Photos for Annual Tarpon Adventure 2012
Rather than try to edit the photos into the already read thread, I thought I would just throw them up with some captions. Sorry that a brain glitch kept me from posting them with the story.
The Miami Airport was one of the most dreadful spots on the trip. But after only a few short years of construction, they opened a new concourse and included these pretty neat fish replicas. Of course, they paid for them by having shops installed, such a Prada and Armani, that even an ubersnob is not permitted in the door.
The Star of the Sea Church in Key West.
It was an all Spanish speaking mass, which was a little different. Everyone was very nice, but it felt a tad weird to be in a very small minority.
Some UFA pre-fishing gear porn.
The rods were ready, but the weather sure was not.
This was the best visibility "moment" of three days. The waves were small, but with the constant 20 -25 winds, plus gusts, the water became "pinstriped."
While the food was so-so at Snappers, dinner there did prove that old hippies never die, they just go to the Keys and play music on pontoon boats.
A "must-do" in Key West is lunch at Caroline's on Duval Street. This is a bamboozal salad.
A Key West resident -- not fly tying material.
The sun setting, appropriately enough, over Sunset Key, while a storm cell starts to break up a ways offshore over some of the smaller barriers.
One of the Mallort Square street performers hustles for cash.
The newest attraction to KW is learning to jet pack. I was all ready to give it a go, but thought of a better way to blow $250 than smashing myself face first into the harbor. This guy was great and did some cool tricks and some very high speed runs. The cell in the background never did make it ashore.
Duval Street in the early evening before the "normal" KW crowd even awakes. There is a hot sausage street cart right off the Bull and Whislte that has just about the best hot sausage sandwhich anywhere. Or maybe it is the location. I don't know.
This mounted tarpon is as close as I came this trip. It is for sale in an antique shop on Siminton. The story is that it lived in the KW harbor and was fed the throw aways from the fish fish cleaning table until it great to that size. Then some unscrupulous [link=mailto:b@stard]b@stard[/link] caught it and kept it (one cannot kill a tarpon in FL now without a research permit). The angler was shunned by the entire community. Teh mount hung in is house until his death. His widow has it on consignment. Price-wise, it is pretty fair, and not a bad mount at all. Although the shipping to PA is a killer, I hope to own this piece some day.
Just a little proof that the good Lord smiles on Key West.