Mago Maness and the Cooney Island Express

[apexpredator]

Jc and I were frothing at the mouth with anticipation. A weeks worth of staring at a beach cam near our destination has each of us wondering if the time lapse feature was stuck on the same frame of an oil slick calm ocean. Same time...same place...same plan. Head out to what we've got marked (which isn't much) and give it all we got. See ya at dawn!

We declared from the onset we were only here for a few fish and were on the official quest for the bigguns'. When we arrived at our first spot a fleet of boats were taking turns actively drifting through the area collecting bait for an offshore journey. We did a few circles and confirmed none of the boats there had any plans of lingering. With curious stares at two guys in a 1970's circa 17 ft boat scrambling for freediving gear everyone else in attendance just seemed happy their sabiki rigs were hauling up 4 and 5 healthy baits at a time. We were finally ready raising the flag and in goes JC to confirm we are on the mark. "We're right on top of it"....How's the vis?...."It's like liquid air....get in!!!!"

I have seen things in the ocean which on their own take your breath away but what I saw when I jumped in was hard to describe...I'll try. Imagine diving water that has 60-70ft of viz in all directions. An ocean bottom that is strewn with cover both artificial and natural in a 200ft radius. Three massive eagle rays swimming in formation the lead one with a 7ft plus wingspan parting hordes of bait as if being escorted to an underwater ball of sealife you only normally see on the Discovery Channel. There were clouds of Sardines, Threadfin Herring, Glass Minnows, Blue Runners, and massive schools of over slot snook. On top as far as the eye could see were hundreds of barracuda of all sizes. Rushing in like fighter pilots on occasional dog runs were squadrons of 15-20lb bonito patrolling the edges of the bait pods scouting for signs of weakness in their formation. Lying on the bottom were a pair of the two largest common rays I have ever seen. Mingling about were multiple schools of Sheepshead numbering a score or more going about their business while earning nothing more than a mere glance from two divers that normally show much more interest in their whereabouts. Grunts of every sort with some (margates) that looked to weigh in in the teens.

But then there they were...my favorite fish...the reef fish that looks like it takes the others' lunch money away from them....the mongo mangroves! We scanned for grouper before diving but only saw their overprotected cousin the Jewfish (a pair of 100lb individuals) cruising around. Right there we both decided the snappers were to be our quarry for the day. We'll hunt them patiently....make every shot count....don't be afraid to pass one up and land every fish you hit or it's over. We went to work. We gave 'em our best with nice long dives to the 50ft bottom and got a few shots in the clear water. One of the "medium" size fish made a fatal error and let JC within range. His swim partner had earlier narrowly escaped capture but after a long tussle and a tag team effort one big boy came to bag.

Then enter stage left a bayboat with a crew four strong of 17-20 yr old kids. They motor within 20yds and drop anchor. Back their boat to within 35ft of our port side and they set up shop. One was working on rigging some boat rods as another watched while the other two of them quickly threw on some snorkeling gear each loading AB Biller 42" guns. The pair jump in and we notice their lack of dive belts. Figuring this may keep them atop we continue on our hunt. Their enthusiasm overcame their buoyancy and withing five minutes they declared unholy war on the Bermuda Chubs. Their shots rang out in close succession like the duck shoot at a county fair and rather quickly our toothy targets scrambled for cover. In the 30 minutes of this we managed to endure I noticed a 8lb chub lying motionless on the bottom having succumbed to a gut shot from the dynamic duo. I am pretty sure without any weights neither could reach the bottom or the fish at 50ft. As one of the pair managed to finally land a chubzilla JC and I decided we were ready for a change of scenery.

In all we had already managed a fair amount of reef fish before it turned off...the vis was still phenomenal and we wanted to check something else. Their boat had anchored so close I got their attention and said while hoisting JC's mangrove..."there are good fish here...if you guys are patient these guys will come back out but not if you keep shooting everything that moves." They answered apologetically that they were new to the sport. JC and I smiled in approval and although they graciously offered to move we gave up the spot to them, told them to keep at it, and wished them luck but not before hinting that a little lead would go a long way towards improving their speardiving.

We motored to a few other locations but after checking two or three numbers and trolling up a pair of chunky bonito in the process we began to wonder why we left fish we could see for other fish we may or may not find. Back to the sure thing and we finished the day there. As far as fish count we could have sank the boat but decided to soak up the scenery and take only what we wanted...nothing more...nothing less.... a few savory treats....a day we will not soon forget....and a double sighting of the Coney Island Express. The first time on one of my most memorable dives ever and the last right before the dock at the end of the day. The second we welcomed as a sight for sore eyes and empty stomachs. "Skipper" greeted us to take our order....he told us it's all about the dogs with that snap....if you've ever had one you'll know what he meant. Dive Safe and Happy Hunting!!

[Gary H]

Great report! I really enjoyed reading it

[Mobile Diver]

Great stuff, Emil!!

[Rolo]

Funny stuff Emil, glad you guys made out.

[apexpredator]

We missed your company Rolo. Give me a shout when you have a chance.

[apnea_beast]

sounds like a great day

[ApneaSpearo]

Nice job Emil and JC, I'm sure you left some of the nicer fish at your honey hole for the SBO.

[apexpredator]

We would have shot any of the bigger snaps gladly as several were true once in a lifetime sized grovers. Fish like that are hard to pass up when you realize just how rare the opportunities are to take wise old fish like those. JC's big snapper was almost 27" to the fork and weighed just under 12lbs after a full day on the ice. What really made us drool were the ones that changed zip codes or vanished like a fart in the wind as soon as you began a dive on them. One great fish had the best routine of all. He would hang around a hollow beam on one of the open ends and watch you as you dove. He would do a few circles giving you a good look and as soon as you invaded his comfort zone around 30ft away he would duck into his lair. We both took turns giving him a go and laying in wait just outside the entrance until our lungs burned and we would have to come up. As you made your way to the surface and were again outside of his comfort zone you could see him come back out as it to taunt us. That fish had our number but it wasn't until the machine gun fire of the two newbies that the fish became almost completely unapproachable. Speedy dove here on Sunday and we gave him the digits to the place. As Speedy says...he and mangroves are good friends. He managed to clean up a pair of the fish that broke our hearts the day before. You have to be proud of the guy (and we are) cause shooting big grovers is one thing but taking two mongoloid fish that just played this game the day before is pure skill. I hope he snapped a few pictures and adds them to this thread.....on Saturday I was sure I'd never lay eyes on those fish again.

[JLittle44]

That is the biggest damned mango I've ever seen. Does anyone know how long it takes them to get that big?

By the way, great write-up. It made for a good read.

[apexpredator]

Just looked up a study that calculates the relationship of overall size to age of mangrove snappers in Florida. The study suggests this fish could be anywhere from 13-21 yrs old.

link: http://fishbull.noaa.gov/992/bur.pdf

[straight shaft]

Great report Emil! Working on a new gun to hop back on the saddle.

[jimbo]

Great report and awesome snappers!

[sbh]

My vessel may be ready by friday...I want some from my zipcode too! Wish I could have made it out with speedy and John but blowing blood out of my sinus's was probably a good sign to stay at home! Keep up the good work.