November 2009
Flats Fishing
The flats are cooling off this month. This brings us a great new fishery to the Key West Flats Fishing with some King Sized Barracudas that will eat an artificial or fly.
A great sport fish target for November are Permit. On top and tailing in the higher winds we have for November these fish make for an easy target to toss a crab to.
Tarpon Fishing will be around in the warmer days on the edges of the channels but sight fishing for them on the flats is not so hot.
I really enjoy fishing the flats in November. The weather is 60/40 but when conditions are right we really nail it and have a great time sight fishing the shallows.
Backcountry Fishing
This is the game to go on. November offers a TON of opportunities in the Key West Backcountry. The cooler waters start to set in for the winter species. Species such as Trout, Pompano, Ladyfish, Big Barracudas, sharks, and many more hard pulling high volume fish. It is not uncommon in November, December, January, February and March to catch over 25 different species of fish counting only the ones that are 18 inches or bigger. Its all good in November.
Tarpon fishing in the channels of the Key West backcountry can be fantastic on some warmer days in November. Book a Key West backcountry fishing charter with us and every day we try to catch a tarpon. What a bonus in the off season.
November holds for me a transitional month for fishing here in Key West. Here at Dream Catchers we really like the ease of the fishing. It takes little or no skill to catch fish and fee like a hero. We regularly take 4 people out and have everyone catching fish all day, it's truly great to see the smiles and hear the stories.
Wrecks and Reef
Traditionally black fin tunas are the ticket offshore on the reef here in Key West for the month of November. Right on the sub wreck or adjacent waters many angler focus their light tackle skills there. Using live bait pilchards for chum bringing these extremely fast football shaped powerful fish right to the transom of our specially designed go fast center consoles. Catch a 20 lb black fin tuna on 12# test spinning gear and HOLD ON what a fight.
Wahoo are also a real treat both November and December just before, during and just after the full moon. We fish for these very powerful fast fish with live bait such as speedos, threadfin's and blue runners. just off the reef not 20 minutes from Key West.
Kingfish start to show up in November in good numbers as well. Not super big fish just yet but many catches in the 20 - 35 lb range for a days fishing is not unheard of.
Kite fishing is fun in November to kick off the start of the sailfish run. Not super consistent in November traditionally but can be really kicking some days. Generally a good cold front with winds from the North East to 20 mph can spark a fire for this fishery.
We dont run a ton of trips to the wrecks and reef in November. Most of this is related to the weather and the fact it is still slower season here. The rest of the world is getting ready for Christmas and Turkey Day and have not really been buried in snow yet. Picking your day is really easy as we are not super slammed.
Deep Sea Blue water
Sailfish, Wahoo, Tuna, Kingfish are all the rage in November for the Key West Deep sea guys. We troll the reefs and deep reef for these palagics coming through looking for a bite to eat. The winter days seemingly get easier for the offshore deep sea fleet. Not as far to run to find fish means more fishing time with lines out and trolling.
Our sport fishing fleet is loaded with some great captains. Guys who have lived here most of their lives and really get off on taking folks out to see what's gonna bite. We offer deep sea fishing trips on boats from 38 - 47 ft. all with experienced captains just different amenities and of course they vary in cost. Bigger boat more money.
We also run Key West deep sea fishing trips on our 32 ft center console the "Intense" here at Dream Catcher Charters for folks to "live the dream" stand up fishing from the Kite or trolling. Also using live bait. Whatever you want, however it is that you like to fish, we have a trip for you.
Fishing News
It's happening faster than we can think. I have seen it go before and now it is at EPIC speed and effect. Back in the early 90's I saw the National Marine Sanctuary come in and take over the Florida Keys very fast and against our local vote. This was the beginning of what is coming to the end now for Florida Keys recreational fishing.
A few months ago The SAMFC decided to shut down grouper fishing in the Atlantic for the months of January through April. Everyone said no, they said yes and did it.
A month or so ago we had an exploratory meeting here in Key West about Fishing quotas and catch limits pertaining to the different groups such as Recreational, Charter, and Commercial. They were working off of completely inaccurate data and admitted it.
This week there is a meeting in Key Largo. Tuesday the 10th of November 09'. This is another exploratory to find out who will bitch about them closing the Red Snapper and completely closing fishing deeper than 240 ft of water indefinatly.
As you can see, things are getting tight for our local charter guides here in South Florida and the FLorida keys. With an already crappy economy because of people just like the ones taking away fishing running this country we are headed for even more job losses and making fishermen outlaws just to make a living.
I am not usually one to bitch. My company Dream Catcher Charters is very diverse. We offer both inshore and offshore fishing. So far the rules for inshore have not been affected. However.. Take all the guys who charter offshore and tell them they cant do that any more and see what happens to our inshore fishery. It will be destroyed as 3 times the pressure comes in on it.
People want to fish, take a fish home and eat it. We have practiced stringent catch and release policies to both save the resource and make our people happy. Why shut it down, why not just say, one per person or something like that.
Capt. Steven Lamp...
Twitter "DrCatcher"
Capt. Steven Lamp
Dream Catcher Charters - The Key West Fishing Team
www.fishingkeywest.com
www.chartersofkeywest.com
5555 College Road
Key West, FL 33040
http://www.fishingkeywest.com
888-362-3474
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