Tweet
I have been fortunate to make many fishing trips to Florida over the past decade. In 2013, I met kayak guide Neil Taylor in the Tampa Bay area. Neil and I hit it off, and I ended up fishing with him on nearly 150 days during the next 8 years. Neil is no longer guiding, so I have expanded my fishing to other parts of Florida. For many years, I would fly on Southwest out of BWI into Tampa, Ft Myers, or Ft Lauderdale, depending on where I wanted to fish. I would rent a car and find lodging near where I planned to fish. Typically those trips had me staying more or less in one part of Florida for several days to a week. My last trip of that style came in Feb 2020 (just before Covid became a big-time issue). Since then, I have not been back on an airplane.
If I cannot fly because of Covid concerns, how can I get to Florida or other distant destinations? Fortunately for me, I am retired and my wife does not mind if I travel for 2 to 3 weeks at a time (during my working years, I traveled extensively -- nearly every month for 20 years, so she got used to having me gone). Since 2021, I have made several driving trips to Florida. The first of these came in spring 2021. I drove to Florida and fished with kayak guides at various spots. I brought my own kayak with me (inside my van) and was able to fish on my own on days without charters). In 2022, I made a 3-week trip in the spring and a second trip between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I am scheduled to head back to Florida in mid-Feb for another 3 weeks.
During the many years I traveled for business, I usually made my own travel arrangements. Those skills are useful when planning a fishing road trip. When I get the green light from my wife to plan a trip, here are the things I think about.
I typically make a shorter trip during the summer months to the Virginia eastern shore and stay there for 3 to 5 nights while fishing in those waters. Last summer, John Rentch and I made that trip, but added a few extra days in coastal NC to fish with another kayak guide I know.
Depending on your available time and budget, there are many places to visit on a fishing road trip. For those of you interested in kayak fishing in Florida, I am happy to offer some suggestions on guides and where to go.
If I cannot fly because of Covid concerns, how can I get to Florida or other distant destinations? Fortunately for me, I am retired and my wife does not mind if I travel for 2 to 3 weeks at a time (during my working years, I traveled extensively -- nearly every month for 20 years, so she got used to having me gone). Since 2021, I have made several driving trips to Florida. The first of these came in spring 2021. I drove to Florida and fished with kayak guides at various spots. I brought my own kayak with me (inside my van) and was able to fish on my own on days without charters). In 2022, I made a 3-week trip in the spring and a second trip between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I am scheduled to head back to Florida in mid-Feb for another 3 weeks.
During the many years I traveled for business, I usually made my own travel arrangements. Those skills are useful when planning a fishing road trip. When I get the green light from my wife to plan a trip, here are the things I think about.
- Dates and trip length - When choosing the start and end dates, I must consider if there are birthdays or other family dates during which I should be at home. I also need to determine how many days I can afford to be gone (both financially and with spousal approval).
- Destinations - The next thing to consider is where I want to fish, and for how many days at each location.
- Willingness to drive - Getting to the GA/FL border is about 800 miles from Annapolis. I am willing to do one very long driving day in each direction. I typically drive to Brunswick, GA (~670 miles and 11 hours) on the first day. It is not a fun day, but it gets me most of the way there. Others may prefer to take 3 or more days of shorter drives to get there. When I leave Brunswick on day 2, I can drive toward my next destination (near Tampa if on the west coast, or near Titusville on the east coast). The drive there takes several hours and allows me to fish during the afternoon of day 2. One other option is taking the Amtrak Autotrain in one or both directions. This train runs from just south of the Washington Beltway to near Orlando. Your vehicle is transported on the train while you sit inside a passenger car. The train runs through the night. I used the Autotrain to come north in 2019.
- Scheduling guides - I have found kayak guides that I like in the lower Keys and in the Miami/Everglades areas. Once I have my trip dates approximated, I contact those guides to see on which days their schedules can accommodate 3 or more consecutive charter days with me. Some times it is easy to find several days at each spot. In the upcoming trip in early March, they had relatively few open dates, so I had to shoehorn a visit into their schedules and will have a few open days on my own to fish.
- Lodging - Some anglers like to camp out and bring their own tents or trailers with them. I personally do not camp, and rely on hotels or other lodging. I tend to stay at 2 star or 3 star properties, as I do not need the amenities of fancier places. When I am in the Keys, I found a great spot where I can rent a floating cabin (essentially a small houseboat) for the days I am there. I found that booking there for a week is not much more costly than for 4 or 5 nights, as they offer a weekly discount. Once I have the dates and guides arranged, I book my lodging at places that are convenient to where I will be fishing.
- Fill in rest of the route - For about half of my days in Florida, I will be fishing on my own rather than with a guide. I also need to move from one part of the state to another. I try to scout out locations where I want to fish that are either near where I slept the night before, near where I will sleep the following night, or somewhere in between. Once I make those decisions, I can arrange the rest of my lodgings.
I typically make a shorter trip during the summer months to the Virginia eastern shore and stay there for 3 to 5 nights while fishing in those waters. Last summer, John Rentch and I made that trip, but added a few extra days in coastal NC to fish with another kayak guide I know.
Depending on your available time and budget, there are many places to visit on a fishing road trip. For those of you interested in kayak fishing in Florida, I am happy to offer some suggestions on guides and where to go.
Comment