After the redfish extravaganza, Ian Slater and I had a pair of days scheduled to get into shape for our upcoming tournament efforts. We’ve been totally focused on tarpon, at the expense of permit, both feeling that our energy is best spent in that direction. Our first day of fishing was hard–there were but a…

After the three days of being beaten down by the January permit, I had an opportunity to fish with Captains Brandon Cyr and Nick Labadie in the Sugarloaf Showdown, the now-annual tournament to benefit the Guides Trust Foundation that the Lower Keys Guides Association puts on. The tournament had been moved to January after a…

Earlier last week I had the opportunity to fish for a three-day stint, each day with a different guide and in two cases joined by a special guest. Sunday I was invited by Wes Smith to fish with Ian Slater, and we left early with high hopes. The weather had turned to our favor, warming…

Yesterday I fished for the first time since the new year, and it didn’t disappoint. I had Ian booked for the day in hopes that we might get lucky with some warm January weather, and I was off by a day or two. The conditions were improving, however, after a long period of cold weather,…

Since the last post, I’ve been able to get out for a few days in search of some barracuda and what was the last permit fishing of 2020. This December has brought with it more cold fronts than usual, but after having the spring to ourselves down here it seems like a bit much to…

Last week I returned to the Everglades to spend three days with a pretty amazing group of people. The last trip I had made there was in late February of last year, when those who are familiar with these reports will remember we finally caught the six pound record we had been after for nearly…

Over the last week I’ve been fishing lots. John O’Hearn and I were invited to fish in the IGFA Permit Invitational tournament, a new-but-welcomed addition to the Key West tournament scene. While Wednesday through Friday were the tournament days, we elected to fish three days leading up to it. I was looking forward to fishing…

Yesterday I fished with John O’Hearn, leading up to the IGFA Permit Invitational next Wednesday. We are scheduled to fish starting Monday through the end of the week, with the tournament days ending on Friday. Probably due to the lack of any major tournaments in the fall months, not to mention the recent Corona-driven cancellations…

For the last month, I’ve been fishing lots. Our trip to Mexico with the normal crew was a smashing success, with fun and permit in great supply for everyone. Here at home, fishing has been good if never superlative. The days I’ve been able to get out have been rewarding in steady supply, and a…

Since the last post, I’ve been able to get out on the water a fair amount. Keeping my life as simple as I can has meant that when things slow down (and often when they don’t), I’m able to focus only on the fishing. When the summer stalls things in Key West, I’m inevitably happy…

A few weeks ago, during what would have been the 2020 Del Brown Tournament, I fished with John O’Hearn. We were scheduled to fish in the tournament as usual, and without it we were in a position to look at some new places and figure out some new things to do. Our decision to spend…

With these pages back on line and regularly updated, there’s much to report. I’ve been fishing a lot, and while the weather has been tough at times the fish have been occasionally complying with our repeated requests. I fished a day with Nick Labadie earlier in the week, and while we looked for some new…

Since the Gold Cup, I’ve had the occasion to get on the water lots. The Keys are re-opened, and have been for a little over a month, and while this means that the water is more crowded than we fast became accustomed to it also means that the guides are getting back to work, which…

Last month I finished fishing the Gold Cup with John O’Hearn. The most competitive of the tournaments in the Keys, this also marked the first tournament we fished since the Keys shut down at the end of March. As such we were excited to get back in to things, and hoped that the Gold Cup…

OK, let me start by saying that I know these reports have been slacking lately. I’m sure that this due in part to the fact that I’ve been fishing a lot more than normal, for reasons that are both apparent to all and not worth going in to here. Spring 2020 has so far proven…

Earlier this month I fished in the March Merkin with Ian Slater. This was our first tournament together, and I had a fantastic time. The weather was turning from nasty to nicer starting on the first day, and while we gave it our all on the prefish day we only found a single shot for…

As the readership of these pages (and pretty much anyone that knows me) is aware, I’ve been fishing for the 6 lb tippet tarpon record for a long time. In fact, it’s been over 9 years that I’ve been after this particular record. In that time, I’ve been in the company of great friends. I’ve…

Earlier in the week I fished for two days with Ian Slater, and on the first we were joined by our friend Josef Borski. The weather was turning around after a cold front, and we were hoping that this would be a day that things cracked open. We started early with the same goal we…

Four days after the Cuda Bowl, during the time I was slated to be in the Everglades with Steve and Chad that had been rescheduled due to weather, Ian and I went out for a day of fun fishing. It’s rare this time of year that he and I have coinciding days off, but we…

About a week after I came back from fishing with Steve and Chad I fished in the Cuda Bowl, now in its tenth year. What started as a casual tournament in 2010 to generate some interest in fishing for barracuda has become one of the largest and most competitive tournaments in the Keys, and this…