Capt. William Wall, with Pelagic Charters (225-454-5365), said now through about April is prime time for catching some impressive wahoo out of Venice.
“They are not here year-round, and some years are better than others, but when they are here, they’re big,” Wall said. “There are very few places around the U.S. where they get this size. Venice is a trophy wahoo spot.”
The big wahoo pictured here weighed more than 90 pounds, and was caught in early January. Last year, Wall’s clients reeled in a 105-pounder, as well as a 116-pounder in 2017.
He’s a fan of the Rapala X-Rap Magnum deep-diving trolling lures when targeting big wahoo.
“For me, fishing for wahoo this time of the year is kinda like hunting for world-class deer — you can’t kill a trophy buck everywhere you hunt,” Wall said. “Fishing wahoo is one of my specialties. I get real goofy about big wahoo — this is my deal.”