Tarpon at the Top
Strategies for the summer flats

How does an expert fly fisherman approach a huge tarpon that's been swimming across the same grassflat each year, for more years than he's been fishing?

He reads the fish's body language, knows exactly where to cast, presents the right fly on the right line, and makes the fly come alive on the retrieve.

When everything goes just right, this is what he sees:

A golden sunrise in mangrove country. . .

. . . leads to a silver flash at the end of the line, as a big tarpon eats the fly. . .

Up close, the fish looks even bigger.

After a few moments of reviving next to the boat, the big tarpon is released to continue on its annual migration.