Goliath Grouper Archives

September 9, 2020June 28, 2017 by Joseph Simonds

Holy Goliath Grouper Honey Hole!

After watching countless videos of anglers pulling up Goliath Grouper in and around the famous old phosphate dock at Boca Grande, I always knew that there must be a bunch of them down there.

And after fishing around this area many times and getting broken off in the pilings, I knew there must have been tons of grouper down there…

But I had no idea it was packed wall to wall with them.

Make sure to watch the entire video to see just how big this school of Goliath Grouper really is.

Wowzers!

The diver, explorer, and photographer David Vanden Bosch (aka Diver Dave) was the guy who captured all of this amazing footage last month while down at the bottom of the old Boca Grande Phosphate Dock.

To say that those old pillars were LOADED with fish is an understatement.

Not only did he find what could be the world record Goliath Grouper hideout, but he also saw snook, snapper, spadefish, and even a toadfish!

Great job David! Thank you for sharing this amazing dive with us.

I know there are countless anglers that have always wondered what the view was like down there.

Enjoy.

Trouble viewing videos? Click here for Help

P.S. – If you think your friends or fishing networks would like to see this, please Tag them or Share this with them. You Rock! Pa-POW!

November 6, 2016November 6, 2016 by Joseph Simonds

When fishing for monster Goliath Grouper, you just never know what might happen…

Check out the wild footage that our friends from Big Bully Outdoors captured when one of their clients from South Dakota had a fishing trip he’ll never forget (apparently it was his birthday).

Kudos to the angler for hanging on, getting right back in the boat, and landing the grouper.

Good stuff.

Enjoy.

Related Video: “Watch These Two Girls Tag Team A Goliath Grouper!” (see it here now)

P.S. – If you think your angler friends or fishing networks would enjoy seeing this, please Tag them or Share this with them. You Rock! Pa-POW!

October 8, 2016October 7, 2016 by Joseph Simonds

Goliath Grouper are one of the most talked about and inquired about species from our audience at Salt Strong.

These majestic fish have been on the protected list for a couple of decades, and they are finally getting back to where they need to be in terms of growth.

In fact, many anglers claim there are TOO MANY Goliath Grouper today.

They eat everything in site (including hooked fish that are being reeled up by anglers), and some wonder if we’ve kept these fish protected for too long.

So what do you think, are Goliath Grouper ready to be fished for (and kept) again?

That will certainly remain an ongoing debate among anglers, conservationists, divers, and such.

But either way, enjoy this amazing Goliath Grouper gathering footage.

Well done Lee Burghard and Wild Shutter Imaging.

Enjoy.

Related Video: “Diver Films The Bottom Of The Boca Grande Phosphate Dock. Check Out What He Found!” (watch it here now)

P.S. – If you think your angler friends or fishing networks would like to see this, please Tag them or Share this with them. You Rock! Pa-POW!

September 20, 2016 by Joseph Simonds

Yep, a Goliath Grouper will eat just about anything…

From bonito to snook to redfish to GoPros…

Especially if you stick a GoPro up near the face of a goliath grouper as they found out in this video below.

Check out the amazing footage that our friend Robert Arrington (from Deer Meat for Dinner) and his brother get while diving in Florida recently.

Can you believe this grouper kept the GoPro down for over 16 minutes before coughing it out?

That is nuts!

Great job Deer Meet For Dinner crew (especially jumping in with all of the sharks).

Keep up the great work.

Enjoy.

Related Video: “Diver Films The Bottom Of The Boca Grande Phosphate Dock. Check Out What He Finds!” (watch the video here now)

P.S. – If you think your angler friends or fishing networks would like to see this, please Tag them or Share this with them. You Rock! Pa-POW!

September 15, 2016September 15, 2016 by Joseph Simonds

Dog gone Goliath Grouper…

Hard to believe these fish were “almost extinct” and had to be put on the protected species list years ago… they certainly are plentiful today.

What’s also interesting about this video is that I believe it is the first time I’ve seen a goliath grouper attack a redfish on film.

Usually, it’s everything from a snook, jack crevalle, bonito, and anything else that swims.

Perhaps it’s because so many of the redfish are caught on grass flats and not over wrecks, but either way, intriguing.

Check out what happens right next to the boat as these guys try to land their redfish.

Enjoy.

Related Video: “You’ve Got To See This Guy Go Goliath Grouper Noodling!” (watch it here now)

P.S. – If you think your angler friends or fishing networks would enjoy seeing this, please Tag them or Share this with them. You Rock! Pa-POW!

July 30, 2016 by Joseph Simonds

When you go fishing for Goliath Grouper, it’s important to have your drag set tight so that the beast of a fish doesn’t take you down into the structure.

Of course, you also never know what size Goliath is going to hit your bait down below.

So when this 400-450 pound hammered firefighter Stephen Rampersad’s bait, it hit with enough power to pull him overboard.

But Stephen never gave up, somehow managed to hold on to the rod, and ended up celebrating with Capt. Ben Chancey of Chew On This before it was all said and done.

Amazing fight gents!

Enjoy.

P.S. – If you think your angler friends or fishing networks would like to see this, please Tag them or Share this with them. You Rock! Pa-POW!

April 25, 2016April 25, 2016 by Joseph Simonds

Talk about underwater highway Robbery!

These Goliath Grouper sit down by wrecks and just wait for a free meal…

Whether it be a hooked fish or speared fish, the Goliath Grouper doesn’t care.

Check out this wild footage of multiple Goliath Grouper attacking spearfishermen’s catches.

It was like the entire school of grouper were teaming up against this diver!

The grouper at the end actually pulled the driver around like it was nothing!

I bet he doesn’t go spearfishing on this wreck again.

Tough to compete with hungry Goliath Grouper that weigh more than you do…

As a final note, thank goodness this guy was underwater while he was yelling… otherwise, I am pretty sure we the language would have prevented it from getting on Salt Strong!

Enjoy!

P.S. – If you think your angler friends would like to see this, please Tag them or Share this with them. You Rock! Pa-POW!

April 22, 2016 by Joseph Simonds

Yep, that 400lb Goliath Grouper making the news yesterday was caught by our very own Ryan “The Wrench” Hein.

I was scrolling through the Salt Strong “Fishing Tribe” private Facebook group feed yesterday afternoon and saw that someone had posted this ABC News video about a Goliath being caught using a Stanley wrench!

Note: Click here to join the Salt Strong Fishing Tribe private Facebook group

And shortly after I realized that Ryan was actually part of the Tribe.

Pa-POW!

For those of you wondering what gear was used to land this 400lb beast of a Goliath Grouper, here is everything according to Ryan Hein:

Ugly Stick Tiger Lite (Medium-Heavy) Rod
Fin-Nor Lethal LT60 Spinning Reel
50lb high vis pp braid
80lb Seaguar leader
11-inch Stanley Wrench with 6/0 Assist J-Hooks

Well done Ryan.

Salt Strong for sure!

Enjoy.

P.S. – If you think your angler friends or fishing networks would like to see this, please Tag them or Share this with them. You Rock! Pa-POW!

March 17, 2016 by Joseph Simonds

If you like snook, you are going to love this video!

About a month ago, we posted a video that went crazy viral of a few guys taking a GoPro down to the bottom of the Sebastian Inlet (you can see that video here)

So when I saw that two other guys did an entire NEW drift dive of Sebastian Inlet, I knew it was going to be awesome.

And as you will see below, it didn’t disappoint.

I don’t think there is anything cooler than seeing exactly what is down under the water of places that you fish (except for catching the fish of course…)

Here are the notes from the owner of the video (311Pope):

“In the summer, Sebastian Inlet opens up with gin clean water and a small group of us take the annual incoming ride. It was filmed at the switch of the tide under the north catwalk. Seems like those fish came out at the switch because I did 4 or 5 drifts that day and didn’t see them until the tide slowed.”

Check out all of the Snook and Grouper sitting down there just waiting for your bait!

Enjoy!

P.S. – If you think your friends or fishing networks would like to see this, please Tag them or Share this with them. You Rock! Pa-POW!

Get Instant Access To “The Inshore Fishing Manifesto” PDF Now