Back at it Tomorrow

It has been an enjoyable couple of days off.  That is kinda of a change since days off were no money for a while there.  Now it looks like I have a few months of good fishing ahead so I can get some money in my clothes.

The dolphin bite is getting pretty good as well as the tuna.  Even had reports of a few marlin and makos getting into the action..  The tarpon bite is still a bit inconsistent but getting better.  Permit and cobia on the wrecks.  Snapper bite is good.  All systems go it appears.

May first grouper opens again and there is a grouper tournament that Saturday. Come on down for some fun.

Marathon in the Florida Keys should be your next fishing vacation destination. Join us for charter fishing, fishing guide trips or our fishing 101 so you can fish on your own with better success.

Tight lines, Capt. Dallas

A Little Less Frustrating

Yesterday was a little less frustrating with my fly guy Bob. We started the day with a nice fat hogfish on the fly rod. Now Bob cheated and had a shrimp to add some flavor to his jig, but still that is the first hogfish on a fly rod I have ever heard of or seen. The Yellowtails did not like the fly rod so we had to resort to the spinning rod to finish getting dinner.

After, we headed to the rubble pile to tackle something a bit bigger. We tried for permit on the fly but no takers. When tipped with shrimp we had a shot but a bonito took the last one and gave Bob a ride until a shark took his share. Just as we were ready to head back to the barn we noticed some big yellowtails near the surface and switched tactics with the spinner and a chunk of ballyhoo. Instead of a tail though we hooked a large cobia in the 60 pound range. That fish really took Bob for a ride! After 15 minutes or so the frustrating thing happen again. The fish made it to the wreck and broke off. I may have to go to church or something to get my cobia mojo back.

Marathon in the Florida Keys should be your next fishing vacation destination. Join us for charter fishing, fishing guide trips or our fishing 101 so you can fish on your own with better success. Tight lines, Capt. Dallas

Fly Fishing Frustration?

Yesterday was a beautiful day on the water but it had some frustrating moments. I had my fly guy Bob on the boat so we started by drifting a flat in hopes of a tarpon or bonefish. We only spotted a large 'cuda that and a ray that had no followers. Then we headed to the reef and started catching a few nice mangrove snapper for dinner. With the still weak current the snapper bite was less than stellar. The snapper were there and would bite but we had to wade through nearly hundreds of under sized and wrong type fish to get the ones we wanted. I could tell Bob was getting a little frustrated with the bite and we were burning through our bait too quickly. So I decide to take him to the wreck to try for a permit on the fly rod.

There were plenty of permit and we saw them tailing which impressed Bob quite a bit. Unfortunately they we not biting very well. It took much longer than normal for us to hook up then it was my turn to get frustrated. When the fish hit the first words out of Bob's mouth was "we are in trouble now" as the line melted off his reel and the fish took Bob way back in his backing. I have put hundreds of anglers on wreck permit but this was my first one on a fly rod. On his nine weight rod with an estimated 30 pound spawn permit on the other end, I figured Bob was set for a 45 minute plus battle. That is if the huge bull shark I had seen didn't eat his fish first.

After the fish's first run Bob was able to gain a little line so I set back to watch the show. At the start of the second run Bob's leader parted so no more fish. Losing a big fish on a fly rod is not uncommon, but were the leader broke made no sense at all. It broke a good four foot above the jig in the heavier leader not at the tippet. That was frustrating but it was not the first Permit I have seen an angler lose. We tried to hook another with a little stouter leader but no takers. So since we had a beautiful day with no wind and light current I take Bob to another wreck to catch some Lane snapper on his spinning rod.

First drift we had a hit but no hook up. The second drift we had two hits and no hook up. The third drift a mackerel trashed the rig taking the bottom jig. So as I am getting ready to re-rig I notice two fat Cobia are under the boat. The only rod I had handy was the one with the damaged rig so I drop it to the Cobia and hook up. While I was passing the rod to Bob the big fish takes off around the motor before I can react and breaks off. I quickly try to get Bob's other spinner baited but before I could the other Cobia starts to head down to the wreck. I drop the jig down to fish as he is disappearing from sight and I hook up and pass the rod to Bob.

The fish nearly spooled Bob twice so I was driving the boat as well as I could to not lose the fish. We were down to a couple of wraps on the spool when we finally gained some line. A good while later it looked like we had the fish under control and started having visions of dill Cobia and grits for dinner. The fish took another surprisingly strong run that chased that vision from my head for a moment then fish came close enough to the surface that we could get a glimpse of Bob's first Cobia. Unfortunately, it was a damned Bonita! Now my frustration level is just about maxed out. After another drift and another mackerel cut off it was maxed!

So after what could have been a dream trip for Bob, we ran back to the dock with our tails between our legs. Tomorrow we will have a rematch with these fish that made4 us look bad with hopefully a better outcome. I will be bringing my own spinning outfit with plenty of fresh line to improve our odds.

Marathon in the Florida Keys should be your next fishing vacation destination. Join us for charter fishing, fishing guide trips or our fishing 101 so you can fish on your own with better success.

Tight lines,

Capt. Dallas

Beautiful Day But a Slow Bite.

I don't what it is about fish but it seems the better the day the slower the bite. I had Bob fishing with me yesterday. Bob is the most mature angler I fish and I have to really watch the seas when I fish with him since he is older that me. Actually, he is older than anyone I know that is still breathing. Bob is one hell of an angler though having fished all over the world. Why he would want to fish with me I have no clue, but he shows up every year wanting to catch something new on his fly rod.

Bob is not a purest with the fly rod. It don't break his heart none at all to use a shrimp to add a bit of scent to his fly. I am not going to tell anyone that Bob cheats a bit in his fly fishing adventures, that is his business. But yesterday I started by putting him on some Spanish Mackerel with only a fly which seemed to make him chuckle a bit. They were not big Spanish, but on a fly rod every thing is fun. He also got a Cero Mackerel in the 6 pound range on the fly rod that took him a while to subdue.

His real goal of this trip was to catch yellow tail snapper on his fly rod. The current yesterday sucked so we only managed a dozen or so with 6 keepers. A 20 pound king mackerel on fifteen pound spinner did keep him occupied for 30 minutes or so. So not a stellar day, but with the fly rod, a fun day. I love fly fishermen, they are used to not catching squat.

Marathon in the Florida Keys should be your next fishing vacation destination. Join us for charter fishing, fishing guide trips or our fishing 101 so you can fish on your own with better success.

Tight lines,

Capt. Dallas

I Don't Know How to Act?

I have a trip this morning with an older customer that has always wanted to catch some 'tails on the reef with his fly rod. The forecast was for 15 knot winds but it is flat calm. Perfect day for my fly guy. Now if the winds will just hold he should have the trip of his life.

I will post results later.

Marathon in the Florida Keys should be your next fishing vacation destination. Join us for charter fishing, fishing guide trips or our fishing 101 so you can fish on your own with better success.

Tight lines,

Capt. Dallas