Florida Keys Fishing (Pics)

[sleepjigging]

Just got back from the Florida Keys.

 

I had been looking for a cottage, and I think I have found it. Most important factors: LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION. It was 20 degrees or warmer. Flip flops and t-shirts. Sunglasses and sun burns. Palm trees, bikinis, and fish everywhere!

 

I had brought 2 telescopic rods, 2 disposable reels (old or the $10 walmart special),14lb mono, a ziplock bag of gear (jigheads, dollarama white spinner, 1 small plastic paddle tail, some treble hooks, forgot tubes or Yamamotos), a flashlight. Everything was disposable in case customs didn't like it.

Purchased a $1 knife down there which rusted after 1 day. Could not bring one on the plane. And bought 1 Sabiki rig to play with, with six size 10 hooks. I did not have pliers or a glove for unhooking fish, but plan B was to just cut the line if anything big required surgery. I bought frozen bait as needed or got the locals to spare me a shrimp or some squid.

 

Decent fun from docks and bridges at night. Espeically at dusk or during the fullmoon. Solunar charts said fishing was going to be awesome, and it was. Nothing big, but numbers made it interesting.

 

Here goes with some of the pics:

 

A Grunt. It grinds its teeth and gives off a grunt when out of the water.

Toad Fish: Ugly

Snapper family

 

Awesome to play on a Hobbie Mirage Tandem. It goes very fast, and can handle wind and waves well. The Mirage drive well is convenient for peeing on the water. No need to get out. The wings are limited to waters deeper than 2 feet for fear of tearing them off. Overall, loved the kayak with wings. Fish hands free. A little too fast for trolling.

Trolled the Dollarama White spinner and caught 2 beautiful species at the same spot going out and coming back. Mangrove snapper and Jack Ceville.

The one fish I was targeting was Barracuda and I got one. Just a minnow. The 1/8oz Jighead with a small white paddle tail got it to bite while trolling the flats (2feet deep). It was so light, I thought I was just brushing the grasses. It has a full mouthful of this tiny lure, but it has gnarly teeth.

The other pics:

Pinfish looks like a bluegill with that dot (you can't see it under my fingers)

Pelicans

Iguana over a meter long. I hit it with accidently with a hard boiled egg yolk. See the dot on its tail?

I miss the Keys already. Got home to negative temps and shovelling out the car.

Soft Water is so much nicer than Hard Water!

Sleepjigging

 

[chris.brock]

Nice fish and nice weather Bain, you're living the dream!

 

Welcome back to a Canadian winter.

[Old Ironmaker]

I do not like you very much right now as a wave of -20 blows in when the door is opened to let in the cat. Have fished the Keys for years and love it. You never know what you will hook or what broke you off. Next time go big. Charter out of Islamorada. Deals can be made this time of year. Someone is always looking to team up and split the cost. Did you do the entire run top to bottom. It is nowhere like it was years ago. Nothing much is but then no Walmarts, Walgreens and McDonalds etc. I hope you got off the beaten track and hit some small islands like Little Dear Key, my favorite spot. Nothing like a long stare down between a Gator and a White Egret, guess who wins?

 

Glad you enjoyed it, you, you,,,,,,.

[ckewley]

Looks like you & the wife had a blast, ya a Hobbie might be in the future plans. Don't know about the heat though I'll stick north!

[sleepjigging]

Part II:

 

We started in Key Largo and worked our way to Key West and back. Right after entering Key Largo, the atmosphere changes to a relaxed calm, in contrast to the Miami drug running frenzy. The palm trees and flip flops immediately put our bodies into soothed moods.

 

There is no walmart that we saw, but Kmart, walgreens, dunkin donuts, wendys, CVS, Winn Dixie have taken over the main strip of US route 1. It is very much like route 1 in Saugus, MA where retail dominates the roadside. However, the retail craze is seen coming out of Miami, and gives way to paradise once we crossed first the bridge into the Keys. The scene becomes motels, hotels, dive shops, resorts, cafes, boat charters, boat shops, bait and tackle, restaurants.

 

We had some amazing meals in the Keys, along with some very tourist trap stuff. The Fish House in Key Largo has been an icon there for years, and it deserves its reputation as the best. The Square Grouper was also packed, and for good reason. Give those places a try next time you are by.

 

We did have Key Lime Pie. Now I can appreciate it properly, because I had a wonderful slice in Key Largo, an okay slice at the Square Grouper, and an aweful frozen slice at a local cafe. "You don't know what is good until you know what is bad."

 

My wife does not like deep water so diving was out this trip. So we stuck to the flats around the islands. The locals call it the "Backcountry". Barracuda, mackerel and mangrove snappers are lurking everywhere. One kayak rental owner showed me the ropes on where to fish. He was impress with my degree of preparedness, and gave me a map of the honey holes around No Name Key. I had my rods, reels, small lures, frozen Pilchards, GPS, GoogleMaps, Navionics and kayaking experience. Then he just pointed me to the key spots, including where to find the sharks. My wife wanted nothting to do with sharks, but these were not big sharks. We were going to be in 2-3 fow, so mostly lemon sharks that are only 2-3 feet long at most. We did not see any, but we did see a boat that was out looking for them.

 

Along the flats and mangroves we managed to see sponges, anenomes, Stingray, pelicans, herons, hawks, vultures... We picked up shells and even a live hermit crab. These crabs are so strong. I took it back to the resort and it was able to push its shell over very high obstacles (the bowl) in the bath tub. It kept searching for escape all night along the tub. It would have been so cruel to share the frozen tundra with it. I release it in the morning, but I so wanted to take him home.

 

The best time was at DUSK. We kept seeing schools of baitfish jump out of the water to escape predators. Every time I cast my spinner out, a school of something would scurry out of way. I even caught a glimpse of one of them predator fish on the heels of a school. No luck catching one.

 

Key West is one giant tourist trap. $6.99 for an iced coffee at the local hole! Watch out if they don't post prices and has more variety than Starbucks and Dunkin combined. Key West chickens run wild. (wiki that. It's pretty amusing.)

And thus they are chicken crap and cover up their prized convertible automobiles:

[Joey]

Cool report, thanks for sharing your adventure. Weather sure looks alot better than here

[Fishwilly]

Wow great post. I can almost feel the warm breeze on my face lol

[Old Ironmaker]

Excellent.