|
Tarpon in Cocoa Beach, Florida
|
|
|||
|
When most people think about tarpon fishing they think about the Keys or Boca Grand. Well that is for a good reason. They have a much larger window of opportunity to fish them. Tarpon are a very temperature sensitive fish. They shut down or even die if the water gets too cold. Since this area isn't known for having year round warm water most of the time these fish head south searching for a warmer place to winter. Then as the water starts to warm back up again they return to this area in bigger schools every year. Every spring around April or when the water starts to warm up into the 70's the tarpon start to show up on Cocoa Beach. Most of these fish can run between 40 to 140 lbs with a few even larger. When they do they are easy to spot. Just look for the bait flying throw the air and the 6 foot fish flying after them. These schools of tarpon will work up and down the beaches along the space coast most of the spring and into the fall. The key is them being close enough to the shore, close enough to the inlets and for the seas to be kind. when these factors all fall in place hold on for the fight of your life. On days when the factors are out of wack there is still a chance it play with the king, or should I say the kings son. About the same time that the big boys show up on the beaches we have a lot of small backwater canales that the smaller tarpon love to call home most of the year. These fish will run between 10 to 40 lbs with a few up as high as 80 to 100 hanging out in these areas. The key to these fish is stealth. These fish can spook very easily if they are in the wrong mood. We also have in this area every year as the first fall chill is felt in the air. It is at this time of year we have what we refer to as the fall bait run. All the fish know that this is going to be the last big feast of the year and they gorge themselves. It is at this time of year I have had days that people have boated over 30 tarpon in an afternoon. The best thing about this time of year is most fish will blast a top water plug like they have never seen one. Most of these fish are all between 15 to 40 lbs. How to catch them. As with most spices of fish, every fisherman you talk to will have a different way to catch tarpon. Each one of these fisherman will tell you that their way is the only way they can be caught. The fact is most of them are right. Unless they tell you to stand on your head and say tarpon 3 times before each cast there is truth in their advice. With that said I will try to let you in on a few methods I use that produce fish for me. The first thing you need to know about tarpon may sound a little silly but trust me there are people out there that need to know this. In order to catch tarpon there must be tarpon around. If you see them rolling that is a good sign. If you don't see them in an area, move somewhere else. Now a few things you need to know about these fish. Unlike redfish when these fish spook they don't always leave an area. There are times you may see them rolling and have spooked them and not even know it. The thing to keep in mind is stealth. This is especially true when fishing canals. What I like to do is pre-fish an area a think there should be tarpon and come back the next day around the same time and sneak into the area. This means you are going to have to cut your motor and pole or drift into casting range. There are times you can get away with a trolling motor but it has been my experience they will spook off them too in tight areas. The next thing you need to remember is to "Bow to the King" This is one of the biggest mistakes I watch people make when trying to catch tarpon. Once you get a hook-up and your tarpon brakes the surface, drop slack in your line. If you don't this fish is going to snap you line. Most people find it easiest by bowing to the fish. Now how to tease into striking. Most fisherman use live bait on a circle hook with a 4 to 5 foot 20 lb fluorocarbon leader. This is probably the most effective way of catching them but to me it takes a lot of the sportsmanship out of the fight. To me there is nothing more exciting than teasing a fish into taking lure. Tarpon can be a challenge when it comes to artificial baits. You have to work them just right or they will tease you worse than you could every dream of teasing them. Here are a few tricks I have found that work for me. White!!!!! Tarpon love white flys, grubs, plugs and twitch baits. The trick is to figure out what they want that day. Watch to see where the tarpon are feeding. If you see them free-jumping I would throw top water. If you see them rolling a lot it is a little tricky. Start with a twitch bait. Slowly work it a few feet below the surface. If after 10 or 12 casts you haven't got a bump change over to a grub. Bounce it slowly a few feet off the bottom. In most cases if you still don't draw a strike you've spooked them and need to move on. Trust me, move on. These fish will roll and roll and bug you to the point of wanting to jump in after them. Many times you can come back after a few hours. Now as many of you know my favorite way to catch tarpon is on top water. To do this the tarpon first have to be feeding on surface baits. The best way to tell this is if you see them free-jumping. If you see them jumping out of the water busting bait try this. Cast a 3.25 Florida Special Rip Roller past where you see the tarpon rolling. Start out working the plug slow but with a firm jerk. If after a few casts this doesn't work try jerking the plug a little harder making it spray water. I have found a lot of times the harder you work this plug for tarpon the bigger the fish are. |
|
|||
|
|
||||
|
|
||||
