 |
Fishing Report for Homosassa, Florida
Capt. Mike Locklear
August 14, 2003
Homosassa - Saltwater Fishing Report
Florida Fly Fishing For Tarpon Good/Not 2003
On a clear and sunny day on St. George Sound, Mark Lawson stood ready with his fly rod in hand. Andy Smith was centered between Mark and me, waiting for a turn to cast at a cruising tarpon. We were on the spot at the crack of twelve or high noon. The sand shoal was lit up from the sun overhead and the water was almost clear with a hint of tannin from the daily rains.
Last year in August, Andy landed a big tarpon within minutes of our noon arrival. It was now Mark’s turn and I understood it to be his turn until he caught one.
There was some glare from a cloud causing a slight white-out in the direction in which the tarpon come in on. In short range, I spotted a long black shape swimming fast towards a course of 11 o’clock off our bow.
“Mark here comes one, just cast at 11 o’clock about 50 feet, I said” The fly landed about 10 feet in front of the tarpon’s course and immediately he saw the fly and grabbed the fly with power. Head turning back arched and then an explosion of silver sides and white droplets of water scattered about the tarpon. Time seem to stand still, what was a reality, now seemed to be framed clips going off in the mind.
There was no time to reflect as the drag was humming and I ask Mark to untie us from the anchor. I cranked up the engine and slung the throttle forward revving up the motor and causing the men to look for balance. The tarpon jumped only once in the beginning.
After a half hour of tug of war with the big fish, it began doing the rolling sequence of every 3 minutes coming up for a breath of air. Every time the fish rolls add 5 minutes to the fight. Mark wanted to touch this fish and perhaps take a scale. I thought we will do that if and when he gets the fish to the boat.
Mark was learning how to fight big fish on this tarpon and it would be his first. I know how hard it is too land a really big tarpon in less than an hour. 35 minutes into the battle and old Hitler’s first cousin, Karl, came under the boat to greet us. A hammerhead shark more than 10 feet long had come in to steel Mark’s tarpon.
They say hind sight is 20/20. What I would have tried before breaking the tarpon free was to loosen the drag and let the tarpon run away freely for 200 yards and then go back after the fish. The water was now muddy and the visibility was less than 3 feet, perhaps the tarpon could lose the big hammerhead.
We watched the hammerhead take a swipe at the tarpon only to miss. When the line went slack, I thought the shark cut the line with his teeth. The tarpon turned back towards the boat and then took off on a 90 degree angle away from us. As the line tightened so did Mark as he held the reel and broke off the fish voluntarily. It was a bittersweet moment.
We did a few high fives and returned to the anchor buoy and reattached the boat to once again try for a tarpon. Perhaps 30 minutes had elapsed and another tarpon swam by us, much closer and swimming a little slower than the first fish. Again Mark was on the bow and we had just tied on a new fly and leader in the 20 pound tippet size.
Mark laid the black and purple Ballard tied fly in front of the fish’s path. Not once but twice it ate the fly. The second time, Mark came tight and this tarpon was perhaps half as a big as the first tarpon. A 50-60 pounder. That little bugger jumped a bunch of times and put a big bow in the line and went across the shallow end of the bar and somehow cut the line with his belly or the line scrapped the bottom.
The line broke in a weird spot, along the double line between the Bimini and the double surgeon knot. Also, this line was very thin diameter in fluorocarbon, making it more risky for abrasion than hard Mason.
August 3 brought little movement of tides and few fish showed. I recollect not getting one shot. We talked about yesterday fish and got started on eatries. Mark bragged on Boss Oysters in Apalachicola, said they had the best oysters in town and many ways they are prepared. I mentioned the Owl and the Magnolia which are great eateries for vacationing tourist and their wives love it there, too.
On August 4, we were supposed to try our luck again. We could not get out at the appointed time and it look like the rains were going to stick around, so we canned the idea of going out.
After cleaning my boat, I rested my bones on August 5.
On August 6, Ward Trulock and John the Banker tried their luck only to be rained out after a half day of fishing.
Beginning on August 7, Ben Baumgardner was my guest for three days. The first day it rained so hard we did not get out and ended up in Wakulla Springs. We played checkers in the Lodge and ate a fresh grouper sandwich in the dining room. There was not a chance to swim in the 69 degree spring water as the rains kept on all day.
Ben and I got out the next two days and the water was dingy like tea. We saw perhaps ten tarpon the second day. Fresh water had moved in and the tarpon were scarce. The one chance Ben had was when he sat the rod down for a moment and a tarpon rolled at 11 o’clock. He hurried a cast anyway with no good luck.
The last day of Ben’s stay he had one perfect shot at a head on cruising fish, but the tarpon just kept swimming by as the fly landed in the zone the tarpon nearly ran into the anchor line before moving away. That was the fish were hoping to hook up on. We just needed one to be a success. We were failures.
That evening, we ate some great oyster stew and a toss salad with Greek trim with house dressing at Julia Mae’s in Carrabelle. We also had a great meal with friends at Angelos and Sons in Panacea. It was a tough consolation prize for Baumgardner, however, he knows about having to pay your dues when it comes to tarpon fishing. Ben caught his first tarpon on the first cast while fishing with me off Homosassa four years ago. He needs to catch another one soon or he may decide to give up. I doubt that seriously. He will be back I am sure.
Last but not least, I would like to thank Paul and his wife for their hospitality while I was staying at their rental property. They made the trip an enjoyable one for me and were very accommodating in every sense of the word. Looks like their paradise has been discovered and invaded as people from all over are moving in. Like me! What can I say!
It is so relaxing there!!!
More Fishing Reports:
|
|
|
|
