It’s about 6:30 am, just as the sun is beginning to peek over the horizon and Capt. Labadie is charging ahead to the crew’s first destination. Since tarpon are the easiest of the three to catch in low light conditions, this is where Labadie opts to start. Rowland and Tudor remark that they were somewhat surprised at first by the guide’s choice to fish right in front of the coastline resorts and houses. On a day that they were purely targeting tarpon, the Saltwater Experience hosts would tend to go somewhere a little more remote. Labadie chose this spot because he knew the fish would be there, but, more importantly, it was on the way to their other targets, eliminating the need to backtrack later and burn up precious time. Read more on Waypoint…

S15:E2 - “Key West Birthday Slam” (2020)

Captains Tom Rowand and Rich Tudor are joined by Key West guide Nick LaBadie.

Located on Duck Key, Hawks Cay Resort is a perfect location for fishing, sight-seeing, and diving. Only a mile away offshore, fishing at Hawks Cay is an easily accessible activity to do at the Florida Keys. Though there is a great variety out in the water, here are my top five favorite fish to catch near Hawks Cay:

S13:E5 - “Baby Tarpon And Bones” (2018), Tom & Rich check on the status of Baby Tarpon and Bonefish fishing after Hurricane Irma.

I do have a simple way to tie a Bonefish leader.  I wish I had come up with it but I can't take credit.  Lefty Kreh made the 50% rule for leaders and I use it all the time...

Many people ask me for recommendations for guides in Key West.  There are some excellent guides in Key West, in fact, some of the best guides in the world operate right out of the little island.  The IGFA World Record book is literally full of records from Key West, Florida and anglers from around the globe flock here for both offshore and inshore fishing.

Fishing out of Islamorada in August can be very good.  Generally the weather pattern calls for very calm days and slick conditions.  Often, the Everglades can hold some incredible fishing for tailing redfish...

I can not tell you how many fish have been lost at the boat, including potential tournament winners. One time we were trying to land a big fish in Louisiana with a cheap, small landing net and missed it over and over.  I decided right then that we needed...

March is an excellent month for fishing the Keys.  The entire 150 mile chain of the Florida Keys offers the possibility for a Slam just about any month of the year if you are with the right guide.  This being said, the fish can vary drastically in size from one season to another.  March will give you the opportunity at very large tarpon, big bones and big permit.  I believe that March is one of the best months of the year to target a Slam with really nice fish of each specie.