Capt. Justin Napior
Happy November everyone! You ever have one of those fishing days where you go out kind of last minute with no plan? Well my buddy Will and I recently had a little guides day off and it was exactly that. We met at the ramp nice and early, I did have one spot in mind so we made a quick run. The tide was low and the wind was blowing. We got into a bunch of smaller snook and one solid redfish, but we knew we could do better. We were near this creek mouth that I had been up before, but only about half way. I said to Will, “You want go all the up this thing as far as we can go?” He knew exactly what I was thinking, Tarpon! We start making our way into the creek, catching a few snook along the way, as the creek got tighter and tighter, we started getting pretty excited! We made our way through a tight mangrove tunnel and there they were. Tarpon rolling all over in one little opening in the mangroves! Will made a long cast and one nails his paddle tail! I see one roll right next to the boat, so I make a quick cast and boom! Tarpon flying, he spit the hook and I quickly cast back in the same spot and get a solid hit, this time it was a nice snook!
We sat tucked in this little pocket and jumped about ten tarpon; we were like little kids just yelling and laughing every time he hooked one. We pushed a little deeper up the creek and it seemed like at every turn we saw tarpon. This is Will and my favorite type of fishing, deep backcountry creeks and bays. After a handful of nice snook and two tarpon landed, we made our way back out, both of us smiling ear to ear. As a guide, days like this are priceless, nothing can replace time on the water and the knowledge you gain along the way. We are constantly learning.
I hope everyone has a great winter, I’m looking forward to seeing some new faces this season. Tight lines everybody!
