Cape Charles, VA Fishing Report, 16-18 November: More Please!

Conditions remained perfect for  wade-fishing.  Sunny to partly cloudy skies, air temps in the mid to upper 60s, calm winds, and clear water.

I headed back out Thursday about the same time as the day before to catch the outgoing tide.  Began casting out into the deeper water beyond the breaker, figuring the bite wouldn't turn on for an hour or so.  But after a few casts I heard noise back toward the beach.  I turned and noticed some commotion in the shallow water, like fish chasing bait.  Tossed my gold spoon into the area and BAM!  Hooked a solid Redfish.  But what happened after was truly impressive.  As I was reeling the fish in, I noticed the entire school was following along.  With the clear water I could see dozens of Reds, and as I worked the fish to me they just kept hanging around.  An angler in a small skiff nearby estimated the school at a hundred fish.  I released my fish, and proceeded to hook up on the next cast, another slot Red.  The guy in the skiff hooked up as well. Unfortunately, the treble on my spoon was all bent up, and by the time I managed to tie on a new spoon, the school had skee-daddled.

And so did the catching ... for awhile.  I had brought the 8 wt with me, and since things had quieted down I figured a few casts couldn't hurt, especially with no wind.  Started off just blind casting a white/chartreuse Enrico Puglisi baitfish pattern, and within a few casts found my self fighting and landing a decent 15 inch Red, first on the flyrod.

Was ready to call it, but kept casting for a bit more.  Then I saw disturbed water about 30 feet in front of me.  Put the fly in front of the boil and had a big Red eat and take me back and forth for about 5 minutes before he broke me off.  

Capt. DiPaola had cleared his Friday work calendar and rolled in to take advantage of the action.  For awhile it wasn't looking good.  Still sunny and warm, but the winds had picked up to about 10-15 kts.  For a couple of hours we just flailed away.  But checking Nautide, the forecast was for the winds to die down around 2:30 in the afernoon.  They did, and the bite turned on.  Fishing a gold spoon, and a popping cork with Berkley Gulps (nuclear chicken), we managed 14 Reds (3 at the upper end of the slot), and a small Flounder in about an hour and a half.  

Stringing together three great days on the water was a first.  So when we headed out Saturday morning, the pressure was off.  Which was a good thing.  Winds had shifted to the NW, and were still blowing a bit.  Still, we'd brought both fly and spin gear, and decided to give the long poles a try.  Low tide had been around 6:30 AM, so when we got out there about 8:45 the water was coming in fairly fast.  A lot of area to cover with a fly rod.  But like I said, the pressure was off.  And with the winds from the north, we looked like pros sending long casts down wind.

(Following two photos courtesy of Marina Pierce, a local photographer who was out taking pics of an eagle, and spotted us on the water)

                

And for the 4th day in a row the fish gods smiled on us.  Three Reds that went 15-18 inches, and surprisingly two Speckled Trout that went 20 and 24 inches.  All hooked in knee-deep water.

A phenomenal four days in an amazing fishery.  And some great video to boot!

Happy Thanksgiving, and Tight Lines,

Mikey D Fishing