Popular Post lemaymiami Posted October 6 Popular Post Report Share Posted October 6 Had a short notice booking yesterday for Flamingo with visiting anglers Bill and Gage... With all the bad weather we've had I had no idea what to expect but it turned out to be a great day (except for the pre-dawn crowd at the boat ramp...). We caught a few fish in Whitewater ( trout and snook) - but all were small and we scooted out to the coast looking for better action using small lures with spinning gear. Our first spot at a river mouth the snook were turned on - and it was fish after fish (biggest were under-slot at about 25") on lead heads with plastic tails.. We may have released a dozen all told. Wanting a shot at a bigger snook I set out one live bait while we were tossing lures and it was quickly picked up - but by a six to seven foot lemon shark - and we were off to the races... Not using a wire leader I was hoping the fish would quickly cut the leader - but as usual a circle hook picked up by a shark tends to stay with them in the corner of their mouths - so we fought it to the skiff for a leader touch and sent it on its way... At that point the tide we were fishing shut down and it was time to move... By the way - even with hot and heavy snook action - not one shark came after our hooked fish... (except for the one that picked up that live bait..). We changed targets and made a move to where a few grouper waited - and it was game on in a nearby river... Our first hook-ups - we got taken to school in a big way, the fish were holding near bottom structure and just out fought us... Finally Bill hooked up on a solid one and really hammered down on it.. Here's the pic - a 25lb goliath grouper that fought all the way to my skiff.. After that some weather came in on us and it was time to re-locate... Back in Whitewater Bay - it was grouper time again... This fish was hooked the first time on a DOA Baitbuster, worked slowly along the bottom - and of course just broke us off... After two more hooked fish that pulled or broke free, our last encounter worked in our favor -and another 25lb grouper came in for a quick photo and release... We knew it was that first fish since it still had the Baitbuster in its jaw... Just nothing like the 'glades - even on bad weather days... I was set to fish out of Chokoloskee today - but we cancelled, sometimes the weather is just too bad... "Be a hero... take a kid fishing" Tight lines Bob LeMay 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jh141 Posted October 6 Report Share Posted October 6 Thanks For the Great report Capt. Can't say I have ever seen a pre dawn crowd at the back ramp. Guess times are changing or there was a club tournament or something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted October 7 Report Share Posted October 7 nice report Bob... dc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jh141 Posted October 7 Report Share Posted October 7 Maybe you were referring to the mosquitos..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemaymiami Posted October 8 Author Report Share Posted October 8 Most guides avoid working on Saturdays if possible.... since it just means a lot more folks on the water than weekdays... Go long enough and you forget why you try not to work on Saturdays - then, when you do... it all comes back. Most days in the back you hardly ever see another skiff - guess we're spoiled. That day the big surprise is that almost all of the rigs I saw, well before dawn - were never anywhere near us, so not a problem at all... No doubt - we're definitely spoiled, I'm guessing the cloud of mosquitoes at the ramp keeps the numbers down (at least compared to the ramps near Miami... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted October 8 Report Share Posted October 8 Given the situation in Everglades City / Chokoloskee from flooding previous hurricane and now Milton...I"m sure the "Park" will be seeing more boats.... EC / Choko will be struggling to recover AGAIN Let's pray it's not catastrophic, but, the tides will be high and the businesses will flood... DC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemaymiami Posted October 8 Author Report Share Posted October 8 The joker in the deck is the Park itself since, if you even say the word "hurricane" they'll close the gates and lock down... Here's hoping it doesn't happen this time... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted October 9 Report Share Posted October 9 On 10/8/2024 at 10:16 AM, lemaymiami said: The joker in the deck is the Park itself since, if you even say the word "hurricane" they'll close the gates and lock down... Here's hoping it doesn't happen this time... just saw a notice Biscayne Nat park is closed? What the heck? Not even hurricane warning? dc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemaymiami Posted Thursday at 10:40 AM Author Report Share Posted Thursday at 10:40 AM I'll be sending out a message to all the folks that get my fishing reports later today about our situation down here (that we got lucky and were not damaged in any way - still open for business...). Every time Florida gets hit with a hurricane, for months afterwards, bookings go down since those who are considering a trip this way will be getting all the bad news from the news media and not look past it... A Florida fishing trip - maybe next year... for folks who've never come down here before. Anyone that knows our state won't have that problem at all... As for the Parks (both Biscayne and Everglades) the bureaucrats that run them will always react with great caution when hurricanes come anywhere near us... If you fish out of Chokoloskee though - you're home free since it's on the edge of the ENP and they can't lock you out up there along the northern boundary of the Park if we're locked out. As for Biscayne - that Park's northern boundary ends north of Stiltsville so you can still fish the bonefish flats near Key Biscayne, as well as everything south of the northern end of Key Largo... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted Thursday at 03:53 PM Report Share Posted Thursday at 03:53 PM 5 hours ago, lemaymiami said: I'll be sending out a message to all the folks that get my fishing reports later today about our situation down here (that we got lucky and were not damaged in any way - still open for business...). Every time Florida gets hit with a hurricane, for months afterwards, bookings go down since those who are considering a trip this way will be getting all the bad news from the news media and not look past it... A Florida fishing trip - maybe next year... for folks who've never come down here before. Anyone that knows our state won't have that problem at all... As for the Parks (both Biscayne and Everglades) the bureaucrats that run them will always react with great caution when hurricanes come anywhere near us... If you fish out of Chokoloskee though - you're home free since it's on the edge of the ENP and they can't lock you out up there along the northern boundary of the Park if we're locked out. As for Biscayne - that Park's northern boundary ends north of Stiltsville so you can still fish the bonefish flats near Key Biscayne, as well as everything south of the northern end of Key Largo... you can always launch at Port of the Islands....and yes, enter the park from North End. dc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemaymiami Posted Friday at 11:41 AM Author Report Share Posted Friday at 11:41 AM Here are the places in the Ten Thousand Islands that you can still launch when the Park is locked down... Everglades City (the Rod & Gun Club, Glades Haven), Chokoloskee (two ramps there), Port of the Islands, and Goodland (two ramps there)... When the Republicans are in office (the Trump years) they never locked us out - even when the Park was shut down they left the gates open so we could access the ramps... during the years when Democrats were in power they not only locked us out - they paid Rangers to patrol the waters to prevent anyone from fishing in Park waters... True 'dat... and wish it weren't so. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanaflatsfish Posted Saturday at 11:21 AM Report Share Posted Saturday at 11:21 AM 23 hours ago, lemaymiami said: Glades Haven I used to launch there years ago and run through SandFly Pass......and I'd buy my shrimp from the guy who used to sleep in the VAN another option is to LAUNCH at EC Bait and Tackle, they run around the back through the Barron River....it's about a 30 min idle to where you can jump on plane....I haven't done it yet, but, will consider in the negative lows....it's a nice ramp. And you can sometimes get to see Alana the Bait Babe.....very pretty woman who owns the shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THE OUTLAW Posted Saturday at 10:23 PM Report Share Posted Saturday at 10:23 PM Everglades City and Chocko are up and running . Just don't plan to stay at the hotel . 🇺🇸🏴☠️ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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