Breaking in the New Boat: 80 Miles Out for Monster Yellowtail & Red Grouper

Welcome back, guys! This wasn’t just any fishing trip—this was the maiden voyage of the brand-new Stingray 253. We picked it up fresh from the factory (right after the honeymoon!), outfitted it with twin engines, and decided there was only one way to test it properly: Send it.

We ran about 80 miles offshore on a “sporty” day to put some blood on the deck. I brought along two heavy hitters for this trip: my buddy Salty (from Fishing with Salty) and Dylan (from Hog Squad Fishing).

It was a long day of grinding, broken lines, and lessons learned, but we ended up with a cooler full of quality fish. Here’s how the day went down.

The Morning Grind: Almacos and Tax Collectors

We started dropping lines around 80 miles out. I started with a slow pitch jig while Salty dropped a knocker rig with white bait. We got into action pretty quickly with some Almaco Jacks.

Pro Tip: Almaco Jacks are excellent eating. I love grilling them because the meat is firm and doesn’t stick to the grill.

We also pulled up some nice Vermilion Snapper (Beeliners), but the ocean made us work for it. The wind was kicking, and from 6:00 AM to 2:00 PM, it was a serious grind. We battled sharks (the “Tax Man”) stealing our catch, Barracudas lurking under the boat, and plenty of broken lines. At one point, I hooked into what felt like a massive Grouper, only to get broken off in the rocks.

By mid-afternoon, we were tired, drifting fast, and looking for a change in luck.

The Game Changer: The “Sweeper Jig” Lesson

I’ve been fishing professionally for over a decade, but one of my favorite things about this sport is that you never stop learning. Today, I learned a massive lesson from Dylan, who is half my age.

The fish were hanging between 70 and 100 feet down, but because of the drift and current, it was taking us forever to feed line to get our baits in the zone.

Dylan switched to a 1/2 oz Sweeper Jig (a jig we usually use for Hogfish). It defied logic, but that profile cut through the water column way more efficiently than our setups.

• Our Drop Time: ~5 minutes to hit the zone.
• Dylan’s Drop Time: ~1 minute.

When the bite is on, speed is everything. Once we saw Dylan hauling them in, we all switched tactics. It goes to show—always be open to new techniques, no matter how long you’ve been fishing.

The Yellowtail Bonanza

Once we cracked the code, the bite was on fire. We started pulling up absolute “flags”—massive Yellowtail Snapper.

I’m going to put a controversial opinion out there: Yellowtail fishing off Tampa is better than Key West when it comes to quality. These fish were thick, “eater” size, and fighting hard. We were getting double and triple headers, filling the box with Yellowtail and Mangrove Snapper.

It was a total bicep burn, but that’s the kind of pain you want.

The Sundowner Bite: Finishing Strong

We had our aggregate snapper limit (10 per person, combining Yellowtail and Mangrove), so we moved to one last spot for a “sundowner bite” to see if we could find a big bottom fish to cap off the day.

We sent down dead threadies on Carolina rigs, hoping for Red Grouper. The bite was instant. We waded through some smaller Red Grouper and more Mangroves until the very end.

The Grand Finale: I hooked into a heavy fish right at the end of the day. It wasn’t a shark this time—it was a Fire Truck. A big, beautiful Red Grouper to officially christen the new boat.

The Final Tally

It was a long run and a tough start, but we ended up with:

• Almaco Jacks
• Beeliners
• Limits of Yellowtail Snapper (Huge “Flags”)
• Mangrove Snapper
• Red Grouper

The Stingray 253 handled the 80-mile run like a champ, and fishing with Salty and Dylan is always a blast.

Thanks for watching and reading! If you want to see the rod-bending action, check out the full video. Make sure to subscribe to the channel, and go give Salty and Hog Squad Fishing a follow too. See y’all on the next one!