March 27, 2015 Report (Tarpon)

Regular client and friend David just took delivery of his new 32' Intrepid and wanted to break it in on some tarpon. Conditions were tough with a stiff south wind that had the water dirty but with so many fish in this area I had little doubt success would come. On our 3rd drift one of the rods doubles over, the reels starts to scream and 130lbs of raging tarpon jumps 6' in the air. After numerous jumps and several runs we got the leader release on the big tarpon in 20 minutes. Nicely done David!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 26, 2015 Report

From Key Biscayne one day to North Key Largo the other, that's where today would lead me to. Out of the Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo I fished with Dave and Brendon. Looking for tarpon we found them alright and after investing quite some time on them and not being able to get them to eat Brendon and Dave decided they wanted to switch gears, so we did. After a few spots, we anchored up in an area that has historically produced mutton snappers, which is what Brendon wanted for dinner. Not long after setting up one of the rods doubles over and the action would continue ending in a solid 7-8lb mutton snapper along with a few other fish. Mission accomplished!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 25, 2015 Report

Neil and George from N.Y. book me every year when they're in town for a conference and although the target was tarpon, the tarpon fishing proved to be slow. We did fish several structures in the area and caught an assortment of species. Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 24, 2014 AM & PM Report (Tarpon!)

AM Report Today started with calm conditions and Mo and his wife Ruth aboard for a morning of bonefishing. We ran to the maniland shoreline of Biscayne Bay and found some bones but they would either spook before we could get in casting range or they would pop up at the last minute, too close for a cast. There were baby tarpon in the 20lb range around but got only 1 to become interested in a fly but no hook ups. PM Report At 11 Am Eric and his girlfriend Lila jumped aboard for tarpon and shark fishing, by 12:20 PM Eric was on his 2nd fish! The first one spit the hook and the second one would stay on the entire time enough for us to get a leader release and some pics. Eric did a great job on the fish and got the estimated 170lber to boat for some brief photo ops. After the tarpon we ran to the flats and the sharks were around almost immediately. Unfortunately, they were very skittish and would mouth our baits, swim 30 feet and spitting the bait. Eric went 1 for 6 on sharks with the only one we landed being sight casted and allowed to run with the bait with the bail open for over 30 seconds. What a day!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 23, 2015 Report (Tarpon!)

Greg came down from Wisconsin tagging along while his wife was at a convention and wanted to go fishing. Smart move Greg! His buddy Tom drove down from Tampa to join him. Smart move Tom! We spent the morning tarpon fishing and once again they did not disappoint. Not long after we set up one of the rods goes off and Greg has a big tarpon on jumping over 6 feet into the air! The fish eventually spit the hook. Urgh! A bit later another rod goes off and after a long fight, Tom gets his tarpon to the boat. The day ended with Greg hooking up again but the fish ended pulling free at the knot. I owe you one Greg!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com

March 22, 2015 AM & PM Report (Tarpon!)

Am Report Local angler Chris had his granddaughter Niole in town for a few days and were on a 3 day fishing spree throughout South Florida. Day 3 of their trip was with me and we headed out for some tarpon fishing. It was Nicoles biggest fish to date and her longest battle. What a heart break! Not long after setting up Nicole hooks up to a big tarpon in the 140-150lb class and this tough girl fought it for 35 minutes until the hook pulled. Another spot later Chris hooks up but the big tarpon spits the hook after a couple of minutes. We ended the day on the flats where it was very slow except for a few small sharks milling around.

Pm Report My afternoon trip was with Davis and his wife Blair from Tennessee and with it being Sunday afternoon and a zoo lose to the marina we headed south to the flats. After stopping off at a spot and catching shark bait, we ran to the quiet flats away from the mayhem. The goal was to shark fish and it didn't take long to get a shark close to the boat but no takes. Not longer after we see a shark move in and take one of the baits and we're off to the races. After a great fight we release a 4' lemon shark. Right before the trip was over another bigger shark moves in, takes the bait and Davis holds on as 6+ feet of angry shark burned over 150 yards of line off the reel before spitting out the bait. Yep, only a few teeth marks on the bait. Go figure!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 21, 2015 Report

Going strickly with Fly gear, Scott hoped aboard and grabbed the 12wt. This would be the rod he would throw at the tarpon that were all around us but unfortunately they refused to eat a fly today and by the looks of it, we weren't the only ones. Heading to the flats we poled around and although the action was slower than I would have liked, we did get some shots at bonefish and a couple of permit but no commits to the fly. Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 19, 2015 Report (Tarpon!)

Day three and Jerry decided to let his grand daughter Maggie jump in the boat with Tommy while Jerry stayed behind. If only Jerry would've known what was about to transpire! Maggie doesn't fish a lot but was up for tarpon fishing and Tommy always is so off to tarpon fishing we went. First stop, first bait, less than 10 minutes one of the tons of tarpon all around us grabs Tommy's bait and explodes out of the water! After an hour and 15 minute fight Tommy lands his approximately 140lb tarpon. He more than doubled the size of the one he caught with me last year! I idle back around, set up again and start to drop back a bait when another big tarpon eats and again 140lbs of silver rage explodes out of the water! I hand the rod to Maggie, from henceforth referred to as "Margarita Tarpon Tamer", and she is tied in to the biggest, toughest, baddest fish of her life. Margarita Tarpon Tamer stared that fish in the eye and never backed down. We had a leader release in 15 minutes but a total of an hour and 20 minutes before we got the photo op. From there they wanted to focus on catching lots of fish so we changed locations and wrapped up the day with plenty of action including Tommy catching a big jack on 10lb test that had his hands sore. Oh, the blisters on the hands of Tommy and Margarita Tarpon Tamer from their tarpon will heal soon.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 18, 2015 Report

Today Jerry and Tommy still wanted to fish for tarpon but decided they also wanted to mix it up to ensure they caught some fish. So we did. The tarpon fishing in the morning was slow but the afternoon had they very active rolling and free jumping all around us. BUT THEY WOULDN'T EAT! Along the way Tommy caught his first grouper along with bluefish and an assortment of species while Jerry caught a big jack on fly that put up a nice fight on the fly rod. Tomorrow is day 3. Pressure is on!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 17, Report

Jerry and his grandson Tommy had fished 3 days with my last year during tarpon season and had done well including Tommy catching his first tarpon and his first on fly. Today was day of of 3 days and we fished hard for 8 hours using mainly fly but almost some bait and despite tarpon all around us, they were just not feeding. Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 16, 2015 Report (Tarpon)

Jeff, his girlfriend Selema and his 15 year old son Kyle were down from Canada and were recommended to fish with me by a friend who had fished with me before. With a full day ahead of us there was plenty of time to do several types of fishing so at the top of the list was, of course, tarpon fishing. Not long after setting up one of the rods goes off and Selema grabs the rod as 150 lbs of angry tarpon blasts out of the water 6 feet in the air! Selema just realized this is no bass. A few jumps later the fish spits the hook. Moving to a different spot and setting up, the rod goes off again and Kyle grabs the rod as 120lb tarpon gives one big jump and then gives us a sizzling run. Kyle fought his birthday tarpon for 30 minutes with the fish giving us a few jaw dropping jumps 30' from the boat but eventually dragged us a mile to a nearby bridge and cut us off on the pilings. The day ended with them catching a variety of different species and spending some time on the flats.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 14, 2015 Report

AM Report This morning local angler Doug and his girlfriend hopped aboard for a quick Miami fishing trip and to check out Biscayne Bay. The morning started off with us tarpon fishing in an area that was loaded with tarpon. They were rolling all around us but refused to eat despite our best efforts. With Doug's girlfriend growing bored we cut the tarpon fishing short and went to another area where we could have some steady action. Well, she was on fish consistently and happy to have fish on every few minutes. At the end of the trip, they had a great time, we had plenty of laughs and she had another positive experience fishing which Doug hopes will lead to more fishing trips. ;) Pm Report Regular client David jumps aboard in the afternoon and we head south to shark fish the flats and get away from the late afternoon craziness of weekend boaters. David caught a couple of smaller sharks but none of the big 6 footers we were hoping for. While I was stressed about it he kept telling me to relax, he was happy to be on a boat and not in a plane. I can't argue with that! There were several times when big sharks would come right to and through our baits and chum slick but keep cruising without a bit of interest. Urgh! Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 13, 2015 Report

Andy and his 8 year old son Andy Jr. jumped aboard for a half day of fishing and the mission was to get Andy Jr. some fish, and get away from the Maryland cold. We arrived at our first spot of the morning and didn't have to leave as fish after fish came aboard with Andy Jr. catching more and bigger fish than dad! Little Andy caught a few BIG mangrove snappers that would have made a grown man proud and dad Andy got a nice grouper as well. These guys were a lot of fun and Andy Jr. kept telling dad that they should move to Miami and dad should book a fishing trip with Capt. Mo every day. LOL

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 11, 2015 Report

Dale and Cassandra boarded my skiff for the second day of their charter. Today we would focus on sharks on the flats for a different experience and it was awesome. We ended up hooking 6 sharks, landing two monsters in the 6' range and losing one that was significantly bigger than the 6 footers we released. That one massive shark took over 100 yards of line before I could reel in the second rod and put it in the rod holder! Unfortunately, the extreme pressure he put on the braid with a tight drag was too much and the braid broke. Cassandra landed her biggest fish to date with a 6 foot lemon shark in the 200lb range and Dale landed one about the same size. It was definitely a great day with lots of action, great people and lots of laughs!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 10, 2014 Report

Ken is in the process of moving from N.Y. and hadn't been bonefishing in over 6 years so it was time to give it a try. The conditions were certainly tough today with a stiff 20 MPH plus S.E. winds and not many places to hide but we did. Spot one was rather quite as was spot two. Humm, time to run really far south. In the shadows of Key Largo we get on the flat and immediately there are a few BIG bones racing by, I mean flying at warp speed. What's up with that? A few others spooked before we could get a cast to them. We staked out and waited for more of them to swim through but nothing. Poling another edge produced a couple of feeding bones but no time for a shot, they were acting crazy today. Last flat of the day I worked an edge I like on the tidal stage we had and sure enough, a group of four fish were working the edge but a half dozen shots at them didn't produce a strike. They were racing to one spot, feed then race to another behind them, not the usual more predictable behavior typical of bones. Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 9, 2015 Report (Tarpon!)

Dale and Cassandra from Maryland were on vacation and today was day one of two days of fishing they booked with me. It didn't take much convincing on my part to talk Dale into starting the morning tarpon fishing. Spot one had no tarpon. Spot two was a different story. Setting up on our second spot of the early morning, tarpon began to roll around us and 10-15 minutes into the display one of the rods gets hit, Dale reels tight and 150lbs of raging tarpon launches into the air just 30' from the boat. After a long fight we got the leader release on the monster tarpon and were off to the bonefish flats. We saw some bones and tons of barracudas as well as a permit but no hook ups. The day ended with a long run back to the marina soaking in the euphoria of the morning's tarpon. Tarpon season is definitely here!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 8, 2015 Report

Ouissam, his son Sammy and his father in law Aboud jumped aboard to get 5 year old Sammy on some fish and then hit the flats for sharks. Although a pretty day, the wind was howling at over 20MPH. The morning began working some sea walls and pilings for snappers, jacks and grouper that have been making the area home. It didn't take long for Sammy to start racking up numbers of fish including some nice mangrove snappers, a small grouper and even had a BIG grouper eat a smaller snapper he was reeling in. With a bit of time left we hit the rough and murky flats for sharks. It didn't take long for one of the rods to double and the reel scream, shark on! After a long run the braid parts and the fish swims away. As the trip winds down we get another hit and after a prolonged fight Aboud lands a huge stingray. The trip ended back at the first spot and Sammy ended the trip as he started, hooking fish on almost every cast.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 7, 2015 Everglades Report

Taking a break from Biscayne Bay, my charter today was out of Flamingo in the Everglades with local anglers Austin and Larry. I will tell you this, we had some tough conditions with a slow bite but caught fish and had a ton of laughs. The morning started with a stiff NE wind that only got worst as the day progressed however, in the Everglades there is always a place to hide and so we did. Austin had never caught trout or redfish before and he would accomplish those two goals today including catching a monster 24 1/2" sea trout. Larry on the other hand had a redfish "pee in his Fritos"! Larry is a hilarious guy and was sitting in front of my console when Austin landed one of his redfish. Larry with a big open bag of Fritos in one hand and Austin just a few feet away with a redfish in his hand, the redfish began to "pee" some fluid out and it laded inside Larry's Fritos. Much more happened that day but that was our highlight, he had me rolling on the deck of my skiff! These guys were great and we headed back to the marina with deteriorating conditions.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 6, 2015 Report (Bonefish Double!)

Adam and his brother Brandon almost didn't make it to Miami from N.Y. due to the severe freezing weather that plagued them for days. After waiting at the airport all day they finally landed around 10pm and were ready for a day on the water. Adam's goal was to bonefish but we started off staying lose to the dock due to the time constraints of the 4 hour trip. However, he decided to try bonefishing for around an hour so we raced down to the bonefish flats and got on one of my favorite flats on the tide we had. It sure didn't dissapoint. After a few shots at some fish, a school of bones comes in from our 11 o'clock and looking very freindly. Adam casts to the side of the school and Brandon casts to the other side. A few moments later both rods double over and the sweet sound of scorching drag fills the air. After a few drag burning runs and having to fend off a few sharks we released both fish, one in the 8lb range and the other in the 10-11lb range. What a welcome to Miami!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 5, 2015 Report

This morning soon to be local resident Steve wanted to take a brief 2 hour trip to survey the fishing behind his soon to be dock. We jumped into my skiff and idled 100 yards to a grass flat and didn't have to move from there. The main species was trout and there were plenty of them, including quite a few that got away to spit hooks. This was a nice trip with a great guy!

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 4, 2015 Report

With a string of really nice fishing days regular client Alec and his daughter jumped aboard for some fresh fish dinner. While they did take home some fresh fish, the fishing was certainly slower than it had been the last week or so. Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409

March 3, 2015 Report

Back at the Ocean Reef Club in north Key Largo was my afternoon trip and this time it was a quick trip as my clients wanted to land a few fish and then head back in time for a meeting. We got an hour and a half worth of fishing and got some snappers in a creek before it was time to head back.

Capt. Mo Estevez www.MiamiBoneFishing.com 786-853-1409