The Florida Keys stretch some 100 miles out into the ocean and have oceans on all sides and there's fish everywhere. Keys such as Islamorada have built an enviable reputation for world-class sport but for many years now Key West has held the reputation of being simply the best sport fishing location in North America simply for the huge selection of species that inhabit the oceans around the island. Florida Keys fishing attracts anglers from all over the world and for very good reasons.

The inshore fishing around Key West includes fishing for tarpon, permit or sharks, the reef offers snapper and grouper and offshore there's a whole host of species including dolphin, sailfish, wahoo, kingfish, tuna and cobia. With such a variety of species and with water on all sides you'll be hard pressed to find an excuse for a bad day's fishing whatever the weather conditions.

You'll find a number of offshore boats working out of Key West, our primary interest is light tackle fishing. If you are not a regular saltwater angler you will be wondering what we are referring to, so we'll begin with a simple explanation. The offshore boats tend to be bigger with a more luxurious setup such as a large air conditioned lounge bunks and showers. They cruise around offshore towing a variety of baits behind the boat and once a fish hooks itself the lucky angler sits in the fighting chair to play the hooked fish to the boat. A light tackle boat is quite a bit smaller, normally around 26 – 30 ft long, with no accomodation and an open deck. Typically powered by twin outboards, they roar around at impressive speeds which allows them to reach fishing spots many miles from the harbor at Key West. Each angler on board has a rod and reel, and when a bite is detected it is up to the angler to strike and reel in the fish unaided. The offshore captains will normally fish in at least 200 ft of water whereas the light tackle boats are at home operating in water anything between 20 ft deep for sharks in the harbor to 200 ft deep offshore whilst fishing for sailfish.

You don't have to be an expert angler to go out on a light tackle boat, the captains enjoy nothing better than seeing someone reel in their very first fish. All of the skippers are most helpful and they will do their very best to make sure that you have a great day’s fishing, and maybe a fish or two to take home with you or have prepared at one of the local seafood restaurants. All of the boats have an excellent selection of fishing tackle for anyone that doesn't have their own tackle. All you need to take with you for a great day on the water is sunscreen, sunglasses a hat and your food and drink for the day.

Planned future articles include a more detailed description of a day fishing for grouper, tuna, sailfish or tarpon, but for the time being we’d urge you to get out there and catch some of our wonderful fish.