The uncertainty of the weather has been controlling our outings. This week was no different , with some windy conditions prevailing . We waited and by the end of the week decided to give some fly fishing a try.
Angler Gary Sheffield and I went in search of some Redfish. Gary is a local resident of FT. Myers and has fished with me many times . He has been fly fishing for many years , he started while living in California where he enjoyed trout fishing in the streams.
After experiencing saltwater fly fishing Gary has become passionate about the sport , he has caught tarpon , snook , reds and even bonefish on the fly.
We had a very low tide in the morning , so we waited until noon to start as the tide was starting to come in. We ran north to a flat that should have had enough water to float our skiff. After poling awhile we began to see signs of life on the flat , wading birds and nervous water let us know we were in the right place.
While moving slowly as we scouted the flat , Gary and I remembered other fishing days and shared our memories of them. Suddenly at 11 O'clock 60ft there were 5 Reds coming right at us , Gary couldn't see them so my eyes became Gary's . Left , right a bit farther I instructed , as the reds moved across our bow. Gary's cast was just off the mark landing over one of the fish , sending them away in a hurry. Other reds gave us more opportunities but to no avail , so I decided to move to another flat.
The tide was higher by then which allowed us to fish areas that just an hour before we couldn't even reach. In the sandy bottom we could see some small snook along with big reds . About 80ft away , I saw a shadow moving toward us . "It looks like a Red" I told Gary . As the fish got closer Gary saw it too . Gary's first cast landed behind the fish , he quickly picked up the fly and made another cast. "Good cast" I shouted as the red beeline for the fly with his mouth open . Gary's excitement got the best of him as he pulled the fly right out of the fish mouth .
There were some monsters Reds in the sound , bigger than our resident fish , but we couldn't connect. Gary handle my harassment well as I reminded him of the tangled lines and miss hook sets of the day .
Our next outing was to try to catch one of our resident Tarpon . With fly rod and spinning outfits on hand , we arrived to the spot. We could see lots of bait , along with some lady fish dining on them .
We moved along with the trolling motor looking for any signs of the tarpon . We saw one roll , then another we could see they were holding along a drop off so we offered them flies and also a chartreuse jig .
" Oh , oh" I heard Gary said his line leaving the reel in a hurry ; we were on. After a nice couple of runs "Boom" there he was , a nice 60lb cleared the water complaining about the sting of the hook . After several more jumps and runs , the tarpon was slowing down , darkness was upon us by then .
Gary fought the "poon" well , in light tackle they are very tough . I put the landing glove on ,
by now the fish was next to the boat , then the fish took off again and as Gary was turning the fish with the "down and dirty" the hook pulled off the fish mouth .
A perfect release for the "Silver King". As you can see even under tough conditions there is no better place to be than on the flats .
Until next week ,
Capt. Rey
Seats are limited, so give me a call, or drop me an email, and let's GO FISHING !
Capt. Rey's Fishing Report