“One of the best baits for big snapper is a big ribbonfish, 1½ to 2 feet long. Hook it through the eyes because a snapper’s going to eat it head-first. But a 6-inch live pogy is just as good as anything,” says Pellegrin, who fishes both baits on a 7/0 Mustad circle hook. That’s his best hook for red snapper.
How do you catch a giant snapper?
Exploiting these habits, the two primary methods for catching snapper from the shore are stray-lining (dead baits and soft-plastic baits) and fishing dead baits on the bottom. Whilst snapper can be caught on faster moving lures and live baits, these are generally far less effective.
What is the best way to catch red snapper?
Snapper of all sizes, including huge 20 or even 30-pound fish are commonly caught on dead bait. Squid, pogies, and cigar minnows are always reliable and readily available. But if you want to try to target huge snapper, you need live bait and the bigger, the better.
What is the biggest red snapper ever caught?
“This Cubera Snapper weighs 137 POUNDS and was caught on June 3rd, 2022 in the Gulf of Mexico by Braden Sherron with freediving spearfishing!
How do you catch Big red?
If you want to know how to catch big redfish, live baits like mullet, croakers and mud minnows are the top presentation. “In early fall, mullet congregate around the jetties for their spawn, coinciding with the bull reds running. Typically, a 4- to 8-inch mullet works, but it’s a trade-off.
What depth do snapper swim?
Snapper are commonly found in the depths of between 15 to 25 metres in larger bays, however, they can be found anywhere from 5 to 120 metres.
How deep do you fish for red snapper?
between 30 and 200 feet
Red snappers are both deep water and shallow dwellers. You can find them at any depth between 30 and 200 feet, usually huddled by nearby protective structures. Favorite hot spots include piers, seawalls, and old wreckage.
What is the best time of day to catch snapper?
Early morning and evening is the best time for snapper, since many fish feed at night and rely on low light for camouflage, especially in shallow water.
Do red snapper fight hard?
Do Snapper Fight Hard? Snapper do fight hard for their size. The bigger Snapper could feel like very hard fighters on ultra-light tackle like 4 lb. test line and a light-action rod.
What’s the best bait for snapper?
Best baits
Baits that work well for Snapper are whole fish baits such as pilchards, yellowtail, whiting, tommy rough, scaley mackeral and garfish.
How old is a 30 cm snapper?
around 4yrs old
AGE & GROWTH
Snapper reach full maturity around 4yrs old and about 30cm in length. The average schooling snapper that are encountered can be anything from 4 to 10 years old and the larger snapper around 5+kg can be anything from 20 to 60 years old.
How old is a 16-inch red snapper?
between 2 and 7 years old
A 16-inch fish could be anywhere between 2 and 7 years old, a 24-inch fish could be 3 to 9 years old, and a 32-inch could be from 5 to over 35 years old. The two oldest fish in the study were 52.6 and 51.7 years old, but were only 34 inches and 34.5 inches long and weighed a modest 17.3 and 20.2 pounds.
Is Big red snapper good eating?
Red snapper is a mild, slightly sweet fish with a subtle nutty taste. Its meat is lean and moist with a firm texture, making it a versatile ingredient in cooking. Red snappers don’t taste “fishy” compared to many other fish varieties, making them ideal for kids and people who prefer mild-flavored food.
How do you catch red snapper from shore?
Red Snapper can be targeted from the shore but catching them is uncommon. The main reason for this is because it’s difficult to get your bait to where the Red Snappers are. They are territorial ambush predators who don’t actively pursue their prey. The best live bait are shad, mullet, and cigar minnows.
What is the best bait for catching red fish?
During the spring, the best baitfish to use are mullet, pilchards, greenies or pogies. Although redfish also eat shellfish and crabs, they’ll eat the prey that’s easiest. If you’re not able to get some live bait, you also can use dead bait too. Use a 7/0 hook and put some mullet fillet on it.
What size hooks for red snapper?
10/0-11/0 hooks work well for snapper, and larger 12/0-13/0 hooks work well for grouper, amberjack, and big american red snapper!
What months are best for snapper fishing?
When is snapper fishing season? A: August to April. The main snapper fishing season begins in August (offshore), or in September in the bays (Western Port and Port Phillip), but snapper can be caught in winter.
What conditions do snapper like?
As a general rule snapper hold up around structure and deep water during the day and go on the prowl during low light. Fishing open areas such as shallow sounds, sand beaches etc is far more successful at dusk and dawn or even at night.
How far should snapper be from the shore?
Generally a 40-100m cast is necessary. Snapper are more commonly caught on our inshore and offshore reefs by the boat anglers. The vast majority of landbased anglers rarely catch snapper, and rarely specifically target them from the shore.
What is a good size red snapper?
They can reach length of 3 ft. and weigh as much 35 lbs or more. However the average size caught is 1-2 ft. in length and weigh less than 10 lbs.
How do you know when snapper is done?
The best way to tell if your fish is done is by testing it with a fork at an angle, at the thickest point, and twist gently. The fish will flake easily when it’s done and it will lose its translucent or raw appearance. A good rule of thumb is to cook the fish to an internal temperature of 140-145 degrees.