Greetings from Captain Buddy,
It’s the day after Halloween, and I’m leaving tomorrow morning on my annual bow hunt to southeastern Colorado, this time in pursuit of the illusive whitetail, which are found in an area once populated by North American plains Indians, including the Shawnee, Apache, and Kiowa tribes. Though the last few years have presented me with few opportunities to release an arrow, I thoroughly enjoy the peace and solitude of the plains experience. My destination this year is near Las Animas, Colorado, which is out in the Eastern Plains very close to the Kansas-Colorado border. Stunning panoramic country, with the Purgatoire River running through the ranch where I’ll be staying. Lots of large canyons with Cedar, Juniper, and other plant species native to the area. Though an entirely different ecosystem than The Everglades, just like The Everglades, there are very few people and one is surrounded by the beauty of nature in its pristine and unfettered expanse.
Over the past few months, fishing the Everglades has been reasonably stable. With unseasonably warm days, most of the fish we’re catching are on the outside. Water in the backcountry is still just too warm. I’ve kept an activity log for the past 4 years and comparatively, today’s sightings are not matching the numbers we recorded back then. We should be recording more sightings in the backcountry by now. We are, instead, seeing fewer and smaller populations than when compared to previous years. I find that after several years of observing and educating myself on the changes we’re seeing, it becomes hard to debate that climate change, in the form of global warming and other effects, are not occurring. And I’m not convinced that much of what we are encountering isn’t manmade. I’m beginning to understand that it may be in all of our best interest to pay serious attention to the studies available to us now and begin to look for ways to do our part, or at least prepare for a changing world as best we can.
To go back one more time to the fishing, over the past few months, anglers have been catching a fair amount of Redfish, most under 20”. This certainly gives us encouragement for the future with indications that, despite toxic and threatening conditions, marine life are capable of thriving and migrating as they adapt to changing conditions. Topwater fishing for Snook has been good. Lots of smaller Snook, but every once in a while, there are some larger Snook to be spotted in the Everglades! You would have thought by now I’ve figured out how to land them consistently. The majority of the larger, more powerful Snook find a way back into the mangrove roots, where they draw us, only to break us off. If we were fishing these same Snook out on the beach, we’d land the vast majority of them as the mangroves would not be there to provide them extra hiding places. One of the activities that continues to excite me with the fishing here is the amazing power of the mature Snook. Tarpon are a blast, but pound for pound, fishing for Snook is off the charts!
I finally put money down on a new Sea Ark, Jon boat. There are just so many places that my Maverick can maneuver through as the backcountry creeks narrow. Some remote places are still possible with the Maverick, however the chance of damaging a perfectly good flats boat becomes very high. Since Hurricane Irma, I have definitely seen a change for the worst with access to more remote bays and lakes. So now, if we can’t access it with the Maverick flats boat, we have the Jon boat at our disposal. If the Jon boat can’t do it, we can try the raft. If we still can’t access it, well, then, we just weren’t meant to be there!
Signing off….Captain Buddy