STAY FAR AWAY FROM THIS ONE:
This is the story of my fishing charter in the Florida Keys where anyone and everyone is a captain, a dive master, spear fisher, or some certified bs to do with the ocean...like really you live in the keys. Some good, some bad, some absolutely horrible minded bungling clueless Captains like the one in this story......
I went cheap $700 for a full day. I never fished ocean, besides party boat when I was kid. I have been waiting saving for a full day charter, and all I wanted was a Sailfish. I repeated it at least 10 times to this guy, but in 8 hours the guy was like we can do a lot more stuff also, spear fish, snorkel, go to island for shore lunch. So we supposed to leave from cudjoe key at 9 am, but he had to get more gas, 20mins by car, we get in boat and he needs more gas, 30min+ more. Then this JA doesn't even have any bait, another hour or so BS around. Then guy getting all excited to go full day and asked me again what I want I say sailfish, and big fish...SO he just goes with big fish statement, even after all I asked about was about sailfish from the first time I asked to that morning all I ever said is sailfish.
Anyways we leave house at 9 o'clock at the least for my full day fishing. After, bait, gas, he takes us 40-50 mils south of cudjoe key, he said 8 miles pass key west I thought. I was like go for it, it was really like half way to cuba. We didn't start fishing until 1:24pm, in his, center console skiff; with no cover and for an hour we went through storm(freezing) with nothing but shorts and tshirt, cold and freezing. Then we get to a "wreck", which I didn't even want to do, I wanted sailfish and repeated at every chance. It is all I could talk about for months now, my one goal saved up thousands for this trip.
This guy is to young and excited because I got a full day and he could travel father, I have never fished a charter before, I have never caught a fish on "light line" or understood how to fish saltwater big wreck fish. So for my 1st time he takes us to a 350ft wreck, doesn't explain anything.....I drop weight gets tangled, he gets mad because I don't know how to drop weight and bait correctly, tangled the line, etc
So I lose fish after fish, and guy makes me feel like moron......(Then buddy tells me few days later, you can never have slack in line cause these fish have massive power and can snap lines like nothing) That would a nice bit of info to know. Then he bust out electric rod for my girlfriend, she pulls 250lb shark. While my line tangles and snaps almost every time, until he tells how to drop a line 350ft down. Oh, he put me on big fish for sure; then I ask why do the lines break, is it because fish have teeth and biting line and he says "yeah, something like that." All I had to know is that never have slack and how they snapping line(he never explained)
After a bit I didn't even want to fish, I looked like a freaking fool. Don't take first timers to 350ft wreck and except them to pull up monster fish? When you don't even explain how to fish the waters, fresh water fish stay on the hook almost no matter what.....Anyways I ask how we able to pull in shark and it didn't break line with 20 min fight? Then he says "well I use light gear, you can get more better fish that way." really?
Reel up 350ft and with really big fish on, I doubt I ever even had a chance, with his light tackle??? Like, wtf He didn't want us to catch the other sharks there, didn't stop so we could see a giant sea turtle swimming. Then it got to the point where I just went and sat down because I knew I didn't know how or what to do, embarrassing to the extreme. Told him to just go ahead and fish, hell I wanted to at least see a dam fish..... So we stay there an hour or then go to another wreck he says 150ft deep it's 200ft deep, and with his 8-10 poles he would only rig up 1 at a time so he had to redo mine a lot; like really you have rigged before 2,3,4 poles at a time.
Long story short he said he would take me out 4 hours for sail fish and made up lie to not live up to what he said. So for $600(he gave back $100) I fished for less then 3 hours, caught 1 undersized yellow fin tuna, Didn't even fish for a Sailfish at all Pathetic, the whole point of the trip, FAILED.
Stay Away Far Away, you have been warned.
There is not even enough room to explain how BAD this experience was, and unadapt this guy was, or how much BS he was full of...........
The moral of the story is you go to the Keys to go fishing, DO NOT GO CHEAP, for the love of god, Don't Go Cheap. Do your research.
The lesson to be learned is do what you say and say what you do. That is how you gain respect, dignity and a honorable reputation............. read more
