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Jesse's Hunting > Fishing Articles > Fishing Articles Archives > Gulf Fishermen Eagerly Await Snapper Opener
Gulf Fishermen Eagerly Await Snapper Opener
Mike Gilmore-JHO ProStaff
- Pensacola, FL
February 26, 2005
Most folks treat April 15 like the plague and wish it never came around, thanks to federal tax deadlines.
Throughout the coastlines along the Gulf of Mexico it’s hardly dreaded, as most people can’t wait for its arrival. It signifies the opening day of Red Snapper season and it seems most people don’t mind losing a day’s wages to go harvest their share of the highly sought after species.
The prized red snapper
Red Snapper is a culinary delight, as well as a blast to catch. Gulf Coast fishermen are waiting eagerly for the season opener on April 15. |
Red Snapper fishing dates back to the late 1800's to Pensacola, Florida, where it became a major source of revenue for many families. Fisherman from all over the world came to Pensacola, which became known as the Red Snapper capitol of the world. Red Snapper were very abundant and brought a great price on the open market as well as an export to more landlocked states. It was canned by local fish houses and sent to buyers who were lucky enough at the time to be able to afford it.
Red Snapper is a carnivorous bottom dwelling fish that prefers rock or hard bottom structure and formations. They tend to mainly feed on crustaceans and smaller fish. Most snapper are harvested by using a stiff rod with a medium to large conventional saltwater reel. Fishing line in the 30-40 lb. range is commonly preferred along with a heavy six to eight ounce weight and a circle hook. Circle hooks allow the fish to bite and don’t require the angler to set the hook to catch the fish. The fish tends to hook itself, therefore allowing the angler to just reel it to the boat.
Leaders consist of a piece of heavy monofilament with several drops along the side with each with its own hook. Its not unusual to pull in more than one snapper at time when using multiple hook rigs. Snapper bait consists most of the time with frozen squid, which is bought at most local bait shops. Live bait if available is always a great to use as well.
Snapper are normally in abundance on most natural and artificial wrecks and along the Gulf region. Each angler is allowed to harvest four fish with a minimum 16-inch length. Anglers will pack as many friends as they can on the boat during the snapper opener just so they can fill the box with a few more delicious red snapper.
Hardly a trip goes by where you don’t catch a bonus of lane snapper to add to the icebox as well. Lane snapper live among the red snapper but are distinguished by beautiful yellow lines down their side. "Lanes," as they are referred to, aren't as abundant but are just as good at the dinner table.
Lane Snapper
Lane Snapper are a bonus catch to fishermen targeting reds. |
Red snapper is excellent table fare no matter how you cook it. A healthy alternative is to broil it in a shallow pan with some garlic butter spread across the top and lightly browned with paprika. In the south, most prefer it to be golden fried in a good cornmeal batter sitting alongside a nice bowl of cheese grits.
No matter how you like to eat your fish, red snapper is sure to please you. So next time you think about April 15, don’t sweat over tax deadlines. Plan a trip to the Gulf of Mexico and sweat hauling your load of snapper to the boat.
Tight Lines!
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