Key West - The Conchs credit "Papa" Hemingway with establishing this island in the stream as a world-class fishing destination.

"For years, local captains fished the reefs close to shore," explained Tim Greene, chairman of the annual Key West Marlin Tournament. "Then Hemingway came along and changed everything."

The author, who lived here from 1929 to 1939, is said to have discovered blue-water big game fishing by accident. Legend has it that he stumbled across his first marlin while on his way to visit a lady friend in Havana.

"He took the fish back to the dock for all the locals to see," said Greene, whose family has been around so long they have a street named after them. "That was the beginning of our big game fishery."


Inshore or Offshore?

 It's been 70 years since Hemingway plied the azure waters off the southernmost point, but his legacy lives on. Every year, thousands of anglers from around the world come to fish the coral reefs and blue-water canyons that put Key West on the international fishing map.

Sixty-eight years worth of International Game Fish Association (IGFA) world records have been set in Key West's waters. The biggest question faced by serious anglers traveling to this island paradise is not where or when to fish, but what to fish for.

In the spring, the action heats up on the grass flats of Florida Bay as light-tackle anglers pursue tarpon, the "silver king" of game fish. These thick-bodied brutes look like chrome-colored submarines as they cruise the shallows in search of crabs and pinfish.
As the water cools in the winter months, locals target barracuda on light line, and a variety of sharks, which also come inshore in search of an easy meal.

In the summer and fall, fly fishermen also have their choice of permit, another certified tackle buster, and bonefish, a species capable of stripping a reel of its line in the blink of an eye. As the water cools in the winter months, locals target barracuda on light line, and a variety of sharks, which also come inshore in search of an easy meal.

Offshore, spring brings sailfish, a species of which Hemingway was particularly fond, and cobia, another muscled brute that has broken its share of fishing rods. Later in the season, as the days grow longer, anglers hunt the weed lines for mahi-mahi, or dolphin fish, a popular item on local restaurant menus.

When the temperature drops in the fall, black and yellowfin tuna return to local waters, leaving plenty of sore arms and backs in their wake. By Christmas, the big schools of mackerel will find their way back to Key West just in time for the start of the kingfish tournament season.


Charter Boat Row

 Landing a good captain on Charter Boat Row is almost as easy as finding a tropical beverage on Duval Street.

"We've got every kind of boat you can think of down here - flats, light-tackle, offshore, trolling, even head boat," said Mike Weinhofer, a local guide who started fishing on his father's charter boat when he was five years old. "You never know what you are going to catch, but you are always going to catch something."

When asked what makes the fishing in Key West particularly good, Weinhofer said the answer was simple.

"Key West is located 120 miles out in the ocean," he said. "In most places, you have to run hours to get to that kind of water. Here, it only takes minutes."

Jim Sharpe, another veteran skipper who runs about out of nearby Summerland Key, said the waters off the southernmost point are a veritable playground for anglers.

"There was a tournament that ran out of here for years where anglers had to catch a tarpon, permit and sailfish in that order," Weinhofer said. "I don't know any other place in the world where you can get that kind of consistency."


After the Catch

 After a long day on the water, Hemingway liked to head to his favorite watering hole, Sloppy Joe's Bar, and spend time with friends.

"He didn't go there to talk the finer points of great literature," said Greene. "He was there to talk about fishing." The bar opened in 1933 on the site of what is now Captain Tony's Saloon. In 1937, Sloppy Joe's moved to its current location at 201 Duval Street, where its open-air atmosphere packs them in from morning to night.

Also in the 200 block of Duval Street is the multi-venue Rick's/Durty Harry's Entertainment Complex, you can sip ice cold beverages at the Tree Bar and people-watch as the tourists saunter down Duval Street below.

Other local favorites include Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville Café and the Hog's Breath Saloon, both known for their laidback atmosphere and fine selection of spirits and beers.

This article is brought to you by the Florida Keys and Key West TDC. To plan your own getaway to Key West, visit www.fla-keys.com/keywest.