Join Keith Arthur on the Fishing Adventure of a lifetime!
Big Game Fishing in Key West, Florida

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Join Sky TV's Keith Arthur for a Big Game fishing trip on-board Juggler off the coast of Florida.  Keith must be one of the best known personalities in angling.  His regular TV series "Tight Lines" on Sky Sports plus his twice weekly radio chat show "Fisherman's Blues" means that there's very little going on in angling that Keith's not aware of... and it goes without saying that he has access to some of the best fishing in the world.  One of his main passions is Big Game angling and this is your chance to join him on one of his regular trips to Florida.  Angling guides just don't come any better than this!

You will fly with Keith to Miami, and then pick up the air-conditioned minibus that's your taxi for the trip.  Keith will be driving, but don't worry, he's done it before! Over to Keith to describe your trip ......

" The journey from Miami to Key West is about 155 miles, but there's a fabulous stop-off just about halfway down the Keys in Islamorada, the Village of Islands. There lives World Wide Sportsman, possibly the best tackle shop you will have seen. Set in the centre of the store is a replica of the boat Hemingway used to fish from Cuba, the Pinar. You can also see a marine aquarium with many of the back-country species local to the area: tarpon, snook, bonefish, red drum and many others. Some of them are right lumps too!

Time for shopping for tackle (if you want to) or clothes (you WILL want to) with Columbia, Hook and Tackle, Ex-Officio and BassPro's own brand fishing clobber, and some wonderful tropical clothes. My favourites are Tommy Bahama. Plenty of T-shirts and gifts too, but we'll do it all again on the way home.

Then outside onto the dock for a quick look at the charter boats, and a bite in the restaurant, set right on the water's edge. You can even feed the tarpon, if there hasn't been a cold front, that live outside the kitchen window.

Back in the bus for the final couple hours drive to Paradise, through Marathon, over the famous Seven Mile Bridge (it does what it says on the tin), Big Pine (might see one of the scarce Key deer), Cudjoe Key, Sugarloaf, and then Key West.

We might even pick up a beer or two for a celebration drink when we arrive!

On the way back after stopping for lunch at Worldwide Sportsman, time permitting, we'll take you on the old road, via Card Sound Bridge, and maybe even a quick beer in Alabama Jacks. I promise you a final memory will stick from there. It makes the hair on my neck stick up even thinking about it.

... A typical fishing day in Paradise:

We like to get away from the dock by 7.30 and first stop is for bait. Sometimes we'll net pilchards from the captain's secret spots by throwing a cast net, maybe fish hokkais for threadfin herring or blue runners, which is great fun, mainly trying to get them into the live well before a bloody great barracuda scoffs the lot, including the rig!

The boat is simply phenomenal and if you are a regular sea angler in the UK, you'll have to hang onto your hat as cruising speed is usually 30-35mph. The 'blue stuff' starts at the reef, only 7 miles or so offshore, although there are some great wrecks and rockpiles to fish in the Gulf of Mexico too.

Fishing styles can vary from simply free-lining a livebait, fishing it under a float, dropping it to the bottom (if it doesn't get nabbed on route... a regular happening), slow trolling or even fishing the bait under a kite, which is flown out in the breeze. The line is clipped below the kite and the flight managed so the livebait swims right in the surface; not many predators can resist that.

As well as livebaits, cut bait is used too and sometimes lures such as bucktail jigs, which can be cast to visible fish like cobia and blackfin tuna. Occasionally pulling plastic lures can bring up a billfish.

Everything you hook fights, and I mean everything: a 2lb yellowtail snapper will spin the drag on an 8lb outfit and an amberjack of 50lb will cost you around 3/4's of an hour of your life! You may not want to hook another for a while.

Back at the dock, if you have kept any 'edibles', such as tuna, snapper or grouper, the captain will fillet them beautifully and restaurants such as the Half Shell Raw Bar will cook them for you. I promise you that you will remember that meal for the rest of your days. In fact a click on that link will probably give you an idea of the entire ethos of Key West. Fun and fish, both with a capital 'F' ".

You'll get 4 full days fishing on-board Juggler with Keith. You'll be stopping in one of a range of luxury accommodation.  St Johns Penthouse is one of Keith's favourites - click here to take a look which is within walking distance of the marina.  At night you can take a cab or the Bone Island Shuttle to the shops, restaurants and bars, including the World-famous Sloppy Joes, of downtown Key West.

You're welcome to take a non-angling guest and to extend your stay after the fishing - why not make it a truly memorable holiday for you both?  The additional cost of taking a non-angler is not high... after you've paid for the flight it's just a case of a little extra to cover the accommodation.

See him on...