Everglades Fishing – Captain Ned Small

Richard Winig on the foredeck looking longingly toward the pink sky in the south at dawn. “Couldn’t we go that way?” No, we must go north, into the clouds, the fog, the chop, the rain,  and the tarpon.

More rumors of red tide to the north, Naples to Charlotte Harbor. We have a steady southerly wind at 15 mph, Gulf temperatures at 80 degrees. Everyone is discouraged from the wind and turbid water but the temperature is right and the moon is right …we are going hunting in spite of all the negative forecasts, dawn patrol, hope it’s not yawn patrol. Of course there is a cold front positioned to blast us on Thursday and bring in north west winds at 25 mph.

Steady wind from the southeast, 15 mph. Nice, easy going tide, medium visibility in general with some good sight fishing opportunities around low tide. (The tide is not very low, quarter moon). Windy conditions and scudding clouds, some turbid areas, you have to work a little but it can be done. Reports of red tide north, near Naples, I don’t see any sign of it here yet. We are seeing an odd tarpon here and there but they are not thick and most likely they are resident fish. Cold front approaching. Alex Osborne on the foredeck, redfish on the fly.

Bruce on the foredeck, easy southeast wind at dawn, poling through some of the most beautiful and esoteric lagoons in the Everglades in pursuit of big fish in shallow water. Red’s and snook. We had many intense sightings and close encounters. The fish were big and spooky. We poled in to the mud on one flat and sighted a snook …it was laid up in the mud half buried like a flounder. We were pushing mud, so the depth must have been  less than five inches. When it finally swam away it had to lay on it’s side in order to stay beneath the surface. We couldn’t catch that fish but we named her Pauline Bunyon.

Clear water and off shore winds in the morning had us out sight fishing at dawn. Tarpon were no where to be seen today, (it’s still a little cool by tarpon standards) and the red’s and snook were scattered, but numerous enough to keep the excitement level high. Bruce Bauman on the foredeck sighting and shooting for numerous snook and reds and working on a trash fish slam. He now has two thirds of it: a pufferfish and a lizardfish, on fly. We hope to complete the slam tomorrow with a guitarfish.