Archive for May, 2009

In the skinny stuff, stealth is key. If you want to catch the fish you see, both your approach and presentation have to be stealthy. Chances are, if the fish hear or see you, they will not eat. Everything is fair game here… sounds from the engine down to the whip in your cast will have an effect on the fish. Sometimes, it takes less than a sound to spook them… lateral movement in a skiff will send out small wakes that give away your presence. There are no rule books or guidelines on how to approach fish… use common sense. The fish are on high alert all of the time… be as stealthy as you can be and catch more fish.

Coach Tom and Scott Giberson from Pace High were back… this time in the little boat. Nice Redfish Coach!

Sightfishing is addictive… Tom put a perfect cast on this fish and then watched him chase it down.

Then it was Scott’s turn… he watched a upper slot Snook come clean out of the water to slam his bait.

This Snook hit the bait so hard, it sounded like a car crash… then it ran off 50 or so yards of drag before Tom could make any headway.

Kenny had an itch… I told him to call a doctor, but he insisted on picking up the fly rod instead. I’m glad he did… this was the first of MANY.

Then, I had a shot at the bow and long rod for a change… man, that was nice. I just got in some new Maui Jim’s… Canoes with the new High Transmission lenses. What a difference! I had very poor light as the darn clouds kept following us around, but the lenses helped me pick out this bad boy.

On Monday, Diego and Gabe joined me for a couple of days with the long rod… they had never seen (other than on TV) a tailing Redfish before, so guess what we did! Here is Gabe’s first tailing Redfish and first Redfish on fly… congrats!

Then it was Diego’s turn… nice work! This Redfish fought like a much larger fish… it was a blast.

They caught many more Reds, Snook and Trout!

On the next day, Gabe sight fished this over slot Redfish with a Skitterwalk! It was an explosive strike and bulldog fight… congrats Gabe.

Gabe would go on to catch a nice Snook and Trout to complete his back country slam on the same plug… Rapala Skitterwalk.

Mike and Scott were back for seconds this month… with Redfish and Snook on their minds. Early on we had several blow-ups on the skitterwalk, but the strikes were a little lazy. As soon as Mike switched to this subsurface setup, he found himself in a tug of war with this lunker.

Don’s Bait and Tackle has a good selection of these swim baits… which don’t work at all

Then Scott struck gold with this tailing Redfish.

Later in the day we were covered up in waking Redfish and Snook… with a perfectly placed cast, Mike hooked another lunker. We caught several throughout the day, foregoing the Trout and slam to stay in the Redfish and Snook until it was time to quit.

Until next week!

In Flamingo if you find muddy water you’ll find the fish… hungry fish. Mullet muddied areas provide refuge, camouflage and food for predatory fish like Snook, Redfish, Trout and Tarpon. The great news is the fish that gravitate to those “muds” are there for a single main reason… to eat. While muddy water may mean poor visibility of your bait, it may also mean poor visibility of you and your skiff. Often times, the sighted fish, presentation and strike are within just a few feet of your bow… it can make for some serious nail-biting excitement. We had a few real close encounters this week… and some great results!
Graduation Gift

Andy Hogan spent the last four years at the University of Miami studying hard and acing every course he encountered. When graduation finally approached he realized he spent all this time in South Florida and never experienced Everglades National Park… and never caught a Snook. It was an easy decision when his mom asked what he wanted for graduation.

So, there we were, in Florida Bay aboard the smallest skiff and in the shallowest water he had ever experienced… and likely with the lightest tackle he ever used. The winds were certainly high and visibility was poor. After several missed strikes and even more spooky fish, we grew weary. Fortunately, Andy didn’t give up and after landing his first couple of small Snook, he was rewarded with a hefty prize… mission accomplished, but he wasn’t done there. In addition to his prized Snook, Andy would go on to successfully land a Tarpon, Trout and Redfish to complete his first Back Country Grand Slam. Congrats Andy… nice job in school and on the water!

Shortly after his nice Snook, he enticed this 15 lb Tarpon out of the mangroves for a photo shoot…

… and it thanked him properly, with a splash in the face.

Later in the week, Eric caught this nice Florida Bay “Silver” Redfish… he said it was the hardest fighting fish he’d ever caught!

In spite of the 25 - 30 kt winds, my day with Kenny and Rick was filled with lots of big fish.

This Trout was hiding in a mullet mud waiting for unsuspecting prey… the strike was simply awesome.

This Redfish chased his bait down from over ten feet away, pushing a massive wake and pulling drag the second he hit.

What a Snook… easily 20 lbs… she was stalking mullet in dirty water. This picture does her very little justice… the other pic was submitted for further publication

The reptiles have been out in force lately… we saw a large Crocodile on a flat in Florida Bay!

Until next week!

What a week! The winds finally laid down, the flats and bites were filled with clean water and it seemed like the fish were everywhere. It was our first week of real Springtime action and it will hopefully continue for weeks to come.

Double Trouble

When the weather cooperates in Flamingo, the sky is absolutely the limit… just ask the Langone boys. Minor details like having never seen a tailing Redfish or having never caught a Redfish are quickly resolved. With only a few minutes of poling towards our first spot they started waving… We could see the tails from 100 yards away. The early morning sun made them glow and soon we were surrounded.

Jeff struck first… with a great cast to a large tail, the fish never hesitated.

Then, the first double of the day… Dad and Jeff.

Nick with his first Redfish ever…

Doubled up again…

… this time with much larger fish.

Another double… this time at Dad’s expense. The boys allowed him the casting platform and first cast at a school of tailing fish. But, when Dad’s cast fell short, they didn’t hesitate. Two perfect casts and it was game on, again.

Jeff sight fished this Snook on a flat that was full of both Snook & Reds later in the day… we were actually disrupted during our hunt for Snook by a school of over 80 Redfish that nearly swam right into the boat. They caught five or six more Reds, doubling up again and ending an unbelievable day in Flamingo the right way… with rods bent and smiles across the board.

On this day, the top water bite was on… this Snook was the first.

… then this Red was next.

This Redfish wanted this Skitterwalk so bad, he nearly digested it. We would go on to catch a few large Trout to complete the slam on that same bait.

Mike with a hefty sight fished Red…

Capt. Tejera joined me for a two boat trip out of Islamorada this week… John Boggio’s group hailed from far North to enjoy a very hot, but beautiful day in the Park.

Smile, John!

Rick Martin with easily the fish of the week… caught on a Rapala Skitterwalk no less. This Red was an absolute pig.

Nice job Rick! We made sure this breeding fish was more than ready before we let her go…

I can’t wait to get back out there!!! Until next week…