Key West Fly Fishing

Well as John accurately predicted the wonderful fishing that we have experienced this summer took a few days off that just happened to coincide with the annual RedBone SLAM tournament. Although we both managed to get permit, a few bonefish and a handful of tarpon all on fly, the fishing wasn’t close to what we experienced in the weeks leading up to the event. Luckily, the fishing was equally lackluster for most teams and former NFL lineman, Mark Cooper, and I took Celebrity Grand Champion honors. Being out of town the following week, I didn’t realize the “controversy” that the win would create.

After the SLAM, John spent several days fishing with Rodger Nye from Swan Valley, Idaho. They had incredible bonefishing all three days and on the last day finished the trip off with a beautiful grand slam.

While they fished, I headed to Colorado to fish and attend the Fly Fishing Retailer Show in Denver. I was fortunate enough to fish with Bernard Ramanauskas, Scott Fly Rods cane builder and the maker of the beautiful Eden Cane rods. We fished the Arkansas, Chalk Creek, some high mountain lakes, the Eagle and the Big Thompson in a whirlwind tour of parts of the state. I caught some great trout on a variety of techniques and had a blast the entire time. A temporary change of scenery is never a bad thing. I met up with John in Denver and we saw the latest and greatest that some of the fly fishing companies have to offer. It is always a good chance to meet other fly fisherman from around the country and catch up with some old friends. The highlights of the show for me were the reintroduction of Scott’s STS series of saltwater rods and the 7 and 8 weight Scott S4 rods.

As always, on the flight home the sight of the lower keys backcountry from the air reminds me of where my heart truly lies and yesterday John and I got back onto the water. Despite less than stellar conditions, the bonefish are still around and there are some tarpon hanging around as well. We caught a tarpon and several bonefish the biggest of which was an eleven to twelve pound slob that pounced on a lightly weighted merkin in less than eight inches of water. The fish were actively tailing and backing through the end of the outgoing tide which occured around three in the afternoon. Hopefully this fishing will continue right through the end of October and possible a little longer. This is definitely a year in which John and I have both rediscovered our love affair with bonefish.

Capt Drew