Squid mania

[spinncognito]

It has been an all out squidfest here in Glosta for the past three weeks. I joined in the fun having never before targeted squid and have learned a lot. Must have over 500 in the last two weeks alone and have made lotsa friends giving it away, gained a few pounds eating it and will soon be trying to use it as striper bait.

There is a guy in town here who is getting supplies on ebay and making squid jigs which he sells for $5 each. He has probably mafe well over $700 so far as the local shops are out and his jigs work well. He simply puts a couple glow-in-the-dark beads on awire with a squidly hook. The smaller jigs are working best as the squid sizes are running from 2 inches up to about 15. I have also used one of the slow-sinking yo-zuri jigs with good success. Most just let it drop with a little occassional jigging motion and they jump on. I just watched what everyone was doing and caught on easily. Squid are more stupid than mackerel!

I have ruined a couple of T-shirts so far with squid ink. I found if you let them ink-out before pulling them outta the water it can save you from being blasted. the fricken things are great weapons just in case someone decides to get too close to you on the pier. Just point it at them and say "oops, sorry bout that". After the third time they generally get up and move! The Asian folks are very good at catching them and they have some huge families. It is like an Asian city in some spots with men, women and small children lined up elbow-to-elbow!

I you-tubed a few videos on how to clean them and found one that worked well. Getting good at it now and can clean a couple per minute but it is time-consuming. I have found that if you refrigerate them for an hour or two or overnight they are much easier to handle/clean.

Not going to try to live-line one but I talked to a guy who gave me this tip when using them for bait: Insert a small strip of styrofoam into the whole squid so it floats and then let if drift out in some current. Guy said he catches stripers all the time using this technique so I am gonna try it, nothing to lose, right? Squid are wicked fast when being chased by stripers as I witnessed under a local bridge one early morning- Huge splashed and then squid rocketing over the surface.

Spin

[Justfishin']

small strip of styrofoam

A small cork float up ahead that will get the squid to a neutral buoyancy works well and if lost will eventually degrade. Styrofoam is forever, and if a bass swallows it and you release it , it can't pass it and the fish dies. I wouldn't use styrofoam.

[spinncognito]

Originally Posted by Justfishin'

A small cork float up ahead that will get the squid to a neutral buoyancy works well and if lost will eventually degrade. Styrofoam is forever, and if a bass swallows it and you release it , it can't pass it and the fish dies. I wouldn't use styrofoam.

Good points and thanks. Glad I did not do this yet.

[B-Mann]

have a ton load of brand new jigs for sale.

[N.ShoreFisher]

Spin, maybe I've run into up there in the past couple nights. I've been hitting the beach by the fisherman statue and last night hit the fish pier. Maybe we'll cross paths sometime this week. You're right about the Asians, they know what they're doing. I was at the state fish pier last night with about 40 of them, all having a good time. Crazy to watch them carting many 5 gallon buckets full to the top.

[Got Stripers]

Sunday off the Vineyard I had 2 large squid hit a 4oz jig intended for black sea bass and the next drift I had a 6lb tog hit the same jig, both in 80 feet of water. Later that morning over at a favorite fluke spot, I put those two fresh squid to good use and it was a delicious mixed bag last night.

What was odd for June was the real lack of striper action, we boated a couple on jigs and plastic, but I've not seen the usual June schools on top slurping krill anywhere this month.

[JackK]

Smelly jelly. Don't leave home without it.