Islamorada Road Trip
Moderators: bman, Chalk, Tom Keels
Islamorada Road Trip
It’s funny that for a minute, I thought I could go without a boat when I sold my Carolina Skiff last year. That did not last long as I got back in the game with a Panga skiff (great boat). It has done well in the Big Bend already but I thought I would put it to the test by taking it down to my favorite Keys fishing spot, Islamorada.
The first day started great at the campground when I was awakened by mullet schools thrashing around 10' from my head. I got up, grabbed the cast net and loaded up on nice tarpon bait size mullet, woke up my wife and hit the water for tarpon. What happened next is something I have never seen on the water or on TV. We anchored near a channel that was known as a tarpon highway and put out 2 live mullet on floats. Then a 100-150 lb tarpon thrashed around, jumped out of the water, chased the mullet, knocked it in the air, and engulfed it several times but every time the mullet found a way to get away. This unbelievable display lasted for 15 minutes until the Tarpon finally gave up while the mullet swam around (laughing at me I think). At some point, my wife even started cheering for the mullet. It was funny, amazing, and frustrating at the same time. This is how the week went as far as tarpon go. We had tarpon all around the boat all week long but couldn't hook one. We tried live mullet (freelined, on a float, and on the bottom), gulp crab, diving plugs, swimbaits, topwater lures, jigs, flies, DOA jumbo shrimp and nothing would work. We had caught them down there before but none on this trip.
Nonetheless, we had a great trip catching snook of different sizes which is our main target in Islamorada (contrary to most people). The highlight of the trip was catching a personal best 36", 18lb snook. What an incredible fight on light tackle!
Here is the smallest snook:
We caught many barracuda which were absolutely amazing on topwater and on fly.
We caught many sharks up to 8 feet.
We caught one Goliath grouper in our snook spot.
Overall, it was a great trip in spite of all the drama from the Keys tarpon that avoided my hooks all week long.
The first day started great at the campground when I was awakened by mullet schools thrashing around 10' from my head. I got up, grabbed the cast net and loaded up on nice tarpon bait size mullet, woke up my wife and hit the water for tarpon. What happened next is something I have never seen on the water or on TV. We anchored near a channel that was known as a tarpon highway and put out 2 live mullet on floats. Then a 100-150 lb tarpon thrashed around, jumped out of the water, chased the mullet, knocked it in the air, and engulfed it several times but every time the mullet found a way to get away. This unbelievable display lasted for 15 minutes until the Tarpon finally gave up while the mullet swam around (laughing at me I think). At some point, my wife even started cheering for the mullet. It was funny, amazing, and frustrating at the same time. This is how the week went as far as tarpon go. We had tarpon all around the boat all week long but couldn't hook one. We tried live mullet (freelined, on a float, and on the bottom), gulp crab, diving plugs, swimbaits, topwater lures, jigs, flies, DOA jumbo shrimp and nothing would work. We had caught them down there before but none on this trip.
Nonetheless, we had a great trip catching snook of different sizes which is our main target in Islamorada (contrary to most people). The highlight of the trip was catching a personal best 36", 18lb snook. What an incredible fight on light tackle!
Here is the smallest snook:
We caught many barracuda which were absolutely amazing on topwater and on fly.
We caught many sharks up to 8 feet.
We caught one Goliath grouper in our snook spot.
Overall, it was a great trip in spite of all the drama from the Keys tarpon that avoided my hooks all week long.
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
Sweet trip Congrats on the monster Snook.
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
It's tough to beat that water.
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
Nice.....really nice
You’ve reached middle age when all you exercise is caution.
- big bend gyrene
- Moderator
- Posts: 2457
- Joined: August 8th, 2005, 9:30 am
- Location: Monticello, FL
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
Man, that snook is a MOGAN!
Glad to hear you and Beth had a great time, even with the teasing from the tarpon! Being completely serious, seems some of my strongest memories of time spent out on the water are from such "sightings" versus "catches", so I'm sure the sighting of the big tarpon will still be a fond memory
BBG
Glad to hear you and Beth had a great time, even with the teasing from the tarpon! Being completely serious, seems some of my strongest memories of time spent out on the water are from such "sightings" versus "catches", so I'm sure the sighting of the big tarpon will still be a fond memory
BBG
"The Marines I have seen around the world have the cleanest bodies, the filthiest minds, the highest morale, and the lowest morals of any group of animals I have ever seen. Thank GOD for the United States Marine Corps." Eleanor Roosevelt, 1945
- Chalk
- Moderator
- Posts: 11995
- Joined: March 9th, 2002, 8:00 pm
- Location: 30° 13' N, 85° 40' W
- Contact:
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
Nice snuke
- BAD BEHAVIOR
- Site Sponsor
- Posts: 2516
- Joined: April 25th, 2007, 11:08 pm
- Location: adel/cairo, ga
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
Sweet trip. Saw a Panga @ St Marks this weekend , sweet boat. Looked like it would run out pretty good. Got to love that water down there!! Id feel like I needed to put a palm tree on BB to hide behind fishin in water that clear!!
A wise person pays attention to correction that will improve his life...... Proverbs 15:31 ICB <")))))>*<
TEAM BAD BEHAVIOR
TEAM BAD BEHAVIOR
-
- Site Sponsor
- Posts: 1233
- Joined: April 13th, 2007, 1:53 pm
- Location: Tallahassee fl.
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
Great report and nice fish. I could hear my wife pulling for the mullet!
Let me get them Numbers!!!!!!!!
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
Man that looks like a great trip!
My wife gave me the green light to plan a trip like that this year.
love a pm with details on where to stay / launch etc.....
My wife gave me the green light to plan a trip like that this year.
love a pm with details on where to stay / launch etc.....
Barry Bevis, Realtor and Owner of BigBendFishing.net
I liked it so much, I bought the company
http://www.bevisrealty.com
TEAM "Duck Season!"
I liked it so much, I bought the company
http://www.bevisrealty.com
TEAM "Duck Season!"
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
Sounds like a great trip. I'm sure the snook gave you a tremendous fight.
What was I supposed to do today?
Re: Islamorada Road Trip
Big Bend Gyrene,
Wish you could have been there 2? The four of us would have done even better. With your Panga, we could have gone after tuna, dolphin, and marlin also.
MudDucker,
My Panga is the new 18' skiff and it is exactly the boat I wanted. Floats in 6" and does pretty well in 2-3' seas. Now I can do inshore and offshore in the same boat and still haven't spent >$10 in gas in any 1 trip with the 50 HP Yamaha 4-stroke.
Bad Behavior,
That might have been my Panga you saw at St. Marks on Saturday, I had just gotten back from the Keys and couldn't resist the home waters of the Big Bend.
Wish you could have been there 2? The four of us would have done even better. With your Panga, we could have gone after tuna, dolphin, and marlin also.
MudDucker,
My Panga is the new 18' skiff and it is exactly the boat I wanted. Floats in 6" and does pretty well in 2-3' seas. Now I can do inshore and offshore in the same boat and still haven't spent >$10 in gas in any 1 trip with the 50 HP Yamaha 4-stroke.
Bad Behavior,
That might have been my Panga you saw at St. Marks on Saturday, I had just gotten back from the Keys and couldn't resist the home waters of the Big Bend.