Montauk Shark Fishing Tips, by Capt. Kevin Shea

I wrote this little bit back in 2005. This is not the complete article, but you can find the whole thing here: Montauk Shark Fishing

Montauk Shark Fishing Tips, by Capt. Kevin Shea
"Shark fishing is like watching the grass grow". That was the comment from a great mate that worked on my boat last yeat. Thanks to Doug S. for the great quote! By the way, if you're looking for shark charter info, I have a complete page available including tournament dates and rates.

Well, it's a lot more fun than watching the grass grow, but there are times when the process is a slow one. So, I like to say that shark fishing is a lot like, well, fishing. Like any other type of fishing, there are good days and bad ones.

When to fish for sharks
It just so happens that June water temps usually climb to a point that these toothy predators begin to inhabit our waters in Montauk. It's always a good idea to watch water temperatures closely before you go shark fishing. In the early days of the season, look for warm water temperature breaks. When summer kicks in heavy, look for colder water among the hot, flat offshore waters. If I had the choice of when to fish for sharks, I'd choose the last week of June through the first week of July OR the first 2 weeks of October.

Where do we fish for sharks?
There are numerous shark spots within striking distance of boats leaving from Montauk. These spots range anywere from 10 to 55 miles from the point. The most important things about your location are structure and water temperature. A structure can be a rise or dip in the sea floor. Since shark fishing is normally drift fishing, chart your drift, based on wind and tide, to follow the edges of the structure you choose. From Montauk, there are excellent shark fishing spots to the east, southeast, south and southwest.

What to bring on a shark fishing trip?
When chumming for sharks (most popular) your gear should be able to handle a fish over 300 lbs. It is not uncommon to hook into a shark that exceeds this weight. Whatever gear you choose and depending on wind and tide, you should fish with 3 - 5 baits in the water. That means, you will need just as many rod/reel setups. I recommend the following tackle:

Rod: 50 to 80 lb. class rod
Reel: Penn Senator 9/0 or higher
Reel: Penn International 50 or 80
Fishing Line: 80 - 100 lb. Mono
Hooks: 12/0
Leaders: 12 ft., 200 lb. test wire
Gaff
Flying Gaff Quality Wire Cutters
Balloons or floats
Chum Bags
EzTwist - Dubrow
Tail Rope: 7ft with secured loop
Tag stick and tags
Harness AND safety straps
Outrigger or flatline clips

Don't forget bait and chum:

Flat of Bunker
Flat of Mackerel
Fresh Bluefish (if available)
Live bluefish (if available)


let me list some other important things to bring on a shark trip:

Food - don't forget to pack snacks
Sunscreen - drifting in the sun and heat can set in a serious burn if you're not prepared
Cold drinks - Beers are fine (for everyone BUT the Captain), but don't forget to bring non-alchoholic drinks to keep you from dehydrating.
A Hat
Sunglasses
A sweatshirt - yes, it can be cool out there, even on sunny days.
...

This article is continued on page 2 here

Montauk Fishing Report - Star Island Shark Tournament Results

The following report is provided by Capt. Gene Kelly of MontaukSportFishing. You can see is full report at www.montauksportfishing.com/report.html

Here are the results of the 2007 Star Island Shark Fishing Tournament which was held this past weekend:

First Place Overall - 374 lbs - Thresher - THREE G’S
First Place Mako -372 lbs - F.I.S.H.
Second Place Mako - 215 lbs - OH BROTHER
Third Place Mako - No other makos caught
First Place Blueshark - 273 lbs - LUCIA
Second Place Blueshark - 259 lbs - HYPERACTIVE
Third Place Blueshark - 257 lbs - DORADO
First Place Other - 374 lbs - Thresher - THREE G’S
Second Place Other - 359 lbs - Thresher - TUNA TANGLER
Third Place Other - 300 lbs Thresher - PISCES III

Overall the fishing was pretty good with a lot of bluesharks caught, and the fish are in closer than you might expect to find them this early in the season, as close as twenty miles.

Inshore the bass fishing is very good, although how good depends on who you talk to. One captain told me that Saturday was tough. On an all day trip he caught about fifty bass, but could only keep eleven of them, one short of the limit. Another captain on a half day trip on Saturday morning had his limit in the first two hours with fish up to thirty pounds.

Some live baiting with porgies has started with at least one charter boat and one private boat that I know of giving it a shot. It wasn’t very good although they each caught a couple of fish.

Fluke fishing is just OK right now. There are a fair amount of fish in the rips, but not very many that you can eat. The south side is slower, but a better chance at a keeper.