Spiny Lobster Trip

Absolutely no help in the Keys, but I used to do it all the time when I lived in southern California.

It was a lot of fun and those things are delicious. I also used to use a Hawaiian sling for spearfishing. That and the weather are about all I miss from my fee years in California.

I bet the Keys would be awesome. That Pacific is so cold you're wearing 7 mil wetsuit and 5 mil hood, gloves and booties.

Good cut/puncture resistant gloves and a tickle stick ate all you need. Never liked lasso. Walk them out with the tickle stick then grab them. Once you go for ty4 grab, you have to commit. If you touch an antenna, they are gone.

check out the hendrix brothers. they run boats out of bud n marys. one of them does bully netting trips at night. the boat names are fearless and dauntless. great guys.

Like I said above finding lobsters is not hard early in the season, it’s finding keepers later in the season. Tons of lobster during mini season and the other times, it’s just that most are short because they are picked through past mid August. Guides just have 500 gps numbers to check and any random going the first time will just have to work through spots to find them.

So you really are just paying a guide to have a better chance to keep a good bit of lobster.

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you really are just paying a guide to have a better chance to keep a good bit of lobster.

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My point as well.

Snorkel or diving, just find a reef and poke.

It's about the experience as much as the catch

Not anytime soon. Earliest would be next year. Just looking for the best option for 3 couples with not much experience with lobstering.

I've done it,,,,we did both sides of key west,,,,the east side has a big wall, its a bit deeper and the lobsters were a little larger there but not as many,,,,, the primary fields are to the west in the shallows,,,,,,,we rented a party barge and we had 3 tanks per day,,,,,,we got into the area where there are lots of coral and rocks and then we towed two people behind the boat with goggles and snorkels to find the actual best concentrations of rocks and coral,,,,,once we found that, we got the scuba gear on and hit the bottom,,,,its about 25' deep so you have good bottom time. It used to be that the recreastional season started a week before the commercial season, now they run together,,,,,,that puts you at a disadvantage. There are charter operators who know the best spots,,,,,,if you want your best chance, book one of those and that will give you a good idea where the best lobster fields are and you can go on your own the next day. Heres a link to where the fields are

Lobster Fields