| Trip Photo Album Weather. Cold Front. Warm Front. Stationary, Stalled Fronts. Wind Shifts. Heavy Pouring Rain. Sun in, Sun out. Tides. Full Moon. Fast Flow. Big Lows, High High's. All making the stalking of wary flats species difficult as all hell. First you gotta put the boat where the fish are, and then you have to be able to see them, or signs of them. And then you have to make sure you can get off the flat before the heavy tides leaves the boat moored up for 6 hours. As all trips, we had to deal with the weather again. Friday 3/21: We arrived in Ohio Key around 11 am or so. Dropped the boats in and waited a bit for our trailer to get cleaned up. After unloading the provisions, we idled out of the marina and headed towards the flats. The Wind was crankin, as we crossed a heavy chop towards the islands of the backcountry. Todd and I pulled into the lee of an island and began poling. After seeing nothing for a half hour or so, we pushed the boat with the wind and took off for a new spot. As soon as the boat stopped there were 4 or 5 giant cudas around the boat. Todd ripped a cast with the tube and got slammed a few times and got the trip going with some hard fighting cuda action. With low visibility it was our only choice of a quick tight line. There were a few sharks and rays along the shoreline, but we didn't see any bonefish, permit or tarpon today. We took a major pounding coming back across the bay, and got soaked. Back at the marina we cracked open some cold beers and got ready to cook up some steaks and veggies. The weather declined that night. And Saturday wasn't looking real promising. It was a fairly early night as we were all pretty tired. Saturday 3/22: DARKNESS!! Storm clouds in all directions. What a way to wake up. We kinda took it easy this morning, and tried to figure out what the storms were gonna do. After an hour of debating, we decided to just go and whatever happens, happens. There hasn't been any lightning yet. With the weather doing its thing, Todd and I thought that bringing a few bananas on board couldn't hurt today. (Google, bananas on board fishing boats.) We decided right away to stay close and give the shoreline along Bahia Honda a shot. The wind was blocked and visibility was somewhat decent. It was high tide and a good amount of baitfish were present. But after poling the entire length of the island, we hadn't seen anything. So off toward 'the spot' as the rain started coming off the ocean side. We really didn't get any decent fishing in before the rain got us. Todd and I spotted the Mitzi and ran toward Steve and Everett to see what was going on. They hadn't seen anything yet either, and had been poling viable flats. Then came the rain. Both boats floated in the channel side by side as the downpour began. It was the heaviest rain we've ever been caught in. So we shared a few laughs and Todd decided that Steve and Ev needed a banana aboard, so when they weren't looking, T tossed one over. They laughed and Steve picked it up, ate it and rubbed the peel all over his spinning rod. Looking back, that may not have been a good idea. To pass the time I grabbed a shrimp, pinned it up and dropped it to the bottom and caught a quick snapper. Next thing I know we all have rods out, bustin up big cudas, bonnet head sharks and more snappers. Make the most of what you got right? The two boats stayed close for awhile as the rain began to let up. Around one point, a nice pothole looked to hold some cudas. The Mitzi guys cast on it with no luck and passed it up. We decided to pole closer to it and investigate. T cast a shrimp in and immediately caught a 10 inch mango snapper. There were a lot of snapper along with a couple nurse sharks. After T's second snap a grouper came out from a hole in the back of the spot. We baited up with a small crab and tossed it in, and the little (22" or so) Goliath Grouper rose like a brown trout and sucked the crab in. It was a great fight. T brought it out of the hole twice on its way to the boat. Just when success was counted, that damn shark came after the grouper. Todd pulled it away but the hook came out and the grouper was out of there. At least the shark didn't get lunch. It was at that point aboard the Action Craft where we decided to head in toward the bridge and see if we could find fish on the lower tide along Bahia Honda. It was another solid beating running across the bay again. We watched as the Mitzi peeled off from us and headed toward Ohio Key. We pulled back up on the same flat we fished in the morning. Again we saw nothing but a couple of sharks. We did manage to coerce a nurse shark into eating a fly on the 9 weight. Was more entertainment than anything. We had a beer and decided to go meet up with the fellas back at camp. As we arrived they were heading back out with sabiki rigs to catch pilchards near the bridge. Sweet, T and I need a few of those in our livewell too! We didn't hang around long, and decided to find some structure to drop some jigs and shrimp on. We lucked out. The first shoal marker we hit was gold. With the first pass we doubled up on mangrove snapper. The second pass I hooked a small snapper, and when it got near the surface a real nice grouper came off the bottom and inhaled the mango. I thought it was on, but the snap came flying back out of the groupers mouth, completely scaled. Damnit. On the next drift, T hooked up with a nice one. And wouldn't you know it was a sweet 21" Grouper. Great fight, and we have some video and pics of the release. Each drift (we probably made 15) we caught something. Mangrove, yellowtail, lane, schoolmaster snappers, blue runners, and a couple smaller groupers were caught. We watched the Mitzi come around the corner and start to pole the flat along the island. It wasn't too long before they were headed out of there toward us. We acknowledged the spot to them, and they wound up catching two really nice snappers on those live pilchards they caught. What a great spot to find. T and I tried to pole along the inside flats, but the current sucked us into the channel through a very narrow cut. The boat almost didn't make it through. That was enough for us, and we headed in to the marina. Bad weather leads to a few extra beers and a bottle of rum. Tonight was that night. Steve barbequed like six pounds of pork loin that had been marinating for 24 hours and we steamed up some veggies. As an appetizer, we had homemade Empanadas with fresh sauce. Awesome! Tonight was shark fishing night off the dock in the channel. Todd butterflied and de-finned a grunt and we pinned it to the bottom. It wasn't long before the first bite happened. But the line went slack and the leader was lost. So off to the boat to re-rig with a longer piece of wire and a larger hook. It was up to Ev to catch more bait while I re-rigged, and Todd went and re stocked the beer cooler. I got back out to the dock at the same time Ev was reeling in another grunt. Todd defined it and back out the rig went. Same as before, wasn't long before the drag started talking, and then screaming. Two big jumps by the shark could be seen and heard in the moonlight. T was hooked up and locked in. The shark dumped a good portion of the spool 2 or 3 times before getting close to the dock. T guided the shark along and down near the stairs. I went down the stairs ready to grab the line, but wasn't real prepared to do anything with the shark without gettin bit. I grabbed the leader as it came close and under the stairs the shark went. The line rubbed against the metal stairway and cut-off. Great fight T! Easter Sunday 3/23: Perfect morning. Winds light and variable. Sunny and clear. Todd and I headed out toward the Content Keys. We'd been trying to get out there going on three years now. With Steve and Ev peeling off and heading for a new spot still 'inside', T and myself continued on towards Mecca. Blue water and tons of current awaited us. As we pulled up to some flats between the Contents, right away we knew it wasn't going to be easy. We just had no idea of where to start. With most of the area very rocky, and coral heads hiding just below the surface, we took it easy. On the edge there were serious rocky hole formations, one after another. It almost looked like a coral honeycomb. Several large fish, probably groupers and snappers were hanging near the bottom. One fish inhaled a live pilchard, but missed the hook and gave us back a scaled bait. We poled a flat and an island edge but decided the wind and the current was just gonna keep kicking our ass, so we backtracked and stopped at Big Spanish Key. The wind was wrapping around the island, and water clarity wasn't too good here. A little frustrated, we moved on to Cutoe Key and fish around a small island and down along the main shoreline. Aside from some big cudas, we didn't see a thing. With half of the final days fishing in the books, we decided we needed to get in to an area we knew has held fish in the past. The wind and the current was in our face, making poling into the bight a slow process. But that was fine, we had a nice high tide and plenty of time on the clock. As Todd opened the livewell and I climbed onto the platform 5 Big bonefish, in formation, came towards the bow, and then turned broadside as almost to mock us for not being ready. These were the biggest bones I've seen in this area. It wasn't long before we began to see schools of small fish running wide open in deeper water. They moved so fast that getting a cast on target was tough to call out to Todd up front. By the time I said 2 oclock, they were at 11 oclock. No big deal, the fish were here. After a few more shots at fish, I jumped down and grabbed a rod with a brown skimmer jig, tipped with a small piece of shrimp. Soon enough, a nice school of good sized bones flashed off the bow, Todd cast to them, and three fish tailed up on his shrimp. The rest of the school broke off and headed toward 10 oclock, so I cast to them and the lead fish immediately grabbed the jig. Todd and I set the hook almost the same time, and almost as fast as both rods doubled over, Todds line went slack. But I was on, the fish zigzagged its way around the boat, and then shot towards the horizon, with a nice typical drag screaming bonefish run. T came back and grabbed the pushpole, and I brought the bone to the boat. We got some quick video and a few photos and set the fish free. We poled on a bit, tried to fight the wind back into the spot, but to no avail. It was now gusting to 20+. But was a good way to end the day. We tried to hit the shoal marker with some live shrimp as a last blast, but the wind was cranking with the current and we drift by at 10 knots. So that was it. We headed toward the marina and packed it all up. Smooth sailing all the way home. Next Trip: Return to Watsons Place Aug 30-Sept 1 2008 |
Ohio Key 2008
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