Well, we just went through a string of good tides coupled with record breaking warmth. Beautiful, beautiful days on the flats – air temps in the 80’s. How’s that for the middle of January? I figured conditions were ripe for red hot fishing. So did Captain Pete Farrell, who can down from Rhode Island to fish with me.
Nada chance. The flats were painfully slow. Below is a “tailer” I hooked early in the week. But man, we got skunked three days in a row! …………Fishing can be wishing.
In my waters, small flies are considered the right choice for “tailing” redfish”. For one thing, a small fly lands quietly, and mimics the small forage often found on the flats. But a big fly -one that pushes water- can be deadly at times. Yes big flies work on “tailing” reds.
The Pig Strikes Again
Early this morning the “Pig” struck again! This big fly is working great.
Interesting aside. Over the years, I’ve caught more than my share of striped bass on a fly. Inevitably you hook them in the lip, but “tailing” redfish are aggressive at times, inhaling the fly deep. So crush your barbs,and take care extracting the hook….Let them live!
PG Pig
In the last post I showed you a fly called the PG Pup. Essentially it is a Kwan with rubber legs. Why legs? I wanted to give the fly more action. Unfortunately the same frustrating problem seemed to exist. I was casting at tailing fish, but getting too few responses. The reds either didn’t love the fly or – far more likely- with their heads buried in the eelgrass they never even noticed it gliding quietly by. Damn.
Time to kick things up a notch. Clearly I needed a fly that landed in a way that didn’t spook fish, but somehow quickly made its presence know. Ummmm. I opted to try a bigger, bulkier fly; one that pushed water, making it both easier to find, and harder to ignore. So I wrap the body with a fairly new material called “Fur Body”. It instantly produced a chunky waistline; Pig & Jig style. The fly still landed with a nice soft splat. Yet upon retrieve it moved tons of water. And looks like a meaty mouthful. Nice.
Did it work? First time out, sans dumbbells eyes, it hooked three tailing reds right off the bat. Man, I was impressed. Released them all. So is this the perfect tailing red fly? Naaa, still it is a step forward.
A Tailing Red for Christmas
PS. If you prefer, Fur Body can be quickly trimmed down into a neater shape. To date, I am using it full dressed, not only to push water, but because it acts as a De Facto weed guard.
Punta Pup
We just went through a period of strong moon tides, accompanied by warmer weather. Great mix. One morning I saw more redfish tails than I had seen during my entire time down here. So did I slay them? Nope. Truth is they were very tough. Once these reds get their head buried in the eelgrass, they’re not easy to distract. And if you’re at all aggressive with your approach or delivery the fish instantly spook. Challenging fishing for sure. I count each one I catch as a well earned prize.
The Kwan is a popular flat’s fly in my hood. Above you’ll see a version I tied. I’m trying for an impressionistic pattern, somewhere between a shrimp, a crab, and a baitfish. You can’t see it well in the pix, but the fly has mono weed guards. Needed. The one above is lightly weighted, but many – if not most times – an unweighted fly is the right way to go.
For Pete’s Sake
I’ve known Pete for one, two, three decades now. Wonderful friend. So when Pete said he wanted to try kayaking the flats, I said you’re on dude. Lets go!
Now its been awhile since I played guide, but I got my mojo working. Two hours later we’re in deep business. Here’s Pete with a 6 pound red, caught on a soft plastic. Damn those spinning rods!
