Tarpon Season
Tarpon season is here and we can’t be more excited!!! We still have a few days open but those are limited. Its hot finally and Mother Nature is hopefully don’t throwing cold fronts this way. Winds are starting to shift to summer pattern of southwest in the mornings to light an variable mid day to southeast in the afternoons. All this with warm 80 degree water means only one thing, flying silver!
Clients and Weather
With some of the best clients a guide could have I look forward to spending everyday for 4 months on the water with them. the memories made are priceless and the laughs endless. St. Simons Island, Jekyll Island and Sea Island are all open for business as we are. The suns out and the winds are light so after all of us have being on house arrest during these trying times I don’t know about you but we can’t get outside enough.
Stomping Grounds
Cumberland to St. Catherine Island will become the daily fishing grounds from hear on out. Tarpon, Sharks, huge Jack, Spanish Mackerel, Bull Reds are our target. The way we fish for them from day to day will change. Live bait is affective but I prefer artificial lures and Flies.
Live Bait Matter…or does it?
In the last 3 years I have moved from doing a lot of live bait fishing for these species to almost 100% artificial action. I find my catching of these target species has gone WAY up and the unwanted sharks, rays, and catfish have gone almost to zero. What does all this mean? More target species to me and the clients on my bow chasing them. Favorite lure? Click Here
How does this break down?
In 2017 we landed (put hands on) 89 tarpon and jumped off 196 fish. These are good numbers but not near what our coast is capable of. So in 2018 I started throwing the cast net less and the artificial more.. Numbers went up to 99 fish to hand and 246 fish jumped off. There was work to be done. We made some tweaks to tackle and techniques which meant lures, rods, reels, and line in the middle of the season and our landing percentage went up. At the end of the 2018 season I was pumped. We had landed a lot of fish on fly and artificial lures and I could not wait for the 2019 season..
2019 season
the 2019 Tarpon Season started off wide open. Huge schools of fish pushed in early after water temps pushed 80 degrees the 3rd week of May but then on the full moon in June all got quiet. I searched and searched for the “nest” of fish I knew was out there and armed with a new Dorado 25 tower boat I finally found the mother load. It seemed all the fish had either moved on or bunched up in this one school situated in a remote place north of St. Simons. By mother load I mean hundred and hundred of fish and on the first day I found them we went 13 for 21 on fly and artificial!!
After fishing them for about a week I figured out their pattern and like you know where the peanut butter is at the grocery store I knew where they would be at all stages of the tide. We continued to catch fish in good number through out the season and to date I think it was my best season with 163 tarpon to hand and over 400 fish hooked and lost during the fight!
Trust and loyalty
I can’t thank my clients enough for having the confidence in me to continue year after year to book. Our day on the water are the life that flows through my body and I am truly a lucky guy. Im happier at home and on the water than I have ever been and idk if that’s age talking but I can’t be grateful enough to all you in my life.
To inquire about booking click HERE