Flyfishing the Florida Keys with Capt. John Spear TARPON
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| Tarpon Tackle
Tarpon are big powerful fish and require top-notch tackle. I recommend a 12wt. tarpon fly rod with a good stiff butt section. To end the fight quickly you need to be able to put maximum pressure on the fish and this requires a good rod with backbone. You will need a reel that is capable of holding 250 to 350 yards of 30lb test backing plus a 12 wt. weight forward floating line. Your reel must have a great drag and be able to stand up to the demands of a 150-pound fish. I like to use a scientific anglers floating tarpon taper line. I also use a clear mono core slow sink as well as a full sinking line if the situation dictates. A floater will cover 90% of your fishing needs. I use a 7 to 9 foot butt section of 50 pound test clear Ande to which I attach my tippet. My tippet usually consists of 17 inches of 16lb test hard mason with a bimini twist at either end. You may put a double surgeons loop in the bimini and attach it to the butt with a loop to loop connection or tie it directly to the butt with a uni-knot. You must use a shock tippet on tarpon. I recommend using 80 to 100 pound Ande or fluorocarbon. The fluorocarbon is expensive but has a smaller diameter and is more transparent in the water. I attach my shock to the bimini twist with a Huffnagle Knot. I attach my fly to the shock tippet with a Homer Rhodes loop knot. I sometimes snell my flies to the shock tippet. A loop knot will give the fly more action and get more bites but a snelled fly seems to produce a better hook up ratio. If you want to tie your own tippets I recommend getting a copy of Lefty Kreh and Mark Sosin's book "Practical Fishing Knots". This book has a lot of info on this very important part and the weak link of tarpon tackle.
For spinning tackle a 15 to 20 pound outfit with a large capacity reel is what is needed. Tie about 6 to 8 feet of double line and attach 4 feet of 70 pound fluorocarbon for the shock tippet.
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Copywrite: 2000 Capt John Spear
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