Expertise: Fishing
Best place to fish: Ten Thousand Islands, south of Marco Island
Childhood passion still remains: When he was growing up in Naples, Jahn and his friends would head off into the Ten Thousand Islands area, fishing in places few have gone before. “We’d camp out for a couple weeks down there,” he recalls. Panthers, snakes and other wildlife were always present.
The Grand Slam: Jahn says a great day of fishing means hitting the Grand Slam. That’s when you catch one of each in a single day: a tarpon, a redfish, a snook and a trout. The key to hitting the Grand Slam of fishing is to leave before sunrise and head south from the small fishing hamlet of Chokoloskee. “It’s a stealth operation,” he smiles.
Off the charts: Like most fishermen, Jahn is reluctant to reveal his secret fishing spots. “They go off the grid on the chart plotters,” he says.
Three areas he targets often: Lostman’s River, Graveyard Creek, and Broad River. He says you need a skinny water boat that lets you get into the mangroves and squeeze through holes in the dense vegetation to get to the best fishing spots.
Tackle: Jahn uses artificial lures such as Twitchin’ Rap made by Rapala, among others. “It’s all light-tackle fishing down there,” he says.
Mosquitoes: They aren’t as bad as you might imagine in the Ten Thousand Islands. As brother-in-law, Lee Boyd would say, “Dog, just don’t fan ’em.” Instead, be ready for no-see-ums, irritating bugs are also known as sandflies. “You cannot control no-see-ums,” Jahn shrugs. But there’s a reward for putting up with the pesky flies: “When the bugs are at their worst, the fishing’s at its best.”