Florida Tarpon Fishing

Homosassa tarpon fishing carries a kind of Old Florida history that very few fisheries can match. Long before modern social media and destination marketing, Homosassa was already legendary among serious tarpon anglers and pioneering fly fishermen.

Names like Lefty Kreh and Stu Apte helped build the mystique around sight-fishing for giant tarpon along Florida’s Nature Coast, where clear Gulf water, shallow flats, tidal rivers and expansive coastal habitat create one of the most visually impressive places in the state to hunt the Silver King.

The fishery is especially known for large migratory tarpon moving through the Homosassa and Crystal River region during the warmer months, but the appeal goes well beyond one seasonal run. Homosassa combines historic tarpon culture with redfish, snook, trout, cobia and other Nature Coast opportunities, all wrapped in a part of Florida that still feels noticeably different from the more developed fisheries farther south.

For anglers who appreciate tradition, technical fishing and a true Old Florida atmosphere, Homosassa remains one of the most important tarpon destinations on the Gulf Coast.

Read more about the evolution of Homosassa tarpon fishing and the legendary fly anglers who helped define the fishery. Read the Article via the Link below. Courtesy of ...

June 12, 2018 | Outdoors, Reel Time

The evolution of Homosassa tarpon fishing

By Rusty Chinnis

Florida Everglades

Ten Thousand Islands and Everglades tarpon fishing has a mystique that is hard to match anywhere in Florida outside of the Keys.

From Chokoloskee and Everglades City to the sprawling maze of mangrove islands, rivers, bays and backcountry shorelines, this is not one fishery so much as hundreds of little fisheries stitched together.

Whitewater Bay alone is legendary, while the greater Everglades backcountry includes famous waters associated with generations of serious shallow-water anglers, including the Hell’s Bay / Flip Pallot era of Florida flats fishing.

Juvenile tarpon, resident fish and larger migratory tarpon can all become part of the picture depending on season, location and conditions, often alongside snook, redfish and other classic South Florida inshore species.

What makes the 10,000 Islands and Everglades especially interesting is the sheer amount of fishable country and the number of small, highly productive zones that experienced local captains learn over years on the water.

Areas around Chokoloskee, Whitewater Bay and the deeper Everglades backcountry reward anglers who understand tides, moving water, creeks, shorelines and the subtle differences between seemingly identical pieces of mangrove habitat.

Guides such as Capt. Mark Bennett continue to work this broad South Florida ecosystem, while generations of respected flats anglers, including fishermen associated with the early Flats Class world, helped build its reputation.

For anglers who want something wilder than the typical resort fishery, the Everglades may be Florida’s ultimate combination of tarpon fishing, backcountry exploration and Old Florida adventure.

Everglades National Park

Local fishing report: Fishing the 10,000 Islands in December →

Jacksonville and Northeast Florida tarpon fishing is a different animal from the classic clear-water fisheries farther south. The darker water, powerful tides and massive St. Johns River system create a fishery where tarpon can move between river, inlet, beach and nearshore environments, often behaving very differently from fish on a Keys flat or Gulf Coast pass.

Around Mayport, the St. Johns empties into the Atlantic through a pair of major jetties, while summer bait concentrations and the activity around Jacksonville’s working shrimp fleet can create explosive feeding opportunities. Tarpon also turn up farther inside the river system, including urban stretches around Jacksonville, but the real appeal is the variety rather than any single secret spot.

The Northeast Florida tarpon corridor extends well beyond Jacksonville.

To the north, Nassau Sound, Amelia Island and St. Marys Inlet can produce exceptional summer tarpon fishing, with fish following bait and later the fall mullet migration through these heavily tidal coastal systems.

Local fishing sources have documented large tarpon at both Nassau and St. Marys inlets, and Nassau Sound is a recognized tarpon fishery in its own right.

Head south and the broader First Coast continues through Ponte Vedra and St. Augustine, adding beaches, inlets, rivers and marsh country to an already diverse fishery.

When conditions line up, Northeast Florida can deliver the kind of concentrated tarpon action that feels completely out of proportion to how little attention this part of the state receives compared with Boca Grande or the Keys.