lemaymiami
09-01-2004, 09:45 PM
This may be my last fishing report for a while if hurricane Frances tags us... Hopefully I'll be able to get back to chasing fish and not have to spend too much time putting things back together.
The fishing this past week in the 'Glades has been nothing short of spectacular along the Gulf coast north and south of the Shark River. I was able to spend a day on the water with retired boat-builder Bill Aman in one of his custom skiffs on Friday. The first few spots we checked were quiet so we scooted out of Whitewater Bay and wound up along the Gulf coast. Bill's first cast cost him a new plug when a large snook took him to school and on a tour of several downed trees... While he was re-rigging I scored with a top water lure and watched as a dozen big snook boiled up all around my fish. All of the snook were from 8 to well over 15lbs. Bill quickly grabbed another rod and was on. Meanwhile my fish broke off so I grabbed a rod with a jig, cast back into the commotion and hooked a small tarpon. With two fish on we were lucky to land and release them without losing any more gear. Since we were scouting spots for the beginning of snook season (open today) we left the spot and found fish at more than a few spots along the coast. I can't say I've ever seen snook (even when they're schooled up) act so aggressively. They must be hungry... Of course now I'll have to wait until after the storm to find out if they're still snapping.
Biscayne Bay is still a great night fishing spot, even this late in the summer. Last night I fished two of the stage crew who'd been working on the VMA show and needed a break. Terry Taylor from New York and Mike from Boston had never tangled with the baby tarpon locally so we targeted them. Terry hooked a nice one on a lure under a bridge on 12# line. Thiry minutes later and a quarter mile from where we started he landed and released his first tarpon. It was a little bit large for a "baby". We estimated the fish at 60lbs, a great catch on light tackle, an outstanding one for your first tarpon. During the night we also caught and released snook and other species. Most of the tarpon, however, didn't stay hooked long. That's what makes them such fun. At 4Am, this morning, the water temps in the Bay were averaging 85 degrees. If my guage is accurate, there's lots of warm water for hurricanes now... I guess we'll be finding out in a day or so.
Although I didn't have any fly anglers this week, both snook and tarpon are perfect fish for the long rod. The baby tarpon at night will almost always respond well to a properly placed small tarpon fly (as long as it's white so the angler can see it too...). A really good snook fly along the Gulf coast right now is a woolhead pattern that is the same dimensions as a Mirrolure 52M11 (red and white plug). I believe that the July or August issue of Florida Sportsman has a great article and photos on how to tie one by Jody Moore. Just make certain that any fly for the 'Glades has a weedguard, preferably wire.
When the storm passes and I'm back on-line I'll try to post a brief account of how some of the area guides have fared.
The fishing this past week in the 'Glades has been nothing short of spectacular along the Gulf coast north and south of the Shark River. I was able to spend a day on the water with retired boat-builder Bill Aman in one of his custom skiffs on Friday. The first few spots we checked were quiet so we scooted out of Whitewater Bay and wound up along the Gulf coast. Bill's first cast cost him a new plug when a large snook took him to school and on a tour of several downed trees... While he was re-rigging I scored with a top water lure and watched as a dozen big snook boiled up all around my fish. All of the snook were from 8 to well over 15lbs. Bill quickly grabbed another rod and was on. Meanwhile my fish broke off so I grabbed a rod with a jig, cast back into the commotion and hooked a small tarpon. With two fish on we were lucky to land and release them without losing any more gear. Since we were scouting spots for the beginning of snook season (open today) we left the spot and found fish at more than a few spots along the coast. I can't say I've ever seen snook (even when they're schooled up) act so aggressively. They must be hungry... Of course now I'll have to wait until after the storm to find out if they're still snapping.
Biscayne Bay is still a great night fishing spot, even this late in the summer. Last night I fished two of the stage crew who'd been working on the VMA show and needed a break. Terry Taylor from New York and Mike from Boston had never tangled with the baby tarpon locally so we targeted them. Terry hooked a nice one on a lure under a bridge on 12# line. Thiry minutes later and a quarter mile from where we started he landed and released his first tarpon. It was a little bit large for a "baby". We estimated the fish at 60lbs, a great catch on light tackle, an outstanding one for your first tarpon. During the night we also caught and released snook and other species. Most of the tarpon, however, didn't stay hooked long. That's what makes them such fun. At 4Am, this morning, the water temps in the Bay were averaging 85 degrees. If my guage is accurate, there's lots of warm water for hurricanes now... I guess we'll be finding out in a day or so.
Although I didn't have any fly anglers this week, both snook and tarpon are perfect fish for the long rod. The baby tarpon at night will almost always respond well to a properly placed small tarpon fly (as long as it's white so the angler can see it too...). A really good snook fly along the Gulf coast right now is a woolhead pattern that is the same dimensions as a Mirrolure 52M11 (red and white plug). I believe that the July or August issue of Florida Sportsman has a great article and photos on how to tie one by Jody Moore. Just make certain that any fly for the 'Glades has a weedguard, preferably wire.
When the storm passes and I'm back on-line I'll try to post a brief account of how some of the area guides have fared.