Everglades National Park Fishing

hooknfly

A Father-Son Fishing Adventure In The Everglades Backcountry (near Everglades City, FL)

March 2022

What a treat this past week to be able to celebrate my son Matthew’s 33rd birthday with a fishing trip into the Everglades backcountry! He was in from Denver for a few days of R&R. Early one morning we pushed off from Chokoloskee in my Gheenoe and were met with eerie fog-enshrouded water that conjured up visions of ghosts who had called this land home hundreds of years before our presence. The fog slipped away quietly, stealthily as the sun rose up, giving way to a beautiful sunny day. We probed deep into the wilds, and the fish cooperated on que. My young lad exhibited some excellent casting skills and caught a smorgasbord of fish including a poor man’s slam–snook, sea trout, jack, and ladyfish. Even Pops fooled a few. Did I mention the sail cats?!? What fun! Nothing like a father-son fishing trip to boost the spirits of an old codger! And to top it off my little sweetheart granddaughter Aly washed off the boat for us!

hooknfly

Sly Septuagenarian Scores Saltwater Slam!!

January 2020

A special edition for all my ice-bound northern angling friends—here are some pix from balmy Florida to help thaw you out. Got this nice slam—redfish, speckled trout, and snook out in the Gulf near Everglades City. Did I mention the big 31” snook, tarpon, and baby shark last week? Now get back to salting your sidewalks while I salt my margarita! 😎

24” Redfish

Speckled sea trout
Snook
Into The Foggy Wilds
Mangrove Mayhem When Big Snook Hit
31” Snook
The Proof Ye Skeptics!
Baby Tarpon
Baby Shark Do Do Do Do!
hooknfly

Now For The Rest Of The Story:  Behind The Big Fish And Big Smiles Lurks Mangrove Mayhem

Early April 2019

Anglers can’t resist showing off a big fish, where size really does matter.  Ever wonder about the back story behind the smiling pix, the agony as well as the ecstasy?  Here goes….and this is a true story!!

My erstwhile fishing buddy Bob Wayne and I love to probe hidden backcountry tidal creeks in the Everglades where big snook lurk in narrow channels lined with downed trees and mangroves.

img_3957
Robert Wayne, Esq., An Expert Fly Fisherman And Noted Big Fish Angler, Subdues Muscular Mayan Cichlid In The Wild Everglades Backcountry

The mangroves are an essential element of the ecosystem here, providing shelter for myriad small fish, crabs, and other life.  But their thick, dangling air roots will tangle a fishing line in a flash if a hooked fish dives under them, not to mention they are covered with razor-sharp barnacles that will slice and dice anything that rubs against them.

img_3443
Grasping Air Roots Of Mangroves Spell Trouble For Unwary Anglers

In these tight quarters only a small, narrow boat like my Gheenoe can squirm through, and our hard-earned experience has taught us it is a real team effort to hook and land big fish successfully.

img_0881-1
Author And His Trusty Gheenoe

One Angler with a 6-to-7 foot medium/light spinning rod and 2500 Series reel is positioned upfront on the small bow deck with the Wingman in the back of the boat where he is outfitted with the remote controls for a small quiet electric trolling motor and the shallow water power anchor that with a push of a button unfurls and pins the boat firmly in place.  The Wingman doesn’t fish.

Our efficacious technique to land big fish in these mazes has been honed through trial and error, with the emphasis on the latter.  By the numbers, here is how it is supposed to work:

Continue reading

hooknfly

Rabbit Key Pass/Lopez River Loop: A Piscatorial Smorgasbord

Late March 2019

After a couple of days last week navigating and casting in the tight, sometimes maddening, quarters of backcountry mangrove tunnels, I’m ready for an easy day of fishing in my kayak.  One of my favorite close-in trips starts at the historic Smallwood Store, just a long stone’s throw from my winter abode on Chokoloskee Island, Florida.  The route wends its way past some productive oyster beds then snakes up channels to cross Rabbit Key Pass before circling back to the Lopez River and back home.  It’s a trip that always produces a grab bag of fish with a good chance at a slam—a redfish, speckled sea trout, and snook, with feisty jack crevalles and high-stepping ladyfish to keep you busy throughout the day.  Let’s go!!

 

 

Continue reading

hooknfly

Kayaking With The Dolphin On The Sandfly Pass Loop…And Scoring A Grand Slam To Boot

January  2016

“I, I wish you could swim…Like the dolphins….Like the dolphins swim

We can be heroes just for one day…We can be us just for one day”

Heroes–David Bowie

The heavy rain continues in the Everglades in January, courtesy of El Niño.  Winter is usually the dry season here, when at times the Everglades actually burn just like a prairie.  And with the rain, comes a slug of freshwater pouring out of The Swamp, chasing the snook, redfish, tarpon and other of my favorite quarry–that seek refuge in the upcountry from cold temperatures–back into the Gulf and its saltwater.  So, I readjusted my sights and headed out into the Ten Thousand Islands, just offshore of my new home in Chokoloskee, to see if I can change my luck.  And boy, did I!  

Continue reading