Flyfishing the Florida Keys with Capt. John Spear TARPON
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| Feeding Tarpon
The most common mistake that I see anglers do over and over again is stripping the fly as soon as it hits the water. Sometimes this is required but more often it is not. On the ocean where currents are strong moving the fly too much will scare the tarpon. Tying flies with material that breath and undulate in the water is sometimes all the movement that is needed. After you cast observe the fish's reaction to your fly. Don't be in a hurry to strip the fly out of the sight of the fish. Vary your strips - small twitches mixed in with a 4 or 5 inch pulls and pauses. You must react to the fish's reactions. It is like dangling a string in front of a kitten. Tease the fish and make him eat. Listen to your guide. Most times he has a better angle due to the height of the polling platform and can see the fly and the fish better. When feeding fast moving tarpon it is sometimes necessary to strip the fly quickly. In these situations where the fish is coming up from behind the fly quickly if he opens his mouth to eat don't strip the fly out of his mouth. Stop stripping - the fish's momentum will ensure that the fly goes all the way in. On laid up fish let the fly sink. When the fish reacts to the fly give it a small twitch or two. Watch the fish. Many times they will give a little tail wag open that huge mouth a suck that fly in like a piece of loose pasta. Now for the hardest part of tarpon feeding - keeping the hook stuck in the tarpons mouth. A tarpon has a mouth like a cinderblock. There are not a lot of places for a fly to easily penetrate. Tarpon have a terrible under bite. When they eat they will close their mouth and usually will roll their head up and to the side. You MUST WAIT for the tarpon to turn or you will just pull the fly out of his mouth with a strike. This action is just the opposite of trout fishing. When trout fishing a quick strike is necessary to keep the fish from spitting the fly. In tarpon fishing a quick strike is a lost fish. This strike reaction is sometimes very hard for the new saltwater angler to control - especially since the bites are so visual. Try to stay calm and remember to WAIT. After a tarpon eats your fly keep stripping the fly until the line comes tight - then keep stripping till you feel like there is a car on the other end. When you can no longer strip line then it is time it strike the fish with either a strip strike or a sideways jab of the rod or both. NEVER lift the rod towards the sky to get a strike. I like to set the hook with a strip strike while sweeping the rod to the side and holding as much tension as I can. The fish will react by shaking his head. I keep the rod tip down, rod bent and pointing to the side while making the tarpon pull the line from my left hand. This action buries the hook in the hard bony mouth of the tarpon. This method usually results in a nice line burn on the fingers of your left hand if you hold the line a little too tightly but the good hook set is well worth it. When I have 4 or 5 welts on my left index finger I know it was a good day. The easiest way to practice your hook sets is with a chitilian scale. Tie the scale off to a fence or a tree. Rig you rod and tie your shock tippet to the scale. Stand back approx 40 to 50 feet and start practicing you strikes. See how many pounds of pressure you put on that scale. You will be surprised to see how few pounds of pull can exert with just the rod. The strip strike will probably deliver twice the setting force of a bent rod alone. Knowing how hard you can strike and not break off the fish is the key to successful hooking and fighting the fish.
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Copywrite: 2000 Capt John Spear
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