Numenon: Florida 2014 Participation! I

I'd have to say that our week in Marathon, Florida (February 16 to 22, 2014) treated us pretty darn well.

Sunday "Bearings Straight"

After a full but relatively smooth day of traveling on Saturday, Sunday was about getting my local bearings straight. My first order of business was to pick up our rental boat, the AmyBaby22. She was ready and waiting for me at 8 AM, and after a quick and pleasant exchange with the guys at Vacation Boat Rentals LLC (http://www.vacationboatrentals.com) , I was using the color Garmin GPS mapping system to navigate my way "home" through the maze of canals to my dock. There was some life in the main canal system, lots of mangroves and birds. It looked to provide a sanctuary from the wind (should I need it) with the possibilities for snook, reds or jacks. It also provided access to the Atlantic or Gulf-side water! M was waiting for me at the dock, and I had all the equipment necessary for secure docking. With her safely docked, I could now turn my attention to fishing preparations!

The AmyBaby22

Next up was bait, chum and ice; the folks at Marathon Bait and Tackle would get to see me quite a bit for the next six days. I noticed lots of "captain" activity here, and this shop had excellent bait and everything you need for local fishing; and probably nothing you wouldn't need eventually. I kept it simple at first with live shrimp, frozen chum and Yellowtail Candy jigs for free-lining. I then returned home to rig some rods, tie some knots, down some lunch and watch the girls having fun in our pool.

I was ready for school with Captain Kevin Johnsen (FloridaKeysReelAdventures.com) when he arrived at 1PM; we started with a quick review of my expectations and desires for the afternoon and for the week. I wanted safe fun; and I was more interested in fun fish than food fish. Today's session was simply about learning the local ropes and getting me on course for the rest of the week; and to give me an idea of what was realistic and what was not.

Captain Kevin, in all honesty, provided a kinda goofy fishing report. Winds for the most part recently had been strong and northerly. The Atlantic water was super clear, and we were coming off the full moon. Tons of reef bait and lots of loose bay grass meant that the best fishing was generally close in (bridges and patch reefs), or way out in bay. Hawks Channel Macks (Spanish, Cero and Kings) should be solid, and whatever, wherever, might want to eat a shrimp or live-lined fresh bait. In general, there was not much offshore within reach of a 22-footer with heavy seas and too much bay grass on the surface.

We reviewed the best available/reachable patterns for this time. My rental map (which corresponded to the Garmin GPS very well) was pretty good for my likely radius, but I reportedly need to get a Hot SPots map for the middle keys. Here's what rose to the top of the list over a half hour of map review and discussion.

Deeper Channels and Cuts for Mangrove Snapper; pretty much a sure thing; provides good eats and a good option for windy conditions.
Old 7 Mile Bridge pilings when over 8 feet deep and swept with moving water.
Bay-side Mangroves and Spanish Mackerel, either way out, or near obvious bridge flows.
Live ballyhoo on reef edges, either free-lined or power-drifted.
Delta Shoals Grouper and macks; speed trolling with chartreuse cranks.
Clark Squid-spoon trolling at 5 mph.
Dropping baits or speed spoons on deep wrecks.
Power Drifting Live baits from outrigger on surface, or weighted.
Sharks, especially in the shallows.

He reviewed my tackle and chose to bring only my heaviest spinner and my bait rod! My other stuff was fine, but perhaps just a little light for his taste. His rods of choice were 7-foot fast action (up to 20-30 pound) spinners with about 12 lb. line and a fluorocarbon leader. Of course, wire was necessary when toothy critters were around. He's currently using Shimano Saros 5000 reels. These combos were perhaps a bit much for the typical snapper, but would be ready for the grouper, mutton, shark, jack or other surprise opportunities. The bottom line seems to be; "He with most line and chum wins!"

He was reportedly pretty impressed with the boat, especially for a rental. He had some bad stories about some local rental agencies. He noted that the Garmin GPS provided matched well with known locations and observations; AmyBaby22 was a good choice for the week. While I was getting a feel for the boat (this was my first time with her outside the channels), he shared some local spots and options. Color changes, light sand rings around rocky outcrops, edges and moving water; these would combine to provide the constant parade of options within reach for the week.

Based on my food chain interests and concerns about making bait, we decided to catch some ballyhoo at the East Washerwoman Shoal marker. Seas were were about 1 foot and very fishable. Ballyhoo and small yellowtails appeared almost instantly upon anchoring after a quick power chum.

Making bait proved to be easy and fun (as well as reportedly reliable) with ultralight spinning gear and tiny jigs tipped with bits of shrimp, and so with a live-well full of ballyhoo, it was time to Go Big! We went wreck fishing both east and west of the Sombrero Reef marker with ballyhoo, but other than a pair of disinterested cobias spotted, there was very little current or life observed. We were constantly watching for bait, birds and current, as well as observing what others were doing. Despite the lack of fish activity, it was awesome to be out in deep, purple-blue water, in charge of my own boat! Our general tactic (which proved useful throughout the week) was to give a spot a shot and some time, and then either leave it for greener pastures, or choose to build on it.

With about an hour of fishable light left, we tried to get some fish in the boat by anchoring and chumming in about 24 to 30 feet of water on the edge of Hawks Channel. Some yellowtail showed up immediately, and we noted some moving birds and ballyhoo showers. Things seemed a bit fishier here. After a quick run and cutoff, I did land a nice 6.5 pound Cero Mackerel (my first; it came on an awesome surface strike and showed some speed, for sure) some yellowtails, and a stubborn Atlantic Sharpnose Shark. This guy put up a surprisingly nice fight!

My first game fish of the trip was my first ever Cero Mackerel. It provided an awesome surface strike and a couple of nice runs.

Check out those teeth! My first biter had cut through wire!

This Atlantic Sharpnose Shark ate a live ballyhoo and fought very well.

My circle hook did its job and all my knots held!

With light running out for a safe passage home, our fishing time was over, but I was ready for the morning with food-chain action on my mind! My investment with Captain Kevin was money well spent. I should also add that he was prompt, clean, pleasant, and provided a good effort to ensure my success.

Monday "On My Own"

Monday morning was a bit windier but provided beautiful initial conditions. I set up by the East Washerwoman Shoal marker for bait and was quickly assaulted by leatherjacks and small yellowtails. Ballyhoo were visibly present but generally tough to land, and mackerel were periodically attacking the baits in and around the chum slick. Some of these assaults were incredible skyrockets from above, and most of my live 'hoo didn't last long before being halved.

This happened way too often!

I was encouraged that local charters were also here to make bait. Today exemplified the need for a cast net! One would have made quick work of making bait, but I was happy with pecking away at it. I was barely able to keep a few baits in the well, as they were being used up about as fast as I was catching them. A couple of the assaults were particularly impressive, with one king (?; or perhaps a barracuda?) soaring across over 30 feet, landing right on top of my bait. But despite several pops and runs, no game fish were landed. Either my 'hoos were halved right behind the hook, or the entire leader engulfed. My knots, when tested, were holding though!

When the visible mackerel action slowed, I picked up and moved out to the shoals ("Delta Shoals") east of the Sombrero Reef Marker. Conditions were getting windier and rougher, but I anchored on the south edge of Hawk's Channel and immediately chummed up ballyhoo and yellowtail; and I saw triggers, blue doctors, and such. Again there was lots of showering 'hoo and mackerel action, but none hooked for long or landed. Still, I had some screaming runs, and I'll need to return to this! This area seemed to have a lot of life; but, it was getting rougher by the minute, and I was a bit nervous about anchoring alone. Plus, it was getting to be time to go get the family and share some of this.

(At this point the wind was swinging around to ESE, where it pretty much stayed for the rest of the week, at a solid 15 - 20 knots. My best weather resource turned out to be the Sombrero Reef Weather Station in combination with local observation. Check out
http://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/station_page.php?station=smkf1)

Due to the wind, we decided to try the Seven Mile Bridge area. We circumnavigated Boot Key to complete my local reconnaissance. We anchored up near an old bridge piling in lots of current, but couldn't get much going; just a leatherjack came aboard. I think we glimpsed a sea turtle here, but it was a fleeting glimpse, if that. We tried a couple of other spots nearby, but problems with aggressive birds (including a frigate, a hungry pelican, and a fouled seagull) forced us off the water. A day and a half of fishing; $111 in gas; but it was now time to go home, clean up, and welcome my Mom and her friend, Father J, to dinner and a couple of days stay.

This is M's idea of fishing!

A perfect bait.

Yellowtail Candy with live, pinched shrimp.

Beware the Leatherjack! Check out those ventral spines; others located dorsally, too.

Steve's free-lining form.

M's free-lining form.

Steve's post-free-lining form.

Upon my return, I had my first opportunity to complete a good deed for the week; I found Captain Kevin's hand-held GPS in my console box. I called him and he picked it up later that afternoon; his secret spots were safe with me.

Tuesday "Altar Ego" or "Fishing with Mom"

Another beautiful start to the day, but still with wind.

I started my day at my bait spot again, and found it to be it rougher than I'd like, but with plentiful ballyhoo. After some more mackerel action and cut offs (although the general activity level was less than the previous day's), I got the call that Mom and Father J were ready to go fishing, so I came in to pick them up with about a dozen ballyhoo in the well. First though, A. found his "lost" wallet, and I found his misplaced dough (which was more than I'd ever found before!) I was rightly concerned that this might have pretty much used up all of his good luck for the day. It still looked to be pretty rough, and so we took the inshore route to the Seven Mile Bridge and again anchored up in some pretty heavy current. Fish showed up in the slick almost immediately, and they were pretty good at stealing bait. When we finally hooked one, it turned out to be a Bermuda Chub. I was pretty impressed with this fish's pulling power. I'd fish for them, they pull hard. But we chose to move to a second spot, looking for some drag pullers or eaters. There was nothing but a small snapper there, and the third spot (the edge of a shoal; I was now searching for sharks) yielded nothing. I wasn't really "feeling the love" at the bridge. While most folks seemed to concentrate their efforts here, it just didn't excite me like the Atlantic side. Dinner with my niece and her husband (whom I'd never yet met) called; I had a date with my Cheeseburger in Paradise.

I could tell Father J wanted to catch a real fish and so I mentioned making bait early the next morning, with a shot at speedy mackerel.