On Tuesday I returned from a trip to SC babysitting the grandkids and had a brief window to fish before a cold front rolled in. High tide on Wednesday was noon, so headed out around 12:30 to see if the fish were biting. Decided to bring along the fly rod as a backup, just in case conditions were amenable to throwing a streamer.
Weather was gloomy; perfect for fishing. Heavy overcast with air temps in the low 60s. Water temps in the shallows still in the high 50s to low 60s. A light rain shower every once in a while. Most importantly, though, no wind and flat water!
The last two conditions would prove key to the day's success. No wind meant I could break out the fly rod. Flat water meant I might be able to find fish.
Started out with the spinning rod, throwing a Strike King spinner bait. On the third cast I hooked a small Red. So I figured it was going to be a pretty good afternoon. Unfortunately, the braided line wrapped around the rod tip (it happens). Instead of fumbling around with it, or retying, I put the spinning rod down and picked up the fly rod.
Fished a 9' 8 weight with a floating line (no need for sinking line, as water depths aren't more than 4'), a 20 lb flouro leader, with an Enrico Puglisi baitfish pattern in white and chartreuse. The fly works really well down here, but I suspect a Clouser or Deceiver in similar colors would work as well.
Spent the first half hour blind casting and trying to get my casting stroke and distance back, and not getting any hits. Around 2:00, I got my first hit, and as I was stripping in the fly, could see some fish following. Another cast and I saw and briefly hooked what I thought was a Red right in front of me.
There's not much to fly fishing in these shallows, technique-wise. You just chuck out the fly, let it sink for a second or two, then strip it in. I vary the strips; long and slow followed by one or two short strips. There's nothing out there to catch your fly, so if you feel like your stuck, execute a strip set and the fight is on. And if you don't get a good hook set on the take, wait a second and resume stripping all the way in. The fish, or one of his pals, will probably take the fly.
Thinking things might pick up, I moved further south of the breakwater. Noticed some disturbed water about 60 feet in front of me. A cast in the middle of the spot and I was hooked on a Red. Got him to my hand, about 15-16 inches. A few more casts resulted in a few more under-slot fish. Then it ended.
I walked down a little further, and once again noticed more disturbed water. Turned out this was a large school of Reds. For the next hour the action was non-stop. Didn't keep an accurate tally, but it was at least 10 fish, several of which were in the 18-26 inch slot, with one that went a good 24". A hoot on the 8 wt.
I even scored a PB on Speckled Trout, which easily went 24".
(Apologies for the poor quality of the photos. Holding a fish, the fly rod, and a camera is a bit of a challenge)
About 3:00 a skiff meandered into my fishing area, and the catching stopped. So I figured it was a good time to get off the water.
On Thursday air temps dropped and the wind picked up. Things probably won't settle down until Sunday. But next week looks pretty good, as long as the cold weather hasn't pushed the fish off. We may even start seeing Stripers out there.
Tight Lines and Happy Thanksgiving,
Mikey D Fishing
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