Fishing Friday: Fly Fishing The Everglades By Paddle
By: John Kumiski
In the everglades backcountry you may encounter the American crocodile, Crocodylus acutus.
You will find the largest wilderness in the southeastern United States in Everglades National Park. Brackish marsh, tidal creeks of all sizes, saltwater ponds, expansive bays, breathtaking beaches, grass flats, oyster bars, mazes of islands, the open Gulf of Mexico—the range of habitats here will astonish you. You sift through all these places as you watch the wind and tide, searching for snook, tarpon, redfish, and many other fish that make their homes here.
The author with one on the hook. This turned out to be a snook.
Limited lodging exists in the park in Flamingo. When I visit, I stay in a tent, usually somewhere in the backcountry. Be ready for blazing sun! Be ready for biting insects! You can choose to set up a base camp from which to explore, or you can camp at various backcountry locations.
Almost any type of vessel will work if you use it to its best advantage. I've used canoes, kayaks, jonboats, and flats skiffs as my transport mode through the years, and have enjoyed all of them. While the boat choice is yours, my recent trips have all been by paddle.
On one trip, my son Alex and I took the canoe out of Flamingo. We paddled it into a tiny, out-of-the-way pond. Baby tarpon rolled everywhere. They went crazy for a small, white gurgler. Alex jumped a dozen or so, only landing two after battles where the fish spent more time in the air than in the water. One fish got hung in the mangroves, shaking off the fly after a minute, and forcing us into the mosquito-filled trees to retrieve line and fly.
On another trip son Maxx and I took a canoe out from Flamingo on a sunny winter day, paddling it to a shallow bay. Snook cruised in water that barely covered them. They terrorized the local mosquitofish population. Maxx threw a tiny crease fly at those snook, and enough fish nailed it to give Maxx a very memorable day's fishing.
Maxx Kumiski fooled this snook with a small Crease Fly.
My most recent trip was with Mike Conneen, out of Everglades City on I took a multi-day kayak camping trip. On day two we paddled through a shallow, muddy pond, seeing and spooking snook periodically. We did not see the ten-foot crocodile Mike paddled his boat into until it went water-skiing across the surface of the pond. Thankfully it was even more frightened than we were! Later that day we came across a place where a tidal creek emptied into a salt pond on the rising tide. The place was lousy with snook, and a few redfish and crevalle jacks crashed the party too. Even with muddy water the fishing was outstanding. Later on that same trip, we fished a shoreline and grass flat in Florida Bay. The water was clear, the fish spooky. We had shots at lots of snook and redfish, only fooling a few. We found it challenging, yet satisfying.
I love the everglades so much!
While this red was a pretty good one, you could run into a fish like this any time you fish in the everglades.
Timing: the everglades are sub-tropical. My favorite time to visit is between Thanksgiving and Christmas, because the place is deserted then. But any time between November and April is good. From April to October, it's real hot and real buggy—not recommended.
Let's end with a few notes on tackle. Most saltwater fly fishers use the standard eight-weight, floating line outfit. For shallow water fishing, I find that gear too heavy (especially for baby tarpon), but go with what's comfortable. Big fish are found here and the chance of hooking a freight train is real.
For shallow water fishing, a fluorocarbon bite tippet from 20 to 30 pound test is recommended. Fish will sometimes wear through it, causing loss of fish along and fly. Heavier tippets equal fewer bites, but you land more of the fish you hook. It's a balancing act. Flies range in size from little #6 mosquitofish imitations to 1/0 streamers. Be able to cover the water column. Have flies that imitate small fish, shrimp, and crabs, and have some attractors that don't imitate anything. Don't forget surface flies like poppers or gurglers. Sharks will take some of your hooked fish. Don't be shocked.
The everglades are wild, not for everyone. But be warned, if you visit you may be hooked. It's a wonderfully incurable disease.
John Kumiski is a has been fishing, exploring, and enjoying the outdoor for 40 years. He was a longtime fishing guide in FL. He is the author of Fishing Florida by Paddle-An Angler’s Guide, which can be purchased HERE.
