ICAST review

The International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades, better known as ICAST, was recently held this past week, July 15^th through 18^th, in Orlando, Florida. The Event serves two purposes, to bring together manufacturers, distributers and retailers, and to introduce new and current products to the media. ICAST also hosts the New Product Showcase where companies can enter one of many categories to vie for the title of Best New Product.

500,000 square feet of ICAST

This year, over 11,000 attendees visited the event, including close to 1,000 media representatives covering the exhibits and products offered by 480 exhibitors on a show floor that covered 500,000 square feet. “I’ve been coming to ICAST for 20 years,” said ASA Board of Directors Chairman Gregg Wollner, executive vice president of Rapala, “and this is the best show I’ve ever attended. I can’t express how proud I am of the board of directors, the Trade Show committee and the staff for how they pulled together to make this happen.”

The Show Floor

Making up a special section of ICAST’s show floor, the New Product Showcase provides unique visibility for the latest innovations in sportfishing gear and accessories. The submitted products competed in 24 product categories for the “Best of Show” along with the overall “Best of Show” award. This year more than 700 products were entered by 253 exhibiting companies. This year, the Old Town Predator XL was voted by buyers and media as the most innovative product in the ICAST 2014 New Product Showcase Boat category and, ultimately, the overall “Best of Show.”

Larysa Switlyk and Pat Crawford show off Old Town Kayak's Best of Show 

In addition to Old Town, there were many other kayak companies present showing off new and innovative products and accessories. Hobie Kayaks unveiled the incredible Pro Angler Tandem, a 17ft miracle of rotomolding that is definitely more boat than kayak. It features Hobie’s new H-Rail system for attaching accessories with ease. Add two taller Vantage seats and dual Mirage Drives, and Hobie continues their recipe for success. Hobie Fishing Products Manager Morgan Promintz said, “We are very proud of the PA Tandem and think it will fill a niche market”.

Hobie Pro Angler Tandem

Woody Calloway debuted Native Watercraft’s new Slayer Propel 10 kayak, proving that great things come in small packages. At 60lbs, this kayak is light enough to carry down the trail, yet packed with its larger cousins’ features, including Native’s comfortable seating, an improved Propel Drive, and plenty of rigging options with the installed track system. “Our customers told us they wanted something for easier access to tighter areas”, Woody said.

Native Slayer Propel 10

Tactical Angler Crossover Stalker

Tactical Anglers was on hand with new lure offerings. Their TA Crossover Stalker comes in four patterns and will prove to be a best seller. “Reds, snook and trout will absolutely inhale these lures”, announced TA Pro Staffer Butch Newell. Westin, a European company, displayed not yet available, ultra-realistic soft plastic hybrid lures that looked absolutely beautiful. They attended ICAST hoping to find a U.S. distributer before they are available here.

Westin Lures

Flying Fisherman came out with several new designs in their line of affordable polarized glasses. This family owned, Florida based company has made a name for themselves by offering quality fishing eyewear at a fraction of the prices of other name brand competitors. This year, they are expanding their product line to include very high quality travel fishing rods. The Passport travel rods line includes three different sized fly rods and three different sized spinning rods. “These are not the low quality travel rods we have seen in the past. We developed these rods using the finest material and workmanship to offer an excellent adventure travel solution”, Flying Fisherman’s Bobby Vaughn said.

Flying Fisherman

Certainly ICAST has something for everyone. Rods, reels, line, tackle, clothing and accessories. Most of these items are already on store shelves, and the rest will be soon. One thing is for sure, with 1000 media people attending ICAST this year, we will be hearing about it for the next several months!

A Short Pineland Report

It was pre-dawn and the air was thick. The dark sky was briefly illuminated periodically from distant lightning. Longtime friend and co-worker, Charlie Vaughn and I were launching his skiff from Pineland Marina for a couple hours of fishing in an area I know well for kayaking.

Typical Pine Island Sunrise

We left the ramp on the tail end of an outgoing tide just as the sun was peeking over the horizon. Edging up to the shallow flats on the outside of Big Jim Creek, I scanned the water’s surface for any sign movement, bait, fish or bird. The water was still and a few long exploratory casts with a Zara Spook Jr produced no interest from anything in the area.

Distant Thunderstorms

We spent the next couple of hours chasing agitated baitfish and feeding birds, producing varying sizes of ladyfish and trout on paddletails. As the tide slowly rose, Charlie brought his Carolina Skiff closer to the miles of mangrove edges that line the many small islands in Pine Island Sound. Around Rat Key we produced some good inshore snapper that Charlie decided to turn into tasty sandwiches.

Snapper!

Heading back to the ramp, I guided Charlie into a small bay where I have caught many Pineland redfish over the years. We slowly moved along the mangroves casting and searching for any sign of life in the increasing heat of the morning. Just at the end of our mangrove line, Charlie’s drag began to sing that song we all love to hear. He very quietly and calmly said “That’s a heavy fish, Bob. This is the one we were looking for”.

Charlie Redfish

After running around the boat several times, the big redfish finally showed signs of tiring. Charlie brought him close enough for me to reach down and land him. The over-slot fish was nice enough to smile for a few pictures, and was released soon thereafter.

Pine Island Stilt Shacks

We decided to end the morning on a high note and head back in. The sun was now baking hot and any semblance of a breeze had disappeared. As usual, Pineland had produced really great fishing and remains a healthy fishery for anyone willing to travel.

Tarpon are here!

Tarpon are here! Everywhere around Florida, folks are catching them large and small. These fish must be one of God’s greatest creations and are truly magnificent. Any angler who has “jumped” a tarpon never forgets the way they felt the first time one of these silver missiles shot out of the water, attempting and mostly succeeding in shaking the hook.

 

I like tarpon of all sizes. I have been fortunate enough to catch large tarpon in the keys and smaller examples in the Everglades. Recently, I found a new to me area that is semi-landlocked and seems to house many tarpon. Jim VanPelt, Tim Jones and I took a trip to the area with kayaks and Tim’s paddleboard to see if we could tangle with these silver kings.

I'm being watched

 

At the launch, the early morning air was humid and smelled of the surrounding vegetation. The lake was alive with rolling tarpon and scattering mullet and the sounds of juvenile shorebirds nesting in the mangroves lining the lake’s edge. We slipped into the water quietly and began our search. Jim and Tim were using paddletails and jerkbaits, and I was using my Steve Woosley custom painted spook. All around us was activity, and it was very quiet, except for the sounds of big fish crushing bait at the surface.

 

Well worn painted Spook

I spied a small school of baitfish at the surface moving in my direction and tossed my lure just beyond them. As I walked the spook through the baitfish, a giant loud crash and the fish was on! The drag began screaming as the 15lb line was peeling from my reel. After a few moments, the line direction changed and I knew the fish was about to come out of the water. I began reeling fast in anticipation when suddenly, the 40lb plus tarpon busted through the surface and went airborne. With its gill plate flared, it shook its large head violently and I watched my brightly colored spook lure fly through the air. The fish hit the surface of the water with a thunderous clap and was gone.

 

Searching the Shoreline

I was satisfied with jumping that tarpon so I put the rod away and began following Jim and Tim while snapping photos. Tim jumped a nice tarpon as well on a paddletail before changing to fly. The area was so active with feeding fish that every cast was an anticipated strike. But, the bite had indeed slowed. Jim finally scored a hit on a jerkbait and after a short but spirited fight he landed a good backwater snook.  Satisfied with the morning, and very aware of an approaching thunderstorm, we loaded up and moved on.

 

Jumper

Fish On!

Backwater snook

After spending the rest of the morning hunting peacock bass, we began the long drive back to civilization. We stopped to check out a small landlocked lake near Port of the Islands. A short road brought us to the lakes edge and a small kayak launch. We left the kayaks on the truck and opted for walking the shore. We immediately noticed the unmistakable rolling tarpon all over the surface. They were along the edge and out in the middle, everywhere!

 

Trudging through the brush

We started catching fish right away as Jim hooked a micro-poon on his first cast. I got into the action as well, almost landing a larger tarpon that had jumped its way into a weedy bush. Tim was landing several as well. We spent about an hour there, catching several and jumping many several more.

Micro-Poon

Jim lands one

little jumper

On the way back, we stopped for a late lunch at City Seafood in Everglades City. While there, we marveled at the giant cousins of the tarpon we scraped with as they moved up and down the dock where we ate. I thought about these beautiful fish and remembered something I read on another blog. It was a poem written about tarpon by Captain John Kumiski on his website “Spotted Tail”.

 

an ideal world
hot sun, blue sky, clear, slick water
sweat
a graphite wand, a sliver of steel, a wisp of feathers

a flash of silver breaks the mirror
then another, and another
feathers land in water
magically, they come to life

line tightens
mirror smashed
power
water flies, gills flare, body shakes, shudders
again, and again, and again

the beast tires
arms ache
hand grasps jaw
feathers removed
great fish swims free once more

tarpon
one of God’s gifts to fly fishers

Well said Capt John. Check out more on his website at http://www.spottedtail.com, and hit the road to find your tarpon adventure soon!