Best Tarpon Destination other then Florida?

tj5485

If you were to Travel to one Destination other then Florida for Tarpon where it would it be? Costa Rica? Belize? Thoughts?

Shadowcast

Belize.....then you can hit bones and permit, too.

Idlewilde

Shadowcast wrote: »

Belize.....then you can hit bones and permit, too.

Just so-so. The tarpon in Belize are 7-8wt fish for the most part, which are IMO the most fun to catch.

But it you want lots of larger tarpon like you might find along Florida's west coast in May & June, or in the Florida Keys in the spring and early summer, then Holbox on the north side of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula would be a good choice, as would several areas in Cuba.

ruskinredneck

For me it would be Africa.

mtd885

ruskinredneck wrote: »

For me it would be Africa.

X2

FS Jeff

Yucatan Peninsula, for baby tarpon (10-50 pounds) in the lagoons.

saltybum

By the way it's "than" not "then".

tj5485

Thanks Dad

jaym

How about Vercruz Mexico. Lots of big fish there. If you want to catch smaller fish there are a few places in the Caribbean where you can catch nice numbers of 5-20lb fish.

Permit Rat

jaym wrote: »

How about Vercruz Mexico. Lots of big fish there. If you want to catch smaller fish there are a few places in the Caribbean where you can catch nice numbers of 5-20lb fish.

Veracruz has a very short season in May. According to Jesse Webb and the chart they made as a result of satellite tagging of tarpon, this is where a large population of tarpon "turn around" and then head back north. The problem is that they could make this turnaround, a little further north on any given year (OR further south) But in the case of the former, it could be a very bad year for tarpon in Veracruz. That said, the fish are big....most over 100 lbs. and several over 200 are caught every year.

On top of that, the water is deep....18-20 feet and as the fish get hounded by trolling boats, they go deeper, later in the morning. Most people troll for them on heavy tackle, using ribbonfish as bait.

I live south of Veracruz and the primary area where the tarpon are found, is to the north, at the mouth of the Rio Antigua. So for me the run is prohibitive, unless I leave my skiff at the yacht club in Veracruz. From there the run is only about 18 miles. There are tarpon seen on an arrecife (reef) very close to my house, but their presence is not reliable.

What I would really like to do, is camp out on the sand bar at the mouth of the river. That way one could be there 24 hours a day to moniter fish movements. I wonder if they do not go at least part way up the river....or if during the night, they move closer to shore and could be a fly rod target, very early in the morning. One bad thing is that the water gets deep fast and the fish hooked in even 18 feet, do not jump more than once or twice on average. This means you have a dogfight on your hands, and for a long time.

tj5485

I'm trying to plan a fishing trip to Mexico next year with a buddy. Can't really decide on where to go. But my main target will be tarpon. Seems like there a few options. I want big ones, but fishing in 20 feet of water isn't my thing

Permit Rat

I am going to go out on a limb here and say that so far in my research, there are not really any places in Mexico (except Veracruz)where large tarpon can be found on a reliable basis, such as in the Keys and Florida's west coast. I know several places from the north Yucatan coast, all the way down to near Belize where these big fish can be found at times, but like I said, sometimes they're there....sometimes they're not.

I do not, by any means have all the information here. Research is ongoing (and I'm having one helluva good time doing it!)

tj5485

I would love to fish Veracruz.