Another Day Offshore: Lane Snapper, Sharks, and the Grind
It was another weekend here on the beautiful Gulf Coast, and for the third week in a row, we had great weather. That was all the excuse we needed to make a full send 35–40 miles offshore. On this trip, it was my dad, my buddy Kenny, and me.
Kenny’s an avid land-based fisherman who’s spent years targeting mangrove snapper, spotted sea trout, Spanish mackerel, and various grouper species around the Skyway Bridge. But this was his first time fishing offshore from a boat—a whole new world for him.
We launched at the crack of dawn and made the hour-long run to our first spot in 100 feet of water. 
The first three spots were… strange. All we could pull up were “trash fish”—lizardfish, pinfish, and tomtate grunts. Not exactly what we came for. So, we moved on.
The fourth spot gave us our first real hope—multiple keeper-sized lane snapper and one vermilion snapper started hitting the deck. Kenny even hooked into a solid 19-inch red grouper, which gave him a great fight. Unfortunately, it was one inch short of the legal limit, so back it went. That’s just the name of the game out here.
Right after that, I hooked into a monster red grouper that ran me straight into the reef… and then a shark sealed the deal by taking the fish right off my line. A heartbreaker, but it happens to the best of us.
We managed a few more lanes before the bite died. The next five to eight spots, which usually produce well, were completely dead. Spirits were starting to drop until we pulled up to another reef and got a nice mixed bag. Two yellowtail snapper, a porgy, and a white grunt. We even had three sharks chasing one of Kenny’s yellowtails right to the boat.
The bite was slow, and sharks cost us a few quality fish, but we kept grinding. When we got to one of our final spots, the trolling motor wouldn’t turn on due to a low battery. That meant drifting over the reef instead of holding position. At that point, we only had about 10 fish in the box—but we decided to risk it.
Best decision of the day.
On every drift, the lanes were stacked and ready to eat. The second the bait hit bottom, they were on it. At one point, I was reeling up a lane snapper and felt an aggressive tug—it was a shark trying to steal it. Luckily for me, the shark let go, and I got my fish back (with a few new teeth marks as a souvenir). Out here, reeling fast is key, or predators like sharks and barracuda will help themselves to your catch.
After just two drifts, we had 20 lane snapper in the box. That was our cue to head in.
We didn’t just fill the cooler—we did it by grinding through a slow bite, dead spots, and gear issues. Fishing is like life: some days are slow, but if you keep pushing, you can still come out on top.
Overall, this was another amazing day offshore in the Gulf Coast.
To see more from this trip, check out the full recap on our Instagram page by clicking the link below!
Instagram Link: https://www.instagram.com/p/DM5KCTWO2w5/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==