DIY Florida Keys Fishing Adventure

[living the dream]

I found this forum while collecting info for an upcoming family Christmas 2011 vacation to the Keys. Given the crazy size of this forum and the incredible generosity of people around here w/ info, I decided to chronicle my DIY adventure from the planning on through the fun, as it happens. Seems like a nice 'give back' to the forum.

Here's the situation:
I live and kayak fish in the southeastern Caribbean on the island of Grenada and do pretty well for blackfin tuna and an assortment of other stuff... Horse-eye jacks, cero, king mac, wahoo (rare), flag snappers, 'cuda, whatever. Trolling crystal minnows is my game, I'll troll bait rarely. TRANSLATION: I ain't no beginner w/ a rod & reel, but I know next to nothing about the Florida Keys fishing scene. Other than I suspect it kicks arse.

For Christmas my wife and I decided to meet our families in the Keys and stay in a giant vacation rental home instead of parade our 17 mo. old daughter around the country trying to appease each grandparent. Added bonus is we get to hang in the Keys for a week or two with unlimited babysitting.


So I did a little research... and settled on Key Largo for a home base. It seemed central to me. Everglades 90 minutes away, the rest of the keys 2 hrs or less. Also has fantastic snorkeling/diving, and is closer to the airport. Gotta keep those old folks happy. We just signed on for a week for a home near mile marker 98, on the Gulf side.

Here's how I see my fishing options:

• Bridges – interesting & productive shore-based style of fishing.
• Wade – seems like a waste of time looking for bonefish & permit w/o experience
• Party boat – $40 half day, $60 2/3 day, seems like bridge fishing from a boat
• Charter (deep sea, inshore, back country) seems like a close third behind coke and hookers for blowing money
• Kayak – They're cheap to rent and I live to kayak fish, car-topping not a prob.
• (Caveat: If I hit a December cold front, I'm f'd. Stay inside & work on my hot drink concoctions)

So that's were I am as of late October. I need to develop a better vision for what the fishing is really like for each of the above. So I'll be surfin' here & asking questions and making comments to get my trip dialed in. If you have any advice please chime in.

[cudaman]

Bridges – interesting & productive shore-based style of fishing....This is where you will be if the cold fronts hit you and you cannot kayak. great fishing in these bridges..Channel#2,Channell #5, and Long Key will be the closest to you.

Wade – seems like a waste of time looking for bonefish & permit w/o experience A pair of polarized glasses and a short walk in the early am right of Heck Rd and Sandy Cove Ave in Lower Matacumbe or Anns Beach may be relaxing and fun...White flathead jigs tipped with shrimp will work. Mooving shades or abnormal ripples of water is what you will be looking for. The good old live shrimp under a cork works as well.

Party boat – $40 half day, $60 2/3 day, seems like bridge fishing from a boat
Bridge fishing is better than any of the party boats at times unless you hop on board the "Gulf Stream" and experience fishing with Fluffy.

Charter (deep sea, inshore, back country) seems like a close third behind coke and hookers for blowing money
You are correct

Kayak – They're cheap to rent and I live to kayak fish, car-topping not a prob.
(Caveat: If I hit a December cold front, I'm f'd. Stay inside & work on my hot drink concoctions)
This is where you can take the whole family to a bridge and experience great fishing and a good time.


I Hope I was of some help, others will also chime in.

[living the dream]

Thanks for the 411 Sharker

I think I solved another issue today. I can see the satellite photos and maps and even nautical charts of the Keys. I can surf here and elsewhere on the net. I can read books. But I just can't truly visualize what the various settings in the keys look like in real life. Check this out. Everyone knows about GoogleEarth. And if you're like me, you probably un-checked the box for photos a long time ago. That disables all the irritating icons marking locations that people have uploaded pictures for. Well, check that box again. Now go and look at the keys and surf the photos. All of the sudden those non-descript areas come alive as mangrove tunnels, flats, and what I found really intriguing, mangrove areas adjacent to fairly open water - open enough for casting & fighting fish. Wow, now I can understand a lot more about the structure I'll see, the tackle that might work, etc. I love Google!

[living the dream]

The next step in my Florida Keys adventure is securing lodging. Since I'm working our 2-week trip around a 1-week extended family get together I booked a 5-bedroom Vacation Rental By Owner (VRBO) home for a week in Key Largo and it works out to $170/person. That's for the whole week. With 3 kayaks included. And sunset views. My fishing (and beer) budget just got bigger.

Now I need to book 2 nights in Key West and 2 nights in Marathon for me, my wife, and our 1.5 yr old daughter. Camping is not an option this year, and spending as much for a single night in Key West as we're spending for a WEEK in Key Largo seems silly.

Anyone have any hot tips on lodging in the keys. Early December, should be off-season still.

[swordfish]

Living... Id try to stay off key west, just near by... Say like summerland or so... It is just going to hurt BAD to stay in key west brother... Not worth it either in my opinion... When you do get down there though, I MAY be able to meet you at a spot down in key west and teach you a little bit of what I do! I say MAY because work is so hectic for me right now that I am still here and its 11pm, (I started at 9 this morning)

-swordfish

[living the dream]

Good advice there. My first stab at key west lodging was almost depressing. Anything to preserve the fishin' & fun budget is good for me. And that would be freaking fantastic to meet up and catch some fish, bait & beer on me (and maybe kayak or whatever else). Even if we don't meet up, I may pick your mind a little for advice on tackle for my next step...

Next step: order fishin' stuff