Tarpon

If you like relaxing, laid-back fishing, here’s a warning: don’t go after tarpon with a fly rod. But if you like your sport physical and demanding, this is it!

Tarpon fishing is rarely easy, but persistence and the right gear can lead to a gill-rattling, 6-foot silver king busting through the surface on the end of your line.  Even the threat of that experience is enough to give anyone the itch.

No doubt you’ve seen tarpon paired with fly fishing or bottom jigging efforts. There will certainly be times, however, based on the mood of the fish, the weather conditions, and the angler’s preferences that other methods are necessary. Believe it or not, cut bait is often the go-to choice.

Any lure specialist who pursues the Silver King should remember these key facts.

Campeche, Mexico, has some great tarpon fishing. Here's what you need to know about traveling and fishing in this tourist destination.

My release/hookup-to-strike ratio remains fairly high, compared to the fabled averages. This is based on fishing for the Silver King since the 60s and my angling for them continues at full bore.

Although travelers worldwide know of Miami as a tourist Mecca, very few among them are aware that the magic city boasts a year-round fishery for tarpon.

The international range of tarpon (megalops atlanticus) stretches from West Africa to the southeastern USA, Gulf of Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean and northern South America.

My journey in the sleek silvery jet from Miami was nearing completion. The pilot announced that he'd begun our descent, which would take us over Old San Juan and the lakes that surrounded the airport.

My strike/hookup/release ratio on the silver king remains fairly high, compared to the fabled averages and there's been based on lots of years of traveling to different tarpon destinations and trying out