I thought I'd share some things I learned with those in warmer waters, who may have a boat as a survival option. I visited the Carribean several
times on a small sailboat and this is what I learned:
Warm water fishing survival kit
In warmer waters fish are faster, and have a faster metabolism generally. With this is mind they feed so quickly that they dont pay much attention to
shape and (to some extent) size. And 90% have sharp teeth.
I used 500 yards of 250 lb test, some 200 lb swivels, a few heavy treble hooks, some various plastic bags in single, bright colors of the rainbow, a
spool of stainless leader, some rusty stainless nuts, and a typical bungee cord with hook ends. All you need to do is cut off a few feet of leader,
twist a swivel on one end, then on the other twist a rusty nut with a treble hook on the end. Then attach that to your 250 lb test line, and start one
color at a time, taking the strip of colored plastic bag and feeding it through the hole in the nut, then just one simple granny knot.
I then take the end of the fishing line and cleat it off (tie it) well near the aft (rear) of your boat, then attach one end of the bungee to a cleat
forward of where the line is cleated off, then just take the free end of the bungee and feed your line through it, making a spring tension buffer for
your line. Then just sit back and watch for the trailing edge of your bungee to move indicating something is one your line. Also keep in mind you
should troll for warm water fish at higher speeds (3-7 knots) if you want the tastier 'missile' fish.
We caught yellowjacks, kingfish, barracuda, and some other bizarre unnamed fish, but all off the same rig, and using a yellow plastic bag cut into
strips.
Toxicity TRICK
What I am about to tell you is a local secret I got from a Bahamian bartender when I asked if Barracuda were edible, she told me "maybe", then gave
me this useful info:
Filet your questionable fish WITHOUT gutting it, especially do NOT rupture the blood sack running down the spine (this is crucial!!). Take a chuck of
the meat only, and place in a pot of boiling water that has several pieces of
potato[/] in it. Let it boil for 4-5 minutes, if the potatoes turn
brown the meat has been tainted by toxin, if potatoes stay white the meat is fine. She explained that some fish store toxin in their spine, and are
completely edible, but if they have an injury, that toxin can rupture into the rest of their body, and make their meat toxic.
We tried this a few times on unknown fish, but never found a toxic one, just tons of mushy, not very tasty fish.
Hope this is useful to my friends in the tropics with boats.
Happy fishing!