Nice Day On The Water

The last few trips haven't been big news catch wise. Good size Spanish, Nice Mangs and a lot of other stuff. My crew had shots at bigger things, but that's fishing.

The Mackerel bite has moved back out in the bay a little further than last week. The bigger Mackerel and Cobia were a little out of range for the half-day guide trip this afternoon. Still there was fair action in close for a mixed bag.

I was telling my crew today how slow it was, but he was really very happy with the trip. I may be getting spoiled, since a slower than average day bothers me. As long as the customer is happy, it's all good. No pictures on this trip, just a very relaxing day on the water.

Tight lines,
Capt. Dallas

Merry Keysy Christmas

It is the Holiday’s again, time to enjoy family and remember the reason for the season. That means fishing to me. Christmas and New Years signals the start of the tourist season in the Florida Keys. While my posts of late have been few, they will start picking up in the coming weeks and months. Tomorrow as with most Christmas Days, I will be fishing for a living. An afternoon half-day as a guide for a nice couple that just arrived in town.

The game plan for tomorrow’s trip is a little Keys fishing 101. Show the customers how to boat around the area without tearing up their rental boat. There will be a quick tour and then we will fish areas suited to the boat they rented and their seaworthiness. Winter is a little breezy in the Keys. The fish don’t mind the weather at all, the boaters mind to varying degrees. Living on an island is a great thing for boaters that don’t like it rough. There is always a leeside and a place to fish. So after the basic intro to the Keys 101, we will move into how to not get your butt kicked in the Keys while fishing.

Next we will move into basic Keys fishing techniques. My customers aren’t familiar with saltwater fish or fishing. They have considerable fresh water bass fishing experience. My job will be to teach them the differences between the two and break them of their bass habits.

With the weather to blow up a little tomorrow, classic Keys bridge fishing techniques will be the order of the day. The snapper bite at the bridge has been great so we shouldn’t have any problem catching fish. Most vacationers are not really satisfied with just eating fish; they want a challenge, something Big! The bridge offers all of that. So a little basic Tarpon fishing and basic Shark fishing will be on the syllabus.

Hopefully, they will have a digital camera so I can post a few photos. I really need some more interesting pictures for my posts or all you guys will start going somewhere else. Just try to bear with me for a few days and maybe I can add a few attention grabbing glossy photos of big fish and happy customers.

Happy Holidays guys and save a little eggnog for me.

Big is in the Eye of the Beholder

Family fishing vacations to the Florida Keys are very popular. The local charter captains enjoy taking the kids out and have almost as much fun as they do. If you plan to travel to the Keys for vacation, bring the kids along they will have a great time. Just remember that a successful fishing trip with younger children is not always measured in big fish, but in big smiles.

The Florida Bay is often like a lake, making it easy to introduce young anglers to a great time. These calm days are prefect for the kids and the adults. The action is almost constant which is what you need to hold the attention of many young anglers. Your family will be fishing in shallow clear waters, so you and yours will see plenty of fish. Using chumming techniques, the number of fish behind the boat will continue to grow. Mackerel, snapper, blue fish, sharks and a variety of Jacks are just a few of the fish you will encounter.

In winter, which is the best time to visit the Keys, hundreds of Spanish mackerel will pay you a visit. The Spanish are fun catch for young and old alike with fish ranging from two to ten pounds. They are great sport on light tackle. Jacks, blue runners and Jack Crevelle, will often show en mass making it hard not to have fish on the line.

To challenge the adults, Cobia, Goliath Grouper and larger sharks will show on most trips to stretch your line. The Cobia is delicious table fare, perfect for a family dinner. In the Keys almost any local restaurant will cook your fresh catch for you.

In calm weather, the reef of the ocean side of the island offers Yellowtail Snapper, grouper and mackerel. As in the bay, chum fishing is normally used to bring the fish right to the boat for all to see. The Yellowtails are very tasty and while they can be finicky, will most often bite very well. The occasional King Mackerel, many weighing over thirty pounds are a great challenge for both the younger and older crew.

Half-day trips are recommended for the younger members. All day trips can prove to be a little more than younger children like. If any of your children weigh less than fifty pounds, check with your captain before the trip to make sure a comfortable life vest is available. If you have a very young child, it is best to buy your own life vest. Let the young one wear the vest a little before the trip to become familiar with it before getting on the boat. All children under 13 years of age have to wear a vest. Your charter captain will have vests available for you and your family weighing over fifty pounds.

Bring plenty of drinks, light snacks, sunscreen and a hat for the sun. Your captain will have a cooler on the boat so check with him before bringinng your own. You and your children will have a great time. Do, not be surprise if the highlight of your child’s fishing trip is a small barracuda or shark. Remember, big is in the eye of the beholder.

Garmin GPSMAP 492C

With fuel cost causing issues in the charter business, I have been looking for a new charter boat that is more fuel efficient and versatile for the wide variety of fish here in the Florida Keys. While I haven’t purchased the boat, I have been shopping for new electronics. The boats that I am looking to buy are swallow draft center consoles. Center consoles have limited space making dual-purpose electronics very appealing. While I have never been a fan of most combination sounder/GPS machine. I recently had to change my mind.

The Garmin GPSMAP 492C impressed me. The compact unit combines Garman’s outstanding GPS equipment that I have used for years with a high quality color sounder. If you have used a Garmin, you know the ease of operation of the GPS units and the seamless nature of their chart plotters. While I have always preferred monochromatic displays, which were much easier to read with out digging out the glasses. The new color display was much easier to read that pervious models. With the backlight being adjustable from ultra dim for night fishing to high contrast for bright sunlight, I was able use the unit with no problems.

The sounder is a full 500 watts. Fishing in the Florida Keys, I may be fishing in fifteen foot of water in the bay one day and over 1000 foot past the wall the next. Having a sounder the can read 600 feet of bottom can make or break an offshore trip. If the striking fish aren’t biting a productive deep drop can put smiles on the crew.

With the center console I am planning to buy, the built in antenna means less rigging and money. Now there is no need for an expensive electronics box for the Tee Top. The 492 can be mounted on the dash by the compass. I like this because looking up at the box was always a pain in the neck. Dash mounted, access to the menu and control buttons is much easier.

All this was impressive until I found out that Bluechart comes installed with the unit. That saves $150 for the chart cost and $800 worth of aggravation keying in the 400 digit access code. If you are in the market for a new GPS for your center console, you need to checkout the Garmin GPSMAP 492C. Just look at the price.
Retail Price:$719.99 U.S.D.

Make fishing the Florida Keys your next vacation.

Don't forget the recipes and fishing basics link!

How to Have a Merry Christmas

It’s getting real close to Christmas and a few ladies out there haven’t wrapped up their shopping. Most men I know haven’t started yet. So for the ladies, it’s easy to please your fishing hubby, give him a Bass Pro Shops gift card.

Guys, pleasing the little lady might be more of a challenge. If you are thinking about a new vacuum or the Victoria’s Secrets catalog, my couch is only comfortable for about two days. Then you are on your own. But Bass Pro Shops may be your ticket out of the doghouse too.


Tip one, Sunglasses: A little BPS gift card so she can get proper eye wear for that tropical vacation she’s always wanted. You not only make her happy, you get to forget about shoveling snow and all the other honey do’s in the jar, and do a little serious fishing in the Keys.

Tip two Shoes

What woman doesn’t want new shoes, and boat shoes are perfect for that Sailfish trip you are taking her on in the fabulous Florida Keys because scraping ice of the windshield every morning is starting to chap your butt.

Tip three Luggage:


With sharp looking new wheeled luggage, she can keep up with you while you are running to the ticket counter to get your boarding passes to get on the plane that is taking you away from the slush that used to be snow and to the once in a lifetime fishing vacation/second honeymoon that will save your marriage and your sanity! In the Florida Keys of course.

Tight lines and a Merry Christmas to all,
Ho Ho Ho
Capt. Dallas