Baby Tarpon in Flamingo

There are a couple of things in life I will rarely pass up on.. One of those is an opportunity to chase big fish with a fly rod. So when Captain Chris White asked me if I wanted to head to Flamingo to try to catch some baby tarpon I was more than willing.

Flamingo is a small little "town" inside the Everglades National Park. The town consists of a couple boat ramps, a little boat rental place, and a food trailer that is only open sometimes... So town may be a large over statement.

Regardless, the fishing there is pretty unreal. It's the opposite of the Atlantic side. The water is murky, sometimes muddy. There are huge, expansive channels bordered by thin, widespread flats. Here you can find snook, redfish, lady fish, sea trout, tarpon, and tons of other cool fish. I was specifically here this day in hopes of feeling a tarpon on the end of my life for the first time, but I would, as always, settle for anything eating my fly. 

The day started off slowly and I found myself switching flies pretty regularly until I settled on this bright orange, krystal flash looking fella I tied up myself shortly after arriving in Florida. (I'll show you all what it looks like sometime...) I don't know if it was the fly (I think it was) or if it was the tide (Chris thinks it was) but all of a sudden we started seeing a little more activity and before I knew it I had a split second hook up with a 10 pounder. He exploded out of nowhere crushed the fly and I trout set him out of sheer surprise... Chalk 1 up for the tarpon. Several more flashes later I was still blanked on these little guys. My next and final hookup was on a pretty solid tarpon that just inhaled the fly I strip set the hell out of him and he bolted straight at me! I caught up to him just in time for a little bit of tail walking, but that was all I got. He smiled, gave me the middle fin, and swam away. Now I took some pictures of this trip but I no longer have that piece of technology... But that's another story for another day. 

http://fishingtheworldover.com/

My First Bonefish on the Fly!

Yesterday morning I had the opportunity to go out and fish the flats to chase some tailing bonefish. Okay wait let's preface this story with some details.

I was in the Orvis store this week and one the flats captains walk in, James Koch, he had been out bonefishing the last two days with the same client. They had been seeing tons of tailing fish but were unable to connect with any.. He was a little frustrated so he asked me if I would go with him before work really early in the morning. "Be off the docks at 6:30 at the latest," I told him I would be there at 6:15. 

Of course I wasn't going to hesitate. I haven't had any real opportunities to chase bones yet so I wasn't going to pass. Now the weather just had to cooperate and we were golden. 

5:30 am we check the weather. Confirmed a go I showered and left my house. Arrive at dock 6:17... two minutes late. 



Imagine if you will the sun rising over the ocean. Just enough light to see and barely a breath of wind on the water. Just enough wind to break up the silhouette of the boat without hindering a cast at all. The sun starts peaking up over the horizon and we start poling the flats. I have to fight not to cast at a needle fish I am so excited...

I kid you not we are maybe there for 20 minutes and I see my first tail. James poles over to it slowly and a few more pop up. The next few seconds feel like an eternity I shoot a cast out in front of them it's a short cast really maybe only like 40 feet. I drop it at 30... too short. Recast closer but still too short.. I'm starting to panic a little, I reach back and just drop one in about 3 feet in front of my last cast and right on length wise. "STRIP, STRIP, STRIP!" FISH ON!! BOOOM that thing just explodes line out, I'm doing all I can not to wrap it around the rod, reel, my feet hands, all the experience I have with big fish melts in front of me as this 6 pound bone fish tears off 200 feet of line in 5-6 seconds. It's on, I can celebrate making it through the most difficult part. I look at James and he says to me "I never really do breathe while all of that is going on." Me either. Several minutes later it is such a relief when that fish is up to boat for a good photo opp where I can "Grip and Grin" with the best of them. 

I had two more good shots at bones this morning. The first I spooked, just didn't lead them quite enough. The second which was a way better shot, I hooked into. When it took off I had almost all the line out, it circled and it ran right back at me. I stripped it tight only to have it take off again! I was all but in the clear when I put just a little too much pressure on the last 6 inches of line and it jumped up and wrapped the butt section of my rod. It about broke my heart. But, I guess that's why we get the itch. If you land all of them why would you keep fishing for them. It's the challenge we want. A wise man once told me "If fly fishing was easy, nobody would do it."

Special thanks for Captain James Koch. A fantastic, knowledgable, easy going, experienced flats guide. I highly recommend fishing with him if you get the chance and are down our way. If you want to fish with him you can either ask me or call the charter desk at 305-367-2227 ext. 2! Thanks James!

Destination: Ascension Bay, Mexico

The Mexican Yucatan Peninsula has been a destination for fisherman for a long time, but until recently fly fisherman have been relatively unaware of just how bountiful their sport fish are. Mexico is probably the location where you the angler have the best chance, right now, to go out and hit the grand slam. That is, go out in one single day and catch a bonefish, a permit, and a tarpon in an outing. That doesn't happen often but in Ascension Bay it can. You aren't going to jump the 150 pound mega tarpon like you would in the Atlantic Ocean during migration, but a 70 pound tarpon is still a hell of a good fight (a 10 pound tarpon would be a welcome challenge for me!)!

There is a lodge right in Punta Allen that has been getting great reviews from anglers as well as non fishing guests and that's not that easy to find right now in Mexico.. The name of the lodge is fitting, "Grand Slam," a title that many anglers search their whole life to obtain. Grand Slam hoists the title several times a year with all kinds of anglers.

Photo by Brian Grossenbacher

grand slam fishing

The area is best known for its permit population (shown in the picture to the right) and it is said to have schools of permit numbering in the 20's and solo permit similar in size to this 35 lb beast pictured here. 


All this talk about destination angling has gotten me excited... I'm thinking about putting a trip together to head down there late this Spring (mid-late May) ideally with about 6-8 other fisherman so let me know if you are interested! 

Yellow Dog Fishing

If you want to get more info on your own check out their site here!

 GRAND SLAM 

Flats fishing update

Kirk was out again on the flats today. I sent him down to Islamorada, to Anne's Beach. It's not really a beach but at low tide the flat is exposed so it looks kinda beachy... For the Keys anyway. Anyway he was into the 'cudas again but couldn't find any tarpon or bonefish. He doesn't seem discouraged, but with these views who could be really too disappointed. 

Day 2 in the Keys

Day two of fishing in Florida has just come to an end and it's been quite an experience.  I was out for several hours today and had a ton of barracuda chase the various flies I was slinging.  Most of my fishing was done today throughout the low tide and I wasn't lucky enough to get another chance at hooking up with baby tarpon as I had the previous day.  Then suddenly behind me I heard a tail slap on the surface of the water to turn and see a 2-foot Nurse shark surveying it's new visitor.  It didn't get too close but I had my rod ready just in case I needed to pop in in the head with the butt of my rod.  Another neat thing that I got to experience was a boisterous Osprey perched atop an abandoned ships mast while I was casting to it's neighbors lurking amidst the mangroves.  Finally it took off into the distance and I thought it was time for me to head back to cool off for the afternoon.   

Once I picked up Brian from work, we headed to another canal to try out luck and only fished for about a half an hour as we heard the grumbling of a brewing storm.  One positive note before we were chased away we found a new area that had a lot of swirling fish chasing various bait fish.  Before we could venture further away from the parking lot the lightning began and we felt the wind start to pick up significantly.  Stay tuned for my updates, maybe a tarpon is around the corner! One more week of fishing in the Keys!

Here are a few samples of the fish that I hooked up with today!  

Florida Keys Extravaganza!

Sorry for the delay in posts but Kirk and I had an exciting day of fishing! We started it off by hitting the flats in a pair of Kayaks searching for tarpon, bonefish, or whatever else we could find! We ended up catching a bunch of barracuda and Kirk had 3 baby tarpon eat but couldn't stay connected... Then we went and hit up the canals for an evening of peacock bass fishing! Check out the video I put together and stay tuned for some more pictures and action as Kirk continues to fish his brains out! Enjoy!

Flats Trip

As we were getting ready to close down the store today one of the flats guides came in, Captain James Koch, and asked us if we wanted to go fishing for a couple hours? Of course I answered yes! We closed up shop headed to his boat and went to fish! It wasn't long before we were on a couple of schools of tarpon, and I mean huge tarpon. Unfortunately I couldn't get a strike... We moved on to a new spot and I got another two shots at a moving school and nothing, and thats when the clouds rolled in and blinded us to moving fish. This fishery is so different to me because it relies so much on the sun. If the sun is behind a cloud your ability to see fish is cut drastically. Sometimes so bad you don't see fish until they are right on top of you! It was a blast and James worked hard for us putting us on fish it was just tough to see them. Someday here real soon I'll have pictures of more than just the scenery and the captain, but for now that's all I have! Enjoy! 

Fly Spotlight

This week we decided to bring you a fly from the north east and a fly from the south east! I am bring to the public a very new fly I recently created. It has hooked a bonefish and landed several barracuda and not to mention I think it looks pretty damn cool! I call it the shrimp-opotamus check it out!

Shrimp-opotamus at work!

Recipe:

Hook: TMC 811S 1/0

Thread: GSP 200 denier Red

Eyes: Lead painted red medium

Body: Krystal Hackle bonefish tan

Tail/ Belly: Ginger rabbit strip with 6-8 strands of krystal flash

Legs: Sili Legs Pumpkin barred

Green Drakes have been all over a variety of waters in Central Pennsylvania so the buzz has created a lot of fly-fisherman to spend a night on the stream.  Here is a fly that I enjoy going to once the Green Drakes are on the water.  I've used this fly on Penns Creek, Fishing Creek and the Little Juniata and had great success on all of those streams.  

Another cool pattern that I've learned how to tie recently is the Foam Extended Body Green Drake Spinner.  I've always picked up the extended bodied flies at fly shops to look and see how they were tied but when the Green Drake hatch was approaching I thought it was a good time to learn the pattern. There is a great video posted on YouTube that showed me just how to tie the Foam Extended Body Green Drake Spinner pattern.  Click the link to view and enjoy!

Foam Extended Body Green Drake Spinner

Airport Flat!

Today I finally had a real day off. No working as a mate, no traveling to Nashville for a wedding. It was truly just a day off to relax kick back... and hit the flats. I went to what the local guides refer to as the "airport flat," and as I'm figuring out here nothing is what your mind leads you to believe. The flat was rocky and weedy and because of the low sun and the wind I couldn't see a fish to save my life. Danielle was out there with me to help take pictures, soak up the sun, and grab my fly boxes to help pick out new flies. I went the first hour or so just blind casting to nothing, then I walked up on this shipwreck you see in the picture below and on my way I threw a blind cast hooking into what I can only assume to be a bonefish or a big fish because it went for a ruuuuuuun, but unfortunately I lost it. After that I hooked about a dozen barracuda and landed 5. Below are two of the smaller ones, I lost a ton of flies holding them up for pictures and having them shake their head and sever the line right in half. 

Today was awesome. I didn't land the big one, but that's what keeps us all fishing "the big one that got away." I did see a sizable shark by sizable I mean between 3 and 5 feet long which was crazy because I didn't see it until it was 10 feet away from us and it saw us and bolted.. Still awesome, saltwater fishing is crazy but I'm learning to love it. Time to tie up some flies to make up for all the ones I lost today to the razor sharp 'cuda teeth.

Reefing it in the Keys

Today was my first opportunity to really hit the water since I have been down here and it was through dumb luck and working at Orvis that made it happen. I was working on Saturday and one of the captains came into the store and said his 1st mate never showed up today and was looking for someone to replace him for a trip tomorrow. "I CAN GO!" I'm sure I yelled across the store haha. 

It was an awesome day on the Patch Man Do and captain John really took care of me and our customers. It was a hell of a way to break into mating on the open seas with a near six foot barracuda to start the day... Awesome! The pictures below are what came next for the rest of the morning trip to the reef. 

Leaving the Ocean Reef Club behind

Stepano with a little blue runner

Don't be afraid to wave the jolly roger

Fighting a grouper!

Black grouper

After a morning on the boat I went looking, blindly, for bones... until next time.