Well, firstly, I would personally like to welcome Fall back to the Florida Keys. We have been waiting a long time for you… This is hands down my favorite time of year to go fishing for just about everything that swims. The weather is nice….. sometimes, the vast flocks of googans raping the ocean of it’s lobsters are gone, the traffic has subsided and so has most of the terrorists burning our flats on jet skis. You can almost feel the difference in the air. The entire vibe is different here this time of year and it’s hard not embrace it.
Overall, I would say that the fishing has been good. I have got to share some great days on the water recently with some old friends, and some new ones. I am eagerly looking forward to the next couple of months down here. There’s not much else to do here but fish, which, in my opinion, is not all that bad. Hey, someone has to do it. “Some people HAVE to go to work, and some people GET to go to work” ….. I am very lucky to be in the latter half of that quote, and there is not a day that I ever forget that.
Here is my buddy Capt John Skidmore getting tight on a backcountry tarpon on fly.
The fish was mean and jumped a bunch in a short amount of time. Sadly my camera wasn’t even remotely set correctly and the fish is blurry as hell.
I don’t know who was crazier, the fish, or this guy?
Since nobody did a Bahamas report, here it goes. We went to the Bahamas. We drank beer, caught a few fish when the water was not 6′ high everywhere we could get to by foot, bushwacked through Vietnam, broke a rod while bushwacking, almost all got seriously injured in a tragic second story deck partial collapse….while we were on it, the horseflies were a serious threat, drank some more beer, had a crazy run in with a local on the beach, chilled out and had a lot of laughs. And believe it or not, Vince actually told a few stories. We all know how much he holds back all the time and doesn’t say all that much…….. ……….
We had a great time as usual. The fishing was secondary to spending some time with everyone. Everyone caught fish, but that really wasn’t that important. Kyle speared a nice hogfish and Chris and Bryan caught us a few nice lobsters one afternoon. Another successful Bahamas trip in the books, and I am ready for the next one already. I took more pics of beer cans and conch salad than anything else.
Here is a sweet pic of Chase’s beard.
The best conch salad I have ever had
Cuda Kyle got a nice fish on a rough morning
More beer
Vince creepin on a huge flat
Had a good buddy in town for a few days. We got out on the water for a day in some serious wind. We made the most of it, had some sandwiches and a few beers. We found a bunch of tailing sheepshead. Anthony sight fished this guy on a live shrimp.
I got lucky and caught my first sheepy on a fly that day. “It must have been a sick one” -Chris Lewis
Release shot
I have to admit, as of lately I have been spending a lot of time chasing bonefish around. They swim in such gross looking water, I don’t know why I even like it…..
I got a call the other day from one of the busiest men on the planet from Castaway Customs. He was in town for a day, and somehow we made it happen. It was a blast fishing with him and Justin, and has been a long time coming.
Tyler’s chunky ass bonefish
Tyler thinking he was fishing the lagoon for reds….just testing how much heat he can put on 12# fluoro and a bone.
We had a few perfect days in a row and the fishing went off. I spent a perfect afternoon fishing with my buddy Capt Mike O’Dell. The stars must have aligned just right that day for us. I was fortunate enough to catch my first Keys Slam on fly while fishing with a great friend. This tailing bone kicked off a late start to our not so serious day we started bright and early around the crack of noon. Mike hooked a monster tailing bone on foot that day and sadly it broke him off on a long run into the backing.
The permit that day were incredibly spooky. It was hard to get close to them. Our stealthiest approach was falling short. I had to get out of the boat and wade. I got lucky and caught this little guy on foot.
Finished off the day with Mike O busting his ass to get me a shot at a tarpon to finish off a dream day. He poled me into great shots all day, and I owe it all to him. Thanks man.
Kenny St Cyr from Jupiter with a micro micro poon on fly. I had a blast fishing with him. If you are ever in Jupiter,FL, stop by Tequesta Brewing Company. He hooked me up with some of their beers they brew there to try while he was in town. They were all killer! If you like micro brews, go check them out.
We spent one slicked off day in the glades recently. The redfishing was as good as it gets. We all caught some nice fish that day. Here is a shot Mike O’Dell making a perfect shot at some over slot tailing reds. My camera was foggy, which didn’t work out that well.
Mike’s result of a great cast
Rich caught a few nice reds on fly too.
Here is a shot of the man solely responsible for me being where I am at this point in my life. I owe him a lot, he is a great friend and has taught me a lot. Paul sparked an addiction to the FL Keys for me a long time ago, it was nice to see him get tight on the man today. Capt Paul Fisicaro hooked up to a permit on fly. He made a perfect cast, and made one make a bad decision. Awesome job bro!
That’s it for now. Next week, I am heading back New Orleans to fish fish with my buddy Greg. It looks like he has been pounding on the bull reds lately, which is pretty much the norm for that guy. I hope to have some good pics when I get back. We will see…..
Tight Lines!
-Derek