Hi
My lovely girlfriend has insisted on a holiday in Florida 30/09-11/10/01 (UK date format) we are going to Miami then driving to the Keys. I want to go fishing and catch a BIG fish so I can send pics to the guys I went fishing with in Australia last year. Anyone got any tips as to good boats/locations???
Jim

you can go to or around the pensacola coast, there seems to be thousands of sharks there right now.. 10 bites in the last week and a half or something like that... i am sure you would make alot of people happy if you caught one of those suckers... and i think they are plenty big...
not sure about the keys.. been to florida tons, but never the keys... and no expert on boats, i did throw up on one though once... alcohol, too much sun and lots of motion don't mix well....

Boats and alcohol are a good mix! Spent a good day on the water in Oz when I thought I was in a Pink Floyd vid. Must have been those herbal cigs we were smoking. The Aussies told me the pelicans were real though!

not when you were 13 i bet.. my dad was cool though, i got away with alot when i was younger, maybe why i am so screwed in the head now..

My dad only took me fishing in North Wales when I was 13.
The beer froze and we caught 0 fish.
Sounds like you got a good deal!
When you say bites, I assume you mean sharks eating people, no fun at all!

Yep, for some unknown reason.. the sharks are swarming and gathering in the gulf coast.. and a lot of shark attacks.. cause people are still stupid enough to go out in the water.

Maybe I'll head there and bait up.

I've got a tip for a good location. The finish line of the Columbus Day Regatta. The Regatta is the weekend of October 6th and 7th, and it is the largest boat party in Miami. Bring a case of beer and a camera.

I lived in Miami the first 25 years of my life and I never did see the actual regatta, just the party afterwards. The times I attended the party has been on the bay side of Elliot key in Biscane bay.

http://www.columbusdayregatta.net/2001/

If you will not be in Miami on that weekend what I would suggest would depend on how many people you have going with you. If it just you and your girlfiend, you can jump on a big charter that takes 30-40 other people out. The boat stops and you just thow in your line.
If there are a couple more of you, you can split the cost of a charter that will take you out blue water fishing for Marlin, Sail, Tuna, or whatever. That is a lot of fun, but a lot of money.
You can always get a charter and try for some bone fish on the flats.
Sorry, but I can't recommend a good boat. I've always either gone out on my own boat or a friend's.

It's been a long time since I've been out, over four years, and I miss every minute of it. There were times in college, during summer, when I would go out every day for two weeks straight. Talk about eating fish for months...

Good Luck and I want to see the picture of the sord fish.

Will be there that weekend......
Picture = easy
Leads to another question for you US types.... How much is CF memory over there??? I've got a canon ixus digicam jobby, bringing laptop over aint feasible. so need to buy more memory. I have a feeling it's cheeeep over there, where would be the best place to buy from???