Key West Fly Fishing

Since our last report, the first legitimate cold front of the year came ripping through the Florida Keys. Low temperatures dipped into the low 60’s and highs struggled to reach the low 70’s for a couple of days. The front also generated a day of strong winds out of the north.

Prior to the front, the permit fishing had been perfectly mediocre. While most of the day was spent poling flat after flat looking for a handful of fish, there were brief spells that showed how good the permit fishing can be in Key West. Most of the fish were large and the majority of fish that I targeted were aggressively mudding in 3-4 feet of water. Although we didn’t connect on any fish, the good spells of fishing helped maintain everyone’s focus throughout the day.

After the front, John and I headed to the Everglades. We figured that the weather for fishing the park couldn’t be better - cool temperatures, moderate north winds and blue bird skies. We couldn’t have been more wrong. While the conditions were great, the fishing was dreadful. We managed to only catch one small redfish (blind casting across a depression on a flat), get only one other shot at a redfish trailing a stingray and luck into a nice shot at a big tarpon (100 plus pounds) cruising through some muddy water. The tarpon must have been partly frozen as it refused several casts with different flies that brought the offerings right across its nose (the best presentation when the water is the color of whole milk). Despite what we had hoped, the fish in the park must have been as put off by the weather change as our fish in the Lower Keys. It should improve as the rhythms of winter take a firmer hold.

The weather this weekend looks good. Highs in the lower 80’s, a little bit of southeast wind, and good tides should be the recipe for some decent permit fishing. We’ll let you know if something truly exciting happens.

I want to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving. Hopefully, you are able to spend the holiday with your friends and families.

Drew

The weather that John began his last post with, changed and brought about change to the lower Keys. After the warmest October on record in Key West, a cold front pushed through ushering in cooler temperatures and winds out of the north. This front has definitely brought a shift in the fishing and our approach.

After the arrival of the cool weather, I was again on the water with Graham Anderson and Dave Blair, owner of Fish Tales Fly Shop in Calgary. Despite the cool weather and high winds the permit fishing was suprisingly good. The mornings definitely seemed to provide the most consistent action with a strong falling tide until midday. The fish, although not as active as the past several months, were tipping and tailing as they searched the flats for crabs. The last two days that we fished we had about 15 or 16 shots each day, not numbers that will knock off anyone’s socks but not bad for the days after the first cool down of the year. The last morning Dave connected on a nice fish in the Marquesas, his first permit in the Keys.

The middle of this past week, the fishing definitely followed the weather’s lead and cooled off. Flats where we had been finding decent permit and bonefishing, had very little activity. The few fish that we saw were generally cruising about and not looking too interested in feeding. This is typical behavior as the fish try to adjust to water temps in the low 70’s (the coolest since March).

I spent the past couple of days fishing with Steve Morris from Knoxville, TN. He had fished earlier in the week with Alex, who had to head to the Bahamas on Thursday. The first day was brutal, almost no permit and only one group of very chilly bonefish. Yesterday was a little bit better. Although the permit were not thick, most of the fish that we had shots at were consistently tailing and mudding. We did catch a nice 8 lb bonefish out of a school of 12-15 fish. Additionally, the barracuda are beginning to show up on the flats and jacks are beginning to shadow mudding rays. Winter is definitely on its way.

I hope to get up to the Everglades sometime in the coming week to chase some redfish and snook. I’ll let you know how it goes. In the meantime, I need to get back to the fly tying bench and work on some new crab flies and watch some college football.

Drew

For anyone out there who has been longing to be in the Florida Keys this past week, don’t worry.  The winds have been cranking and the fishing has been slow (guide talk for terrible).  And before the wind started we had 4 1/2 days of clouds.  Still a few fish were caught, but a definite let down from the previous weeks.

I last fished on Sunday the 28th with Richard Berlin from Boston (a happy Sox fan).  We had mediocre fishing during the morning low in the backcountry.  Some schools of bonefish pushing around.  Richard managed to catch a solid 5lb fish.  The incoming gave us only a smattering of shots at a few bones and permit.  Richard came tight to a 15lb permit that chased down a rapidly stripped shrimp fly, but the hook didn’t stick.  It woud have been a great way to end the day.  That same day, Drew and permit addict Graham Anderson from Calgary managed to land a 8lb bonefish and 13lb permit in quick succession to end the day.

My previous two days of fishing with Richard produced only one other bonefish (7lbs).  On our second day a cast into a school of tipping/waking bones yielded a 10lb Jack and a cast into a school of hard-tailing permit found a 3lb cuda.  We didn’t manage to catch a bonnethead to complete our trash can slam.  Oh well.

Before the clouds arrived I managed to sneak out on a canceled day with Drew and long time friend Chris Guarino.  The fishing was fairly slow until the falling tide in the afternoon.  Drew lost a large bonefish (10+) next to the boat and I managed to land a 12 lb permit. 

This permit, like all of those that have been caught recently by Drew and I, aggresively chased down a stripped shrimp fly.  Quick 12-18 inch strip to get the fish to see the fly and chase.  A brief pause after the chase began to let the fish eat the fly, then re-start the strip cadence.  Continue till the fish spooks off the boat or the fish comes tight.  This sure beats the drop and wait crab fly technique. 

I will be out tomorrow.

John