Who’s Been Fishing?
Community
The tarpon bite has been on in Florida. Here’s my first solo catch. I went 2 for 2 that morning.
My buddy, Chris, caught the beast in the middle pic, while I played captain.
It’s been a GREAT trip already!
Let’s see your catches....
Matt
Nice !!!!!! Congrats !!! I was out on Erie about a week ago. 3 limits of walleye. That’s the Fermi Nuclear Plant in the background.
Nice, BB!! I love eating walleye.
Speaking of great eating fish, here’s an 11 lb tripletail we caught.
Matt
Nice fish guys! Here's a rockfish from the Chesapeake Bay.
My buddy Ange catches these quite often. BTW that fish is still swimming, he turns them back after the picture.
Congratulations men. Some Giants there!
I've been twice since I returned from snowbird ops. The water temp was 33 the first time and 36 yesterday. Just one cisco to report. I did do extremely well in Florida over the winter.
My boys and I did a stream clean up this morning and my little guy caught this one.
Bigs,
Yep, all the action has been beach side in shallow water. Find birds and bait, and the poons are on em.
Nothing happening inside, yet.
Matt
That’s awesome man. Nothing better than the king
nice GG!
these weekly fronts seem to be slowing down the beach snook but still good action in intercoastal,,,tarpon should be around in next few weeks
made a dumb mistake and almost lost a fingertip to a blacktip pup this AM,,,taking jr to buy his first fly rod tomorrow...looking forward to many good days on the water this summer
good luck all!
Here’s a KS rock bass caught through the ice!
And some future fish tacos I caught today!
Nice John !! Is that considered a striped bass ?? It looks the same as the toad Lex posted..... We don’t have striped bass up here... but we have smaller white bass that kind of look like a mini striper.
Yes, striped bass. We have several lakes that freeze over that we catch them in. Incredible fight when trying to pull one through an 8” hole!-)
Here’s some hybrid white bass/striped bass called wipers.
A few white perch I caught in March. I fillet them and also keep the roe.
A few more white perch and crappie that I caught in March. Filleted and then had them for dinner.
Some days the white perch really bite very well. This picture was last year and the white perch run was much better than this year. A roasting pan with a lot of fillets.
Been a tough weird spring for us in my home lake. The crappie are acting goofy as are the bass. Part of the lake is at 60 deg and has been that warm for a couple of weeks and the rest just started to hit 55. Hopefully by next weekend it will pick up.
Have caught half limits of crappie the past few times I've been out, but they are all in the 10" to 12" range and a few that bump up to 14". The one in the pic I posted was 16", 7" girth and weighed in at 2.31 lbs.
Shuteye, ur makin me hungry! Crappie and white perch!-) only way that gets better is add walleye to it and I’ve got the best tasting fish a person can catch! Great job!!!
Had a great day on Long lake today. Even managed to bring home dinner.
Still on the tarpon. Gotta work for em, but they’re still around.
Matt
Not enough. But caught some smallies with the kids last weekend, they loved it!
Some awesome fishing by you all!
My buddy has caught and released a few musky this spring that he ran into while jigging for walleye. I have a day trip with my sons scheduled for next month for musky.
If I ever make it to the point where I don't have to work like a dog to be able to hunt, every single spring will be spent in Florida chasing Tarpon. It's my dream. My brother dreams and lives for off shore fishing. My dream is tarpon. Never done it though.
WV,
Few, if any, fish compare to tarpon as a sport fish, IMO. Their size, strength, and stamina always amazes me. I’m addicted to it as much as I am to bowhunting, perhaps more.
I truly hope you experience the Silver King some day.
Matt
Matt, catching mature Tarpon on the fly is a goal of mine. Amazing fish!
Tuna fishing destroyed fishing for me. I fish very little anymore. So many fisherman surplus catch that I just take their extras. I love fresh fish, but I can’t eat it daily like I can red meat unless it’s fresh and fried or sushi.
That said, the fried fish in this thread look delicious. Fish are made for frying...
Congrats on the poon Matt!! Landed my largest steelhead ever a few weeks ago, 37”. The pike have also been easy targets off my dock lately.
I’ve never been tarpon fishing before but I’m pretty sure I saw one in the shallows near some boat docks in Key West. It was about 3 feet long. Is it common for them to hang out around docks or did I see something else ?
BB - sometimes "baby" tarpon will hang near a dock, and that size makes sense. I'd almost bet you saw a snook though. The size is right and they love docks. They are also insanely fun to catch. They pull hard, jump, bull dog... just a great fish.
Idyl has a good point on fish... it's like they were made to fry, at least the white flesh ones.
Went out on a fish boat in Key West in Jan. Lots of 2 to 3 ft. fish swimming around the dock and they said they were tarpon. They were cleaning fish and throw the oufal into bags. I asked why they didn't just feed the fish right behind them and they said if they threw it in the water they would get fined.
I’ve fed them at “The Wharf “restaurant in Grand Cayman. They will come right up and take a piece of offal that they save from the “catch of the day” from your hand. Some really big ones, too! 5’-6 footers.
GG.....A big Silver King is high on my list as well. My brother lived in Dade county for several years, but every time I would come down to visit him to fish, one thing or another would always happen when, or just before I got there, that would screw things up for the fishing. A big weather system, boat breakdown, etc. He hooked AND landed a 100 pounder at night off the jetty at Haulover Cut in Miami. Unfortunately, they took a pic of him holding it up, and the only thing you can see, was a big flash of silver!
Besides bowhunting, steelheading is my other great passion.
I’m getting too old for this shit...
That’s bad ass..... lipping a huge fish like that is way cool....!!
Man, GG awesome fish!
Definitely a bucket list for me as well! Have caught little ones in Mexico and Costa Rico but never been in the right place for big boys like that!
Lots of other great fish as well! Steelhead are also on the list, just need to make the trip to Idaho....
Been catching some pike but nothing big. Too bad CPW hates them and has been waging war on them up here in NW CO...
Wow! That’s a monster, GG! How much would that guy weigh, roughly? Are you a guide, or just an avid fisherman?
I used to fish Tarpon here in Louisiana in the West Delta area of the Mississippi River. You can hear their gill plates rattle when they jump. We fished approx. 30 miles offshore so it was necessary to have a large boat to get to them. They're a hard fighting fish.
GG - Do you guys use circle hooks & live bait? We used to troll Pet 21 spoons and casting rods with artificial baits.
Thanks guys. I do a lot of guiding, but not for pay. My clients are friends and family.
T-Roy, that fish was pushing 170 lbs. We use live bait (crabs, threadfins, pin fish), artificials (Z-mans), and flies. Still haven’t landed a big one on a fly, but getting close.
Matt
Why are they more difficult to land on a fly vs other gear? (I know very little about fly fishing)
Headed to Pensacola first week of June for a week. Old college quail hunting buddy lives in Milton and has a nice ocean boat with 200 horse and all the electronics. I’ll post some pic later.
Grey Ghost, you don’t t guide out of Pensacola do you ? ??
https://youtu.be/Fvu4s5Cg3c0
This should make it easier Matt.
Finally got my Granddaughter away from soccer and studies long enough to get into some Crappie.
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This year, she baited her own hook. We were fishing with live minnows.
My gosh kids grow up so fast.
Only caught one of these today. Alot of boat traffic.
Got into a few nice smallies on Saturday, tip of the Mitt. Headed out to check west bay tomorrow evening.
Well, my trip is nearing its end. The tarpon fishing was phenomenal for the entire 5 weeks. I lost count of how many we hooked up with. The grand finally was getting my young buddy, Max, his first.
I love the Silver Kings.
Matt
Grey Ghost, I am not sure I have the stamina anymore to land those Tarpon.
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How long were the fights ?
Great pictures of great catches above!
Love that one of your granddaughter Tonyo! Looks like she is having a lot of fun!
Really want to get into some big tarpon sometime. Have fished for them in Mexico, Costa Rico, and Florida and have caught the babies but never a big one. Would love to catch a 100+ pounder on a fly...
Ya, I’d a figgered with your handle we’d see some pics of bonefish. They are on my bucket list. Something about wading in gin clear water, sight casting....
I turned 77 today and my brother sent me this picture, thanking me for taking him fishing. I think he may have been three years old. We have caught a lot of fish since that picture.
Awesome pics and stories!!
So, last summer I bought my dream lake place in the form of an empty lot. Early this morning I was out there to enjoy nature when I decided to grab my rod and make a few casts. Walked to the end of the dock and make a cast towards shore when an 18" smallmouth hammered my crank bait. I gently reeled her in and released. Put my rod down and that was it. 1-1 on the day baby!
That is a cool pic above. Reminds of The Andy Griffith Show.
Solo, my dad had a really high camera that used film that had to be kept cool and it produced slides. My brother made the picture from the slide. I gave my brother hundreds of slides that my dad took.
We went cat fishing this morning. Paige, my fishing buddy got a 12 pound channel cat. He also managed to get an eel to wrap around his pliers as he was trying to release it. He called it all kinds of names that I can't put on a community forum.
My buddy Paige is an EMP and was chief of our local fire department. The year will mark 50 years as a fire fighter in our home town. One time he was visiting England, with his wife. He said the streets were nearly deserted and he was going to try and find his hotel. He heard someone say Hey Paige. He stopped and looked around and saw no one. Then he heard it again and his wife said who it the heck would know you name over here. The voice said, "Up here." there was a construction worker on a ladder. Paige asked him how did you know my name. The worker said, "it's on the back of your fire fighters Jacket Mate." The were several blocks from the hotel and the construction worker loaded them in his car and took them to the hotel. He refused any money. Paige said there good people all over.
Tonyo,
The tarpon fights last anywhere from a few chaotic seconds to a few hours to land the big ones. One big one per day is usually plenty for most guys.
Great pic, Lex
Matt
Here is one of the catfish I caught yesterday. We caught a bunch and returned them all to the river. Once in a while I keep some channel cats or blue cats since they are good eatin'.
EELS.......Cut the line. I dont even bring them in boat. cut above the hook and retie.
Eels make good catfish bait. Legal to use Eels that way in Virginia.
Eels are the best striper bait there is. Hook them through the lips, let them sink to the bottom and live line them. No problem telling when a striper picks one up. Let the striper have it for a few seconds and set the hook. Illegal in Maryland now but I have caught many stripers on eels. An eel is good for two or three stripers but only last one blue fish unless you just want to fish with an eel head.
Great day today!!
Great day today!!
My redfish queens!!
My redfish queens!!
Nice snook, bigs!! And even better looking kids.
How do you like your Lake & Bay boat?
Matt
Love it.(my best friend owns lake and bay so I’m biased) Me and my dad have owed Lake and Bays for 25 years.
My good friend in Sanibel is in the market for a new bay boat. L&B is one that he is considering. He’s leaning towards another Pathfinder, though.
Matt
Laying eggs this morning. Probably weighed ten pound. we call em' sliders, they don't bite.
GG, I’d have a pathfinder if I didn’t own a LB.
Had an absolute blast catching reds over the weekend with my wife and Bowsite buddy in NOLA!
This guy is heading to the River that runs through the town I live near.
Hey Treeline,
What fly were you using for the reds?
That’s hilarious, Shuteye.
Matt
GG I caught most on a flashy mullet/baitfish pattern but also on brown shrimp, crab patterns, and some small rabbit strip streamers. All with flash. Three of us caught 50 or so all day Saturday and two of us caught about 20 on Sunday afternoon.
I need to find a little trailer like that for my Hyde Kanoe.
Yeah, when reds are feeding, it seems like they’ll eat just about anything. A 50 fish day is awesome!
Keep ‘em coming, boys.
Matt
That redfish day does look awesome! They do love flashy brownish stuff or copperish stuff it seems... Fun!
Amen on the Eel's Shuteye - stripah's LOVE them. And blue's too, but as with anything that goes in a blue's mouth, it comes out in half!
Great to catch snook any time, but with your family... even better!
Yeah, most were on the old classic gold spoon with bait casters or spinning rods, but when we found them really stacked on a channel with the tide turning, the fly rod was definitely fun! Took a few misses to remember to strip-set rather than rod set on the flies.
Was glad my wife was able to get a few nice ones! She was throwing a spinner bait.
Need to tie up a few gold flash flies to imitate that flashy gold spoon!
Rhody,
Your first lesson in fly fishing is to never call a fly fishing ROD a “pole”. A pole is something you stick in a muddy bank with a chunk of bait hanging off of it. A rod is a highly refined instrument used to perform fishing art.
:-)
Matt
Start with knots.
Look up how to set up a fly reel with backing and the knots to make the attachment of backing to the spool, backing to fly line and fly line to leader. I am not too particular with trout setups unless they double up and go for salt water. A nail knot works well for backing to fly line and fly line to leader but loop-to-loop connections are also useful.
If you don’t know already, learn how to tie a perfection loop for connecting your leader to fly line and a blood knot for tying in tippet. Tippet will save your leader length so they last longer. Most of the time in fresh water you will tie in a lighter tippet, for salt or pike usually heavier or wire. That connection from wire to mono is usually an Albright knot.
Look up some instructions on casting. You can use about anything to learn the motion of casting a fly, even an old Zebco and mono will work.
Spend some time casting to get the hang of it.
Pretty simple, really as casing a fly is only one step above cane pole fishing as far as fishing complexities go. Especially for small stream trout.
Fly fishing systems are classed by fly line weight from small to large. A 1 to 2wt is a lot of fun for small fish but not good for fish over about 1 pound or bigger water, a 4 to 5wt is usually good for all around trout, 6wt for bigger rivers and lakes for trout, light bass or ultra-light saltwater, 7-9 are good for bass, pike, and light saltwater up to baby tarpon, permit and bones, 10-12wt for big pike, stripers, jacks, medium tarpon and the 13-14wt rods for big tarpon, tuna, sailfish, etc.
For most freshwater fishing, a high end sealed drag type of reel is overkill and not necessary. Smooth disk drags will help stop and land some of those hard runners when you do get lucky enough to hook up on one. Lots of great freshwater reels out there for under $100. Saltwater fish and environment is much tougher on gear and the prices show. Still, great reels out there for under $200.
A detailed discussion on flies will take way too much time and effort. Basically, stop in a local fly shop and pick up some that they suggest.
Have fun!
Spent a few hours battling the wind coming off Lake Michigan to chase smallies in the shallows. Landed the best one on the walk out, just shy of 20”.
A smally on a fly has to be a lot of fun. They're a strong fighting fish.
The rivers in Colorado are all blown out with snow runoff right now, so it'll be a few weeks before I get on the water again.
Matt
Went cat fishing Sunday and did pretty well with the channel cats. The heron watches us and then gets in the water along the shore and catches his breakfast.
"A smally on a fly has to be a lot of fun. They're a strong fighting fish."
We used to wet wade the lower Junianta River in June and July. 6wt rod, tossing crayfish imitations and wooly-buggers. Caught smallmouths till our arms were sore. Nothing real big, mostly 12-13" smallies with the occasional 16" thrown in.
Caught a 45.5” and 46” northern in Ontario early June.
Don't know who this was but I'm glad it wasn't me.
That, is horrid Shuteye!
DRR that smallie is awesome - such fun fish to catch on the fly - any time, any place!
Good lord, Shuteye!! I have to scrub my eyeballs....
Matt
Wow! That’s in a bad place! Wonder if the line-jerk method would work?
Got out for a bit on the lake next to the house and picked up a few little pike. Would love to catch one of those 40”+ big girls but not many left with CPw waging war against smallies, walleye, and pike up here! Gill nets and shocking crews have definitely done a number on the bigger fish. Used to have some spectacular small mouth fishing on the Yampa but mostly gone now.
Any idea of the backstory on that guy with the hook in his neck? I looked around and couldn't find anything on it. Seen some ugly pics of other hook injuries.
The hook in the neck picture reminded me of a funny story.
At my Florida buddy's bachelor party in the Keys, I gave him his first fly rod for a wedding gift. The first evening there, I was giving a casting demonstration on the dock of the rental house we stayed in. One of the other guys at the party inexplicably walked directly behind my backcast and I hooked him square in the nose.
Every year my buddy circulates this picture to the whole group, and we all get good laugh from it.
Matt
Is that a male mermaid, KPC?
Pontoon boats crack me up for some reason. They are like a floating living room. LOL.
;-)
Matt
Lake Cadillac or Lake Mitchell??
Hoping for good weather next Friday........ I have a musky charter booked for me and my sons on Lake St. Clair.
Sunsets and sunrises are definitely special when you're on the water.
I took this pic in the Everglades a few years ago. Six of us had a 55' mothership to sleep on and 2 bay boats to fish out of. We spent 3 nights in remote wilderness bliss. Definitely a bucket list trip.
Matt
^X2...sunsets and sunrises are special.....
Had a big one follow up but wouldn't take it
This little one did though, my smallest ever!
That looks like a small musky...
It is a Muskie but we weren't fishing for small ones!
I don't really fish anymore but one of my all-time favorite things to do was catfishing at night on the Chickahominy River. Under the right conditions, it's as close to a sense of eternal peace a human can get this side of heaven.
Grandson caught this one last night, 35.12 pounds!
Grandson caught this one last night, 35.12 pounds!
Nice catfish, Rutin!! Is that a flat-head?
Matt
It’s a flathead catfish caught on a 3” bluegill.
Are cats that big good to eat?
Used to catch and eat them that size when I was a kid. Filleted and any blood lines or fat trimmed off and flathead/yellow cat was way, way better eating than channel or blue catfish.
Dang, I love channel and blue cats. Wish we had flatheads. I throw back the 10+ pound channel cats and keep the ones in the 5-6 pound range. Blue cats I keep the big ones since there is a sign where we launch that says to kill all blue cats and snake heads. Snake heads are good eating but I have never caught any to try. My friends catch them but not where I fish.....Yet.
Take them, put them on a stringer, cut their tails off and chunk them back in the water, let swim awhile, then take them and fillet them, then trim off the skin and cut away all the red meat, if the belly meat is thick enough, 20 lbs or more, then fillet off all that skin. It's some great stuff.
