Florida Sportsman May 2018

Last month my youngest son, Drew, brought me pan-fried snook, one of my favorites. I’d been dry-docked for a while, recovering from the consequences of a fall. The fish was white as snow and couldn’t have been more delicious. Drew and his friend, Tom, have been into some of the best snook fishing I’ve heard of in more than 40 years. Man do they catch them—fishing at night, pulling these jigs about a foot under the water, really slow. I remember years when snook were not that common. Back in the 1950s, Florida took snook off the market. The story is, they traded with the commercial fishermen to allow market mullet fishing during roe season. It was sort of a ruse, because snook were not that desirable by netters, because…

Google Maps has a pin there. But is it really Lake X? Is it really the legendary lake where Carl Kiekhaefer’s team completed the “around the world” endurance run in 1957? Two boats, with 75 hp Mercury engines, 4,526 laps, 25,003 miles. For 34 days, they ran night and day, refueled on the fly, changed drivers on the fly! Company history indicates Kiekhaefer had spotted the lake from the air, then bought it as a secret test facility. For decades, it was rumored to be in Central Florida. Performance boaters craved the “Dialed in at Lake X” decal. Mercury recently announced a return to Lake X, at the same time spotlighting the company’s new 3.4L V6 Four Stroke series. This prompted Florida Sportsman staff into undertaking a little “covert” investigation.…

Mercury Marine 3.4L V-6 Four Stroke New for 2018 from Mercury, this lineup of V-6 four stroke engines (175, 200, 225 hp) represents the company’s largest displacement motors in this class. At 475 pounds, it’s also the lightest in its class (including two strokes and four cylinders). A performance inspired four valve, DOHC quad cam design reaches higher speeds, faster, while maintaining RPM regardless of load or condition change. Advanced Range Optimization (ARO) and Closed-Loop Fuel Control technology working together adjust fuel mixture delivering peak efficiency. A top cowl “service door” makes oil check and fills simple without removing the cowling. An idle speed charger produces 20 amps of output at 650 RPM keeping batteries topped off while operating electron-ics and bait pumps at idle/slow speed all day. A unique,…

Reefs give up some quality gags and scamps this time of year, particularly spots deeper than 120 feet. Captain Robert Johnson of Jodie Lynn charters in St. Augustine has been counting the days until the May 1 reopening of shallow water grouper season in Atlantic waters. “Sometimes it’s hard to grouper fish with mahi swimming around your boat, but our stretch of offshore reefs can give up some really quality gags and scamps this time of year, particularly on spots deeper than 120 feet,” he said. Johnson’s favorite rig? A modified fishfinder with an 8- to 16-ounce sinker; weight depends on the current. The rig consists of an egg sinker sliding on an 18-inch piece of 100-pound mono between two swivels. A 6-foot piece of 100-pound mono leads to a…

I recently found myself in a tight spot, that being on my skiff. I had the perfect two-man setup: a lightweight, simple tiller boat. I could get into the deepest backcountry spots and, predominantly fly fishing, I found the stealth of my little microskiff perfect. I have family members and friends whom I love taking out on the boat, but require a more stable platform. I also have a newborn daughter. Stepping up to a little bigger boat offered a safer option for her, and some evolving priorities of my own, together, ultimately helped me decide on the boat that is in my garage today. LAYOUT When it comes to skiffs, I live by the S.C.E. rule: simple, clean, effective. When working with 16 to 18 feet of boat, every…

Pitching is an essential skill for effectively fishing shallow cover. The technique allows you to deliver a bait to a specific spot smoothly and accurately. Pitching is done with a disengaged reel. As with flipping, pointing the rodtip low and then thrusting it forward establishes momentum and trajectory; except with pitching, the bait travels farther on the open reel. Now, here’s where Elite Bass-master pro Randall Tharp makes a key distinction. Pitching anglers often palm the bait while dipping the rodtip. A common misconception says that this grip is intended to lightly load the rod, but Tharp said that’s simply not the case. “The advantage of holding that bait in my hand is that it remains very still and I’m able to make a super-accurate cast,” he said. When fishing…