Shallow Water Muttons

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Written by Chase Cornell Thursday, 12 August 2010 19:11

Fishing for mutton snapper is a favorite of many saltwater enthusiasts.  Muttons are wily residents of the reef that will challenge your patients and angling skills.  Everyone will tell you they have the ultimate technique to put big muttons in the box.  From sand balls to conch cracking, the spectrum of methods used to catch these vibrant, pink fish seemingly has no limits.  With all the information available and a plethora of forum posts adorning successful mutton trips, this article is dedicated towards catching muttons close to the beach.  Here are three sure fire tips to ensure you eat more fried snapper sandwiches.

With the onset of the summer weather patterns, waters along Florida’s East Coast warm and clear.  During these hot summer months, all species of snapper gather on area reefs to spawn.  Do not be afraid to fish shallow.  Mutton snapper can be caught in quantities from 20 to 60 feet of water.  Many anglers run to deep water, but big muttons invade the shallow water reefs and structures during the spawning season offering excellent opportunities to use light conventional and spinning outfits.

 

 Fishing in shallow water requires a scaled down rig.  Every situation is different, but there are four different rigs we recommend that will put muttons on ice:

1. Free Line Live Bait: Big snapper are suckers for live bait.  When fishing in shallow water, a free lined livie will get the attention of even the most leery mutton.  Start with five feet of 60lb fluorocarbon leader and if the bites don’t come, scale down the leader weight and increase the leader length.  Big muttons can be caught on light leader with a good drag and diligent angling.  Try a 6/0 Owner offset circle hook to ensure a solid hook set in the corner of the mouth each time.
2. Knocker/Sliding Sinker Live/Dead Bait Rig: A knocker rig lets the egg sinker slide straight to the shank of the hook, a sliding sinker rig runs the egg sinker on the main line above a swivel.  Just like the free line rig, start with a heavier leader and scale down to get more bites.  For 20 to 40 feet of water, try using 1 to 3 ounces of led.  From 40 to 60 feet, try using 3 to 5 ounces.  Do not move the led around or bounce it on the bottom, let the bait do the work and bring the muttons in for a closer look.
3. Free Line and Light Jig/Jig Head Rig: For these rigs I fish with 15lb to 30lb fluorocarbon leader.  Try using 1/16oz to 1/4oz bucktails and jig heads in white, pink or yellow tipped with bait. A small split shot and 1/0 to 2/0 hook tipped with bait, free lined over the reef, will produce fast action from muttons.

 A live well full of live bait is an absolute must when fishing shallow structure for mutton snapper.  Pilchards, thread fins, scaled sardines and cigar minnows free lined over shallow structure.  Muttons will patrol the reef edges and a free swimming live bait will generate strikes from big fish.  Fresh cut bait on a jig head or small buck tail can also produce big results.  If bait is plentiful, try putting several dozen on ice.  Thread fins are excellent for chum.  Try running your knife against the scales of the fresh bait.  As you wear through the skin all the scales will disburse into the water column and fresh fish oil will get the snapper excited.  Make sure to keep the chumming steady and you will be guaranteed to put more fish in the box.