Flamingo, Everglades National Park 2022

Counting down the days until I'm fishing in my favorite place.. plan to be there for the best tides of the month for what that's worth.. October 24 ,25, and 26th. Plan to be there for 10 days if my energy level holds up. Don't know how many more times I'll be there so hoping this trip is the best ever. The park opens again tomorrow as the road in to Flamingo was flooded due to the recent hurricane. Still no camping allowed in Flamingo campground but hopefully that will have opened back up by the time I get there.

https://tides4fishing.com/us/florida-florida-keys/flamingo-florida-bay

Last years trip in December was really windy and it kept me from doing a lot of things I wanted to do.. like fish for bone fish at night in Biscayne Bay National Park. I'm hoping if the winds aren't too bad to spend at least a couple of nights camped out on the beach near East Cape, about 12 miles from Flamingo marina. Have only fished there once before and caught snook, redfish, and trout slam from my campsite before ever getting in kayak.

The link below is last years trip..
https://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/14224743/1


Recent picture I found of Everglades road to Flamingo the day before hurricane ian came by.

There is no place like Flamingo.. for flats fishing.

https://www.local10.com/news/2019/0...NFgEVZfmU9B1NYFOVIRvZ9GuaS7spseuUEDW6QoE

That would be awesome. Hope to go back to S Florida next year

Sounds like a good plan, I'll look forward to your pics.

Got the best boss in the world.. he could tell I was chomping at the bit to get to fishing in Florida. My vacation starts today.. don’t have to report back for duty until November 1.



All shined up.

Wow! 3+ weeks of kayaking and fishing. Please send us lots of pics.

Hope to leave town on Tuesday or Wednesday... should be fishing by Saturday.

Please remember the rest of us while you're out living the dream!

I will, especially when the no seeums and mosquitoes are so bad that you suck them in when breathing.
Just found out one of the guides reported them be the worst ever in the backcountry. At one time to enter one of the small buildings that housed the park rangers to get permits to camp, you had to stand in a room and a car wash blower would blow all the bugs off you before you could enter. Have seen tourists with kids screaming in horror as they ran to their vehicles to escape the mosquito swarms.

Still packing after doing a late spring cleaning around the house. Should be on the road tomorrow.



I’ve been trying to decide what to take for a week. 😩

Man O man, what an adventure. Tight lines, light winds and following seas to you! I am so jelly.

Be safe Iconn and please post play by play if you can.



Jeff

👍

What keeps the alligators from wandering through the campsites at the Flamingo Park? I wouldn’t want to stay in a tent on the ground in gator country.

I don't know... maybe their fear of people. When you get that far down to Flamingo its more salt water crocodiles than alligators. Never heard of anyone getting bit down that way. I'm more fearful of the 200 lb snakes that eat coons, deer, and alligators.


Crocodile about a half mile from campground on trip a couple of years ago


When its cloudy, incoming tide, and no wind, the place can get downright spooky looking. No place anywhere to get out of kayak except onto mangrove tree roots or back at the ramp.


This is a great time of year to find alligators on the roads through the park... just starting to get cooler weather and they like to lay on the warm pavement at night.




There's not nearly as much grass after a hurricane came through several years ago.


From 2 years ago.. this was a big alligator.


Picture above from 20 years ago. My buddy Fishhead took the picture. I was getting impatient waiting on the other two, they wanted to stay together so no one would get lost or have problems.


West Lake, near Flamingo... its been closed off to fishing or kayaking for several years... was told it was recently opened back up... came across a huge dead bull shark floating on the surface the first time I ever fished it. Was told no one had ever seen a shark in the lake as it was mostly fresh/brackish water and only one small shallow creek that connected it to Florida Bay several miles away. Lots of crocks laying in the blown down trees along that shore line.


West Lake on a bad day.. I'll give it one day for sure.. used to be lots of snook in there. Very few people fished it even when it was open... I think it was only up to 9.9 hp motors max. Never caught any tarpon back there but should be some small ones.


Going to target a bigger tarpon this time around, fishing out front of Flamingo or down in the keys...from 2010 on the 4th of July. Last year it was so windy it was white capping but I peaked around the point and the big tarpon were flying out of the water chasing bait. I wanted to cast to them so bad but it would have pulled me into the 3 foot waves, taken me down current and downwind so fast, I'd have been several miles away in no time... plus it was late in the afternoon. Gotta hook a tarpon earlier in the day as I'm not fighting fish at night like I used to.


If I see one of these again, I'm going to try to rope it.

Very nice. I hear those pythons are a real problem now. Do you see them often?

Very rare to see one unless you’re hunting for them in known areas. Where I saw the one above was where water goes under road through culvert and when water levels are up the frogs are all over the road exactly where the snake was.. I had seen alligators in exact spot and have picture somewhere of gator with frog legs hanging out it’s mouth.

Made it to motel in Florida city and will drive back and forth from park for the next two days… I was beat from the drive here, 30 hours with only short stops for gas and food and 3 hour nap near Tallahassee.. I didn’t feel like camping as usual..





Tied on my three favorite salt water baits for flamingo.. d.o.a. Bait buster, d.o.a. Cal and a rapala skitterwak.. only taking 3 rods and one small tackle box.. hope I have enough action close in and won’t have to paddle more than a couple miles in any direction.. looking for snook, tarpon, redfish, trout.. will report back late tomorrow night good or bad.

Early start into the park this morning… wanted to see if anything laying in the roads before it gets busy… nothing to see so far, not even insects which should be swarming to my headlights.. this road looks washed clean as I’m not seeing where anything has left a greasy spot.. weird. About to lose connection.

I don't blame you for going the hotel route, nothing wrong with a little comfort after a full day of fishing.

fantastic

Fishing was great catching was tough… had my chances on tarpon early on topwater and missed all of them.. not big ones but up to 20 lbs. Had a big one scare me to death when it came up and blasted a DOA Baitbuster just as I lifted it out of the water. My first thought was I’m glad I didn’t hook up… all I could think was that fish would have torpedoed me. It banged my kayak as it was but really believe it would have put me in the waster with only two feet of line out… Caught a couple of tiny snook, and one redfish.. Lost a 10-12 lb snook near the marina coming back in.. It rained the last three hours and wearing waders and rain too I was totally soaked at end of day.. Off the water at 7:00, my not fish until late afternoon as it is suppose to storm again and I’m moving to the campground for a couples of nights.. Mosquitoes were horrendous even with deet and everything covered by waders and rain top.. they were going after my eyelids as that was the only place I didn’t have deet.













No internet at the campground so will be back in a few days.

You need a head net to stop the mosquitos.

I have three of them packed away 🤣

Had a long post and lost connection … can’t do it again.. Caught lots of small snook, trout, and tarpon in the back country… west lake.. totally different from yesterday.. glass calm, only one other boat on water that was leaving when I got there.. got into a feeding frenzy that lasted over an hour.. then the crocs joined the party…






Staying at the campground for the next week and won’t have internet except on days I drive into town for food.

Great pics!!

So when the crocodiles show up, do you leave?
Has a crocodile ever taken a fish you were reeling in?
Keep the pictures coming.

Nice pictures and thanks for sharing your journey. Be safe!!

No…when they show up I usually put rods down and get out camera… then move off a distance that I’m not tempting them.. I did throw a top water out of ones reach just to see what it would do… it turned and came fast enough that I got a little concerned I would lose my new rapala skitterwalk… had to jerk it out of the water and fly lure back to me. 😂 Haven’t done that in many years,, but never hooked one.. alligators are another story.

Headed back to area (west lake) this afternoon after getting blown off the water at Flamingo, yesterday..

map of area

https://goo.gl/maps/qFW8iuaMVMgUix256

closer look below of flamingo campground and west lake, I tried to paddle from campground to snake bight yesterday.. almost there before I got blown back to marina.

https://goo.gl/maps/pJEGvd8eiKp3JBp18

Long story but I had to leave park yesterday... left all my camping stuff at glam tent and stayed the night back in Florida City.. I've been bit my so many mosquitoes that all I can think about is scratching. Just the one night of tv (cowboy game) , hot shower, food, and no muggy swamp smell. Paddled 4 miles toward Snake Bight into strong wind yesterday morning.. would stake out and fish a little but the idea was to get to where I was going. So after three hours of paddling and resting... got blown off the water with approaching storms.. Only took an hour and a half to make it back to protected marina. Met some guys in boat that had come straight across from Islamorada because they can't stand to be around so many fishermen in that area. Only saw five other boats in the area I was headed and none got closer than a half mile of me until I paddled near the main channel.

You can catch these all day

Started using fish gripper after the day at west lake.. these saltwater fish will tear your hands up..



Osprey wouldn’t leave his perch as the wind had everyone beat.

Ready to hit west lake today… good sleep and hot shower..

Best Tackle shop within 100 miles of Flamingo and 5 minutes from where I stay in Florida City



Couldn’t find these anywhere I tried until I found them in stock at shop.

Taking today off.. need rest plus cold front coming thru and it’s windy and supposed to rain. Been fishing West Lake and killing the small tarpon and snook. Max 6 hp motor allowed on the lake and rarely anyone on the water. It’s been closed the last two years I’ve been down here for repairs to docks..











You really can’t imagine how tough these things are for ther size. Have had a couple hit right beside me as I lift bait from water and fly in and out of kayak. With top water plugs I’ve been lucky not to have gotten stuck.. makes me realize why targeting bigger fish might not be the best idea for me these days..

Awesome trip and thanks for keeping us in the loop. Question, ever eaten a snook? I’ve heard they are excellent table fare?

Thanks again for the updates and pics. Still jelly and good on ya’ for the updates Safe travels on the way home!

absolutely incredible
do you keep any?

Fished Flamingo Thursday... on the water around 9, had tarpon, snook, and redfish slam by 9:15. Caught all three on first 5 casts, got bit but missed on the other two. I didn't take any pics of fish except for jack. I landed 13 snook, 1 red, 1 tarpon, and 1 jack. Had been catching so many tarpon and snook at West Lake but was losing count when I would intentionally let them shake loose. Wanted to get a idea of how many fish I could actually land, hands on fish. I probably lost more than I landed Off the water early, packed up my tent and headed back into town. Visiting friends in Hollywood for a couple of days and then back to Flamingo Monday or Tuesday.


Earlier in the week at West Lake, near Flamingo. Incredible sights, sounds, and fishing.


No more tent city for me! :roflmao

:

I see the fan inside the Glamp tent. Do they provide it or did you bring your own?
Did you use the Thermacell in the Glamp tent or in the kayak?
It looks like the trip is half adventure, half fishing. I can see why you keep going back there.

Yes, tents all come with lighting.and electrical outlets.. it’s still off season as the mosquitos can be overwhelming on some days.. November 1st they start charging about $100 a night to stay in one. There are about 20 of them and now it’s only $50 a night but you furnish you’re on bedding.. They have just started putting new mattresses in them to get ready.. The cold front that came thru a couple of days ago made the mosquitoes disappear.. zero the last two days I was there.

I first fished there 19 years ago when I bought my first kayak..I quickly found it to be the most exciting place a kayaker could fish.. rarely fished with anyone as my buds were pretty much afraid of the place! I’m not kidding. Me, I get a thrill out of being scared .



Lighted walkway from parking lot to tents and restroom,showers.

The other morning I was awakened at 4:00a m by an explosion on the water from either a tarpon or shark.

Thermacell worked great in tent and in car… wherever you are that wind doesn’t blow the fumes away.. similar to burning a mosquito coil from what I’ve read.

Have only kept fish twice in 19 years.. caught a snook, redfish, and trout near the ramp at the end of day and since i was about to leave for home I didn’t have to ice them down all day.. ended up letting my old cat smoke give me his opinion on which tasted best… snook by a mile.

You need to stay home and do some yard work and fix your fence.

have someone doing my yard work and feeding my raccoons while I'm gone.. the fence is fine other than needing a coat of preserver... it can wait.





hope these guys are doing ok

Keep us updated. If the raccoons are still hanging around, they are doing fine.

I like those cabins. As for the racoons, I came across five of them on my mountain bike this morning. One actually bowed up and I thought he was going to jump me.

I've got one that bows up when I show her both my hands are empty and there is no more banana nut bread.

the last two days have been great... missed some camera shots when my i phone keeps telling me I have no more memory... have to use the big camera which I hate as I have to dig it out of bag as I keep it covered. Tried deleting a lot of old pictures but that only makes enough room to take a few pictures and then it tells me I'm out of storage ... over and over. My other camera I have to load to photo bucket, convert to jpeg, then download... Missed getting picture of python on the way back to motel tonight. New immediately what it was as it was on the road, half its body in plain sight as I drove past it and then turned around... it made a u turn and got into the grass.. I had my big camera with no flash as I ran to where I saw in and tried to herd it back on the road... Its wasn't having any part of that game and kept moving into the mangroves.It wasnt as large as the first one I saw but easily 10 feet.



At the ramp at West Lake yesterday... someone has been feeding this on as it followed me to the ramp when I was coming in.

. I'm worn out.. passed out while posting last night.



Flamingo, yesterday... caught a few snook and a redfish late, jumped 3 tarpon... two of them were in the 30 lb range which is about as much as I can handle these days.

Late start this morning... looking for a bonefish somewhere...

No go on finding a bonefish, fought jacks until I couldn't stand it anymore... it was hot and I guess my phone decided it wanted to go swimming. One more day of fishing and I think I'll be headed home.

thats hilarious

Last day of fishing … hope it’s a good one. Rods and reels all washed down and cleaned, leaders all changed back to 40 and 50 lb from the 12 lb leader I had switched to for bonefish… been up since 3 as I passed out around 7 last night.
Should be on the water 8:00…eastern time.

Didn’t know what to expect today… every day at west lake had been awesome.. today was a lot tougher as there weren’t near as many bites but did land 9 snook, 3 redfish, 2 trout, several Oscars, and jumped 3 tarpon landing the first one which I didn’t take picture of thinking I’d be catching them all day.. caught lady fish as well.. Met some nice guys on the water, saw 5 crocs.. planned to only fish until lunch but stayed until just before dark.. No mosquitoes today and beautiful drive out of the park.. Packing up, doing wash, and headed home..

I am glad you had a good finish to your trip. The pictures of the Redfish are amazing.

Another excellent LConn fishing trip

the ones in west lake look totally different from those in Flamingo, 7 miles away... much cleaner water in west lake, check out the spots on this one

.

Whew! ! ! I’m wore out from all that paddling and fishing and I wasn’t even there. Great Post as usual. Thanks for sharing.

I'm planning on being back down there in May for a couple of weeks, no firm date set... if anyone would like to join me post here or private message me.. if you plan on being down in the keys or miami area you're only an hour or two from the most incredible place I've ever found to be outdoors.

Met a handful of guys at the ramps or on the waters while there this trip.. from all over the world. Met one guy, Jim that I spoke to briefly on the water the first or second day.. spoke to him at the ramp another time, then on the third day.. we meet on the water and he says, "Louis, is that you?" We had met at Lake Fork, years ago, at the Tournament of Champions kayak tournament, had been friends on facebook for years and knew many of the same guys in kayak community... he is from Missouri. I had given him a swim bait and he remembered. He answered an ad online for seasonal work at Flamingo and rather than spend this winter in Missouri, snowed in, decided to come to Flamingo and work with the private company, that runs the marina, does the boat tours, built the eco tents where I stayed, and is building a hotel there. He stays at the lodging provided by the company and fishes from his kayak almost every day after work and days off.

Met a young man from Cuba.. just graduated from high school and is taking 6 months off before deciding what he will do next.. fish for a living as a guide at Flamingo or go to college. The kid has only been in the country 5 years with his parents, living in Miami and, speaks perfect English, Spanish, and Italian. He is now consumed with fishing Flamingo in his kayak and electric motor.

Met a couple of guys from Boca Raton kayak fishing that had never been there before.. enjoyed showing them a few places and hearing the loudest scream from a grown man I've ever heard. One of them had gotten bumped hard by something huge... probably either a manatee or shark.

Last day on the water I meet two guys... one that fishes Flamingo a lot... just bought a new boat (gheenoe), new 6 hp mercury (max hp for west lake), and this was his first outing in rig.. had with him a fellow from Peru... my mom's country of origin. Hit it off and spoke at the ramp way too long.. met on the water several times during a long day to check how the fishing was.. Could tell right off the bat .. Peru guy knew how to handle rod and reel, to my surprise. Found out later he was invited to fish for the Columbian team at the World Black Bass Championships that had just ended a few days earlier. He had said earlier that the U.S. fishermen had kicked [censored], but I didn't know he was a participant. Not sure he has fished much for bass but to be invited to represent another country, says a lot in my book.. Nice meeting you Pato!

https://usabass.org/2022-bbwc-usa

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100006690341042

Check out the monsters he has caught on facebook page above.

Beautiful fish..

My camera that went swimming is coming back to life today.. I can pull up my photos but it loses a charge fast.. taking pictures of pictures from that phone that weren’t saved in cloud..



This is the other side of redfish… over 50 spots total between the two sides and by far the most spots on any redfish I’ve ever caught or seen.

What is probably an abandoned refugee boat I came across in Biscayne Bay, near Turkey Point Nuclear Power plant. I’d fished the area only once about 15 years ago and security got on the bullhorn and told me to leave.. didn’t get so close this time where I took these pictures.. more than likely the boat was made in Cuba.. barrels for flotation.

What is probably a bull shark in West Lake the second time I fished it on this trip.. thought I wouldn’t ever see this picture as it was the one I wanted most in old phone

Harley Gheen and the Gheenoe - when I was stationed in Orlando met a friend that had a Gheenoe with the fan propulsion. Fun boat and could scoot across some of those areas choked with hydrilla. Thanks for the memories and really appreciate the pictures of what looks to be an incredible place.

Very popular boats in Florida.. I really like the Low Tide 25

https://www.customgheenoe.com/price-list

Thanks for posting, always enjoy your Flamingo reports.

I was in Jeff's shop the other day and the swimbaits he's made for you are dope.

He sent me some pictures! Should have them any day now..

Just wait until spring... I'm going to have a GoPro next time! Had so many battles that I have no record of. Had a big snook kick my butt... hooked one on edge of mangroves.. knew it was a monster when it took a little longer for it to get moving and it shot out into open water pulling me out with it..then it turned around on a dime and went under kayak as my kayak does a 180 trying to get rod around to other side of kayak.. rod bent around hull, foot jamming rudder pedal trying to help turn me around as fish never slowed down as if it weaved through roots as if it were wide open freeway. Knew I was in trouble with drag on new shimano stradic 5000 screaming. It pulled me under low hanging mangrove trees, snapping my visacarbon 360 light and flag pole at the base of flushmount, pulled my rod into roots, my hand holding spinning rod, arm pulled straight out and into roots with it, reel under water when it busted me off.. 30 lb braid to 50 leader. That's what i go to Flamingo for. Had a tarpon in the 60 to 80 lb range come up for my bait when I lifted it out of the water, banging kayak so hard I was glad I did't hook up. It would have been disaster.

Just saw this video taken on the road to Flamingo

https://ftw.usatoday.com/2023/01/footage-giant-burmese-python-crossing-florida-road-stirs-emotions

No thanks

https://floridasportfishing.com/tip...FXIwLC2WkP2V1GFC7GsKxrcrk1eHbgM-XhTGRdlw

I'm getting the urge again... don't know if I can wait until middle of May.

Im ready for you to go too just for the recap and pics!! lol

40 more days and counting... found this article about supposedly the largest crocodile in the Everglades.. I've never seen it but drive by 9 Mile Pond every trip to Flamingo... Caught a few bass there fishing from the bank last year. My favorite place, West Lake is only two miles from it and seven miles from Flamingo.

https://www.newsweek.com/huge-crocodile-dubbed-croczilla-biggest-everglades-florida-1792433

Pythons can make good gas money.
https://www.sfwmd.gov/our-work/python-program

I don't mind kayaking with gators but I don't want to be anywhere close to crocs.

interesting... I saw three last trip down there... longest about 10 foot. Lots of folks hunting them from the highway leading to Flamingo once the sun goes down.

my old friend Flex.. saw him coming out of the Everglades a couple of years ago when I was there... have known him for probably 20 years. He is a kayak paddler, have never seen him with a fishing pole. He probably knows more about camping in the Everglades than anyone in the world... most of the time paddling alone but often joins some of the paddling groups that do trips to different areas. Always looking for new areas to explore and things to learn about the history of the area.

https://kayakfari.wordpress.com/trips-sea-stories-pics/camping-hell-in-the-ten-thousand-islands/

Oh and for anyone that thinks they can paddle, here is a race you might want to do.

https://www.watertribe.com/events/evergladeschallenge/

might want to put a bat wing on your kayak.. its allowed and could come in handy on a 300 mile race

http://www.baloghsaildesigns.com/batwing.html#

I know the original post was from last year, but I just saw it. Thanks for sharing that!! That was really cool, good luck on the next adventure!

Well it's almost time.. leaving this coming Saturday the 13th... and hope to be fishing by Tuesday the 16th.. can't decide where to fish first (flamingo everglades or anywhere in south florida (miami to jupiter inlet) since choosing to fish the offshore tournament.The best tides for Flamingo start the 15th and fishing there is why I planned those dates a while back. I can pick any two days in the month of May to fish tournament according to weather or convenience. Since there isn't any place to park a trailer where I'll be launching for the tournament, I'm leaving the trailer at home and only taking one kayak. Was hoping to have two with one hooked up with trolling motor for Flamingo, but it makes things too complicated this trip and don't really like the idea of pulling a trailer 1300 miles one way.

Dania Beach is where I used to fish offshore, near Hollywood, Fl... you can launch just past the Dania Beach pier in area where beach goers know is for kayak launching. Will probably try to catch live bait on pier before launching as pier is open 24/7. Been a long time since fishing offshore and I'm hoping its flat calm.



Been doing spring cleaning at the house since I've had a bunch of stuff going on with canoe, kayak, trolling moter, new graph, and work. Haven't even thought about fishing in a couple of weeks.. I'm beat already.

All cleaned up

I’ve seen lots of videos of guys doing well launching out of Dania. Looks like water gets deep fast.

I never had a depth finder on the kayak back then but I believe the first reef is around 20', the second 50', and the third reef 150'. About two miles out to the third reef and then it starts dropping about a 100 feet per mile ... was out on a calm day 6 miles one time and guy in boat told me we were in over 600'. hoping I can stay between the second and third reef where I've had the best luck on kingfish.

Awesome thread!

Made it to my usual place I stay in Florida City, near Homestead and about 50 miles from Flamingo. Unpacked, picking out what all I'll be using tomorrow.. rods, reels, and baits. Stopped by BassPro in Clearwater and bought some heavier gear for this trip.. Usually use just bass gear.. I'm going for bigger fish this trip.. in Flamingo and offshore. Mounted a Shimano Sargosa 6000 with over 260 yards of 30lb braid to 50 lb leader to 8' fast tip, medium heavy StCroix Avid spinning rod rated 14 to 40 lbs.. Sargosa has 22 lb drag. I might get pulled out of my kayak this trip if I hook a big one. I've never enjoyed using heavy to me rods and reels.. it can get scary. oh well.. will try to report back tomorrow late on first day.

just headed out the door to get something to eat... 7 shots fired

Awesome set up!

Good stuff!

What is the baitcasting setiup?

It was a 7’ St Croix Avid Inshore with Shimano Tranx 400.. Damn snook kicked my tail and busted that rod this morning..

Had alarm set for 4:30 a.m. don’t remember turning it off or maybe I set it around 1:00a.m. but didn’t turn it on.. Was up late trying to figure out go pro.. gave up and left it at motel. On the water around 9:30.. incoming tide.. wished I been on the water as planned because the snook were biting.. and I was prepared for battle. Most in 20 to 24 inch range but had a monster bust me off when it wrapped me around my stake out pole.. seriously I rarely use it but was fishing a cut that I’ve fished for years and the snook are going to drag you into the mangrove roots . I’m anchored with stake out pole and anchor trolley.. hook a big one… drags me in a circle with bow of kayak pointing to stake out pole and I’m fighting fish behind me.. with or without being anchored this fish was getting away.. scratch one doa bait buster.. Tie on another and catch a few more.. miss several.. I’m fishing around a spoil island, then paddle on further to the next one.. same deal, snook everywhere.. can hear splashing and screaming by boater with kids that are battling them too ..Spoke to them later and the sharks were attacking the snook they were catching.. I ended up landing 8 snook, 2 jacks, and several lady fish.. almost went home at 2:00 pm as I was happy in spite of breaking rod. Beautiful day on the water.















Checked out West Lake on the way out.. don’t think I want to fight mosquitoes there.. may rest or look for an ugly stick tomorrow.

I am sorry to hear that. I am afraid that if I went to the Everglades, the fish would tear up half my gear and the salt water would finish off the rest. I have a Daiwa BG2500 that would probably survive if it didn’t get spooled.

Stopped on side of road looking for alligators on the drive from park entrance to Flamingo.. smallest alligator I’ve ever seen.


Another pic of big snook I posted earlier.. I took some [censored] phots yesterday.. was afraid it might kick phone out of my hand like last year.


Great weather yesterday.. sunny early and then got cloudy and light showers to cool off.. temp low 80s with light breeze.


Friendliest crows you’ll ever see


I’ve been up since 3:00 after passing out early yesterday.. may have to sleep some more as tackle shop won’t be open for a while.

Oh man that sounds like my luck.

Another late start .. on the water around 12:30. started out throwing the doa baitbuster and hooked up quick.. Stayed near small spoil island and caught 13 snook, a jack lady fish and a trout.. lost a bunch as I loosened drags and wasn’t in any hurry to get fish in… and risk breaking another rod.. still almost broke one when fish pulled me into mangrovesz, jumped and got my line hung up over a limb..






















Might fish somewhere else tomorrow.. got mosquito bit bad today and haven’t even seen a tarpon or redfish in two days.. Mosquitoes were unbearable today.

Really great pics and hope you find some big ones tomorrow.

Been resting up the last two days.. headed to Hollywood/Dania Beach for offshore kayak tournament.. stopped on the way there for a couple of hours along Tamiami Trail to fish canal.. fished it once before on earlier trip to flamingo but didn’t stay long.. heard there should be peacocks, snook and tarpon from one of the guys that fishes it from bank.. sun was out today, I knew I could walk along bank and see them if they were there. No snook or tarpon sighted but lots of peacocks.. caught a small one fast and was going to leave but säw a more representative size of what you can usually catch..



Took five minutes to catch first one, above.




Much better… took half an hour to catch her as she was locked on bed.. switched baits three times before retying rapala back on.

incredible
great pics of fish & sky
hope you catch a whale

I could watch the sky here all day.. changes constantly as the Everglades creates its own weather.

Pretty darn cool there LConn.

Those Peacock Bass are beautiful fish. 3 stripes and a dot, green over orange.

no way really ?

I cast out on right side, reeling in, get blasted by big snook, I set hook hard and have good hookset but fish is already close and shoots directly under kayak.. I am reeling in as fast as I can while trying to lower rod and fish never slowed down as it went under kayak and I was basically high sticked. Ive never tried to muscle these snook out like I did this trip and thats what the downside is. Will go back to losing big ones the old fashioned way. That rod was only a year old and what I caught my 12.8 bass on.

great story

https://fb.watch/lnrFd_bsz0/

Its that time of year again... been checking the tides for December... looks like I should start fishing around the 12th, got clearance from work and all systems go.


recently found this picture while reading about the history of Flamingo, Everglades.

museum at Flamingo.. has been going through a big renovation for years... have seen the place get blown away twice by hurricanes.. getting really upgraded this time around.. 20 years ago you had to go into a small room that had a car wash type air blower that blasted all the mosquitoes off you before you could enter the main building.

New restaurant finally finished and hotel built in Oklahoma out of storage containers... guess they would know best about trailers getting blown away.

https://www.nps.gov/ever/planyourvisit/gbvc.htm

https://www.flickr.com/photos/evergladesnps/albums/72177720311504071

My December 2023 Flamingo vacation.. the good the bad and the ugly..

It started off bad… the night before scheduled departure my trusty yak hauler bit the dust..


Just as I’ve gotten back into Jacksonville from last business appointment I hear a loud pop and big metal parts banging… I pull over into vacant parking lot in downtown and call for a tow truck.. 30 minutes later I’ve been hauled home.. could have been a lot worse as it could have happened on the road to south Florida.

I spend the next three days looking at vehicles to replace iit as transmission shop can’t even look at it for two weeks…finally find one, spend two more days getting a rack ordered and installed.. on the road again.

It rains for about the first 8 hours of trip and then clears for a couple of hours then solid rain for 6 more hours..I never checked the weather as it is not going to change by looking.. make it to Chokoloskee, the west coast entrance into the Everglades after 3 hour nap at rest stop somewhere near Tallahassee and 27 hours from when I left home..wanted to check conditions as the weather system that blew through ahead of me was just short of a named tropical storm with straight line winds to 60 mph.



See this fellow in middle of road … never had seen one in that part of Florida in 25 years of living and fishing that area.. thinking this was going to be a great trip as sun is shinning..

Chokolloskee was flooded bad… from rains and storm surge of 3 feet which flooded the area.. roads were flooded and almost couldn’t get to ramp at chokosloskee island resort where I normally stay a day or two to fish on way back home each trip..



Old courthouse parking lot flooded.. One look at the water.. white capping mud and I decided I wouldn’t be stopping here to fish on the way home.. it was ugly.



Cut across Tamiami Traill (hwy 41) instead of the route shown, to get from west coast entrance to Everglades to Flamingo southern entrance.. more later

Looks like a rough start to a vacation. Hope it gets better. Stay safe.

Thank goodness it’s over.. I’m exhausted… glad to be home and resting… Will never vaca in Florida in months of Dec, Jan, Feb, usually windy and this time windy and cold..

Wowwwww. Rough start. It’ll get better when ya get into the fish. Can’t wait to see more.

The fishing was the worst I’ve ever experienced! 🤣 All but one day was windy, too windy for my taste.. took a chance and made a two mile paddle across open bay in the backcountry to a place I’d never been and winds picked up dramatically on the paddle there… to the point where instead of fishing for three hours after getting there.. was trying to figure out how much energy it would take to maintain a 1/2 mph paddling speed against the wind… which would have taken 4 hours to get back in the dark. Only fished a half hour and started back in.. luckily the wind let up and all ended well but I had already figured I was going to have to stay overnight on the water in a protected area.



The picture above was going there when wind first picked up… they aren’t big waves because the water is only a 4 or 5 deep..

Pictures are really really slow to load and can only take it for so long before giving up.

The best part of this trip was taking bird pictures... they were so beat up from the winds that they would be roosting in the same lee side of islands as I was hiding out.

easier than loading pictures again: https://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/14935108/1

Thought this was going to end my day of fishing.


Always good to be able to make it back in before dark.

That wasn't one of your better trips. But at least you got in a little fishing and made it back safely. Sorry to hear about the breakdown.

Now that I’ve had more time to think about it and fully rested, it wasn’t that bad. my usual motel I stay at had one last room for me as the place was packed during the holidays and I never make reservations ahead of time… met a really nice guy that asked if his kids were making too much noise.. I was outside my room smoking.. I told him.. nope.. they can laugh and scream as loud as they want.. as long as it drowned out the gun shots from the neighborhood.. come to find out he was from Washington DC and had stopped for one night before taking his family down to Key West the next day. He was from Slovenia, a diplomat, working at the embassy in DC.. this would be his third assignment.. for next four years.. his previous assignments were for four years in Beijing and 4 years in Moscow.. he must have read my mind as he said he wasn’t a spy.

The next night I’m out of my room to smoke and see a guy sleeping, passed out standing up.. eyes closed. I watched him a while before asking him if everything was ok.. he finally woke up, nodded, and left.. Didn’t understand how he kept his balance as he wasn’t leaning against building..


Super 8 in Florida City, near Homestead.

“The next night I’m out of my room to smoke and see a guy sleeping, passed out standing up.. eyes closed. I watched him a while before asking him if everything was ok.. he finally woke up, nodded, and left.. Didn’t understand how he kept his balance as he wasn’t leaning against building..”

Now THIS would have been a good picture. 🤣🤣🤣

Ok was just reading the ratings on the this place and one guy gave it a low rating because of all the hookers in the area..


Stopped off at the pier in Hollywood one night Dania beach pier… windy there too.



Stop in at the local circle k at 5:30 a.m for snacks and drinks one morning.. as I get to door I open it for a guy that is coming out with his hands full of beer.. hear lady screaming every f bomb names as he leaves, saying nothing.. I felt sorry for him until I find out he has just walked out with several six packs of beer and snacks.. Lady running store locks the door behind me.. Find out the guy regularly stops by and does his shopping then leaves without paying.. She always calls the police,.. he is always gone on foot by the time they get there.. She was especially mad this time because she said he was calling her every name in the book while grabbing his beer..Cops get there while I was there.. about 3 minutes.. it’s happening in a lot of places..

Wind. . . Rain. . . Wet Clothes. . . Robbers. . . Bears. . . Can’t say it wasn’t uneventful 😬😬😬

Met a guy one day that has the fishing disease bad.. semi retired from government job.. his brother a commercial fisherman. He had stopped by the Tamiami Trail to fish for bass/peacocks for the first time .. I was there to fish the bank as I didnt feel like fighting the winds.. this guy and his brother know Roland Martin pretty well.. He taught them how to catch monster shiners in the lake they fish further north .. dump pig pellets, come back in an hour, throw cast net.. Roland refers to him and his brother as the Shiner Brothers... and told them if you want to catch big bass, you gotta have big shiners.. I thought it was hilarious that Roland would say that. My new friend was using artificial baits this day.

I havent mentioned it but I fished for bass one morning with a friend I met last year at Flamingo... had been facebook friends with him for several years before meeting him in person on the water by accident last trip... he had said the fishing at Flamingo had been tough the last month and recommended we fish one of the nearby freshwater ponds for bass on his day off.. he works for Flamingo Adventures for several months of the year, then moves to other popular destinations during the different tourist seasons around the country. He told me he had caught an 8 lb bass in the pond last year and had seen some monster snook in it.. I took my graph with me just to get an idea how deep the place was.. he said it was 10/12 feet which would be very deep for that area... deeper than any of the channels within miles of flamingo that I normally fish. Couldnt believe when I found water 24 feet deep... didnt realize there was any water that depth anywhere in the everglades... I guarantee you not many fisherman know that...as hardly anyone fishes that lake.. usually just kayaker tourists out for a paddle.. did a little research and found out the Buttonwood Canal was dug out in the early 1900s.. wouldnt be surprised if they used the equipment to dig out this lake as the stuff I saw on my graph was eyeopening.. I will fish it again next time and mark some of the steep drop offs and rock piles.

cant get any pictures to load.. will try again later

Did catch some bass that morning throwing 5 inch swim bait.. my friend caught bass and a small peacock there.. will be my go to place out of the wind next time as my closest place to Flamingo for peacocks was almost two hours away..



I still can’t figure out what this was… only picture I have of my graph while fishing the freshwater lake.. thought it was an alien space ship. After seeing the video of aliens at Miami mall I am more convinced..

Truly an adventure!