Watching the temperature drop in Key West is nothing we ever really want to see. I moved here for the year round fishing ability and lately the temperatures are dipping so low that I am getting flash backs to winter in New England. The good news is that skies are clear and it’s perfect visability for flats fishing.

The past couple days we’ve gone through a dramatic change in our fishing and weather. Last Friday I was fighting the largest tarpon I’ve ever hooked and it was the first one of the season! It presented a great fight and barely jumped from the water because he was so large. I hooked him in pretty shallow water and notoriously the area we were fishing was very difficult to get close to tarpon because they get so skiddish in shallow water.

Saturday afternoon we got slammed with an impressive line of storms and then the cool weather settled in. The first couple days were calm and beautiful and yesterday the wind picked up quite a bit. Despite everything the barracuda fishing has been excellent. Folks that don’t know this toothy creature intimately… they are a great gamefish and on the flats they put on almost as good a show as tarpon do when they jump. Barracuda are ravenous and during the winter months they are just itching to eat just about anything you put in front of them. My anglers the past 3 days have had some great luck with barracuda on fly. It’s one of the largest fish on the flats this time of year and they were on every flat we poled. In the mix this time of year are plenty of jacks, sharks and even cobia. Cobia come onto the flats in January and February.

February and March also mark some great days for permit fishing. If you are a permit fool like I am, I’ve got a few days open in February and early March. The winds can be a little tough so if you need to practice your double haul, do so. March is one of the best times for permit because they are ’stocking up’ by eating a lot before their yearly spawn on the deeper wrecks and reefs around the Lower Keys.