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I’ve always been the kind of angler who enjoys a classic road trip. Lately though, I’ve tasted the jet set style of life. Step aboard an airliner and you can have instant summertime in the midst of all this ice and snow.
I awoke at 3:15 AM last Friday to cold winds and driving rain. By Noon I was soaking up the 80 degree Florida sunshine. There’s something to this traveling angler lifestyle; I wish I could do it all the time.
My friend Dave Brody and Kevin Cooke of Casey Key Anglers and Outfitters had conspired to introduce me to night snook fishing, and they wasted no time in getting me into Kevin’s new Hewes Tailfisher and out on the Intercoastal Waterway that first night in town. Of course they ignored the fact that I’d already been up for 16 hours when this little snook shuffle started.
Have you ever tried to fly cast when you’re sleepwalking… in the fog? I pitched flies under the docks, and some onto the docks, trying to decide if the fog was in my tired head or the nighttime air. My reflexes were a bit out of time and I couldn’t seem to hook the fish that ate my fly.
This nighttime game has a reputation for incredible catches, particularly in the summer. Kevin and his guides consider 50 fish outings as “good nights”. Can ‘t have a fishing trip without Mark Luck though, as some of the cooler weather seemed to follow me south, dipping the water temperatures enough to cool fishing in the snook capital.
I never quite recovered from that first night, fishing until half past midnight, and spent the rest of my trip trying to catch up on my sleep. Between naps I sampled wade fishing on the mangrove lined flats, and sea kayaking and “yak” fishing in a tidal creek. I could get used to that south Florida lifestyle and those 65 degree “cold fronts” in March.
It’s hard to beat the combination of sunny afternoons wading the saltwater flats, wonderful fresh seafood dinners in the old Florida style restaurants the area has to offer, and peaceful evenings along the water with friends new and old. One of these days I’ll have to get back down there and try the midnight snook shuffle in the summertime.
If you want to sample the wealth of flyfishing opportunities that southwest Florida’s Gulf Coast has to offer, contact Casey Key Anglers and Outfitters in Nokomis, Florida at (941) 483-1115. You can visit their website for fishing reports, information on guided trips and the great variety of tackle they carry. While you’re there check out the photos of some of the recent catches of snook, redfish, speckled trout and tarpon. Visit them at
www.caseykeyanglersandoutfitters.com
by Mark Sturtevant |
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