florida keys fishing

Anyone ever fished in the keys area and if so what kind of tackle would one need. Rods, reels, line, tackle.Any help would be appreciated.Thanks

Depends on what you are fishing for. Snook and reds hit live bait and top water spooks and spoons. shore fishing is bestg with shrimp or crab with sinker 1 foot from hook let it sit on bottom. You never know what you might catch. A 150 lb tarpon or a ray cat. usually a MH 7′ rod 30lb power pro will suit. circle hook and a shrimp will catch just about anything. Also plastics like paddle tails and shad shaped baits work well. Finesse is not the key with salt water rip the baits and a chum bag and chum works wonders. Every walmart type of place in florida sells fishing tackle and bait ask local bait shop for info.

I have fished down there a ton.
MH rod and a good reel with lots of line, I used #20 fireline and a 4′ #20 florocarbon leader, and take extra line if the tarpon are in and a big one gets on it may spool you fish with shrimp ,crab
, squid or try Gulp if you dont want to deal with fresh or frozen bait http://www.berkley-fishing.com/cat.php?k=298744&sk=298744 fish the grass flats, sand flats, and in channels; for PERMIT, RED GROUPER, TARPON, Mutton Snapper, BLACK DRUM, and SNOOK,
if you fish the flats keep an eye on your mud the Bulls like to follow your mud and will scare the crap out of you
if you get down to Key West the white st. pier is great it will get you into some deeper water and the Tarpon are in there first thing in the morning, #18 floating RAPALA just under the surface works great, also lots of drum, jack and yellow tail snapper,
if you fish the channels you will need some river sinkers (heavy current) and DO NOT SWIM IN THE CHANNELS between the islands, lots of Bull sharks so if you do hook a fish get it in fast or its gone
have fun and post some pics

Thanks for the info it will help alot, I was wondering if my freshwater tackle would be affected by the saltwater, I was told it would be ok just be sure it rinse it with freshwater. Is this true .Should it be rinsed daily or every other day.

salt water is tough on gear fresh water is a must rinse everything in fresh water line + rod guides and the reel. Jack is fun to catch all ocean fish put up a good fight wish I was in florida now goin to mexico fishin in march . Tarpoon would be a great catch belive they have launch boats that take u out in ocean never been on one but belive it was like $40 for half day when I lived in Fort Meyers Fl keys should have something simular

I love this topic! I went to Costa Rica a couple of years ago and did not bring any tackle with me. I watched the locals fish on rocks in the surf using a handline wrapped around a coffee can, tossing a lure made of PVC pipe. Two guys caught a variety of big and small fish that made me want to cry! I promised myself I would never get close to saltwater without gear again. I got a short notice trip to cancun just a year ago. I bought a cheap whimpy telescopic “kit” and just brought a few jigs and spoons with me. I caught some beautiful fish even on that junk. Believe me, I have upgraded (Cabelas pack rods) and am looking forward to my next trip! Try the Bahia Honda bridge area if you are in mid-keys. Also think small too if you have light tackle. Anyplace you can drop in a small lure or bit of food, you can catch snappers, grunts, etc – – fun too!

All new reels by diawa and most shimmano are ok for salt water but I was them after each use takes minutes anyway and salt build up is tougher to getr of later anyways. it doesn’t take much to catch fish down there. I went out with Rich Tudor before he had his show and was worth the money for a day or even a half. tons of fish.