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Fishing report, Everglades backcountry - Flamingo
Capt. Bob LeMay
May 8, 2009
Flamingo - Saltwater Fishing Report
It's been almost a month since my last report. This time of year a day off is a rarity so you can be sure that I was out there most days, bad weather and all... Now that the wind seems to have quit blowing so hard the fishing has improved dramatically and we're much more in an early summer pattern. Water temps are up substantially and the topwater bite has been good most mornings. My usual routine has been topwater in the morning followed by either sightfishing the extreme shallows along the edges of Whitewater Bay or working deeper shorelines along the Gulf coast. The giant tarpon are available every day along the coast and just up inside river mouths. The big snook are still inside, but beginning to make a showing in Oyster Bay and the western reaches of Whitewater. Artificials have been the rule most days and they've been scoring wherever the fish are holding. In a month or two the livebait will be showing in force and they'll provide additional opportunities.
On Wednesday, I broke out for some exploring on my own and ranged as far north as Highland Beach from Flamingo. Using only topwater gear (small plugs for the really light rods up to Skitterwalks and Zara Spooks for heavier gear) I drew strikes from almost everywhere I tried until I got out on the coast north of the Shark River. The average sized speckled trout now is nearly 20" on the lures I offered, and the snook I found were in the five to ten pound range (those were the ones that bit, I found a few much larger but very spooky...). The snook hit hard enough to knock the plug up into the air but wouldn't stay connected. The run up to the north was more for information than any productive fishing since the water started out murky and was just plain muddy by the time I reached the Rogers River just before high tide. Even with the bad conditions there were still some snook popping up in the bushes next to one creek mouth. I was able to release one of about 26" before they quit working the little baits that flushed into the creek by the last of the incoming tide. After checking out a few other spots on the way back down south I found much better water conditions just north of the Shark River where clean green water from the Gulf had flooded in and was just beginning to start outgoing. The first spot held snappers, lots of small gag grouper, a few spanish mackeral and once again the large fat speckled trout that are in great numbers now. Leaving them biting (almost every cast with a Gulp tailed jig was just attacked...) I ran back inside in search of slot sized redfish in the upper reaches of the interior. I found good numbers but all were very spooky in very clear, very shallow sheltered coves in Whitewater Bay. When I finally managed a good presentation (it's tough poling, then casting with one hand while holding a pushpole in the other up on top of the poling tower) I got one of about 24" to eat, then pulled the hook on him... I left them laughing I'm afraid, but very glad to know they're where they should be in the afternoons, now.
That day I covered about 75 miles all told according to my GPS's trip log, but that's really the only way to know what areas are productive and which to leave for another day. Whether you use bait or artificials, with plug, spinning, or flyfishing gear, the Gulf coast of the 'Glades will get better and better these next few weeks. The mosquitoes still haven't shown, it's still very dry, and the summer rains have yet to appear. It's a great time of year to be running the backcountry.
Tight Lines
Bob LeMay
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