Edging out the competition.

Statewide, professional salt water fishing tournaments have grown at the furious pace of a raging wildfire. Held on just about every weekend throughout the year, multiple events up and down both coasts target inshore and offshore species. What was once just an enjoyable reason to get together with a few fishing buddies for a little friendly competition has evolved into multi day, big money, highly competitive sponsored events.

Stuart is recognized around the globe as the “Sailfish Capital of the World” and for a few months each winter the area undoubtedly lives up to it’s reputation. Though sailfish are indeed taken here year round, the bite really peaks from December through January when large numbers of sails congregate in our cobalt blue waters to gorge themselves on anchovies, greenies, sardines and more.

Halfway into the 38 mile drive leading from the entrance of the Everglades National Park to the Flamingo Lodge & Marina, you look over your shoulder as the sun begins to peek over the horizon and think to yourself, a great day is ahead. A quick overview of your game plan and you’re ready for an action packed day of inshore fishing in the beautiful back country waters of world famous Flamingo.

Get in on some great late day action!

Sounds like somebody got out of bed in the wee hours of the morning to beat the crowd to the fishing grounds. On the contrary, we’re talking about six o’clock in the late afternoon. All the full day charter boats are back at the dock and most recreational anglers are still counting down the days ‘til the weekend. This group of guys on the other hand got off work at 4:00pm and decided to head out for an afternoon of hot action.

Anglers are anxiously awaiting the east coast mullet migration.

The frantic baitfish protested as I implanted the second stinger hook in an upright position just ahead of its tail. “Time to catch your breath”, I said to the slippery mullet as I gently lowered him into the oxygen rich waters for a few quick gulps. I explained that the hooks were doctor’s orders, that it was all a part of his role in life and that nirvana was coming soon.

West coast anglers take advantage of another shot 

I had my skiff under the power of the trolling motor. In the back of my mind, I made a mental note to start wearing my Levi s as the light Supplex slacks I was wearing were not quite enough to stave off the cool fall temperatures. In the early morning light of this typical fall day, the tide was rushing in the pass as I slowly cruised along. Off the stern of the boat I noticed a mass of nervous water. Suddenly, like a depth charge from below, the water erupted around the school of shiny baitfish.

Invite a BLUE into your spread!
Artificial Lures — Part One of a Two Part Series by Capt. Mike Genoun

To the uneducated, fishing for blue marlin in south Florida seems over simplified, as well as rather hopeless. After all, you simply drag a handful of lures or baits behind the boat, cover as much of the ocean surface as you possibly can in a ten hour day, and hope you stumble across a single fish, right? Wrong! A tremendous amount of effort goes into maximizing the potential for every single blue marlin strike and all for good reason.

Hooked Up Again!

The sun was just clearing the tops of the resort condominiums on Siesta Key as I cruised along on plane. Heading south along the beach I couldn’t help but enjoy the beautiful SunCoast morning. Instinctively, my eyes scanned the surface of the serine Gulf searching for signs of life.

10% of the area will hold 90% of the fish, fine tune your efforts and focus on these hotspots.

Two fish, 1 o’clock, 40 yards, on the edge facing north!” Where? “1 o’clock, right there, 35 yards, on the edge of that trough. Do you see the slightly deeper water up there in front of us?” Yeah. “See the two dark logs?” I got ‘em! A good cast soon followed this scenario and a 32” redfish quickly connected. Luckily for us, our main target was redfish.

From the dreams of early settlers more than 100 years ago, evolved what is now known as Port Everglades. This busy port first emerged as a means for local farmers to ship their produce while the visionaries of the late 1800s and early 1900s planted the seeds for what would some day develop into one of the nation s most vital trade and tourism centers. Port Everglades Inlet is located between Ft. Lauderdale and Dania Beach on the southeast coast of Florida.

Tripletail, once a well kept secret, have more frequently become a target for both inshore and offshore anglers. Back in the 70’s, it was routine to personally catch over 300 tripletail a year. With the increased fishing pressure these days, I have reduced my goal — and am extremely satisfied with one-third that number.

The Ten Thousand Islands are a rare and beautiful place. They’re one of Florida’s few remaining unspoiled habitats - a truly beautiful, rugged, subtropical paradise experienced by relatively few adventurous souls each year. Many fishermen who appreciate the unique qualities of this wilderness, argue it’s the best sight fishing secret left on earth!

It had been an incredible two days of fishing. Possibly the best I could remember, and all of it took
place at Key Island Estate off Marco Island

As Jim Kanzler snaked his shallow water skiff through the mangroves to the Isles of Capri where my car waited, the images of the action, the Estate, and the surroundings stayed strong and colorful in my mind. That was a good sign, because it signaled that my experience would become a cherished memory.

Mr. Bait Fish, we’d like to introduce you to Mr. Jack Crevalle.  Every now and then, every angler needs a full on jack attack! The water next to the seawall was perfectly still in the golden hour prior to sunset. I cast with precision and landed my plug only inches from the concrete wall. I rhythmically twitched my wrist as I rapidly worked the lure across the serene surface back towards me. To my pleasant surprise I was nearly floored by the resounding explosion of a large fish thunderously inhaling my black lure. Holding on for dear life, my drag screamed as the fish raced for the nearest piling.

Looking to connect with more snapper?
Hop on a drift-boat and bounce the bottom for consistent success!

Whether you employ effective techniques or not, late season snapper fishing can be a world of fun or quite frustrating. Unfortunately, a percentage of local and most visiting anglers simply don’t know how to properly target snapper during the fall. And the results are even worse when inexperienced anglers find themselves elbow to elbow on a crowded drift boat with 30 other anglers.
 

A view never before seen. Ever dream of sliding over the gunnel into 1400‘ of water on a pitch black night and filming a hooked swordfish? Most of us would think that’s an absolutely crazy idea! Tony Ludovico, underwater digital videographer extraordinaire, is a person that actually partakes in such insanity on a regular basis. It's what he does for a living.

In the recent Summer 2004 issue, we introduced Project Far Beyond and described how it all began. We talked about how an initial idea had evolved into something much greater, an ongoing adventure of sorts…… To fully recognize where we’re going with all this, please make it a point to read the first chapter in this exploratory project. After careful consideration, we’ve decided the most informative way for us to describe each trip is to relive the experiences with you, one island at a time!

More than a pristine wilderness,
Florida Bay is a fisherman’s haven unlike any other.
A thorough understanding of the area will keep you hooked up!

It’s all about structure and current.  The unmistakable sound of a hefty snook slurping down shrimp under overhanging mangroves is music to most anglers’ ears. Snook are unquestionably masters of ambush. Along with their magnificent hunting skills, these fantastic fish provide blistering runs, spectacular tail walking jumps, and have the magical ability to mysteriously vanish from an angler’s line, all making them a favored inshore game fish.

A user friendly tutorial for self-briefing and forecasting marine weather conditions including radar, satellite imagery and local marine observations.

With the approaching holiday season, angler’s can now expect to experience the effects of dreary, early winter cold fronts. These unstable late season weather patterns are generally transitional fronts which luckily, often lose their strong southeastward surge as they make their way towards South Florida and adjacent coastal waters. When these fronts do make their way south and past Lake Okeechobee, they will usually stall over the Straits of Florida before backtracking across the State as a more suitable warm front.

Your skiff’s poling platform can be your ally or your enemy, take a look at how this seasoned veteran makes the most of his battle station. 

Long before I decided to take up inshore fishing as a profession, I was first and foremost a hunter and one of the things that immediately caught my attention when I began guiding was the similarities between shallow water sight fishing and bird hunting. I quickly realized that poling a skiff along the edges of a shallow water grass flat and hunting the fringes of new growth forest have much in common.