Dinner on a Fly

Our boat glides silently over the glass pane-like water, a shallow valley cleaved out behind the boat the only blemish on this otherwise pristine expanse around us. Captain Dave Bower, a local guide in Southwest Florida on the small charter boat Nervous Water, arcs his fly rod over his head, a gossamer bull whip threading far behind him. A lightening fast forward motion deposits a shrimp pattern fly, tied to a 7X leader, gently in front of a thatch of mangroves.

Rapidly stripping the 9 weight line back, Captain Bower intently scans the water behind the fly. Almost instantly a squall erupts behind the shrimp. Mangrove snapper, or dinner as it will fondly be known if it makes it to the boat, is on!

The rod bends slightly as the hook is set with a healthy tug. The snapper, loath to stray from its sheltered home deep within the mangrove roots, struggles mightily, looping and circling through the water, its energy ebbing slowly as the line reels in. Within moments, the fight is over. The four pound fish flops a few more times on the deck before it is placed unceremoniously into the ice cooler.

Armed with small, vampire like fangs on the front of their upper jaw and sublimely colored with light red or orange spots on their sides under a light brown back, these cautious eaters are known for a violent attack on both top water and shallow sinking flies. Locals favor a Clouser or small shrimp pattern, alternating minnow patterns closer to deep mangrove thickets.

Living a life in the shallows and mangroves, these snapper can grow up to 17 lbs, but 3-5 lbs is a more common catch in the mangroves. And they also have a reputation as a fish that lends itself to a vast array of cooking styles.

A popular local treatment for these white, flakey fleshed fish is a simple broil of butter, garlic and a squeeze of lemon. More exotic dishes involve the fish, gutted and cleaned but left whole, scored and marinated with fresh ginger, cilantro, chopped lemongrass, olive oil and small bullets of heat known as Thai chili peppers. It is then grilled whole and served with a Vietnamese nuoc chom dipping sauce.

If local markets are lacking the more ethnic ingredients, another simple dish that serves many other fish well uses a sauce of sautéed garlic, onion, fresh tomato, capers and chopped basil, seasoned and served with the fillets.

Other denizens of the mangroves, such as snook, small grouper and redfish, also lend themselves to a tremendously varied palette of flavors and preparations. Catching any of these fighters on a fly presents a challenge and reward not easily trumped.

The sun eases itself gently into the west as we turn back toward the dock. The ice cooler, aside from being the final resting place for dinner, also keeps a few cold beers nestled deep in it. As we head out from the mangroves, we toast our success and to the prospect of a tasty fish soon to be cooking on the grill.

–Tim Connors, RED Travel Writer