USA - Tropical saltwater angling

Cayo Costa

Experience amazing, extreme inshore fishing for large sharks… A combination that adds up to a fishing trip that is totally unique. Year after year, the tales that come out of our trips to Cayo Costa just get wilder and wilder.

The island of Cayo Costa, situated in the Mexican Gulf off Florida’s coastline, is a state park, which means that it is a natural reserve. Forget everything about hotel, pool, and room service and imagine instead simple huts without electricity and cooking on a gas ring or over open fire. There are no shops, restaurants, or bars on the island, so you are your own entertainer and must get by on your own. For a nature lover and angler this is amazing. The island has a varied fauna and you have unique opportunities of getting close to exciting animals such as wild hogs, racoons, alligators, dolphins, and sea cows to mention a few. But most importantly: the fishing is eminent.

Cayo Costa offers a pure cornucopia of fishing opportunities. It is possible to try out different forms of fishing, to catch a lot of different species, and to catch large fish in the various biotopes.

The fishery For a lot of people it has been a dream since they were kids to catch a shark on a pole and line. At Cayo Costa the dream comes true. The waters around the island are filled with sharks and it is an extreme experience to challenge these beats directly from the shore. A lot of sharks are landed, some of them longer than 2m.

Another huge challenge is to catch a tarpon from the shore, using heavy coast angle gear or real surfcasting equipment. It is not a problem getting them to cut; the problem is to get them hooked. One contestant of the spring trip 2007 succeeded in this. The beautiful tarpon was 192cm. long and was caught on surf gear, using a small catfish as bait.

During the inshore fishing, when using large and bloody bait, you also get in contact with large stingrays and sometimes different species of eaglerays, besides the contact with sharks and tarpons.

In order to get bait for the heavy fishing, you “must” use the spin or the fly-fishing gear. The fishing, using the same gear as you use along the Danish coastlines, offers great experiences and fiercely fighting tropical fish. Here we are dealing with spotted seatrout, snook, redfish, ladyfish, jack cravelle, bluefish, and a lot of other species that are tempted by jigs, wobblers, and flies. The taking usually ends its days as food for the angler or as shark bait.

The huts are located a few hundred meters from the Mexican Gulf, and in the surfs along the coast, you have kilometres of great fishing water. Close to the camp you also find a huge lagoon, which, besides being rich on fish, also has alligators living there. The east side of the island is filled with mangrove trees, flats, and smaller oyster reefs. Here it is best to fish from a sea kayak. You can also find more lagoons here, where it is possible to get really close to the sea cows.

On Atlantik’s trips to Cayo Costa, one day of fishing from boat with an American captain is included in the price. You fish using two poles: one for sharks and another for smaller fish, using live bait. A lot of different sharks and rays are caught on these trips. Former trips have offered surprises such as nursesharks, lemonsharks up to three m., several hammerheads, and a jewfish weighing 100 kg.

Possible catching:

Sharks: Sandbar, blacktip, nurse, lemon, spinner, hammer, bonnethead.

Other species: Stingrays, eaglerays, tarpon, jewfish, spotted seatrout, jack cravelle, redfish, snook, ladyfish, bluefish, sheepshead, mangrove snapper, spanish mackerel, and a lot more.

Group trip 2009:

Week 16 - 17: SOLD OUT

Euro: 1.100,- pr. person.

The price includes:

• Transit Ft. Meyers - Cayo Costa (cab + ferry)
• Bednights in primitive huts (ten nights) and first night at hotel
• Fully provisioning by joint efforts in the camp
• One day of fishing with American guide from boat
• One day with rented kayak
• Danish/english courier/fishing guide
• Information evening with preparations in Denmark

The price does not include:

• Fishing license (ordered on the internet - 35 us$ p/a)
• Airfare
• Tips
• Travel insurrance

See photo's of an amazing catch from our 2009 tour here 

Atlantik Travel will be happy to assist you with airfare/transport from your domicile to the destination, please feel free to contact us atlantik@atlantik.dk  or