Thursday Afternoon, Keith and his family joined the Lady Pamela II for an eight hour expedition offshore Fort Lauderdale. Keith had a special request to hook his 85 yr old father up with a shark during their fishing trip. Within the first five minutes of trolling, a three ft Remora ate the bait. Keith and his crew got a good look at the Remora’s head and I explained what the sucker actually does, they were amazed. After we landed the Remora, we didn’t get another bite for over two hours. It was time to switch things up. We ran down south to a ship wreck, popped the kites and to really try our luck, we dropped two bloody shark baits down there. Dropping on a wreck is usually a win-win situation if anything is down there, it’s almost like knocking on your buddies front door. Good thing everybody on the boat was patient. An hour went by before the bobber went under, then we knew we were hooked to something big. A 45 minute battle took place before we saw the 5 1/5 ft Sandbar Silhouette. Sandbar Sharks are federally protected sea monsters, Keith’s father found out just how tough Game Sharks fight when he wrestled this one to the boat. It is truly rewarding work, he had a grin on his face from ear to ear after taming this great fish. Fishing was on target today, our anglers reeled in three really nice size bonitos and two of those delicious dolphin back to back. The 24 lb’er put up one hell of a fight on 30 lb tackle, think of hunting Elephants with bebe guns.

That’s what you call great fishing offshore Fort Lauderdale. What an accomplishment for Keith’s father.

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

February 25, 2009

This morning Mike, Chris and Darryl set sail with the Lady Pamela II for some Hump Day Deep Sea Fishing. Wind is usually our enemy, but today it was in our favor. These conditions are perfect for landing the Ballerina of the Sea A.K.A. the Atlantic Sailfish. We saw kite fishing in our near future so we headed to the local buoy and stocked up on live blue runners. Trolling gear was set with two deep lines and four top baits dancing on the surface, too bad there wasn’t much around to eat all this bait. After waiting and wishing for a bite on the troll, we popped the kites and hoped for the best. Not one sailfish ate, let alone swam by.

This Afternoon, Phil, his father and his two sons joined the Lady Pamela II all the way from New Hampshire (where it’s freezing!). The three generations took a road trip South, making Fort Lauderdale their last pit stop before they headed home. Deep Sea Fishing was on their list of things to do once they hit the road. You can’t come to Ft Lauderdale, Florida and not go fishing offshore, it’s a must. We headed out Shallow Harbor pointing out all the beautiful mansions and mega yachts on the Intracoastal, they couldn’t believe their eyes. Once we hit open water, trolling gear was out and the boys had a ball reeling in the kingfish. We caught a total of four kingfish, 3 nice ones and one really nice 15 lb’er. We headed to one of the many ship wrecks and tried our luck there. Our first drop of the day was a hit. A three pound lead, a 15 ft leader and a live bait on the end did the trick. The older brother caught a big Amberjack and couldn’t have been any happier.

Fishing was a little slow this morning but turned around in the afternoon.

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

February 23, 2009

This afternoon, six people on a shared charter joined the Lady Pamela II crew for some Fort Lauderdale Deep Sea Fishing. We headed out the Inlet in search of live Speedos at the local buoy. Once we had a few Speedos in the boat, trolling gear was in the water and we made our way towards Miami. For almost an hour, we were fishing and not catching…anything. Before we decided to pack up, a lizard fish ate the bait. We reeled this neat fish in and then we were off to a wreck. First drop of the day and we got a bite, a big bite. Within minutes the fish pulled the hook and we made our second drop. The second drop was a nice bite as well, a big Almaco Jack ate. We were getting greedy now, so I put another live bait down and we were hooked. The Lady Pamela II went 2 for 3 this afternoon on wreck fishing.

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

On Friday afternoon, the Lady Pamela II set sail with a family from Italy and a full day of fishing. We headed out Port Everglades trolling for Mahi - Mahi and Wahoo (we slipped in a Marlin bait just for fun). Fishing was quiet in the morning, not much was around. It was time to switch things up a bit and go for Plan B. We ventured off into Swordfish grounds, 15 miles offshore. When we reached our destination of 1800 ft of water, we put one bait on the bottom, another bait 100 feet down and a live pilchard dancing on the surface for by catch. We made three drops before we got the first bite of the day. It was a great bite, it hit the bait three times before the rod bent over. When a Swordfish takes the bait, there isn’t any rush in the world to match it. This Swordfish was an incredibly strong fighter, as it took brutal runs and intensive dives from the deep. After a 45 minute battle and numerous pass off’s, our anglers reeled in a 66″ fork Swordfish, weighing in at 175 lbs. Yup, it was as big as our 5′5 ft angler.

Sea ya on the water…

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

On Tuesday afternoon, the Lady Pamela II set sail with three people on a shared charter. We headed out the Inlet trolling with planner boards and fresh bonito strips in search of Kingfish. When we hit 150 ft of water the Kings were showing up in good numbers along with a few Blackfin Tunas ranging anywhere from 8 lb -25 lb. There was word around town that the Mahi - Mahi were solid offshore, and man were they. We landed 6 nice size dolphin for our anglers to take home for fresh dinner. Towards the last hour of our trip, conditions were looking good to fly the kites. Within minutes of the live bait being suspended from the kites, we hooked a 5 foot sailfish. It took our anglers 30 minutes to fight the flopper. Awesome day of fishing out there!

Sea ya on the water…

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

On Wednesday afternoon, Larry, Garry and their buddies came fishing aboard the Lady Pamela II with Captain Paul at the helm and Captain Darin in the cockpit. The weather was beautiful, calm seas and clear skies. They headed out Port Everglades with trolling gear ready to go. Once they hit their first spot of the day, it was King Mackerel after King Mackerel hitin’ the deck. Captain Paul had an idea and relocated to deeper water. Within minutes, the rod bent over and started screamin’. They fought a 45 lb Wahoo and got him in the boat. Bait went back out immediately and they hooked a nice size Blackfin Tuna. Larry and his friends had a great time and went home with fresh dinner, you can’t beat that.
Sea ya on the water…

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

February 19th, 2009

This morning Mr. Wise joined the Lady Pamela II for a full day of fishing offshore Fort Lauderdale. We started off the morning right, trolling for kingfish in 100 ft of water using planner boards and fresh bonito strips. After we had a handful of kings in the boat, we ran to a nice edge in 400 ft of blue water. The weed lines were surrounding the boat and so were the mahi - mahi. Mr. Wise landed 3 nice size dolphin anywhere from 6 - 8 lbs.

Around 1:30 we headed offshore with Dad and all his girls hoping to tug on something big. Wreck fishing was on the agenda, so we hit the wrecks up and down the coast and had a few nice bites. We hooked two nice size black groupers, but both fish pulled the hooks. Last wreck of the day and we got the bite. After 20 minutes, Dad reeled in a nice size amberjack on 30 lb test.

Great fishing today.

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

Sea ya tomorrow…

Joel Esxer and his new bride fled the cold weather in Illinois and came down to Fort Lauderdale to spend their honeymoon. Our South Florida weather has been a bit chilly, reaching the low 40’s, but once the sunshine comes out it is absolutely gorgeous (beats snow any day of the week). We headed out Port Everglades with trolling gear in the water and caught two king mackerels within minutes. Next thing on our list, a shipwreck. We packed up, ran north to a wreck, I popped the kites and Captain Paul dropped a fresh, bloody bottom bait. As soon as the bait hit bottom the rod bent over and we were hooked. Joel reeled in a 28 lb Black Grouper. Things were looking good for us down there so Captain Paul went for round two. He dropped another bait down and it was an instant bite. Joel’s wife caught a 15 lb Amberjack.

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

Wind was our enemy for most of January and the beginning of February, but it has layed down since. With cold fronts passing through one after another in South Florida (40 degrees is brutal for us locals!), seas get a little choppy and the wind tends to linger, but the fish love it, especially the Atlantic Sailfish. For a majority of January, it was hit or miss on the sailfish bite, however, conditions have picked up with a nice recovery. February has been good to us here in Fort Lauderdale.

On February 5 - 8, the 44th annual Fort Lauderdale Billfish Tournament took place right here in our own backyard. The Lady Pamela II crew fished aboard the Advanced Roofing Fishing Team, a 39′ Sea Vee. Seas were comparable to a washing machine, but sailfishing conditions were perfect. The first day of the tournament we headed out of Port Everglades bright and early. After several days of pre-fishing, we were ready to go. We ran to Palm Beach, catching a total of two sailfish, leaving Advanced Roofing at the bottom of the list. We didn’t let that bring us down, though. Day two approached up quickly; we were exhausted, but ready to actually catch some fish. We ran to Miami Beach, set up and caught a total of five fish on the kites. We walked away happy campers, winning a daily Calcutta.

Trolling has been extremely productive over the past few weeks. There’s been several takers on King Mackerels in the 5-10 lb range. Planner boards, fresh bonito strips and blue/white sea witches does the trick in 60-110 ft of water. Not only does this produce Kingfish, the Blackfin Tuna get turned on, too. In the first week of February, we were catching some of the biggest Blackfin Tuna offshore, weighing anywhere from 25-35 lbs. That’s a tough fighting, good eating fish right there.

With rippin north current and a full moon, the fastest fish in the ocean, the Wahoo, will eat. The Wahoo bite has been consistent in anywhere from 180-300 ft of blue water. On February 4th, Captain Paul and his anglers landed a 45 lb’er just a few miles offshore. A few of my buddies that commercial fish locally have been catching Wahoo’s in the 60 lb range. These are big fish were talking about, they put up a great fight and they are absolutely gorgeous.

Bottom fishing has made a 360 within the past two weeks with some giant fish showing up for their annual migration to warmer waters. The Lady Pamela II has seen an increase in Mutton Snappers on the wrecks along with Amberjacks and big Black Groupers that will eat almost any bait you properly present at there door step. These big jacks linger around the several artificial wrecks Fort Lauderdale houses, so be prepared to put your game face on, Amberjacks put up one hell of a fight.

Daytime Swordfishing is a recent trend off the coast of Fort Lauderdale. The Broadbill Swordfish is primarily a night feeder, but it seems as if fishing for the Gladiator of the Sea during the day is only producing bigger fish. Last Friday, the Lady Pamela II ventured off into fertile grounds with dead squid rigged and ready to go. We got a great bite, landing a 175 lb’er on rod and reel.

As spring time approaches, we are keeping an eye out for Game Sharks as they move through our warm waters here in South Florida.http://www.ladypamela2.com/…bin/forum/gforum.cgiTight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

Let’s get out there and chase some of the greatest game fish on earth, right here in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Check out our daily Captain’s Log to keep you caught up on what’s biting offshore Fort Lauderdale

January 15th, 2009

This morning we had a group of three from Russia visiting Ft Lauderdale, Florida. They had never been deep sea sportfishing, let alone been in the Atlantic Ocean. We headed out Shallow Harbor bright and early at 7 AM with live goggle eyes in the well. Once we hit open waters and ran 6 miles north, we popped the kites in 200 ft of water. Our first catch of the day was a 5 lb mahi - mahi (good eats). Shortly after, the right short started walking off, I put it in free spool and there she was, the “ballerina of the sea.” We watched this 90″ Atlantic Sailfish jump all over the ocean for 30 minutes, it was amazing. The kites went back out immediately with live gogg’s dangling on the surface and within 15 minutes we hooked another sailfish. This one was a tad bit smaller, but still put up one hell of a fight. Awesome day for their first saltwater sportfishing experience offshore Ft Lauderdale!

The Lady Pamela II headed back to the dock and did a turn around with 3 on a shared charter. We were on a roll today and we weren’t stopping. Goggle eyes were sold out on the water, so pilchards it was for the LP II! Within 20 minutes of fishing at the local buoy, we landed another sailfish. This one was a beauty and 84″ long.

Awesome day out there on the water!

Tight Lines
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

January 8th, 2009

Today the Lady Pamela II crew went fishing up in Palm Beach and we didn’t go back to Fort Lauderdale disappointed. Right around the New Year, the cobia’s start migrating from the North to the South Florida area. They tend to run down the beach in packs and today they were solid! We started off the morning catching live bait and filling the well with sardines. Jeff went up into the tower as we headed down the beach and within 20 minutes of searching we came across our first school. There was at least 10 cobias surrounding a ray, it was a good sight to see. Our first catch of the day was a 35 lb’er and shortly after a 45 lb’er was in the cockpit. Within 20 minutes we threw back 5 fish weighing less than 10 lbs. Jeff went back in the tower and we ran the beach again for an hour until we came across the mac-daddy school; there was a herd of 30 - 40 cobias. We casted 4 sardines into the school and everybody was hooked. We landed two 40 lb’ers and went home happy campers.

Awesome catch in Palm Beach!

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

Sean Smith and his family joined Captain Darin for some deep sea fishing aboard the Frequent Flyer II, the newest addition to the Lady Pamela II Charter Fleet. They started off the morning catching king mackerels and cero mackerels but Sean wanted to tug on something a little bigger. After watching the waves roll in for two hours, the rod finally moved. The rod bent over and the line was just peelin’ off the reel! Justin strapped Sean into the fighting chair and the battle began. WIthin 30 minutes a 6 1/2 ft Tiger Shark was behind the boat. Tiger sharks are a very rare catch off the coast of Fort Lauderdale, there aren’t many takers. This day went down in history, it was the first Tiger Shark caught aboard the Lady Pamela II Charter Fleet. Check out it’s coat!

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

Mike and his son Ellie spend their holiday season in Miami Beach every year. Smart People; it beats plowing snow any day of the week. Ellie always wanted to catch a hammerhead, so we headed out to 50 ft of water and were bailing king mackerels left and right. We walked away with 6 kings and fresh bait to hook a game shark. We put 3 bloody kings out in 350 ft of water and got a bite within 20 minutes. The balloon went under and the rod started screamin! Captain Paul gunned the boat ahead and Ellie wasted no time jumping into the fighting chair. Mike was by his side as they fought this sea monster for well over an hour. We were gaining line slowly but surely. The hammerhead came to the surface and was roughly 9 ft long weighing in at 350 lbs. Awesome catch guys!

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

Aside from sipping on those tropical frozen drinks at the local beach bars and dancing the night away on the sand, Fort Lauderdale is well known for something else - world class sportfishing. Gino and his brother flew south from Michigan to escape the cold weather and get a taste of the nightlife South Florida is famous for. Gino visits Ft Lauderdale once a year and makes it a point to get out there and go fishing at least once during his vacation. We headed out Shallow Harbor with our gang aboard the Lady Pamela II in search of sailfish and mahi - mahi. Fishing was extrememly slow, but the LP II always pulls through to find the fish - they can’t hide from us! After an hour and a half, we had a well full of live bait and headed straight to a ship wreck. The first drop of the day was a no go, not even a nibble. Plan B - we dropped a different bait down, let it sit and this time it wasn’t just a bite, we had a monster on. The rod started screamin’, that fish was pulling some serious line off the reel. Gino and his brother went to war with a huge amberjack. Everybody was ready for round two now! Conditions were changing in our favor, so we popped the kites and hoped for the bite. Not even 10 minutes passed before we got our bite. A huge sailfish started flopping right behind the boat. It was a 45 minute battle before we got the sailfish to give in. Gino and his brother were stoked!

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045

December 31st, 2008

Bruce Rehmer and his family traveled from Missouri to watch the ball drop here in Fort Lauderdale and bring in the new year! They had never been deep sea fishing before and wanted to try their luck aboard the Lady Pamela II. We headed out the intracoastal pointing out the rich and famous (and their giant mansions) and explained all about the fishing and what’s been running. Trolling gear was ready to go as soon as we hit open waters. The kings started snappin’ right away. We had 8 lb - 10 lb king mackerels hittin’ the deck along with a few bonitos. Bruce had asked if the bonitos were eatable, until I explained to him that they are used as great live bait to catch even bigger fish. Bruce couldn’t believe that fish we use for bait are bigger than the fish they catch in Missouri. As we were trolling, we noticed a nice blue edge in 350 ft of water. We ran over there, dropped two fresh kings on the bottom and had three live baits dangling from the kites. After 45 minutes of crossing our fingers, the rod started screamin’! Bruce and his family reeled in a monster hammerhead shark. The whole family had a blast.

Tight Lines!
Captain David Ide
954-761-8045