Headed to Marathon Florida for the Tarpon

[theangler]

Hello All,
I am headed to Marathon Florida for Tarpon early next month, anyone know how the bite has been, or have you fished that area before?

Anyone who has any info will be appreciated.

I will be fishing with Rode Runner Guide Service. The plan is either 2 days of Tarpon fishing or 1 day of tarpon and one day of wreck fishing for grouper and yellowtail.
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[ShakeyFly]

I just finished fishing Marathon 2 weeks ago. It was a blast! The tarpon fishing was pretty incredible. I did not use a guide service, just went with a bunch of friends who had fished there before. We fished the Bahia Honda flats for cuda, jacks, and bone. We fished the bridges late at night for Tarpon. There is a bridge that is located off the main road (route 1?) right next to a marina, near the Tiki bar, that at night sounds like bowling balls being tossed off the bridge due to the jumping tarpon. Incredible fishing, considering they are jumping no more than 25 feet in front of you.

I am sure the guide service will get you into fish, as we got into fish just fine shore casting.
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[tubeN2]

Good luck down there theangler. I hope you catch some nice Kodak Candy.[cool]
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[SC_flyguy]

I need a ride!!!! JK Have fun and good luck
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[tubeN2]

He should have given us all a ride. Then we cold have picked up Tarpon4me on the way.[cool]
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[Tarpon4me]

Man, that sure would be nice. I haven't had the chance to actually target tarpon in a long time. Not much to be said of tarpon where I live now. I've hooked a few on accident with a live mullet along the reef, but that's about it.

I will say this Mike, don't be discouraged if you break a few off. The catch/hook-up percentage isn't the best. They have very hard mouths, which make for a hard hook set. They are also very acrobatic, kinda like a 100 pound lady fish, and that makes for quick broken equipment.

I would say you might have a better time targeting the smaller tarpon than trying to find a monster. And also, don't pass up on a bottom fishing trip. Nothing breaks the back like a big group'dawg. [cool]
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[ShakeyFly]

I hooked into a good size tarpon down there by the bridges (estimate 80 - 90 pounder) then immediately into a Jack that peeled off a hundred or so yards. The clicker on my Salt Striker exploded and seized up my retrieve.

I was using a white shad/worm plastic lure with 3/4ounce jig head. My friend uses live crab attached to a float.

I hooked into probably 9 - 10 in one night. Did not land one.
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[Tarpon4me]

LOL, there you go. Those fish are hard going. If you don't have the right equipment, it's hard to land them. The first no-no is the use of braid line, unless you have a nice top shot of mono. I always used atleast 6/0 sized reels with atleast 50'b mono. I like large live bait hooks and heavy mono leaders. Crab is a great bait, along with a live mullet. They are a sucker for mullet. [cool]
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[ShakeyFly]

agree on the mono. I was using 25 pound braid(I normally use light tackle), and when I saw one jump bigger than me, and made a splash that sounded like a toyota fell off the bridge, I switched to a 40 pound mono leader of 6 feet length, and hoped like hell for the best lol.

It worked, they kicked the hooks, and lines and knots all held up.
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[tubeN2]

I have only 3 words for hard mouthed fish:


[size 5]V M C Hooks Rock!!

[/size][size 5][black][size 3]Those are some of the best hooks for the price on the market.

Twice the amount of hooks than Owner, Sharper than Matsuo, Stronger than the Mustad 9174s and puts Hyabusa to shame.[cool]
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