces of shrimp or squid. As for pinfish, another extremely flashy and active live offering, spend time fishing around the barnacle-encrusted pilings of piers with small perch hooks baited with a small pinch of dead shrimp. Of course live eels are deadly on cobia too, but anglers will be dependent on bait shops to ship in these slimy cobia treats. Don't count out fresh dead baits too, because a fresh dead bait such as a white trout, large shrimp or squid, and a soft-shelled crab may be lethal offerings at times. Chum Them In When the cobia run is on you'll find boats of all sizes anchored up all along the outside beaches and bars of Mississippi's barrier islands, as well as Louisiana's Chandeleur Islands. Once anglers determine where they want to fish for cobia the anchor is set out, and a chum slick is established. A chum slick is simply a scent trail established by dispersing various types of grinded up baitfish into the current behind the boat. Some anglers will use the ever-popular Chum Churn as a chum-dispersing device. To use this gadget one simply fills its tube with whole baitfish like squid, shrimp, menhaden, crabs, croakers, cigar minnows, or shrimp boat by-catch and, and then pump its handle to chop up and disperse the fish attracting particles and scent. Others will opt to fill a large meshed bag commonly referred to as a "chum bag" with baitfish, cleat it over the side, and occasionally beat it with a Louisville Slugger to keep the juices flowing off the boat's stern. To add to the effect and help maintain a healthy oil slick trail well behind the boat some anglers will add a menhaden oil drip bag to their chumming arsenal. Killer Bee Bait, a local company out of Biloxi sells the ready to go drip bags, as well as one-gallon jug refills of 100% menhaden oil. Occasionally, it's a good idea to simply pour a bit of the menhaden oil over the mesh chum bag to keep the slick well established. By the way, since cobia are known to dine on crabs, some coastal anglers are known to crush up blue crabs in a 5-gallon bucket, mix with sea water, and occasionally ladle the juices and crab particles over the side. Think about it, they aren't dubbed crab-eaters for no apparent reason. Rigs & Tackle For Cobia Although cobia are excellent fighters and are usually eager to take a bait, it doesn't require any high tech rigging to land one of these brown hued gamesters. Since they don't possess mouths of razor sharp teeth, and their bodies are covered in small slimy scales, a simple monofilament leader rig is all that's required to land a cobe. Depending on the size of line being used on the reel, a leader may not be needed at all. If your reel is spooled with 50 to 80-pound test clear mono, all that is necessary is to simply tie on the proper hook, bait up, and you're in business. With certain extremely lively baits such as eels, a dull colored barrel swivel is recommended 4 to 6-feet above the bait in order to reduce twisting of the line. I like to tie a size 2 SPRO Power Swivel to the main line, and then tie on a 6-foot length of 60 to 80-pound-test Seaguar fluorocarbon leader material. I'll then finish off the leader's tag end with an 8/0 or 9/0 Gamakatsu Live Bait Hook. From this standard mid-depth set up a variety of different and useful cobia rigs can be established. For instance, inflating a small party balloon and tying it just above the barrel swivel can keep a bait suspended near the surface. This is a great rig for greeting cobia cruising along the surface working up the slick. Or, you can slip a 4 to 8-ounce egg sinker (current determines weight size) on the main line just above the barrel swivel to create a Carolina-rig for soaking a bait on the bottom. By implementing these three rigs you'll be able to cover the complete water spectrum in the chum slick behind your boat. As for tackle, my big guns include 4/0 Penn Special Senators and Shimano TLD 25's seated on 6-foot stand up Seeker rods, and spooled to the hilt with Yo-Zuri Hybrid 50-pound-test. Also, Shimano TLD 30's and 6/0 Penn Special Senators loaded with 80-pound-test are used to fish the bigger live baits, especially the large sea catfish on the bottom. Also, many anglers will have a "shotgun rig" at the ready. A shotgun rig is simply a large spinning rig or smaller baitcasting rig in the 30-pound-class capable of casting a bait or lure accurately over a long distance. For such a rig, some serious anglers will keep a live bait like a live eel pre-rigged in case a cobia is suddenly passes by. It's wise to keep a supply of jigs at the ready too, because these large mouth gamesters will often engulf a fast retrieved fake bait. Toss lead headed jigs like 4-ounce SPRO Bucktail Jigs, No Alibi Feather Dusters, Offshore Angler Cobia Jigs, and other similar baits with a stout hook that will hold up to a cobia's power and hard jaw. Yellow, white, and chatreuse colors are effective. To make the jigs even more alluring enhance them with a squid, large shrimp, cigar minnow, or a fresh bonito strip. The Loop Current Effect For the past two spring cobia runs off Mississippi there seems to have been a decrease in the numbers of cobia being caught or seen running the barrier island's bars. At times, late cold fronts or heavy coastal rains that pump cold fresh water out to the barrier islands can keep fish out in deeper and warmer waters. However, for the past two seasons it seems that another factor known as the loop current may be responsible for pulling cobia away from the coastline and sending them out to deeper and warmer water. Matter a fact, many Mississippi tournament anglers made the run to the west side of the Mississippi River in order to find cobia, and the numbers of cobia they found were incredible. According to fisheries biologists, Jim Franks and Read Hendon of the University of Southern Mississippi Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, it's suspected that the loop current may be responsible for pulling good numbers cobia off their natural migration patterns, and causing the fish to bypass the shallower shorelines. You see, as the ninety-degree Gulf Stream waters out of the Caribbean Sea rushes through the Yucatan Straights into the Gulf of Mexico, the large loop current is formed. The "loops" flow through Gulf of Mexico in a clockwise direction before exiting through the Straights of Florida to merge with the Gulf Stream. At times the large finger like extension of the loop current protrudes well into the northern Gulf of Mexico, and periodically some of the loop gets pinched off forming separate warm water eddies that migrate back to the southwest. For the past two years during the cobia's spring coastal migration trek from the Florida Keys, satellite images have indicated several "loops" that broke off and worked their way near the migration route. Thus, biologists like Hendon and Franks have come up with the theory that many cobia may have caught a ride on these warm water loops and were pulled more offshore to the west resulting in many fish by-passing Mississippi's barrier island bars. In the future, Magnolia State anglers should hope for warm springs with little rainfall, and loop currents staying well offshore for optimum chances at catching cobia just outside the barrier islands. Where To Anchor Up Traditionally, some of the best areas to chum up and catch migrating cobia include: the bar just off the west end of Petit Bois Island; the large distinct bars and gullies approximately half way down Horn Island's outside beach; the lengthy bar running south off the west end of Horn Island; the bars, gullies, and grass beds running between the west end of Horn Island and the east end of east Ship Island; as well as the bar off the north end of the Chandeleur Islands and off the bars along its outside beach. According to well-seasoned Capt. Scott Simpson of the charter boat Impulsive out of Long Beach, MS, serious cobia anglers may want to spend a day out exploring the bars before the spring run gets started. Especially off the north end of the Chandeleur Islands, Capt. Simpson recommended cruising the much changed bar while watching the depth finder and keeping a plotter at the ready to mark any new gullies or drop offs. "In the past, the magic depth for anchoring and chumming for cobia off Chandeleur's north bar seemed to be in the 8 to 13-foot range", Capt. Simpson added. Although coastal Mississippians have suffered a devastating setback in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, one can only hope that this coastal community makes a speedy recovery, and that the cobia run in 2006 will result in new and happy fishing memories for anglers that pursue this popular gamefish. Barring any late cold fronts and cobia intercepting loop currents, Magnolia State anglers should enjoy another season of going toe-to-toe with the big brown ones. Good fishing! To contact Capt. Brodie to find out more about fishing or hunting this area, give him a call at 228-392-7660 or drop him an email. - www.teambrodiecharters.com [ Articles | Home ]