Florida Keys Fishing Report from Spotted Tail
Last week I promised to fish this week. So be it.
Sunday two brave souls took the Mosquito Lagoon On-The-Water Show and Tell Seminar in spite of the nearly 20 mph winds. We went the entire way around the south basin of the Mosquito Lagoon, starting at Haulover Canal, heading north up the ICW, and then going east along Georges Bar. From there we headed south, through the north entrance to the Poll/Troll zone and out the south end. We ran all the way down into Eddy and Max Hoeck Creeks, then back north up to the Haulover Canal, where we ended the tour. We didn’t see a single redfish.
Monday we postponed our charter due to the wind and temperatures. Didn’t fish.
Tuesday I voted. It was very cold, waiting in line. Wasn’t expecting those 50 degree temperatures along with the wind. I love participating in democracy! Didn’t fish.
Wednesday I went wading along Long Key with Dalen Mills, a fly fisher from Maine. We looked for bonefish for three hours. Neither of us saw one.
Thursday Dalen and I went kayaking. First we paddled to No Name Key. The weather could not have been any nicer. The water, however, was quite chilly.
We searched for bonefish there for almost five hours, did not see any. We pulled the boats and went to Hawks Key. We circumnavigated it and checked the oceanside flats of the small unnamed key to the west of Hawks Key. The flats were spectacular but devoid of fish. We were utterly skunked.
Dalen Mills poles an oceanside flat in the Florida Keys.
Friday Dalen and I launched our kayaks at Big Pine Key. We paddled at least 10 miles, hoping again to find bonefish, permit or tarpon. We did find some juvenile tarpon, and I had some shots at them, trying four different flies. They refused all of them.
Dalen saw one permit. Neither of us saw a bonefish. The weather again was perfect, the water temperatures rising nicely.
If we wanted to fish for sharks we perhaps could have gotten a few. There were enough around. As it was we were both skunked again.
Saturday we paddled along the Atlantic side of Sugarloaf Key. In accordance with the trend, we did not see a fish. The amount of trash in the shoreline mangroves was appalling- crab buoys, miles of rope, nets, sunken boats, torn up tarps, etc.etc.etc. ad nauseum. So very sad.
This type of trash was all along the shoreline of Sugarloaf Key. In some places it was worse than this.
We pulled the boats and went to Spanish Harbor where we launched them again. We paddled out to No Name Key. I actually saw three juvie tarpon out there and made a few casts with a small grizzly seaducer. They actively avoided it. We did not see any other fish and recorded yet another skunk.
In my opinion (humble, of course) the Florida Keys is the most over-rated fishing destination on the planet. It’s living off a 30 year (or more) old reputation. There is trash everywhere, abandoned fishing gear (crab traps, lines, floats, etc.), sunken boats, a wrecked airplane, your garden variety of litter, on and on. Worse, there are very few fish. I understand a greenhorn from out of town may not catch any. But to paddle over 30 miles of prime bonefish habitat and not see a single fish? That’s ridiculous.
I don’t see myself ever taking another inshore trip there again. Going fishing for bonefish in the Keys is an expensive waste of time.
If anyone has any good things to say about inshore Keys fishing I would certainly appreciate hearing about it.
And that is this week’s Florida Keys fishing report.
Life is great and I love my work!
Life is short. Go Fishing!
John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com
All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2012. All rights are reserved.
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