Shrimp, mullet, crabs and pinfish are all good options for live bait Key West tarpon fishing. The technique involves anchoring the boat and freeing a line of bait into places where you know the fish are. Weight the bait to get it as deep as possible.
Weights differ depending on the speed of tidal current. If the weight is too heavy, it can pull the hook out. To avoid this, secure your weight to the line with light copper wire. It'll easily drop off and not cause problems when you're fighting the fish.
Tarpon are strong and have rough, hard mouths, abrasive scales and sharp gill plates. The sizes of hooks depend on brand and size of the bait. Usually, a 6/0-11/0 circle hook does the job.
Live baits should be rigged in the most natural way as possible. For example, a crab should be hooked in the corner of its shell. Mullet and pinfish are hooked through their mouths, either horizontally or vertically.
If you're using shrimp, a good tip is to tail or head hook it on a hook-up jig to stop it spinning in the current. In the past and even today, guides only take about 12 mullet for bait on a fishing charter because pinfish and crabs work so well.
Tarps are difficult to catch so give yourself plenty of options. Some days, they'll only eat tiny pinfish, and on other days they'll only eat crabs. The success of tarp catching depends largely on the current speed. If it's running fast, mullet is a good choice because it won't spin so much.
An experienced key west tarpon fishing guide uses various types and sizes of bait. You can now see that there are many variables to consider when going for tarp. However, one thing to always ensure is that you keep one bait on the bottom with one or two others free-lined at various depths.
Weights differ depending on the speed of tidal current. If the weight is too heavy, it can pull the hook out. To avoid this, secure your weight to the line with light copper wire. It'll easily drop off and not cause problems when you're fighting the fish.
Tarpon are strong and have rough, hard mouths, abrasive scales and sharp gill plates. The sizes of hooks depend on brand and size of the bait. Usually, a 6/0-11/0 circle hook does the job.
Live baits should be rigged in the most natural way as possible. For example, a crab should be hooked in the corner of its shell. Mullet and pinfish are hooked through their mouths, either horizontally or vertically.
If you're using shrimp, a good tip is to tail or head hook it on a hook-up jig to stop it spinning in the current. In the past and even today, guides only take about 12 mullet for bait on a fishing charter because pinfish and crabs work so well.
Tarps are difficult to catch so give yourself plenty of options. Some days, they'll only eat tiny pinfish, and on other days they'll only eat crabs. The success of tarp catching depends largely on the current speed. If it's running fast, mullet is a good choice because it won't spin so much.
An experienced key west tarpon fishing guide uses various types and sizes of bait. You can now see that there are many variables to consider when going for tarp. However, one thing to always ensure is that you keep one bait on the bottom with one or two others free-lined at various depths.
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