posted by admin on May 9

Ahh Springtime…warmer weather, birds return to the North, school’s almost out, and oh yes, Key West Florida tarpon fishing! Tarpon return in droves this time of year, and Key West fishing guides are ready to take you out to hook a silvery monster! These giant fish get to be hundreds of pounds, and when hooked they jump way into the air trying to throw the hook. Such an acrobatic display for such a huge fish, but that’s what makes Key West Florida tarpon fishing such a thrill.

Most Key West Florida tarpon fishing charters will be in the morning or at dusk, which are the times when tarpon feed the most. A tarpon charter trip will usually take place right next to Key West, as they run in the channels all around Key West harbor. That means more time for hooking fish and less time traveling. However, some guides will drive you to more remote spots, especially if your flats fishing trip is a combo trip where you target tarpon and other species as well. However, most of the time if you’re chartering a tarpon trip, that’s what you will concentrate on. After all, Key West Florida tarpon fishing is so exciting, who needs to catch anything else?

Key West tarpon fishing is 100% catch and release, by the way. It’s illegal to kill a tarpon, and you wouldn’t want to eat one anyway. They don’t taste good at all. It’s a sport fishing species only.

posted by admin on May 2

Key West fish range from inshore mangrove snappers you can catch right off a dock, to offshore pelagic species like marlin and tuna. On the reef, typical Key West fish caught are grouper, snapper, and mackerel. Yellowtail snapper are very common and extremely good to eat. In fact, the most common Key West fish targeted by party boats are Yellowtail.

Another tasty Key West fish is grouper. Black grouper are found all over the reef, six miles out and further. These are bottom-fished and prized for their tasty flesh. Bottom fishing can also produce other grouper, like Reds and Jewfish. Jewfish, or Goliath Grouper, are sport fish only, protected by Federal law. Because of their mammoth size, they are extremely fun to catch.

Trolling can yield Key West fish like mahi mahi, wahoo, and sailfish. For these species, go further out than the main reef to deeper waters. Trolling takes time but can yield lots of action once a big pelagic fish is hooked. Deep sea fishing in Key West is great partly because of the species brought in by the Gulf Stream, which sometimes is as close as two miles from Sand Key Light, on the reef near Key West.

Key West fish on the flats are your permit, tarpon, snook, sharks, bonefish, and barracuda (also found in deeper waters, as are the sharks). Lots of anglers who go flats fishing in Key West like to use fly rods and tackle. When you hook some of these Key West fish on fly, it’s pretty amazing, to say the least!