Key West Tarpon Fishing Techniques

By Jayne Rutledge


Among the most sought after fish in Key West is the Tarpon. It is also called the Silver King and is known to grow to more than 200lbs. Key West tarpon fishing can be successful if the individual knows what to expect. The use of a fly rod is among the easy ways to get these fish. One of the very easy ways to get tarpons to eat when they are being picky is trying to feed them on flies.

There are a wide range of patterns and colors of hooks in availability. This may make it difficult to make the right choices, which explains why at certain times the services of guides will be required. During their early migration, tarpons will travel most of the ocean side flats while coming in large pods. It should be remembered that these fish hardly get out of their way too much to eat, thus some effort will be required to make them see the flies.

The hooks do not need to be set up too hard. Given that they have hard mouths, thus the best approach with the majority of live baits is dropping back about 10 feet of the line and letting it tighten up. Alternatively, the rod can be left in the rod holder until the tarpon strips the line off the heel. The other trick is putting the rod tip in the water and then reeling fast.

The drag should be set just right. Most anglers tend to set the drag too tight for fishing. Between 20 and 25 percent of the line weight would be fine. Knots usually weaken lines by as much as 25 percent. One effective way of ensuring the drag setting is right is using hand held scales for double checking the settings. A heavier line should be used in the event that the tarpons keep breaking it.

Drag washers should be kept clean and running smoothly by being lubricated with STP. The tarpons ought to be left to run. They are really strong and one should expect a hard initial run. For persons fishing in open waters, the tarpons should be left to run until they lose some steam before applying pressure. A heavier line and tackle will be required when fishing is done around obstacles that may cut the line. More pressure will be required.

Before going fishing, one should learn to tie the best knots that should also be tight to avoid disappointments. When one hooks up with a tarpon in open waters, it is not the time to apply too much pressure. After the initial frantic run, one can start applying pressure. The rod is used for fighting tarpons and the reel to store the line.

It is always advisable to fight tarpons closely without having to get too much of the line out. This makes it much easier to control them. The commonest mistake made by most people is to underrate the power of tarpons. As a result, they are caught unawares, foiling the whole exercise.

Key West tarpon fishing will be successful if the right methods are employed. For the fish not to start running again, their heads should be kept up. Moreover, they should be held with enough pressure.




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