Edit: I'll repost with smaller pic sizes...
Been practicing casts for a while... working on distance, accuracy, back casts, and even left handed casting. Booked a guide in the Everglades yesterday to test everything out from the bow.
We saw 100+ black drum on a mud flat. They were floating high, swimming fast, and uncooperative. I couldn't get one to eat, so I asked the guide to show me how it's done. He caught one on his first cast.
I had more luck with tarpon and snook. Finished the day with 8 tarpon and 2 snook. Really wanted a bigger poon, but it wasn't meant to be. There are some resident 50 pounders that don't migrate, but we couldn't track em down.
Turns out that my practice was kind of a waste of time for Everglades style fishing. Apparently I need a better short game. Quicker, shorter casts at lower angles would have helped a lot. Quicker being the real key. It was frustrating to be so close to the fish.. sounds backwards, but I wanted to back up and throw more line. Practicing is fun, so I'm not complaining.
I use this guide several times a year, and he tells me about places to catch tarpon on foot. To return the favor, I told the him about a place to catch peacock bass. He was skeptical, so on my way home I pulled over and caught one. Realizing I was only a largemouth away from some kind of South Florida fresh-salt slam, I checked the roadside ditches until I closed the deal. Took me forever to catch the LMB. Aside from the drum, it was the toughest fish of the day.
