# Tell Me About Fly Fishing for Tarpon



## tailwalk (Nov 20, 2016)

A single rod for bonefish permit and tarpon might be asking a lot depending on the size of the fish. I would not want to be holding an 8 weight staring at the strings of fish that swim by st pete in the summer. I'm also not bringing my tarpon stick bone fishing in the Bahamas. Too much. I've targeted tarpon in the 10k islands with a 7 weight but these are juvenile fish maybe 15 pounds. I don't know about permit but I think a 10 is pretty standard with some going for a 9. The 9 is probably what I'd bring I could only bring one rod to fish for all 3. Just hope to be dealing with smaller tarpon.


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## Sublime (Oct 9, 2015)

I have cast to a few, but no eats yet. As you found out they are good at throwing hooks thanks to their mouths. One advantage that the fly rod has is that the fly line has zero stretch, so when you get a good eat and strip strike it should be easier to drive the hook in.


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## BK922 (Jan 24, 2016)

Sent you a pm


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## Scrob (Aug 26, 2015)

If you can, hire a local guide for a day. You'll learn so much in 8 hours compared to months of research/DIY. I'd mention that you're looking for tips to catch them on your own and the right guide may show you some tips/tricks. Go buy whatever setups they are using.


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## MikeChamp12 (May 17, 2021)

It’s not just the rod and reel. A lot has to do with the angler. There’s different techniques to subdue a large fish quicker than most think. All I can say is spend as much time on the water as you can. Before you know it you’ll see them and when you see them memorize their movements and how they eat. Watch them for a while, learn the patterns, learn what they’re feeding on and when. Time of day, moon phase , tide. Study the fish you pursue. A lot of people want to rush the process and get the Instagram picture and go home. Learn them and you’ll learn to love them.


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## skinny_fishing (Aug 30, 2021)

Yeah I'm not going to be targeting giant Tarpon until I get some experience and the correct gear for it. My trip to Big Pine is in June so I'll see how much I can learn before then. I get that asking one rod to do everything is a tall order but I figure that's how I should start anyway. There's a new tackle shop that just opened here with a fly specialist I'll pick his brain as well, the owner says he does tutorials so we'll see.

Hiring a guide for a day sounds like a good idea too....Anyone know some good flats guides in St.Pete?

I realize I have a lot to learn, and it's a lot about my son too, getting him comfortable and working up to the big ones because the big Tarpon scare him lol. But imagine the accomplishment he will feel when he finally lands one someday....He'll remember it forever!


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## MikeChamp12 (May 17, 2021)

I’ll tell you what not to buy. The Penn battle fly combo 8wt was my first and it lasted about two months before the rod broke and the real locked up. After landing many fish I was hooked and serious about fly fishing. Now I use a 7wt sage with a nautilus reel. I’m comfortable with catching the fish you mentioned with that combo. 40 lb. plus tarpon I’ll switch to something bigger.


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## 7WT (Feb 12, 2016)

No one fly rod will not do that. Sure you could try to throw a 10 wt at bones if u find one. An 8 or 9 is your best all around but not for any tarpon over 70lb. Are there exceptions. Sure for expert or very lucky fly fisherman.


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## KnotHome (Jul 21, 2009)

I found it!
There was a thread a few weeks ago about, “If you only had 1 fly rod, what weight?” Here’s the article I referenced in my answer:
Make mine a nine: a 9-weight fly rod is the most versatile for the Florida salt. - Free Online Library


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## skinny_fishing (Aug 30, 2021)

That's an informative article, thanks. I feel stupid now because the fly rod I got my son for Xmas is 5/6 weight lol.


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## Loogie (Jul 24, 2019)

That 6wt rod you bought for your kid will be a good tool to learn how to cast, as long as you have it properly lined. The size of the fly should be small so he can cast it, if you put a size 2 clouser on that light rod, he won’t learn well, if you don’t know how to cast, you can’t teach your kid... I would start with getting an 8wt, like a TFO rod, and learn how to cast it. It sounds like you don’t fly fish at all just an assumption on my part. learning how to fly fish is part of the adventure, chasing a Tarpon and landing it requires time with a fly rod, practice, experience, drive, it’s easy to get discouraged and break out the spinning rod. You might get lucky, but you’ll be luckier if you invest time in learning how to fly fish in the salt.


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## Henry Lee Fowler IV (Jan 11, 2017)

If it helps the last time I fished Big Pine was June and there were plenty of baby tarpon around that were 5-10lbs which is would be manageable on a 6wt. I felt more comfortable with an 8wt for the simple fact there were a few 40lbs mixed in.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

There are tarpon and there are TARPON.... For a beginner I'd suggest going after the smaller fish at first with a fly rod. I routinely have first timers get that first tarpon on fly with an 8 or 9wt rod (fish are 20 to 40lbs) at night locally in Biscayne Bay. The fishing is best when the shrimp are moving (right now through April and again from June until mid-July). All of our fish are mostly sight fished as well.. A 20 to 40lb tarpon will be all you can stand on an 8wt. We only fish them on a falling tide.... There's always a falling tide at night -but when it begins at midnight or 1Am.... I don't get a lot of takers... Twice each month for about five days at a time the falling tide is actually convenient, starting within an hour or two of sunset.... 

Yes, the rods we use are the same ones you'd use for bonefish and permit... On a day when the weather conditions are perfect (those very rare days...) you can fish bones with lighter, 6 or 7wt rods - but most days the wind will have you wanting an 8 or 9wt... 

In the backcountry of the Everglades out of Flamingo there are times when the rivers that drain into the coast are loaded up with small to medium fish (20 to 60lbs), starting in May and going all the way until fall... For those we're using a 10wt mostly -but that's a different story entirely...


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## skinny_fishing (Aug 30, 2021)

Well the fly rod my son has now was cheap so not a big deal, if he does well and I think a better heavier setup will help him I'll just buy him one. At least in the Keys the visibility is excellent so we won't be casting out to any submarines we see swimming around 

Here it's another story tho, visibility comes and goes a lot so it will be basically spinning rod during poor visibility and fly rod when it's good. So hopefully we have some good conditions here before the trip in June for more experience.


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## SS06 (Apr 6, 2021)

My goto all around rod has become my Clutch Core 9wt with Lamson Guru reel. Snook and reds around docks, small tarpon in the creeks, and several 20 plus pound jacks....this combo has had a workout and so far has impressed me.


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## skinny_fishing (Aug 30, 2021)

SS06 said:


> My goto all around rod has become my Clutch Core 9wt with Lamson Guru reel.


Ok, so I don't go into shock when I go to buy one, how much should I expect to spend on a similar setup? I don't want to go cheap but I don't wanna go all out either.


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## SS06 (Apr 6, 2021)

I bought several Gurus on closeout when the introduced the Guru II, and won an auction for the Clutch rod so it wouldn't be fair to tell ya what I paid.....you could get into a great combo for less than $500 bucks....check out TFO, Moonshine Rods, Lamson Reels....not everyone fishes Tibor and Sage.


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

You gotta be a bit warped in the head and a masochist to love salt water fly. And chasing tarpon on fly is several degrees beyond that.

I've had one eat from a big poon...still remember it vividly...she broke my knot and my heart before she swam away...


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## WC53 (Dec 2, 2015)

You can also look at Colton and Danielsson reels. Very good quality bang for the buck with good drag. Or go old school with a wet leather glove


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## TravisD (Aug 13, 2021)

TFO 10wt, the reel will be the sticker shock. Then you can buy an 8 wt later and cover some good range with those 3 rods. Bring the spin and fly rod and have some fun. Turkey Basin in June should be solid for finding tarpon!


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## TidewateR (Nov 11, 2009)

skinny_fishing said:


> Tell Me About Fly Fishing For Tarpon


It will absolutely ruin you. The End.


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## LowReynolds# (Mar 23, 2021)

TidewateR said:


> It will absolutely ruin you. The End.


Love it.. Commitment, tenacity, intestinal fortitude and try not to flinch when you watch that man-sized fish eat your fly.


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## skinny_fishing (Aug 30, 2021)

TidewateR said:


> It will absolutely ruin you. The End.


Marriage has prepared me for this


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## mro (Jan 24, 2018)

skinny_fishing said:


> That's an informative article, thanks. I feel stupid now because the fly rod I got my son for Xmas is 5/6 weight lol.


That's a good size rod for lady fish, trout and the smaller size fish you can catch around St Pete. When I lived in that area (70's) I also fished several ponds/canals (big ditches  ) with a 6wt.



LowReynolds# said:


> Love it.. Commitment, tenacity, intestinal fortitude and try not to flinch when you watch that man-sized fish eat your fly.


That's what _lured_ me to Florida from the left coast. I was SO unprepared and in my heart probably thought it was just hype. Jumped my first tarpon first weeks I was there and an extended fishing trip turned into me becoming a citizen of Florida. If Florida had a couple real mountains I may have never left. My old stomping grounds became from the Clearwater Pass to the south side of the Sunshine Skyway plus Tampa Bay which was the first place there that I'd made a cast.

One rod wt just isn't practical for Florida in my opinion. 7, 9 and a 12 will get you by.
When the tarpon move up then back down the coast, fishing the beach is where I liked to be and those fish are not small.


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## Jason La Forest (Jul 2, 2019)

skinny_fishing said:


> Ok, so I don't go into shock when I go to buy one, how much should I expect to spend on a similar setup? I don't want to go cheap but I don't wanna go all out either.


Look for an older model mid level Orvis on eBay - trident, TLS, access, hydros. Easy to find $100-200 but high quality equivalent to $400-600 new. Super light and fast action is critical for learning to feel the timing. Stay away from bottom end like Clearwater.

cast reels (converse of quality machined) have come a long way in tolerances and metallurgical quality, and the drag is more than you need. find a used large arbor w line for $50-100. Echo, reddington, Lamson are all cheap and readily available used.

first rod 9wt, next 11wt, third rod 7wt or a another 9wt. Rinse and repeat.

That’s all you need. upgrade when you’re 5 years in, then you can enjoy the difference.


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## Str8-Six (Jul 6, 2015)

Big Pine key area is a great area to get started with tarpon, the little ones. Reds and Snook are also around the same area. A 9wt is plenty. TFO rod with mid price reel will work. Shrimp patterns and gurglers for tarpon will work.

I feel like Big tarpon are both physically and emotionally taxing; once you catch a few big ones you appreciate the smaller ones more but nothing compares to a tarpon. Permit on the other hand are emotionally and mentally taxing, it’s a love/hate relationship.


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## b gee (Apr 9, 2021)

if you are going to hire a guide, they should have some high quality rods you can use. having used a setup for a full day before committing to buy one yourself is a great way to avoid making a decision you later regret.


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## BK922 (Jan 24, 2016)

b gee said:


> if you are going to hire a guide, they should have some high quality rods you can use. having used a setup for a full day before committing to buy one yourself is a great way to avoid making a decision you later regret.


Completely agree with this. If you get to know the guy we’ll you can even buy some of his used setups as he gets new ones. I acquired one of my favorite most tarpons catching rods like that.


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## b gee (Apr 9, 2021)

BK922 said:


> Completely agree with this. If you get to know the guy we’ll you can even buy some of his used setups as he gets new ones. I acquired one of my favorite most tarpons catching rods like that.


yup -- used guide gear is a great option if you can swing it...


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## JT2 (5 mo ago)

Make sure you are ready to chase a lifelong addiction!!


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## OrFish (5 mo ago)

Agree that used is the way to go. Yesterday's flagship is today's bargain. Reels don't drop in value as fast, but can last a lifetime if a hatch/nautilus/etc...


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