Spear fishing in Marathon Area, Need some advice!

[mallardtone-man]

Hey guys, I post on here every so often, I posted a few months back asking advice on some bridge fishing, shark info and some other stuff for an upcoming trip. I had a blast and caught a ton of fish, many of them thanks to the advice I got from guys on this forum, I just wanted to say thanks.


I had so much fun last time that I am headed back down with my brother and a couple of buddies and will be there from may 4th-14th. We plan on renting a boat this time and doing a TON of fishing and spear fishing.

This will be a whole new thing for us. I have reserved 20' Cobia CC with a 130hp 2 stroke Yamaha, it has livewell, fishfinder, GPS etc. It is $155/day for 3 days + Gas from Captain Pips Marina in Marathon (if someone knows of a better deal please let me know). I will be using it with my brother and two buddies. This is kind of alot of $$ for us so we want to do everything we possibly can to make sure we get on fish and have some fun. Captain Pips Marina is at the base of the 7mile bridge in Marathon. We wont be trailering so I would imagine our range will be a 15 mile radius or so (maybe more/less depending on our top speed, weather conditions, fuel costs, etc). I dont mind doing a little running and spending the time/$$ to get to the right spot as long as there is a good chance it will produce good results. I know generally what type of structure to look for and what time of fish I am likely to encounter. I am really hoping to get some specifics on reefs, wrecks, rocks, anywhere we might be able to catch/shoot some fish. I have a handheld GPS and can navigate fairly well so getting some numbers would be awesome. We are respectful guys and responsible fishermen and are only fishing for three days so please don't be afraid we are going to trash/steal your favorite spot or something. I have come to rely on this kind of advice over the years and always try and reciprocate if I feel I can help someone out. Ideally I was hoping that someone might be interested meeting us up and showing us a spot or two as well as giving us the rundown. We could probably even throw you some money for gas. I have seen people looking for riders on other sites, so if someone has room for 4 in thier boat we would happily chip in for gas in bait. If it is close enough and ok with you I could fish that spot in the rental boat later but will respect it if it is you honey hole or something.

Thanks again,
James

[StyngRay]

Here's some advice you need.
enjoy your vacation. Just don't tell us of any illegal activity.
http://floridakeys.noaa.gov/edu/spearfi ... ochure.pdf