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Everglades National Park - Flamingo
Capt. Bob LeMay
January 23, 2006
Flamingo - Saltwater Fishing Report
Miami Slammin
Saturday night we got after the baby tarpon in the Bay. Actually it was really early on Sunday morning, about 2Am... My angler, Dr. Nate Mayl, is pretty dedicated - not many will hook up with me for the late night run. For those that have never sight fished tarpon at night, the tide is everything so some nights if your tide starts late..... At any rate we found good numbers of fish around several of the bridges that run from Miami over to Miami Beach and managed to jump a few on fly. Standard gear for this action is an 8 or 9wt fly rod or spinning gear with live shrimp. Many nights the fly will outfish anything else. The fish are right at the surface so you actually target a specific fish with each cast. When it's on there's nothing like it for fish averaging 20 to 40lbs. Some nights, though, there's a few fish in the shadows that are a bit bigger... This was one of those nights.
After jumping off a few fish, Nate cast to one that was just a bit bigger than most and got to watch as the fish rolled up and ate. He struck and we were fast to a big fish that was clearly too much for his rod. An eighty pound fish on an 8wt rod is a lot more than we were looking for. A few moments later, after several jumps, the fish abruptly turned south and ran back through the bridge. You can't even slow a really big fish on fly, but you can get one to turn a bit by pulling low and to the side as it runs. That tactic is what kept the fish just barely away from the pilings, then it was out into open water. My angler stayed on top of the fish and worked him "down and dirty" to put as much pressure on him as possible - that's the only way to fight a big fish with light gear... After 30 minute fight he actually brought the fish to the boat for a leader release. I never thought I'd ever get my hand on that leader. It was an outstanding catch on a big fish with a light rod. The shock tippet was only 30lb .... By the way this isn't the first time Dr. Mayl has beaten a really big fish on light gear with me. A few years ago he whipped a 100lb fish on a 9wt... Next time we're bringing some heavier rods.
The night time tarpon fishing will continue strong all the way through April. Most nights are fishable even when the weather's not great since you're partially sheltered by Miami Beach. The only thing that slows down my night fishing are daytime charters since the two conflict... Tough choices, night action or daytime in the 'Glades. Tarpon Heaven. For anyone that wants to check out the fly we use it's now beigh stocked at the Fly Shop in Ft. Lauderdale. Ask for the "Night fly", it's just a simple white tarpon fly on an extra strong hook.
Tight Lines
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