By Pat Ford
It wasn’t too many years ago that redfish were actually difficult to find and catch in Everglades National Park. I can remember a few decades ago when they were almost extinct and years when they were plentiful, but lately the redfishing on the flats in Florida Bay has been nothing short of spectacular. It may be the result of the extreme cold in January 2010 or the new troll/pole zones imposed by Park officials, but whatever the cause the redfish are back in force. Last summer I had the pleasure of fishing for reds on the flats with experts Chico Fernandez, Capt. Dave Denkert and TV mogul, Capt Rick Murphy. Denkert and Murphy like to use light spinning gear for reds. A seven foot rod and a reel filled with 10 lb braid will handle most everything you will find in skinny water. Capt Denkert runs a Hells Bay skiff out of Islamorada and prefers a light jig with a GULP shrimp attached, while Capt Murphy uses a customizes jon boat out of Flamingo and likes a weedless gold spoon or a grey trigger-x shrimp. Chico naturally prefers an eight or nine weight fly rod with a floating line and a light, weedless fly. Whatever your choice of weapons, there is sure to be plenty of action if you find a native guide with a shallow water skiff. It always pays to have a guide. First you need someone to pole the boat through just inches of water and who knows where the fish were ‘yesterday’ as opposed to where they were two weeks ago. You can reach Rick Murphy through Sportsmansadventures.com and Dave Denkert at 305-852-1425.
