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Kayak Fly Fishing the Flats- A Primer

January 20, 2012 by · 2 Comments
Redfish-from-Kayak

Good kayak fishing technique consistently produces fish like this.

While fishing from my skiff I often see kayakers out on the water, fishing the same areas. Although there’s nothing wrong with this, it doesn’t play to the kayak’s major strength- silently accessing areas that the skiffs cannot.

Finding these areas requires kayakers to do homework, searching for fishing areas they previously had not considered. Time spent researching on Google Earth will lead to some wild goose chases. It will also lead you to spots where the fish are not used to seeing fishermen, where they’re happy and relaxed. If part of the enjoyment of fishing is the joy of discovery, a computer and a kayak can lead to plenty of it.

When folks ask me what I look for when I go kayaking, my response is always, “Water that’s eight inches deep or less.” The areas where I fish are mostly non-tidal, but no matter where you live there are areas that a kayak can bring you to where the competition simply can’t follow.

 The Learning Curve

Like most other skills, you will find that learning to kayak fish the flats effectively requires some dues paying. You won’t just hop in and start catching fish. You must learn how to use the boat to its best advantage. You’ll have to learn how to handle the boat, as well as how best to fish from it. Casting from a sitting position will require some practice if you haven’t ever tried it before.

You have to handle the boat and fish simultaneously. Both need to be completely second nature before you begin to have consistent success.

The most important thing to remember? You must get to and stay in a good position from which to cast when you find a target. Flailing doesn’t work, and merely scares the fish away.

Kayaking Tackle

Look at kayak fishing the flats as an exercise in minimalism. One rod (bring a spare, unrigged and put away), a box of flies, some leader material, some food and water, the required boating and safety gear, and you’re good to go. For saltwater fly fishermen a seven- or eight-weight outfit is generally advised. Pare your gear ruthlessly- it’s easy to bring too much.

 Fishing Strategies

In most flats fishing you need to first find fish, then try to catch them. Kayak fishing the flats is no different. Paddle fairly quickly while in the “search” mode. Once you find some slow down and silently fish while in the “fishing” mode. The two are integrated but separate aspects of fishing from a kayak. You can’t catch fish where they aren’t! Finding them must always be the first order of business.

On days when I don’t find any fish I won’t make a single cast. It’s a sight fishing business. You gain nothing by wasting time fishing where there are no fish.

Be relentless in your search, and if fish are to be found you will find them.

If it’s too windy to control the boat, stake it out and wade (assuming the bottom is firm enough for this). Wading can turn what might be a frustrating, fishless day into an enormous success.

There will be fishless days though. Learn to love them. You’ll see workings of nature while paddling that you would never get to see any other way.

Catching fish from a kayak is more rewarding than catching them most other ways. Take the time to learn how and you’ll be a kayak fisherman for life.

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2012. All rights are reserved.

 

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Redfish- Presenting the Fly

January 16, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

This is an exerpt from the book, Redfish on the Fly, by Capt. John Kumiski

big redfish on fly

To get reds to take your fly, you need to show it to them properly.

It was a redfish fisher’s dream, a school of at least 500 fish, swimming fast, up on top, crashing bait all around us, one of the finest sights in all of angling, and one that one doesn’t see very often in the Mosquito Lagoon.

Rob Ricks was trembling with excitement. He had caught exactly one redfish on fly in his life, and badly wanted another. It was practically certain that the deed would now be done.

“Cast out in front of them, and just make it look alive,” I told him. Rob was a weak caster. When he got the fly in the water, not very far away, there was so much slack in the line that the cast was useless. “Try it again,” I said. “Lead them, put it where they’re going and let them swim into it.” Rob tried again with the same result. And again, and again, and again.

Finally the fish disappeared. We’d caught exactly none. The moral to this story?  Your casting must be second nature in order to take advantage of opportunities, especially once in a lifetime opportunities like this one was. But it’s a great segue into this section’s premise- after locating the redfish, how you present the fly to them is the single most important variable in getting one to bite, much more important than what’s at the end of your leader.

Read the rest of this article at this link: Redfish- Presenting the Fly

Or, read the book Redfish on the Fly. Find it at this link: Redfish on the Fly

What are your favorite ways to present flies to reds? Let us know in the comment box below, please!

John Kumiski

 

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Fly Fishing with Lefty

January 13, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Lefty Kreh, the current great godfather of American fly fishing, has been on the scene for more than 50 years. Since his birthday falls right around now, it’s time for a couple Fishing with Lefty stories. Both are as true as my memory will allow.

About 20 years ago the Backcountry Flyfishing Association was having Lefty come for a weekend seminar. At the time I didn’t know it, but Lefty would fly in to town on Friday night, give the seminar on Saturday and Sunday, then leave late Monday afternoon. That way he would have time to fish on Monday morning.
Mel Schubert called me to tell me, “I’m taking Lefty fishing on Monday. Would you like to come with us?”
Did I want to go? I would have missed the birth of my children for that. Heck, I would have missed my own birth for that.

A few weeks later I found myself in the boat with God, incarnated as Lefty Kreh.

I was intimidated. My plan for the day was simple- keep my mouth shut, my ears open, and don’t do anything stupid. It was a simple enough plan, and should have been easy to carry out.

Mel poled. Lefty fished. I sat there, thrilled, following my plan, taking everything in like a hawk. The bite was stinky but it was a beautiful day.

Around 10 o’clock or so Lefty stopped to rest. It was then I made my mistake. At the time Lefty worked for Sage fly rods, and he was using one of their products. “How do you like that rod, Lefty?” I asked.
“It’s a great piece of equipment,” he said. “Pick it up and try it.”

You didn’t follow the plan, John.

“No. I don’t want to embarrass myself,” I said.

Lefty said, “Sage pays me to put that rod in people’s hands. Pick it up and try it.”

Reluctantly, I picked it up. Before I did anything I looked at the leader. There was a wind knot in it. I said nothing, and cast the rod a few times. It really was a great piece of equipment. Then I handed it back to the maestro.

He looked at the leader and said, “Johnny, you put a wind knot in my leader.”

I said, “That was there when I picked up the rod.”

He gave me a hard look and said, “I don’t know if I should believe you or not.”

I said, “Lefty, you can believe what you want but I’m telling you, that was there when I picked up the rod.”

Even God gets wind knots sometimes. I’ve never concerned myself with them overly since then, figuring if Lefty gets them everybody will. I just check the leader periodically and if there’s a knot in there I take it out or replace the section. It was a valuable learning experience.

Several years pass, and the fly fishing club books Lefty again. Now I know the drill, so I call him and ask if he wants to fish with me on Monday. He did. We booked the day.
My son Maxx, then eight years old, attended the seminar with me. I got the idea he should come with us, and asked the maestro if that was OK. It was.
Monday morning Lefty, Maxx, and I launched the boat. There was a school of big redfish in the Indian River Lagoon at the time. Lefty still had the eight-weight Sage. I went looking for those fish, without success. All morning.

Noon came and went and we still hadn’t found the fish. Giving up, I cranked the motor and started to run. By divine intervention the school surfaced 100 yards ahead of me. It was an incredible spectacle, hundreds of 20 to 30 pound reds slamming a big school of big mullet. I poled Lefty into casting range. “I’ve never seen this before,” he said.

He had a little bendback tied on, maybe a size 2. The fish, intent on the big mullet, completely ignored it. I said to him, “Lefty, your fly is too small.” He said, “I didn’t bring any big flies.” “I have some,” I said.

I got off the tower, dug out my big fly box, and handed it to him. He pulled out a white Deceiver, half a chicken on a 3/0 hook. His hands were shaking as he tied it on.

Ready again, I poled back to the fish. You know, if you go from a little #2 fly to a big, wind-resistant 3/0 fly, your casting stroke will have to slow down. In his excitement Mr. Kreh forgot this. His backcast was hitting the water and he was swearing at himself. “I can’t cast this fly with this rod. This is a ten-weight fly!”

I thought to myself, “I could cast that fly with that rod. This is Lefty Kreh. Oh my God, Lefty has buck fever!”

I was dumbfounded.

He got over it quickly. The fly soon shot out into the fish and one nailed it immediately. I eventually pulled it into the boat. Lefty was thrilled. At 28 pounds it was the biggest he’d ever gotten on fly!

This was also a valuable learning experience for me. I’m a fishing guide. If Lefty Kreh gets buck fever, there’s a good chance anyone else I ever have in my boat might get buck fever too.

This is why we go fishing. If you didn’t get that rush of adrenaline you’d be better off bowling or playing golf.

Lefty has taught LOTS of people LOTS about fly fishing. The two most valuable lessons he taught me was when I was out with him, fly fishing with Lefty.

Thank you, Lefty! Happy birthday!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com

 

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2012. All rights are reserved.

 

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Keep Your Expensive Gear Dry!

December 27, 2011 by · 1 Comment

Boats float on water. Water in general and saltwater in particular ruins our stuff, especially stuff like sandwiches, cell phones, and cameras. If your sandwich gets soggy you’re out a lunch, but if your phone or camera gets wet you’re out a hundred or more dollars and perhaps an important safety device. Keeping things dry aboard any boat, and especially a small boat like a canoe or kayak, is not just an academic exercise. It’s important.

You’ll find a variety of things to keep your belongings dry, particularly if you use some imagination, and what you choose will depend on your budget, your boat, what you need to keep dry, and how long you intend to stay out. Just to keep this piece manageable, we’ll only discuss day trips here. Camping trips, especially long ones, require a separate treatment.

We can divide portable dry storage containers into three main categories: waterproof bags, waterproof boxes, and waterproof packs. The easiest bag to use is any kind of plain plastic bag. The main advantage to these is they’re cheap and readily available. Their main disadvantage is a simple one. They don’t work very well. Water has soaked things I’ve had in ziplock bags many times. They’re not to be trusted except to keep minor splashes off of things.

A proper waterproof bag is a rubberized cloth or heavy plastic sack with some combination of a folding top and snaps or straps. You put your items in the bag, fold the top over two or three times, and strap or snap it down. These bags come in various sizes and they work well. I imagine if the bag was completely submerged they would leak, but I’ve used them for years in all kinds of boats without a problem. They take the shape (more or less) of the items inside and the space they’re given, and are a good choice for any small boat applications.

Waterproof boxes also work well, and are fairly inexpensive. The classic waterproof box is similar to an ammo box, except the waterproof boxes are made of plastic and usually have a gasket to seal the water out. A cam-action latch closes the box firmly. These boxes are fairly small but easily fit items like car keys, wallet, phone, and a small point and shoot camera.

A cooler is a type of box, but is only moderately good as a dry box. When it rains, coolers get water in them, and your stuff gets wet. A small, six-pack sized zip-top soft cooler may work well if you give an added layer of plastic like a ziplock bag. If this combo gets dunked though, it may fail to keep your belongings dry.

If you have larger items you might consider a bucket with a snap-on lid. For years I have used a bucket picked up at a Dunkin Donuts store to carry my cameras, sometimes several thousand dollars worth, on all kinds of boats. It was a very good investment, not too stylish perhaps, but very functional. It doesn’t fit well in a lot of places, though.

Most photographers use a specialized camera box called a Pelican Case to carry their equipment. Pelican Cases are professional devices and work exactly as they are supposed to. Their only disadvantages are the initial expense, and they are a little pricey, and the fact that they look and carry something like a briefcase. You can’t carry a Pelican Case and fish at the same time. But you could back your pickup truck over one and your cameras would still be fine.

If you fish out of a boat and like to wade, carrying a camera with you and keeping it dry becomes a problem. The Dry Creek Backpack from Simms solves it. This excellent piece of equipment is the size and shape of a standard daypack, and has the daypack’s shoulder straps so you can carry it on your back, but has the material and tie down straps and snaps of a waterproof bag. You can put whatever you want in this pack, and even if you fall down in the water your stuff will stay dry. As with all of Simms products it’s made to the highest quality standards and will last for years. You can see the Dry Creek Backpack at www.simmsfishing.com.

The fact is, most of us need and will use a variety of the methods used here. If you spend much time around the water in small boats, it can’t be helped.

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com 

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

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Mosquito Lagoon, Florida Fly Fishing Tip: Little Black Flies

December 16, 2011 by · 1 Comment

Redfish Worm, top; Clouser Minnow, bottom. Both are simple, effective flies for sight fishing redfish and black drum.

You need two flavors of little black flies for use for reds and black drum in the Mosquito Lagoon and Indian River Lagoon system. They’re small (#4), and lightly weighted (1/80th ounce lead dumbbells).

One is a simple black Clouser Minnow. The wing is simply black bucktail, and some sparse flash. I usually use Flashabou Accent on these smaller sized flies, sometimes gold, sometimes copper, but if Fire Fly in purple comes to hand I use that. I haven’t noticed much discrimination on the part of the fish in regards to the color of the flash.

The other fly I call a Redfish Worm. It has the 1/80th ounce lead eye, a tail of either a short piece of zonker strip or Arctic Fox tail dyed black, and a body of large black Cactus Chenille (or similar product). That’s it. It’s simple, but looks good when wet.

Both flies are tied with a double mono prong weedguard, and both are simple, five minute ties even with the ‘guard. There’s no sense complicating one’s life needlessly.

Of course the way they’re fished is as important as anything else. Use them when shallow water (less than 12 inches) fishing in the Indian River Lagoon or the Mosquito Lagoon, from a kayak or while wading, looking for redfish and black drum. The reds will almost always be slot fish, since you’re in less than a foot of water. Most of the fish I see while doing this are singles, and I seldom see more than four or five together.

Once I see the fish, I want to be close enough that after I cast I know, make that KNOW, exactly where the fly is in relation to the fish. That means I am close enough to them to see everything. The importance of this cannot be overemphasized.

Reds and blacks require somewhat different presentations. Reds tend to be both more aggressive in their approach to a fly and more spooky than blacks.

For the reds try to anticipate where the fish will go and put the fly there, about two to three feet in front of it. That fly sits in that spot until the fish is either close enough to see it when it’s twitched, or until it’s obvious that the fish is not going where you hoped it was. If the fish sees the fly most of the time they’ll crush it, but sometimes they ignore it or spook off. If the fish doesn’t go where you thought they would, or if the cast misses, or if the time is available, try again. Keep trying until the fish eats, spooks, or is out of range.

For the blacks try to drop the fly mere inches in front of them to attract their attention right away, or place it such that you can drag it right into or by their face. Blacks tend to be pretty myopic, and very lackadaisical in their approach to a fly. The fly has no olfactory stimulus for them, so the visual stimulus needs to be real strong. Even then many times they ignore it or spook from it. But if you get enough shots you will find plenty of takers.

Could you have success with other flies in these types of situations? Probably. But if the sexy, simple, little black flies are working, why would you want to use anything else?

I hope you found this Mosquito Lagoon Florida fishing tip useful!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

 

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Fantastic! Orlando Fishing

December 12, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

Orlando! Most folks equate a trip to central Florida with Mickey Mouse and Shamu. These attractions and quite a few others make Orlando one of the world’s foremost tourist destinations.

There’s fantastic fishing around Orlando. Central Florida’s coastal areas supply some of the finest saltwater fishing Florida has to offer, and many of the area’s lakes and rivers supply world-class bass fishing. While the kids frolic with Goofy and Donald Duck, Dad can be hooked up with anything from a five pound largemouth to a 150 pound tarpon. Brief descriptions of the various options available to the visiting angler follow.

GREATER ORLANDO FISHING OPPORTUNITIES

Disney World itself is in the bass fishing business. Guided bass fishing trips are available on Disney’s Bay Lakes at by-the-hour rates. Angling pressure is light, and the action is generally fast with many sizable bass caught. Dave Burkhardt fishes here regularly. He told me it’s the only place you’ll ever catch bass that have these funny little mouse ears!

One of the best kept bass fishing secrets near Orlando is the Clermont chain of lakes. Twelve lakes connected by canals are so clean that they’ve been designated an outstanding Florida waterway supply plenty of room to fish and explore. In addition to the bass, bream and crappie are available. The scenery and wildlife are both wonderful, and are well worth the trip.

orlando fishing, orlando bass fishing

Bass like this one are common catches around Orlando.

East and West Lake Toho are well known for their fishing. Kissimmee sits right on West Lake.

The St. John’s River and its tributaries offer wonderful areas to fish. The river basin covers a lot of area to the east of Orlando. Largemouth bass provide a dependable year-round fishery, and there are all types of fish holding structure. There are several species of sunfish, locally called “brim.” During the winter, crappie supply plenty of action.

During January, February, and March light tackle fishing for shad is a very popular sport on the St. John’s River in the Sanford area.

FLORIDA WEST COAST FISHING
During May and June fly fishermen pay congregate at Homosassa, sightfishing  the crystalline waters for the greatest flyrod gamefish known to the inshore angler- the mighty tarpon. A few years back one of them caught the Big Mamoo, a 200 pound monster. Other fishermen want to duplicate the feat.

Orlando fishing, orlando tarpon fishing

Tarpon like this are available all along the Gulf Coast. Homosassa offers the biggest.

Homosassa has other fishing available. Redfish, seatrout, Spanish mackerel, cobia, and more are all available, some species year-round.

Homosassa lies to the west of Orlando. From Orlando driving time is about two hours.

FLORIDA EAST COAST FISHING
Central Florida’s east coast is where the visiting angler can really find him or herself some quality saltwater angling, often without the services of a guide. Sebastian Inlet State Park is regarded by many as the premier snook hole in the entire country. Jetty fishermen fling all types of lures as well as live bait to catch the linesiders, which often exceed twenty pounds.

Redfish, bluefish, tarpon, flounder, and seatrout are other species taken from the jetties, the adjacent beaches, or the flats on the Indian River Lagoon side of the inlet, where waders can have a blast, too. Sebastian Inlet is about an hour and a half’s drive from Orlando.

Those who like to surf fish can find beach access and some excellent fishing in the vicinity of Sebastian Inlet. Closer to Orlando both Satellite Beach and Playalinda Beach in the Canaveral National Seashore offer outstanding angling for the beach angler. Redfish, pompano, flounder, bluefish, and whiting are most often caught from Playalinda’s twenty plus miles of undeveloped, pristine beach. At Satellite Beach, snook, pompano, sheepshead, whiting, and sometimes Spanish mackerel and tarpon are all caught in the surf. Since these are public beaches, early in the morning on weekdays will  supply the least interference from surfers, bikinis, and other distractions.

Those wanting offshore fishing can find it at Port Canaveral or Ponce Inlet. Charter boats from the Port fish nearshore for kingfish, cobia, tripletail, and tarpon, while those venturing further out find action from dolphin, wahoo, sailfish, and even marlin. The same type of action is available from Ponce Inlet. Also, at both locations bottom fishing for grouper and snapper is available from either charter or partyboats. Finally, both the Port and Ponce Inlet have long rock jetties which attract all of the typical inshore fishes, and the fishermen who chase them.

My favorite area to fish is in the Indian River Lagoon System. The Lagoon, over 150 miles long, stretches from Ponce Inlet down to St. Lucie Inlet. The System’s three main components are the Mosquito Lagoon, the Indian RiverLagoon, and the Banana River Lagoon, which are separated from the waters of the Atlantic by a thin strip of sandy coastal barrier.

One unique thing about fishing in this system- unless you are near an inlet, tides have almost no effect on the fishing. There is no tidal water movement. You just go fishing!

There are many areas around Titusville for wading anglers to get access to some beautiful grassflats covered with crystal clear water and some excellent sightfishing for redfish which average up to ten pounds. Most of these are either in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge or the Canaveral National Seashore.

orlando redfish, orlando redfish trips, wading for redfish

Wading in the Mosquito Lagoon produced this redfish.

Dike roads in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge open up miles of wadable flats to the visiting angler. It’s entirely possible to fish both the beach and the Mosquito Lagoon in the same day. Information about the location of these dike roads is available from the Refuge headquarters, located on SR 402 east of Titusville.

In both Titusville and Cocoa you can rent kayaks and go paddle fishing on any of the three lagoons. And plenty of fishing guides offer their services here too.

Driving time to most east coast fishing areas is about an hour.

Why doesn’t Orlando have a reputation as a fishing destination? World class fishing awaits. The next time your family coerces you into visiting Disney World, bring your tackle and check it out. You will be most pleasantly surprised at Orlando’s fantastic fishing.

John Kumiski

Home- Spotted Tail Outdoors and Travel

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

 

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Florida Fishing Tip: Fluorocarbon versus Nylon Monofilament Fishing Leaders- Which Works Better?

December 6, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

In a side-by-side taste test, fish preferred fluoro to nylon at least four-to-one.

This week’s Florida fishing tip is about leader material.

Fluorocarbon leader material hit the market about 15 years ago. Frankly I thought it was a scam. Looks just like nylon monofilament leader. Costs 10 times more. Couldn’t be worth the price difference. Or so I thought.

Through my writing some fluorocarbon leader material found its free sample way into my hands. My friend Rick DePaiva and I guided for false albacore in North Carolina that fall, out of Capt. Joe Shute’s Bait and Tackle in Atlantic Beach. We’d sometimes use frozen glass minnows to chum the tunny up around the boat. I got the idea to do some testing.

When I had two anglers in the boat I would rig one with a 12 pound nylon leader material tippet. I’d rig the other with a 12 pound fluorocarbon leader material tippet. They’d both be using the same fly pattern.

The fluoro guy would outfish the nylon guy four or five to one.

I would switch the nylon guy’s tippet to a fluoro tippet. The strikes would immediately even out.

I conducted this side-by-side test five or six times and got the same results each time. At that point the experiment ended. It was obvious that although the fluoro and nylon looked the same to me, it was clearly different to the fishies.

I’ve used fluorocarbon for my leader material, both fly and spin, ever since.

I’ve tried various brands. Some are terrible. My current favorites are Seaguar and TripleFish. I carry leader wheels in pound test ranging from 10 pound to 80 pound, which pretty much covers any situation in which I may find myself in saltwater.

All the knots are pretty much the same. Fluoro is a little stiffer, and I think more abrasion resistant than nylon.

If you’re using nylon and think you should be getting more strikes, give fluorocarbon a try. I hope you found this Florida fishing tip useful!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

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Frontal Assault- How to Deal with Winter Cold Fronts

December 4, 2011 by ·
spotted seatrout, speckled trout, seatrout

When you get a winter day with weather like this, fishing should be speck-tacular.

The wind blows from the south under a gray sky. A squall line approaches from the north. That south wind dies. It’s eerily calm. Suddenly a frigid blast comes from the north. Rain lashes, whitecaps crash, the temperature drops 20 degrees in seconds. A common winter phenomenon, a cold front has just passed through.

How does the passing of a cold front affect the flats fisherman?

Unlike you, fish are cold blooded. A fish’s body temperature hovers within a degree or two of their surroundings. Redfish prefer 70 degree water. Spotted seatrout like it between 70 and 75 degrees.

As temperatures get below that their metabolic processes slow. They need less food. Get near the extremes of their tolerance and they become lethargic. Another degree or two colder and they die. We saw this demonstrated two winters ago during that extended cold snap. Dead fish were everyplace.

During the winter months, water temperatures in our local lagoons rarely get as warm as the fish prefer. Our finned friends seek water temperatures as close to their preferred range as they can find. Since shallow water warms (and cools) more quickly than does deep water, when conditions are right the shallows will be full of fish.

Right after a cold front passes the conditions are not right.

The passage of the front causes the air temperature to drop, which in turn lowers the water temperature. This drop in water temperature is exacerbated by a strong northwest wind, often at 20 to 25 miles per hour with higher gusts. An interested observer can stand on the bank at the north end of the lagoon system and over the course of several hours literally watch the water level drop as the wind blows the water to the south.

Fishing the flats during these conditions is a complete waste of time. The fish have moved to thermal refuges where their bodies can better adjust to the falling water temperatures. In the deeper water the temperature will still drop, but it occurs more gradually. This causes less shock to the fish.

These thermal refuges include canals, dredge holes, power plant outflows, and perhaps the Intracoastal Waterway channel. Just the mass of water in these types of places supplies some insulation and moderates the temperatures. If you find a concentration of fish in this situation fishing can be ridiculously easy.

The fish don’t find much in the way of groceries in these types of places, though. The groceries are up on the flats. This brings us back to a statement made above: when conditions are right the shallows will be full of fish…

To read the rest of this article, please visit this link.

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

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Mosquito Lagoon Redfishing Consistent This Week- Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

November 25, 2011 by ·

The Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report from Spotted Tail 11/26/11

The week was solid, if unspectacular.

Monday morning found me launching my kayak at River Breeze, none too early I might add. At the boat ramp the water looked too deep for successful kayak fishing as practiced by me.

At a spot where I seldom see fish I heard one crash along the bank. I had shots at three of the six redfish I saw there, getting the third on a #4 Estaz Crab. Getting out of the boat so I could see exactly what was going on was the key here.

I paddled quite a few miles, searching shorelines. The water was too deep and there were intermittent clouds all day. It was hard to see. I ran over a few, and found a few working the shoreline. Of these shoreline fish I had a shot at one, and again the Estaz Crab turned the trick. I like that fly.

Tuesday sons Maxx and Alex joined me, again launching at River Breeze, although we used the Mitzi this time. We were on a simultaneous scouting and meat fishing mission. We needed a fish for Thanksgiving dinner. The first place we looked, which had been full of fish just a few days earlier, had none. We moved.

The second place we looked, which had been full of fish a week earlier, had only one as far as we could tell. Maxx spotted it and dropped a DOA Shrimp (clear with gold glitter) right in its face. The fish obliged, unfortunately for him. One mission accomplished.

The DOA Shrimp works wonderfully well for sight fishing for redfish.

We checked another spot. The fish were lying in white holes, and in spite of casting over the holes with the DOA and a Johnson Minnow we kept running them over and blowing them out. They were there but we didn’t get one.

At another spot we found six separate, single redfish cruising along the bank. Alex got fish number four to take the spoon.

At this point, well into the afternoon and with both missions accomplished, we headed back to the boat ramp.

The redfish had the well digested remains of a crab in its stomach, nothing else.

Wednesday Dennis and Charlie Knight, father and son, and Seth Spielman, in-law, joined me for a day’s redfishing on Mosquito Lagoon. All three of these fine gentlemen were Ph.D.s, something I had never had happen on my boat before. We had an interesting day conversationally!

There was some wind but it was manageable. We had solid clouds all day long. Sight fishing was impossible except for the solitary tailing fish we found late in the afternoon, a fish we did not catch.

They rotated among two spin rods, tossing Johnson Minnows (one gold, one silver) all day long. In doing so they managed to get one dink trout, the ice breaker, and six fat slot reds. They released all but number six.

Seth convinced this redfish to strike a Johnson Minnow.

They took it home entire, so I do not know what it had been eating.

Thursday close to forty guests visited Casa Kumiski. All of us ate too much. It was delicious, and wonderful. One of the things I’m thankful for is Thanksgiving!

On a windy Friday morning Bob from St. Louis and his two sons Ben and Erin joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon fishin’. Kids on board, any fish will do!

The first chunking spot quickly produced a small flounder and a slot red. The kids were excited! It was the biggest fish they had ever seen!

These boys had never seen a fish this big before. It's as big as they get that size!

The bite stopped so we went and tossed the DOA Deadly combo for trout for a while. We only got one bite, but it was a solid fish, about 20 inches. Trout season is closed, so fishie was released.

Ben used a DOA Deadly Combo to fool this nice trout.

Further mullet chunking didn’t produce a lot. We got another small red, a hardhead catfish, and missed a couple of bites. We were having fun though. Before you knew it we were out of time. On the way in we watched some dolphins and manatees.

When I cleaned the redfish its stomach held six small mud minnows.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- go fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

 

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Ten Favorite Redfish Flies

November 15, 2011 by ·

If you were dropped off anywhere in redfish range, carrying a selection of the 10 fly patterns listed below, you could catch redfish if you could locate them. These are my ten favorite redfish flies.

“Imitator” Flies
These roughly resemble stuff fish actually eat.

A Clouser Minnow selection.

1. The Clouser Deep Minnow. Since redfish often prefer to feed down on the bottom it’s an excellent fly for them. You’ll need a variety of different colors. If you think in terms of light, dark, neutral, and contrasting colors you’ll be fine.

You need a variety of sizes and weights. At the small end a size 4 (I’m thinking about going to #6 this winter) with bead chain or micro lead eyes is good. At the large end a size 1/0 with 1/36th ounce lead eyes will sink like an anvil for those rare occasions when you need a fairly large, fast sinking fly.

Some of your flies must have weedguards. My own preference these days is for a double mono prong.

A bendback made with bucktail on top, and with synthetics below. Both work.

2. Bendbacks. When the water is only a few inches deep, and the fish are behaving like a zebra around a pride of hungry lions, you need something that hits the water delicately. Enter the bendback.

A variety of sizes and colors is needed. I carry bendbacks as small as number 4 and as large as 3/0 (we get big reds where I fish). These are excellent patterns to wing with synthetics.

Do not to bend the hook shank too much, a common error when making these flies. The shank should only be bent five degrees or so.

From top to bottom, a Deceiver, Electric Sushi, and a Polar Fiber Minnow.

3. “Minnow” patterns from natural or synthetic fibers. The best known natural fiber minnow is Lefty’s Deceiver, although Joe Brooks’s Blonde series works as well. But synthetics are really the material of choice for these flies.

Examples of this type of fly include those shown above. Carry them in sizes from tiny to huge.

A gaggle of Merkins.

4. Crabs. Redfish love crabs, and they eat all kinds- swimming crabs, mud crabs, fiddler crabs, horseshoe crabs, and more. You need a few faux crabs in your fly box.

My own favorite redfish crab pattern is the Merkin in size four. As a rule redfish crabs don’t need to be terribly realistic, only suggestive, and most should sink like they mean it.

A Seaducer, above, and a Slider, below. They’re very similar flies.

5. Shrimp Flies. Shrimp flies are something like crab flies in that there are lots of patterns. I use two. One was developed by Homer Rhodes in the 1930’s and was called the Homer Rhodes Shrimp Fly. Most folks nowadays call it a Seaducer. The other is a Slider, my take on Tim Borski’s well-known pattern.

The bunny leech or bunny booger, a deadly fly.

6. The Bunny Leech. Although this simple tie looks like nothing in particular, it has dynamite action when in the water and suggests a wide variety of redfish foods. I usually tie these in only sizes 2, always with 1/50th ounce lead eyes. My favorite colors is black.

This mullet imitation is made with sheep’s wool.

7. Woolhead Mullet. These are time consuming to make and difficult to cast. Why carry them? When the fish are keying on mullet nothing else will do.

You can tie these in any size you like, as mullet do get large. When this fly gets large, though, casting it becomes nightmarish. I carry these in sizes 2 and 1, in gray and in white.

“Attractor” Flies
Sometimes the water is deep. Sometimes it’s dirty. Sometimes there are clouds, or wind. And sometimes you have a combination of these factors, factors that prevent you from sight fishing. So you need some flies that call the fish to them by one means or another. We call these attractor patterns.

Rattle Rousers, weighted and not.

8. Rattle Rouser. These are bucktail streamers tied hook point up on a long shank hook. They can be unweighted or tied with lead eyes, as you prefer. It’s a good idea to carry some both ways. Tied underneath the hook is an epoxy coated, braided Mylar tube, inside of which a plastic or glass worm rattle is inserted.

As you strip the fly the rattle makes an audible clicking sound, which attracts the attention of the fish. When you need it there is no substitute.

Jim Dupre’s Spoonfly.

9. Dupre Spoonfly. These look like miniature Johnson Minnows, and work much the same way. A curved Mylar sheet coated with epoxy, Dupre’s invention casts easily, hits the water lightly, tends to not twist your line, and is extremely effective. I’m not sure if the fish find it by vibration, flash, or both, but they certainly do find it.

My version of Gartside’s Gurgler.

10. Gurglers. Surface flies are usually not the best choice for redfish. However, as an attractor pattern when sight fishing conditions are poor they can be outstanding. The strikes are so exciting that a few less seems like a small price to pay.

These ten flies will produce redfish for you no matter where you may find yourself, no matter what the conditions may be. As an added incentive to carrying these flies, they will also work on a variety of other fish, including snook, tarpon, seatrout and weakfish, striped bass, bluefish, and more. Whether you tie your own or purchase them ready to use, these flies will put fish on your line anywhere, anytime. Try them and see.

Life is short- go fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Tips, Flies and Fly Tying, opinion · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , ,
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