Rick J
07-07-2006, 07:29 AM
Five of us just got back from a week at Tarpon Cay Lodge - Don Rotsma, John Barenna, Leo G, my brother and I.
This is a place for baby tarpon :?: With an occasional shot at 30# fish or so we were told - just before we left, Keith e-mailed us and said the big fish are in - bring 10 wts!!
The first two days were very windy and we fished the shallow flats and the mangroves and creeks for baby tarpon and did great - Leo on the second day was high rod with 7 for 10 and these were nice fish. The first photo is a fish on the larger size from the flats. The fish in the mangroves were smaller but still a kick.
The last three days the wind laid down and we got out into deeper water and saw schools of "big" tarpon number in the hundreds if not higher!!!! This water was too deep to pole effectively - we would anchor up and hope that the fish would come to us and they did on a fairly consistent basis. In three days, the 5 of us hooked 32 and landed 18 with many more grabs - three were right around 80#!!!
I was low man for size - my biggest fish landed was maybe a bit over 20# though I had much bigger fish on - one around 60# for 30 minutes before he came unbuttoned. In total I hooked 8 big fish and landed one and had probably 10 other grabs that did not stay hooked.
A word of warning - you need good knots - the first day was a tackle busting day - my brother was throwing bait casting gear with plastics and I was throwing flies. The first three fish we hooked (all over 60#'s) just blew us away - I had albright knots busting right and left and this was with 20# mason tippet and 80# shock tippet! I had three fish that first day - the first 2 broke me and the third came unbuttoned. My brother had 5 fish on and one landed. I am just as happy to have lost the big fish as the fight was brutal - 50+ minutes - so I got the best of the fish with the initial grab and jumps and could go back after another one!
The second day I got my brother on the deck with the fly rod (he is a superb fisherman but has not picked up a fly rod except maybe twice in the last 10 years.) He was still casting 50 feet and those big fish would follow that fly right to the boat and grab with just the tippet out at times! The grab is ferocious!!!! He hooked three that day - one at least 80# that just ripped him.
By the second day I had gone to hand furled leaders ala Leo and did not have another break off.
We would fish the moring leaving between 5:30 and 6 and fish until noon - go back to the hotel and have lunch and a nap and go back out around 3:30 or 4 until 7:30 - the evenings were tougher due to wind and we mostly fished the creeks.
The guides were first rate - always positioning the boats to provide the easiest casting!
A truly memorable trip - and one I will repeat!
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/DSCN1834.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/DSCN1891.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/DSCN1898.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/DSCN1942.jpg
This is a place for baby tarpon :?: With an occasional shot at 30# fish or so we were told - just before we left, Keith e-mailed us and said the big fish are in - bring 10 wts!!
The first two days were very windy and we fished the shallow flats and the mangroves and creeks for baby tarpon and did great - Leo on the second day was high rod with 7 for 10 and these were nice fish. The first photo is a fish on the larger size from the flats. The fish in the mangroves were smaller but still a kick.
The last three days the wind laid down and we got out into deeper water and saw schools of "big" tarpon number in the hundreds if not higher!!!! This water was too deep to pole effectively - we would anchor up and hope that the fish would come to us and they did on a fairly consistent basis. In three days, the 5 of us hooked 32 and landed 18 with many more grabs - three were right around 80#!!!
I was low man for size - my biggest fish landed was maybe a bit over 20# though I had much bigger fish on - one around 60# for 30 minutes before he came unbuttoned. In total I hooked 8 big fish and landed one and had probably 10 other grabs that did not stay hooked.
A word of warning - you need good knots - the first day was a tackle busting day - my brother was throwing bait casting gear with plastics and I was throwing flies. The first three fish we hooked (all over 60#'s) just blew us away - I had albright knots busting right and left and this was with 20# mason tippet and 80# shock tippet! I had three fish that first day - the first 2 broke me and the third came unbuttoned. My brother had 5 fish on and one landed. I am just as happy to have lost the big fish as the fight was brutal - 50+ minutes - so I got the best of the fish with the initial grab and jumps and could go back after another one!
The second day I got my brother on the deck with the fly rod (he is a superb fisherman but has not picked up a fly rod except maybe twice in the last 10 years.) He was still casting 50 feet and those big fish would follow that fly right to the boat and grab with just the tippet out at times! The grab is ferocious!!!! He hooked three that day - one at least 80# that just ripped him.
By the second day I had gone to hand furled leaders ala Leo and did not have another break off.
We would fish the moring leaving between 5:30 and 6 and fish until noon - go back to the hotel and have lunch and a nap and go back out around 3:30 or 4 until 7:30 - the evenings were tougher due to wind and we mostly fished the creeks.
The guides were first rate - always positioning the boats to provide the easiest casting!
A truly memorable trip - and one I will repeat!
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/DSCN1834.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/DSCN1891.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/DSCN1898.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/RickJ/DSCN1942.jpg