Taking out baits at night or in very rough surf can be scary enough but having to do it multiple times can be too much at times.Sometimes you will be willing to sacrifice a perfect drop in exchange for a quick job that gets your bait out there and you back on terra firma quickly.Most of the time when I'm shark fishing on a beach or pier I take out one bait at a time but on those days when I'm in a hurry, or it's late at nightand I'm tired , or it's very rough or cold I try and do a multiple bait drop to get it over with as quickly as pssible.For the sake of seperating our baits perfectly from each other & to keep them from getting tangled up we will usually drop one bait at a time .
Doing a multiple bait drop means more then one bait but typically no more then 2 or 3 on a kayak and as many as four on a jon boat.This method is not the preferred method because it takes more skill and better manuvering of the deployment vessel be it a yak or other boat to keep your lines from getting tangled on the way out and properly spaced apart in the water .Dropping multiple baits if they are big baits can slow you down, and makes the kayak harder to manuver and almost impossible with REAL BIG BAITS(30 to 40 lbs). Doing a multiple bait drop means that you will be surrounded by multiple big hooks and the level of danger goes up specially if the surf is rough and there is a possibility that you will get dumped in the whitewater.
Carefully consider where you will place your baits to keep your limbs away from the hooks in case you get whiped out.In rough water I always try and keep the baits on the back end of the kayak away from my feet and mid section.In rough water it can get tricky so be very careful and always have a life vest on and a knife attached to your vest so you can cut the leader above the swivel if you do happen to get impaled by a hook.OUCH!! Be very careful .
When you have a strong current flowing down the beach caused by high surf or you happen to fishing close to an inlet you will have to start your drop way down the beach from where your shark rods are set up so that when you drop your first bait you will be almost in front of your camp and then the second bait will be dropped away as the current takes you down the beach and so forth .Keeping your baits separated means staying Tangle Free.Spread out the fisherman holding the shark rods as you paddle out.Trying to fight the current with two baits weighing 30 pounds tied to your yak is futile so learn to use the current to your favor.Anticipate where the current will take you then make your adjustment before you jump in the yak.
I would not try and take out more then two baits on a kayak unless i have perfectly calm water and unless the fisherman holding the rods know how to stay seperated correctly as you paddle out and away from the beach ,So in most cases two baits will be the max on a yak but more when on a jon boat .On a jon boat you can do 2 baits on one side and 2 baits on the left side and only when you have a calm surf.
to some this is a big bait to others it means dinner
to some this could mean one big TIGER bait or two halfs
this could be a smallish bait but not usually
A fairly big bait -AJ head makes the kayak harder to manuever
a perfect single bait
and perfect weather to take out baits without a big hurry,,,one at a time
SOUTH FLORIDA SHARK CLUB -President SFSC-Founding Member est 1983 SFSC-Website Administrator BIG HAMMER SHARK TOURNAMENT -Founder Rene Memorial Sharkathon -Founder NMFS Shark Tagger
Good post Will thanks for sharing
