Cobia started showing up in numbers last week and the fishing has been hot and heavy. Panhandle fishermen are caught up in cobia mania not only because cobias are the first big fish available in the spring, but also because cobia are readily accessible to nearly all boat owners. The majority of the fishing is within a quarter-mile of the beach. On many days, even 17-foot walk-throughs are safe for working the cobia migration pattern. Small boats can easily idle along the outside edge of the sandbar looking for the pods of brown bombs swimming westwardly along the surface.

The equipment is simple. Cobia fishermen arm themselves with 30-pound class spinning equipment, a couple of 3-ounce neon jigs, a live pinfish or two in the live well, and one well-traveled live eel in a small ice chest. Many of the cobia spotted along our beaches are spooked even before a hook-up on a rod and reel is possible. While there are some cobia that ignore even a Georgia high-schooler on a Jet Ski, most are quite wary in the shallow, clear water. When an inexperienced cobia fisherman spots a pod, his first instinct is to gun the motor and head right for them. That is all that is needed to make them dive and disappear.

In other cases, the captain spots the cobia and then correctly positions his boat down current so that he can intercept them. It is then that things get wild. A fisherman stands high on the boat and as soon as he spots the cobia, flings the jig directly at the fish's head. The cobia is spooked and dives. Another lost cobia! If the angler is lucky enough to cast the jig past the cobia, there is a normal tendency to try and drag the jig directly at the swimming cobia. It is almost as if the fisherman is trying to snag-hook his prey. This is not a natural trait of baitfish. None that I am aware of will swim directly into a cobia's face. It is not natural to the cobia, either. Another spooked cobia! When delivering your bait, try to think like the baitfish. Try to keep your presentation natural. Time your cast so that when you retrieve your bait, it can run parallel or away from the cobia. I promise you it will be difficult to reel faster than the cobia can swim. If he spots the bait trying to get away, he is going to chase it.

If using live bait, cast in front of the swimming cobia and then let the bait do its thing. That big pinfish knows how to act when he is spotted by a cobia. Some cobia hunters make the cast and never close the bail on the reel. They keep a finger lightly holding the line against the spool. They do not try to pull the baitfish to a better spot. They simply let the fish scramble. When the cobia takes the bait, they let him run a couple of seconds, close the bail, and then set the hook. If you cast a live eel, let it dive for the bottom as it normally would. The cobia will follow it down and pick it up off the sand. Many of the pre-rigged rubber eels have a lead weight on the front to make it drop to the bottom. If you are fishing one of these rigs, let it drop to the bottom and stay there for a couple of seconds. Then jig it about twice and let it settle back down. Too many people try to retrieve an eel like a crank-bait. It is not a natural presentation.

If you are lonesome, take your boat through the pass about 200 yards. Stand on the bow, point at the water surface for a second, grab your spinning rod, and act like you are going to cast. In no time at all, boats will surround you. Please, honor another fisherman's opportunity to catch a cobia. If you notice that an angler has spotted cobia, do not run your boat up to him. Remember that he's standing on the deck with a 3-ounce jig. If you spook his fish, he may cast that jig at the only thing he sees - you. Move down current from him and wait. Normally there is more than just a couple of cobia in a pod. When he hooks up, the others will move to you. Then, fish for them. By watching him present his bait and fight the tasty gamefish, you may learn something.

© 2010 Spiced Rum III Fishing Team. All Rights Reserved.