going to the keys for a night or two wed/thurs/fri...advice?

[clarence2society]

hey i am heading down with the gf for a night or two and will be fishing while we are there probably heading out thurs early morning fish morning then check in to hote lthen nap then fish more at night...

my questions are... CHEAP MOTEL?? under 75 bucks? any suggestions near islamorada ...

second: advice on bait to use... any good spots for snapper snook etc?
channel 2 or 5 tips? i have never fished these two places before... and lats time ifished the keys form shore was unsuccesful and yielded a whole lot of nothing...
should i catch fish for cut bait here and bring it down with me... macs? gogs? blues?
grunts whatever? live shrimp?? techniques for the bridges?

id appreciate any direction since i havent done the bridges down there...

as far as a motel names would really help im short on cash cause ijust started workin again.. thanks a lot guys

[clarence2society]

yeah so far that is the only one i have found...they want 78 with tax included which aint bad...i looked today for two hours but didnt see many ma n pop places

[Username28]

take me

[clarence2society]

is jacks 24/7? and where to catch pins etc? i got a down bucket and a full 5 gallon with air for live baits.. i was thinkin i could usethe down bucket with ice and newspaper for live shrimp. so free line all the live baits off of chan 2?

[clarence2society]

awesome. i dont remember being able to take card sound from after passing jacks:( its been a long time bro. 5 yrs sincei have gone down there.....if itook the stretch could iget to that grassy area as well or no

[clarence2society]

hahaha yeah its the scenic route i have never gone that way before..and i know theres no turning back:) lol awesome man thank you... i need to stop at bass and use my gift card and get my good reels respooled with fresh line....im gonns be fishing with my jig 500hs and bettle 6000 and old school thunnus. just wish i had a bridge net gotta pick up a hook too i guess or net

[clarence2society]

oh no poop... i didnt know that...the only one i know down here is dania...

[clarence2society]

is there any part of chan 2 to stay away from or better to fish than other areas of it?


any other spots that might be fruitful other than channel 2

[clarence2society]

or any party boats that arent tourist traps andworth going out on...

[migs24]

i need to stop at bass and use my gift card and get my good reels respooled with fresh line....

It probably wouldn't hurt if you took an extra couple of spools of line. If you end up hooking into a bigger fish they'll most likely take you for a ride and shoot underneath the bridge and into the tunnels fraying the life out of your line making it useless. I'd hate to hook into a bigger fish within the first hour of getting all set up and then end up with no line.

[daplural]

I was out on CH2 this past weekend and it was poppin'. Some macs, snapper, cudas, and jacks. Used live skrimp, dead pilchards, chunked up mullet, and gotchas. Had a good time. Hope it helps. Good luck.

[fishnfool73]

Weather report sucks cold and rainy. You may be better off with indoor activities

[clarence2society]

seriously the one day i am actually going to the keys in 5 yrs cold and rainy... and our hotel is booked already heh

[clarence2society]

THUNDERCATS HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!

hey dude for shrimp should i use troll rights or just bottom rigs... and no casting right....straight down with live and shrimp baits? sorry im so chock full a questions guys.. i just wanna be prepared while im there and not wish i did osmething or forgot something..

[PhishingPhanatic]

Trollrites, you want the shrimp to drift naturally with the current. Fish them around the pilings, and also cast them out past the shadow line, and let them drift back towards you. Keep a close eye for any ticks in the line, or else you will miss a lot of hits.

[clarence2society]

awesome thanks bro....so i got everything but a gaf hook, but im gonna pick one up on the way down....i got pretty much all i need i think. lantern, head lamp, bought a tupperware put holes in lid to lay on ice in my cooler and line it with newspaper for my shrimp, i got two blues for cut bait. im gonna get my pins there or off card sound for the morning bite....publix sub, 5/0 4/0 6/0 hooks. flourocarbon 40 lb...and rope .. drop bucket and aerated bucket, i think i am pretty much good to go.. gonna do am in the mornin then hit the bar eat some conch chowder wash it down with a pain in the ass or two, enjoy the tiki bar etc, eat more conch, take the gf for sunset at lorelei and head back to the hotel !#$#@@%$~% nap and then do the night time shift after midnight til about 6 am...back to hotel for nap and do it again and head home tomorrow evening... and back to work on saturday...its been five yrs im packin all this inside 2 days lol...on a hundred dollar budget lmao. yesi got back up cash..

thanks guys a lot!!!!!!!
... im gonna copy this thread to a file so i can read it on the road... in case i brain fart

[clarence2society]

tail hooked with trolls or head?? or jus ta perosnal pref.. i used to do head at the pier when i did use live shirmp.... hell if im using troll rites i guessi could hook up my gulp alive shrimp too if irun out of live

[PhishingPhanatic]

I hook them in the head, just avoid the black spot (their brain) so you don't kill them.

[clarence2society]

oh yeah bro i was out there from 6 when it started drizzling til freakin near 7 30 8 while it was down pouring....not much luck on fish the past two days:( but learned a few things bridge fishing there.... my gf andi were by the fence midway or so and leaning against the wall getting poured down on, butts soaked and sitting on our rain coats.(shoulda brought the pants out too) didnt look like it would let up and with the cool breeze i didnt wanna chance her or me getting sick. I got burned bad yesterday, my calves hurt so bad it took me 5 minutes to be able to have the muscle with stand getting up and standing when i woke up in the morning today....deep burn:( ill be back soon as i can...ill probably have my boat(The Filthy Hoar) running by then...tarpon?

I will post tomorrow from work and give you guys the details and how it went down....didnt bring home one fish:( sadly. either i suck at fishing or it just wasnt good timing. I will say this though...tonight and this afternoon the current on outgoing tide was so strong that it pulled my bait and 6 ounce to top water. and dragged my 8 ounce way under the bridge while fishing inside....gf went for more 8 ouncers came back with four 6oz eggs and two 10 eggs but it started pouring so we packed up and headed out for conch chowder DQ and lauderdale....details to come....maybe next trip since it isnt V day i can meet up with a couple of you guys in the area. that would be fun. im off to bed i need sleep work in the morning. strippers call. haha