Capt.PeteRowney
12-19-2005, 07:26 PM
Seasons Greetings from the Florida Keys. The great thing about fishing here is that you always have options. Even when the weather is snotty you can still run the lee of the many mangrove islands dotting Florida Bay and get to your destination fairly comfortably. Much of this week found me out in the Gulf fishing for a winter staple: spanish mackerel. This is a great fishery that usually provides nonstop action as long as you have some current. The program is fairly simple: throw out the chumbag and wait. Sometimes it takes a little time for things to fire up but once it does you'll be hoping for a break in the action. On average the macks are 4-6lbs. and provide a lot of fun on 6-8 weights. A 300gr line coupled with a chartreuse ultra hair clouser is all you need. Just don't forget the wire leader or heavy mono or flourocarbon. I usually don't use wire because you get more bites without it and mono/flouro is just easier to deal with. If you have never targeted these fish you don't know what you're missing. Spanish mackerel are voracious feeders, incredibly fast and readily take a fly. No bonefish presentations here! In fact, if you're new to fly fishing this is a great way to have a lot of fun and work on your casting skills. Although they don't have the endurance of a tuna their burst speed is right up there. The initial runs are just awesome. While the spanish provide most of the fun you never quite know what is going to show up out in the gulf. Tripletail, cobia, bluefish, grouper, redfish, blacktip sharks, bull sharks and the occasional tiger round out the cast of characters. The latter half of the week it warmed up and I went oceanside. Let me tell you, there are still a number of permit around to keep a rod rigged for them. Bonefishing was pretty good as well. Happy Holidays.
-Pete
-Pete