AMERICA'S BEST SALTWATER FISHING

Silver Kings

Editor's Note: If you're dreaming of the clean smell of salt water, the sight of cobalt-blue waves crashing against a boat's white hull and becoming white lacy foam on a slick calm sea and big fish changing colors as they come from the deep water to the surface, then plan a trip to some of the finest saltwater fishing in the nation. Although the Atlantic and Pacific coasts have the most miles of shoreline, the Upper Gulf Coast and Florida's east Atlantic coast offer some of the best saltwater fishing in the world. Let's look at destinations that can produce the reality of your saltwater fishing dreams.

When anglers dream of silver-colored tarpon leaping high in the air and catching the rays of the sun like giant pieces of new silver cast into a blue sky, most of them think of south Florida. However, I've discovered one of the best-kept secrets in all the world of tarpon fishing -- Georgia's Pirate Coast near Brunswick, Georgia. Captain Greg Hildreth of Brunswick, who operates the "Minner Skinner," showed me a sight I'd never forget -- large schools of tarpon pouring out of St. Andrews Sound in the early-morning hours like racing greyhounds. At times I could see so many tarpon rolling that I thought I probably could walk across their backs and never get my feet wet. We often jumped 10 tarpon in a morning and usually boated one or two. The tarpon followed the menhaden into this area, went into St. Andrews Sound and came out each morning. Surprisingly we had little competition for this fast-and-furious fishing.

The first day I fished with Captain Hildreth, he frowned and said, "I can't believe so many boats are out here." Well, since I only spotted 10 boats, I couldn't understand Hildreth's concern. Then he told me, "On an average day, I generally won't see but one or two other boats all day." When I questioned Hildreth about why so few anglers had discovered St. Andrews Sound and the tremendous number of tarpon that lived there, he laughed and said, "Most fishermen don't even know that Georgia has a coast. People just come to this area to play golf and enjoy the resorts. Many anglers don't believe there's any fish here to catch. Too, the 10 or so charter boats along this coast don't fish for tarpon. I've had this tarpon honey hole pretty much to myself for years." However, now that you know Hildreth's secret, you don't have to travel down to Boca Grand, Florida, to find and take plenty of big tarpon. The Georgia coast around Brunswick, not far from Blackbeard's Island, provides some of the nation's best, yet undiscovered, tarpon fishing.

To learn more about the Pirate Coast, contact Greg Hildreth at (912) 261-1763 or visit his Web site www.georgiacharterfishing.com.

Another Silver King: Anglers in Biloxi, Mississippi, catch another kind of silver king, big king mackerel. The Southern Kingfish Association, Inc., tournament trail where anglers fish at ports all over the Southeast brings in its biggest king mackerel when the Isle of Capri Casino and Resort hosts an annual tournament in Biloxi. Biloxi's closeness to the extremely-fertile Mississippi River and the large number of oil and gas rigs just offshore that hold tons of baitfish that attract big king mackerel make this coastal city the number-one pick for anglers who want to catch those drag-stripping, pointy-nosed, razor-sharp-toothed king mackerel. The massive amount of food so readily available for the king mackerel here means you'll commonly see 30- and 40-pound kings. Charter boats abound. You'll not enjoy mackerel fishing this fine anywhere else.

For further information, visit www.biloxi.org or call Bobby Carter at (228) 436-4752 or (888) 852-4575.

TOMORROW: SPECKLED TROUT AND REDFISH