lemaymiami
06-08-2004, 08:06 PM
Finally we're in a summer pattern! With the weather we had this past few months hot weather with light breezes have been very welcome. The fishing has gotten better and better in the last ten days, as well.
The Gulf coast has paid off every day we've fished it. In nearby rivers it's been a mixed bag with snapper, small grouper, jewfish, spanish mackeral, and the occasional surprise (pompano and permit in dark river water are always surprises) on the days we've tried them. We've even been able to catch small grouper on flies with sinking lines and the right size fly fished right on the bottom in less than 10 feet of water. River mouths and oyster bars have produced good catches of snook and redfish on bait, lures and flies. This time of year you can just about target the size snook you want to tangle with by using a small fly for the little ones and a larger pattern for their big brothers and sisters... We've also encountered sawfish up to around 8 feet in length at river mouths. If you get one to the boat very carefully untangle it before the release since they tend to wrap the leader around their bills. The accent should be on the careful part since even a small one is a handfull at the boat.
The one day we fished on the Florida Bay side of Flamingo we were able to fill the live well with pinfish and large pilchards (scaled sardines) in around 30 minutes after chumming them up. Later that day those baits accounted for small tarpon, snook, jewfish, large jack crevalles and lots of small black-tip sharks. At one wreck site we fished, the small black-tips were so thick we could never get any bait or lure past them. This kind of fishing will be possible all summer long with only a few changes in species and sizes as the summer progresses. Every angler should have these kind of choices....
As the summer unfolds the number of anglers who'll brave the heat and bugs begins to diminish which means more time available for repairing gear and building rods and tying flies. I'm closely watching the current tarpon tournaments since a few of the guides are using my flies... I still have a few orders to fill but will soon have a bit of time to explore and work up new patterns. The best part about this time of year is that we may go for days and hardly see another boat in many of the areas that have great water with hungry critters... In another week or so the giant tarpon will return from spawning and begin to feed in earnest and regain lost weight. That second tarpon season should last until the first cold spell in October.
The Gulf coast has paid off every day we've fished it. In nearby rivers it's been a mixed bag with snapper, small grouper, jewfish, spanish mackeral, and the occasional surprise (pompano and permit in dark river water are always surprises) on the days we've tried them. We've even been able to catch small grouper on flies with sinking lines and the right size fly fished right on the bottom in less than 10 feet of water. River mouths and oyster bars have produced good catches of snook and redfish on bait, lures and flies. This time of year you can just about target the size snook you want to tangle with by using a small fly for the little ones and a larger pattern for their big brothers and sisters... We've also encountered sawfish up to around 8 feet in length at river mouths. If you get one to the boat very carefully untangle it before the release since they tend to wrap the leader around their bills. The accent should be on the careful part since even a small one is a handfull at the boat.
The one day we fished on the Florida Bay side of Flamingo we were able to fill the live well with pinfish and large pilchards (scaled sardines) in around 30 minutes after chumming them up. Later that day those baits accounted for small tarpon, snook, jewfish, large jack crevalles and lots of small black-tip sharks. At one wreck site we fished, the small black-tips were so thick we could never get any bait or lure past them. This kind of fishing will be possible all summer long with only a few changes in species and sizes as the summer progresses. Every angler should have these kind of choices....
As the summer unfolds the number of anglers who'll brave the heat and bugs begins to diminish which means more time available for repairing gear and building rods and tying flies. I'm closely watching the current tarpon tournaments since a few of the guides are using my flies... I still have a few orders to fill but will soon have a bit of time to explore and work up new patterns. The best part about this time of year is that we may go for days and hardly see another boat in many of the areas that have great water with hungry critters... In another week or so the giant tarpon will return from spawning and begin to feed in earnest and regain lost weight. That second tarpon season should last until the first cold spell in October.