Key West is famous for its bountiful fishing grounds, from the salt water flats to the reef and also the Gulf of Mexico. Thousands of people come here year round to fish, both novices and professionals and everyone in between. Dozens of fishing tournaments are held here each year, and sport fishing shows are filmed here for cable tv all the time. It’s no wonder Key West is a top destination for the fishing vacation of a lifetime! If you are one of these people, coming to Key West for a fishing vacation, chances are you are planning to fish with a Key West fishing guide. If you want to get the most out of each fishing trip and learn new techniques while you’re at it, hiring a guide is the best thing you can do for yourself. The guides know everything there is to know and then some, about fishing around Key West. They love it, they do it year round, year after year. You get to just fly into Key West and take advantage of a lifetime of fishing experience, just like that! Of course every Key West fishing guide has his or her own secrets, like where to go to get the most fish. Or exactly how to bait that hook and how deep to send it to hook a nice grouper. They also know the weather, the tides, the current, and things like water temperature and time of year, and how all this determines how you fish each day. It’s quite a body of knowledge, once you start thinking about it, that Key West fishing guides posses! Lots of die-hard fishing fanatics who visit Key West every year (or even several times a year) have a favorite Key West fishing guide they book every single trip. It’s a nice way to build a sportsman relationship, and many become buddies over the years. If you have a great time out there on the water, and your Key West guide is good at delivering the fish, then why not? It adds a personal touch to your Key West vacation, making you less of a tourist and more of a visiting friend. The fun part is finding the right guide. Try several, and don’t settle for a guide who doesn’t make your trip pleasant and fun as well as productive. Of course your guide doesn’t have to be a clown, but getting along and feeling at ease on a 4, 6 or 8 hour fishing trip is important! Most Key West guides love their chosen profession, and have extraordinary passions for salt water sport fishing. That passion will show through if it’s genuine, and you’ll be able to catch lots of fish as well as have a blast with your newfound fishing buddy in Key West. Go with your gut: try several guides, if you can. Fishing is about catching fish, but it’s also about forgetting your troubles on the water, feeling totally enthralled by the sport, and genuinely having a blast while on vacation in Key West. Your Key West fishing guide is a major part of that experience so don’t settle for anything but the best!



By: jamiehanson

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Florida Keys is home to North Americas only liveing coral reef.The reef extends from Key Largo ,to the Dry Torgugas,west of key West,in the Gulf of Mexico.The reefs here are spectacular and rival those of many of the Carribbean areas.There are approximately 6,000 coral and patch reefs  between Key Biscayne and the Dry Tortugas.

Coral reefs are specialized habitats that provide food,shelter and breeding sites for numerious plants and animals.They provide natural protection for the adjacent coast,and are very important to Florida’s economy.The attraction to the coral reefs contribute greatly to the total value of Florida’s fisheries.

Coral reefs only develope in area’s with specific enviornmental characteristics:a solid structure for the base;warm and predictable water temperatures;oceanic salinaties;clear,transparent waters low in phosphate and nitrogen nutrients,and moderate wave action to disperse wastes and bring oxygen and plankton to the reef.

Florida Key’s Tropical setting and it’s beautiful coral reefs attracts millions of visitors annually.We must all minimize human damage to the reefs.The reefs are well marked on navigation ;if you are not familiar with the area,refer to the charts.

Boaters run aground and destroy coral colonies that are hundreds of years old.Remember that reefs have a unique golden-brown color.There is a saying in the keys:”Brown,Brown go Around”.Be cautious when anchoring your boat .Do not deploy the anchor directly in coral.Usually there are sandy areas close by,anchor in the sand.

Anglers should avoid shallow coral reefs when trolling.Hooks can scare and injure the coral,leaveing it vulnerable to infection by microscopic organisms that can kill the animals.

When you are snorkeling or diveing do not touch the coral!Do not grasp,stand or sit on coral.All coral is protected.It is against the law to collect,harvest or sell Florida corals in the state and adjacent federal waters.

Florida Keys coral reefs are significant,unique natural resources. Be responsible to insure that for many years to come people can injoy one of Americas Treasures. 

 



By: Paul Beaudette

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