Well, I so wish I had a picture to post, but don't have one. I did get a great shot of a guy poling his hot young girlfriend drinking a beer in one hand and a flyrod in the other, but it was kinda far away, and didn't do it justice......Anyway, I've never seen a tarpon before....Seen a lot of fish in my life even south of the border, but never fished for tarpon, let alone giant tarpon. Got to go to Florida a week or so ago to visit the girlfriend's mom. Hired Capt'n Wayne Simmons out of Dunedin Fl....just me/him/his Loomis 12wt 1 pc rod,/18ft flats boat, and about 15 scary big tarpon. Had 3 shots and no takers....First 2 shots were packs of 2 and 3 respectively and were big....last one came right at the boat, and at last minute he yelled "Oh....it's a single fish"......11 o'clock.....Think I actually saw it turn it's head to the smallish purple fly....I got more adrenaline rush off those 3 fish than I've ever got off a steelhead.....I was shaking after not hooking that last beast....He said it was easily 120-150. Not only was it bigger than my slightly overweight golden retriever ever was, but it was just plain huge. Must do this again. If I had money, I'd have left the girlfriend at the airport, and stayed till I actually hooked one....Ha. If anyone is ever in that neck of the woods in late April-June, Captn Wayne was the man. He grew up there/flyfished for Tarpon since young, and I met his uncle who who's been flyfishing for tarpon there since the 60's....he was out there by himself poling around....Wife left at some point, and he just carried on.......along with a huge younger contingent of people with really nice flats boats(and hot girlfriends drinking beer with they're left hand)......Real estate on that part of the gulf is amazingly cheap, and I actually looked at a 7 bedroom house for 285K....Didnt need as much as you'd assume....(I"m broke, but I do need to retire someday......Ha)......I'm pretty sure I'll go back next may......Pretty much addicted at this point.....Tom
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