A Current Affair

It was a long, smooth ride across seemingly endless miles of Gulf of Mexico water, all of which appeared exactly the same to the out-oftown paying angler. Finally reaching the intended destination well after sunrise, the skipper of the chartered boat pulled back the throttles to a suitable trolling speed. As if on cue, the deckhand went about the business of deploying a rich pattern of colorful baits.

The scenery was picture perfect. The water was a purplish blue and crystal clean, and the wind was barely variable. Sixty-minutes later when the dark shadow emerged from the depths to inhale the splashing lure swimming at the edge of the white water, the pristine situation quickly took a turn toward intense.

Following a lengthy duel resembling controlled chaos in the cockpit, when the deed was done and the majestic blue was finally tagged, photographed, and released, it was unanimously agreed that the charter was a tremendous success.

Pointing toward the bridge, the spent angler who was used to fishing Montanas famed trout streams commented, “Wow, that guy is really good! How in the world did he know that after running for three hours straight into the middle of the ocean, that a marlin would be right here?” The mate smiled, shrugged his shoulders, and went back to clearing the cockpit in preparation of the long ride home.

Thats the way its supposed to be in offshore fishing, and on many occasions when anglers do their homework, the plan actually comes together. Though, its still a bit odd that even with all the preparation, decades of experience, and nearly half a million dollars in boat, tackle, and accessories, success came because of a simple bit of information relayed from outer-space over the internet. The message revealed to the skipper the exact coordinates for a warm water eddy located nearly ninety miles out in the Gulf of Mexico. The message also indicated that there would very likely be game fish feeding right along the distinct edge of this warm water eddy, an eddy which evidentially broke off from a much larger river of warm water- a river called the Loop Current.

No matter where a blue water angler resides in Florida, in one way or another, the Loop Current plays a critical role in your offshore success. No where is this statement more true than along the northern and eastern edges of the Gulf of Mexico. This never ending flow of warm water is closely monitored by wise anglers from Pensacola all the way around the Big Bend to the Florida Keys, and for very good reasons.

To reveal the Loop Currents fish attracting magic, Gulf Coasts blue water enthusiasts need to take a close look at cause and effect. What fuels the Loop Curents engine? Its called the Loop Current because thats exactly what it does. This barely imaginable river of warm water “loops” around the Gulf of Mexico. Sometimes the Loop Current takes a direct path northward from where it enters the Gulf. On other occasions, the Loop Current wanders far to the west- as far as offshore of Mobile, Alabamabefore making its eastward turn prior to heading south toward the Florida Keys.

The Loop Current actually starts along the equator out in the Atlantic Ocean. The suns powerful rays heat the ocean, and dominant wind and currents force the warm water westward where it eventually collides with the southeastern portion of North America. This slowly moving, warm mass of mind-boggling proportions is funneled through the Yucatan Strait- slicing right between Mexico and Cuba. The passage is constricted, which causes the moving water to increase in velocity and race northward into the Gulf. Have you ever pinched the end of a hose to spray water farther than the wide-open nozzle? Its basically the same principle here but on a much, much larger scale. As the flow of heated water funnels into the Gulf of Mexico basin, oddly enough it doesnt immediately lose its identity, but remains relatively recognizable as it loops toward Floridas southwest coast.

This warm river-the Loop Current- can and does change its course. One month the closest edge of the warm water may be 300 miles offshore, and the next it may wander to within 100 miles. The Loop Current also gives birth to spin-offs or eddies which swirl massive vortexes of warm water far away from the main loop. These vortexes are offshore anglers best friends. The entire Loop Current system is actually an extremely complex mechanism which still holds many mysteries.

As the river of warm water loops eastward through the Gulf, it eventually exits between the Florida Keys and Cuba through the Florida Straits. At this point it is known as the Florida Current. The Florida Current continues to meander its way between Florida and the Bahamas where it helps create the Gulf Stream which continues to flow northward. This description, which is very much simplified, is basically the physical layout of the Loop Current as we know it today. What the Loop Curent and its meandering eddies mean to ofshore anglers?

Its not just a complex conveyor of sun-drenched seawater that makes the Loop Current so important. For blue water fishermen chasing highly migratory pelagic predators, such as those who regularly seek large tuna and billfish, the Loop Current is of prime importance. The Loop is exactly where these big guys spend the majority of their time feeding. Blue marlin in particular are almost always found in the Loop Current or some portion of it. Not only does the Loop Current convey warm water through the Gulf, it also supports an unfathomable amount of baitfish and squid which feed upon the plankton and tiny life forms that prosper in the warm water. And where theres bait, there will be fish. Pretty simple, right? Not so fast, my fellow fishermen. Anglers now have to go about the business of locating the exact position of this river of warm water and its meandering eddies in this same seemingly endless sea. That hasnt always been such an easy task to accomplish.

For decades, Gulf Coast anglers have known of the Loop Currents existence. At the very least, they knew something was concentrating large predatory gamefish in particular areas, because the fish were never equally spread out. Perhaps the first blue water fishermen didnt really know exactly why the fish were there, but they did know for sure that sometimes the majority of the tuna and billfish they encountered were located far offshore, while on other occasions these same large bodies of fish were found much closer to port. Of course, thats because the edge of the Loop Current or one of its meandering eddies had wandered much closer to shore.

For as far back in angling history as any of us can remember, it was universally accepted that the Gulf of Mexico had a definite move ment pattern, and that this movement pattern helped concentrate big fish in relatively small areas. What else was known was the distinct water temperature difference between particular offshore currents and their surroundings. Although back in the beginning days of recreational offshore angling in the Gulf, just how strong this river was and exactly how it could maintain its identity and its influence over gamefish populations was still a bit of a mystery, and its not fully understood even now. Thanks to modern day technology, we now have a much better grasp of what is actually happening in this complex system, and how to use the knowledge to greatly narrow down the search area for our intended quarry.

To tell the whole tale, credit is really due to space-age technology in the form of satellites which closely observe and monitor Earths surface. The National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) keeps close tabs over our global environmental conditions. NPOESS collects and disseminates data related to weather, atmosphere, oceans, land, and near-space environments. Not only can these satellites see the Earth through visual light, but a number of them are also equipped with infrared vision, and this means they can see heat. Remember, warm water is a critical piece to the puzzle of successful big-game fishing.

As soon as the nature of the Loop Current was understood, anglers quickly began to predict where the distinct warm edges of the Loop Current were located, and just how high the water temperature was. It also didnt take long for fishermen to put two and two together and recognize that where warm water collides with cooler water, a strong boundary or break is formed. These are areas extremely likely to concentrate baitfish and the many predators that feed upon them. Through the satellites eyes, today, these breaks can be pinpointed with dead-on accuracy.

Another feature of the Loop Current which todays satellite imagery indicates clearer than ever before is the presence of the warm water eddies we talked about earlier that tend to break away and twirl off on their own. Some of these massive eddies are more than a hundred miles across. Not only do they carry a bubble of warm water, these very same warm water eddies also support bait and gamefish. Eddies which wander relatively close to shore save crews time and money since they dont have to run all the way out to the main loop current to find consistent action. Until satellites clearly revealed the position of these eddies, many anglers just motored right on through them and completely missed out on their tremendous potential.

Of course, if anglers had unlimited time and fuel, all of this really wouldnt matter. We could run out into the open Gulf and troll until we accidentally stumbled on fish. In all reality though, no one has unlimited time, and fuel is becoming more precious by the day. Anything that can help anglers save time and money is good- in fact, its very good.

Our government provides satellite images of the Loop Current to anyone with the equipment to access the system. That means a computer with an internet connection. NOAA provides the information in pictorial form that indicates the exact flow pattern and location of the Loop Current. Just visit http://coastwatch.noaa.gov/ to view this valuable information. However, just having this data doesnt mean that we can correctly interpret it. I have carefully reviewed these satellite images beaming down from space. Even if I had a big enough boat equipped to run a hundred or so miles offshore, I dont know that Id be willing to bet several hundred gallons of fuel on my own interpretation of the images. I need help, and so do many other anglers. This takes us to prediction services.

There are a number of companies that record, interpret, and provide anglers a detailed analysis of the Loop Current, along with relationships of the Loop to bottom structure, distinct temperature breaks, and proven caught-fish locations. However, there are subscription fees, and thats an extra cost added to the burden blue water anglers already carry. Even though no angler wants another bill coming in each month, most serious offshore fishermen have long ago realized that solid, accurate information about water temperature and fish location is almost always cheaper than guessing and burning hundreds of dollars of fuel while randomly searching our vast oceans.

In Conclusion The Loop Current is the dominant offshore feature for big-game pursuers plying Floridas West Coast. For anglers with the means to receive and act upon the valuable information concerning the path and strength of the Loop Current and its meandering eddies, utilizing the info is a much better bet than trusting your success to nothing more than luck.

However, like almost everything else in the world, the Loop can help create problems for us, too. Scientists have recently discovered that the Loop Current, like every river, carries life forms from upstream areas to downstream areas. For anglers and others who live on the coasts of Florida, this means that if certain small creatures called dinoflagellelates have a good breeding season upstream and release an overabundance of spores which get trapped into the Loop Current, the current will then carry the spores to other areas to the south where they will eventually hatch, grow, and rapidly multiply. So whats the problem? Well, if the dinoflagellelates happen to be a certain type-Gymnodinium breve- we have a severe inshore fish kill, because this exact creature is what causes the dreadful red tide.

In conclusion, the Loop is not just a benign presence. Its not just a convenient conveyor belt which brings us big, hard-fighting gamefish. It is what it is: a massive, powerful mover of water and life that simply cannot be ignored.