snowy grouper

[Ballyhoo]

did anybody catch snowy grouper in the hudson canyon or block canyon? id like to catch a snowy grouper.

[nickh]

Heard of a few caught near the Willmington. Don't know about farther north?

[EC NEWELLMAN]

No, not Block or Hudson Canyon. Wreckfish yes.

Snowy Groupers, NO.

Typically once you go south of the Baltimore Rocks within those offshore deep canyons and deep ledge areas, there is a possibility. Normally Canyons from roughly Norfolk southward, with the deep waters off of North Carolina one of the best areas to target snowies.

One regret I always had was not taking pictures during the eighties of the catches of snowy grouper that came into my friends shop in Virginia. You would never think there was so many of the beautiful looking fish around off North Carolina.

Here is something I wrote years back about the deep water fisheries off Virginia and North Carolina, and the man who was the pioneer of these fisheries, Earl Paul:

Now Earl Paul from what has been told to me, originally started running party and charter boats years before in the 1960s and 70s. He later bought a 42 foot Bruno Stillman, named it the Sea Robin and started running off to a area south east of the Cigar sea mount along the canyons edge of southern Virginia, and North Carolina waters and was one of the first to find the areas where the golden and blue line tiles lived.

I was told by my friend in Virginia that Mr. Paul passed away over a year or two ago from cancer. In his time though, few if any brought in as many big snowies then this fellow.

Here is a picture from a few years back of a ONCE record snowy brought into my friends shop. The fish was caught in the deep off of Norfolk Canyon.

IN THE BIG 172 QT COOLER



LAID OUT ON THE STAINLESS CUTTING TABLE

[Hawkboat]

Come on down to the Keys.

[Chico]

Last week's fish report and pictures from the New Jersey partyboat Voyager's two day tilefish trip showed pics of 45# and 50# snowies caught on that trip. So they are out there, just not sure how far North.

[JohnnySI]

I was on that trip on The Voyager first day a 45lber came up then on Tuesday a 52lber was caught, beautiful fish I always enjoy talking to the older gentleman who got the 52 his name is Emil and all he kept saying after the fish hit the deck was no rail! no rail! meaning his rod never touched the rail during the whole battle that is a feat in itself with a fish that size, my rod is on the rail 75% of the time and my biggest fish in the deep has only been in the high teens a great fish for a really nice guy........................Johnny this pic is from Jeffs report