Florida Keys - April 2011

As the fourth and final part of my epic 40th birthday fishing trip I finished things off with a week in the Florida Keys. I booked 5 days of fishing with Capt. Brian Esposito, and leading up to my arrival in Florida things were looking good. Brian's last email said the tarpon were streaming down the flats on the oceanside and things were looking promising. I landed in Miami early Sunday morning, picked up my rental car and headed south. After 2 hours I was in Islamorada, my base for the week, but the motel room wasn't ready - Brian had booked me a room at the Sunset Inn. Not the fanciest place in town, but the bed was comfortable, the shower hot and the AC worked, so as far as fishing base camp goes it ticked the boxes. It was also just a couple of blocks away from the Lorelei, a great spot to have a beer and watch the sun go down after a day's fishing.

Having some time to kill I headed over to the World Wide Sportsman for a look around the big store, and had lunch at the Fish Company outside. There was a big square pool area full of tarpon, and after lunch they got fed too - amazing stuff. Then it was time for Robbie's Dock to go and see more tarpon being fed. Robbie's is an institution and a must visit, $1 gets you in and then I started taking pictures of people hand feeding the tarpon. Here are some shots:

Brian picked me up at the motel the next morning and we launched from the marina just down the road. A quick run saw us out the front on a clear sandy bottomed spot as it was expected to be overcast. While rigging up the tarpon kept swimming past under the boat, and this constant stream of fish on the ocean side was to be the case for the next 4 days. By mid morning I had cast to dozens of fish but they all showed no interest, but the sight of 100lb fish cruising along was almost enough in itself. The sky cleared up a bit and we moved to a slightly weedier spot, and shortly afterwards I had my first eat. How these fish survive baffles me, as the amount of chaos created to eat a tiny fly just can't be right, the energy balance is all wrong. But the fish leapt and cartwheeled and after about 30 minutes I had the leader inside the tip, and my first Keys tarpon was captured. Shortly afterwards while trying to leader it the hook pulled free. It was estimated at around 80lbs and great fun on the 10 weight, even though I did feel a tad undergunned. Another eat shortly after but no hookup.

After lunch we moved to another spot called the Yellow Brick Road where the flow of tarpon was unbelievable. They stuck out so well that one had plenty of time to get ready, but pretty much all the time there would be no interest from the fish. Mid afternoon I got another eat, and in 15 seconds it was all over, holes in the water everywhere and hook pulled!!! Another eat later on and day 1 saw me with 4 eats, 2 jumped and 1 landed. Amazingly the fly that did the damage was a small (1/0) palolo worm imitation !

Day 2 saw us oceanside again, it wasn't quite as breezy as the day before and even though we saw huge numbers of fish they just weren't interested - stats for day 2 were 1-1-0, I hooked a cracking fish but had way too much drag and ended up with a straightened hook!!!

Day 3 and oceanside again, we tried a few spots but ended up at the Yellow Brick Road. The poon were streaming along steady, mainly heading south, and mid morning it all finally came together, I managed to get the fly in front of a giant toad that gently sipped the worm and it was on. She jumped and jumped and then decided it was time to go to Cuba. I have never pulled so hard on a fish for so long with a fly rod, but after 1 hour she was alongside and Brian managed to grab hold of her for the 1st time. 2 more breaks for freedom and after the third lip grab the bite tippet finally wore through. Brian estimated her at greater than 120lbs and she truly was huge. And to top it off for the whole fight she was shadowed by 2 smaller fish, probably males that must have tried to make the most of the opportunity. What a fight, what a fish ! Another hookup and bustoff later saw the day end with a 4-2-1 and a huge smile on my face. The sun was out so I snapped a few shots on the way back:

Day 4 saw us head over to Flamingo in the morning, but the wind made life difficult so we ended up oceanside and the fish weren't quite in the mood, with the day yielding another 1-1-0


Day 5 was forecast light winds so we blasted over to Flamingo. We fished a channel out the front of Flamingo where we saw 2 fish roll, I hooked and lost the 1st and shortly afterwards hooked and landed the 2nd, a lovely 40lber. Then we headed off to a larger inland lake where we started to find large laid up fish in the shallow murky water. These fish just sit there, immobile and barely visible. Flies were larger black and purple zonker affairs on 2/0 hooks, and if the fly landed on the poons nose the take was instant. First fish garbaged the fly and tore off so fast I didn't stand a chance, the line wrapped around the reel and in less than 5 seconds it was all over. Estimated at over 130lbs it was the largest I hooked. Next we found a slightly smaller fish, I got an instant eat but the fly came out, so I recast and it ate again. This time it stayed connected and after 45 minutes with the 10 weight a 110lber was boatside. Again the 80lb bite let go so no pic, but etched in my memory. The tide went slack so we headed off to fish for redfish. I caught a few on the 6 weight which was great fun.


Then we started seeing lots of sharks on the flat, so after catching and cutting up a few ladyfish it was shark time. I managed to land a few lemon sharks:

We then tried a few clearer flats where the fish were an amazing jet black. A few found but no eats, and it was time to head back to Islamorada.

Final tally for day 5 was 5-2-1 and a great way to finish things off. Brian really put in a great effort, best guide I have fished with to date for sure, can't recommend him enough. I can't wait to return.

And what better way to end the trip with a walk down one of the bridges to see the sun go down.


And next time I have to take a cameraman along to take shots while I fight the big ones - any volunteers?

NZ 2011 Trip Report

After missing out in 2010 it was time to head back to the South Island for another week of mega trout bashing. My good mate Wes joined me in the trip over the ditch after a 4 year hiatus, and as usual we flew into Christchurch. Last minute planning and discussions with my Kiwi mate Dan who we were going to fish with for the week saw us catching the 7:20 flight to Queenstown on the Saturday morning where we were met by Dan. After a coffee and a “gourmet” pie it was off to the lower Mataura, and by 10:30 we were on the water. We fished one of the accesses above Athol, but the overcast conditions made spotting difficult. We saw a few fish but no luck so we headed off for plan B to a tributary. It didn’t take long before we started spotting fish but they were quite wary, first contact was a side stream where after a couple of tricky casts into the 1m wide ditch ended up with a hookup. The fish raced up and down and promptly buried me in the weeds – fish 1, David 0. Shortly afterwards in the main stream we came across another fish that was cruising up and down. I popped a cast upstream but it looked like the fish had spooked. I tried again a bit further and to our surprise it came back down and swallowed the fly. After a great little fight trying to keep it out of the weeds a 5 ½lb brown was in the net, what a great way to start.

We fished our way up the stream, saw a few more fish but they were quite spooky in the shallow and narrow stream. Once back at the car we had a look at the pool above the bridge and sure enough a couple of fish were in there feeding away. Wes popped down while Dan and I spotted, and after a few casts and fly changes Wes finally came up tight. He was so enthralled that he actually admitted to trout being good fighters and not sluggish at all.

A 4 1/2lber for Wes, first fish on his Abel S5N Prosek Von Behr. Time to move on and we headed to Stu Tripney’s shop where we caught up with Stu and his folks, what a great bunch. Stu’s Fly Shop is an absolute must visit and George Tripney will be behind the counter for a few more weeks, he’s a true character.

Pizza, Aussie Shiraz and great conversation for dinner, and after dinner it was down to the river for an evening session, not much happening hatchwise but right on dark a few splashy rises indicated it was caddis time – I managed to land a couple of small to mid sized browns before we called it a day.

Day 2 saw us head down to Fjordland. We had an extra member to our party, Paige Olsen form the US who owns a lodge and flyshop in Wisconsin. First stop was the Tea House in Mossburn for a Venison Pie, fantastic as always. Next stop was a true Fjordland river surrounded by beech forest and full of sandflies. Lovely looking stretch of water, but apart from one fish raised by Dan but not hooked, devoid of fish. So off again for plan B which was the middle section of the Waiau, where the river was flowing high but clear. The banks were mostly flooded so difficult to fish, but we found a good run and double nymphed a whole bunch of rainbows to about 4lbs. Plenty of fish and good fun. We then headed up to Te Anau for dinner and a kip.

Day 3 saw us head off to fish the Eglington river. A glorious blue sky day greeted us with no wind, and it didn’t take long for us to start catching fish. We all caught fish, and saw lots as well, I ended up with 4 browns and 2 rainbows to 6lbs, but I lost a much larger fish. It emerged from the depths, swallowed the cicada fly, and I felt three distinct bumps as the fly came out of it’s mouth without connecting – easily over 8lbs, maybe larger. Highlight of the day for me was a section of river that I reached after a pretty crazy bush-bash through all sorts of spiky and thorny trees. I emerged into a section of water full of dark boulders, under the trees and managed to catch 2 fish and lose another 2 all in about 100m. Goes to show that the effort is often worth the reward. And to top it off on the way back to the truck I spotted a huge fish in an eddy right next to the road. On my third cast the drift was right and it slowly but surely moved up from the depths. About 5cm from the fly it suddenly stopped, it’s fins flared and it bolted away at full speed. I have never seen a fly have that effect on a fish, but it was the same cicada imitation that caught all the fish that day...

Wes, Dan and I then headed up to Mavora lakes where we camped for the night, in preparation for an assault on the Oreti the following day. Roast Chicken, venison salami and more Aussie reds for dinner, as well as a Central Otago Pinot Noir.

Day 4 saw us head up to the top beat of the Oreti. We got there fairly early to beat the crowds, and the cloud cover was still there. Perfect conditions for an hour long hike down the valley, and by the time we were ready to fish the clouds had burned off and we were greeted with a glorious sunny day

We started fishing our way up the river and it didn't take long before we started to spot some fish. It wasn't easy going, the easy spots were often not interested, we had more success looking for them in faster water. It didn't take long before I hooked and landed my first for the day, a typical Oreti beauty that came in just under 5lbs

The cicadas were chirping so fly selection was a no brainer...

Wes managed to spot and cast to a good fish all on his own and almost pulled of the stunt but the fish changed it's mind at the last moment.

Next it was Dan's turn to spot, hook and land a lovely 6 1/2lber:

Time for a spot of lunch with Dan and some masked weirdo we bumped into...

And then onwards. I had a dash of bad luck, with the hooks pulling or missed strikes on another 3 fish, one of which was a cracker. We were almost back up at the car and while Wes and Dan were exploring a side stream I spotted a tail waving near an undercut. First drift of the GFF and whammo. A great fight later that took me to all the undercuts in a 100m stretch of river and it was mine, a cracker just over 6lbs

So all in all a fantastic day on this famous river, and rightly so. Good run for me on the Oreti, 2 out of 2 so far... Back to Stu's where I cooked up some "Penne all'Amatriciana", washed down with more Aussie reds.

Day 5 saw us head over the mountains to fish another backcountry river. The drive up was great, through the clouds until we hit the top where we were greeted by glorious sunshine once again

We made our way down the valley and found a spot with no other apparent sign of life and hit the river. We started rigging up for what was dubbed the "3% Reunion Day" Dan, Wes and I are all proud owners of the beautiful Limited edition Abel James Prosek "Von Behr Trout" Super5 - only 100 were made. We lined them up in all their glory for a couple of shots:

We walked about 1km or so and neither of us spotted anything, so we headed back to the car to try further downstream. While having a chat I looked into one of the lakes next to the road and what do you know, a big brown slowly cruised by. Action stations !!! I tracked it's beat, and on it's next pass cast out the GFF. The trout slowly cruised up, had a good long look and refused !!!. Time for a different fly, off with the cicada and on with a blowfly. I remembered the advice given to me by Dan who is a world authority on blowflies - green-arse in the backcountry, blue-arse in dairy country - and tied on my version of a Muz Wilson Dunny Budgie in green locofoam. Then I waited for the trout to cruise back, popped a cast in front and up he came and engulfed it. A short stoush later and very lean 5lber was in the net. In good condition it would have easily gone 8lbs, maybe a diet of mice is the go?

Dan and Wes in the meantime had a couple of refusals from another fish in the same lake so we headed off to explore the chain of lakes. Next lake I came too after Dan had been past, it was tannin stained but just as I arrived I saw a large back right in shallow. A quick flick of the dunny budgie prompted a swift take and it was on. The lake wasn't very large and the fish did a few laps staying well deep. It felt like a solid fish, but I wasn't prepared for what emerged from the depths, a crocodile of a brown trout that pulled the scales down to 9lbs.

This trout was in much better condition and had a huge wide head on it:

A few photos and off it went into the depths.

Then it was Wes' turn, I spotted a rise in the neighbouring lake he covered the cast and after a few endless minutes he had a take, only for the hook to pull. And so it went, some lakes had smaller eager fish of around 3lbs, some larger ones. We all caught fish and mid afternoon happily called it a day and headed off for the long drive back to Dan's.

Day 6 saw us return to Dan's 10lb creek. This river doesn't hold many fish but they are all big. Another glorious sunny day and it didn't take long for Dan to spot a fish for Wes. A couple of casts and it was on, but it broke Wes off. Next it was Dan's go, and he spotted a monster of a fish in mid current. A number of casts and fly changes gave no result and the fish spooked off. My turn next. Wes spotted the fish in a long and rock enclosed pool, the glare from my position made it difficult and I only saw the fish from time to time as it cruised the pool. No result with the cicada so I tied on a nymph. A few more casts later and it looked like it wasn't going to happen, when the fish came up and nailed the GFF. A spirited tussle and a beautiful 7 1/2lber was in the net:

A lot more walking, a few more fish spotted, casts to but no more luck. And that was that for 10lb creek, as always a fantastic bit of water.

Day 7 and Dan was busy on the farm so Wes and I headed up the valley to fish the upper section of the Ahuriri. The forecast was for weather to move in but the drive up was fine. By the time we got to the top section though menacing clouds on the mountains and a strong wind meant dirty water and no fishing there. So we retreated downstream to a smaller sheltered stream where Wes and I had a fantastic day with the 2 weight and the 3 weight. We caught lots of fish, many rainbows, and some browns as well, the best being this 3lber on my Scott G2 2 weigh. It gave me a really hard time on the light rod.

This was followed by a great evening session with the caddis flies and we both landed lots more fish. A great stream and a great plan B.

Day 8 and the weather had moved in. We went looking for spring creeks and ended up on the Grays. Lovely stretch of water but the wind and clouds made it hard going. A few fish came to the net, some larger ones spooked but at least we didn't blank. On the way back to Dan's we popped into the Mary Burn, a couple of small fish landed and again some larger ones spooked, definitely not aided by the conditions. We couldn't really complain as we had fantastic weather for pretty much all the week.

Day 9 and end of trip, back up to Christchurch on the shuttle, and apart from another Virgin software glitch and 2 hour delay an uneventful return home.

Once again a super thank you to Dan and his wonderful wife Elizabeth, the most charming of hosts, and the new espresso machine has lifted things up a couple of notches.

2 days later the terrible Christchurch earthquake struck, and I am deeply saddened by all the loss of life that has occurred. I am sure the Kiwis will pick themselves up and rebuild it better than it was before, they are a proud and tough lot and will make it through this difficult time.