CyberAngler

Thinking of getting a houseboat out of Tavernier around Jan. 20, told I can go from about MM106 to MM80, don't know how far off shore but not on the ocean side. Have fished the Key's in the past a few times and had a ball fishing mostly from shore. Is it worth it to get the houseboat to have 24 hour fishing in that area? Any cuda to be caught? I don't care about just catching the glamor fish but want to try to catch as many different species as possible. The girlfriend just wants to catch fish! I have seen that guides respond on this sight. I hope I don't offend you, but would it be offensive if we had a guide on the first day with the understanding that we would fish in the same basic area to get an idea on how to have a more productive time on the water ourselves? Thank you for any info in advance.
Tight Lines,
Doug Bowman from PA

Doug That is a great area to fish for all sorts of stuff. You can catch Tarpon, Cudas trout etc. hring a guide to show you around would be a great idea....Try asking at Papa Joes or Lorili's..Good Luck

Sounds like fishing from a houseboat would be a really cool way to enjoy fishing the Keys.

If it was me, I would concentrate on drifting the grass flats of Florida Bay for trout and any other fish that happens along. Depending on conditions, you will probably get some good drifts allowing you to cover a lot of ground. You can put out some live baits on corks and cast artificials as you cruise along – sounds like Kokamo

Conversely, I don’t know if I’d want to be tarpon fishing on a houseboat in a busy channel near a bridge.

Whatever you decide to do, come back and tell how you did.

Thanks for the info guys. A little change of plans though. I've had a few people tell me if the bay is dirty that I won't have a very good chance of not bottoming out, based on that the houseboat idea went out the window, unfortunately. Now we will probably stay in Marathon at Bonefish Resort and rent a boat. Any thoughts or changes to the fishing that you would reccommend? Thanks again and I'll be sure to keep records of all our fish.

Everything mentioned above is still valid, but if you’re going to rent a boat... depending on the size of the boat and the weather conditions at the time you're down there... you may want to consider hitting the reefs or going offshore. These winter months are a great time to fish on the reefs and offshore, but it can get rough out there. Any of the local tackle shops can help with good local fishing info on what’s biting at that moment and how to catch it.

Yes...

When you get to Marathon, check out The Tackle Box:
http://www.thetacklebox.com/

They always more than willing to point you in the direction is fish.