Saturday, 21 July 2012
Fishing Mississippi River Backwater Bass Fishing
As seen on : Fishing Mississippi River Backwater Bass Fishing
Friday, 20 July 2012
My Switch From Bass To Salt Water Fishing
 |
| Fishing reel (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
After moving from Tokyo to an area near central Japan known as
Shizuoka Prefecture, my wife and I were quite near the ocean. We fished
for black bass in Tokyo, as heading for the ocean could mean several
hours in traffic. In Numazu, which is the city we moved to in Shizuoka,
Suruga Gulf lies in front of the Pacitic Ocean and is a 10 minute drive
away.
Black bass fishing was quite enjoyable, and it always amazed me that bait was not needed to go after them. Knowing when to use jigs, lures or rubbery worms usually brought good results and hardy tugs and pulls on the hook before the black bass were landed. But the ocean was in front of us and neither my wife nor I had ever tried ocean fishing.
We headed for a local fishing supply store one fine morning to get the essential rods, line, and hooks. Being frugal by nature, I opted for lugworm as bait instead of the frozen block of shrimp as my wife suggested because the block looked so big, and I couldn't imagine using all the bait in one outing.
The fishing area we selected was near the entrance to Numazu Port. Numazu is known in Japan as a mecca for horse mackerel fishing, and the dried fish is said to be the best in the country. Horse mackerel was what I was expecting to catch, without realizing that my bait would not allow it to be my target fish.
The air was sweet and fresh, the sunlight was warm and soothing, the ocean was flowing smoothly in deep blue, but even after an hour had passed, the fish were not biting. I can still recall that day after well over 20 years have passed, along with my wife commenting at that point that we should have bought the shrimp as bait.
The strangest thing happened a few moments later. It felt like someone banged a wire hanger against my fishing pole. I did not know how to cast my bait on my first ocean fishing attempt, so all I did was to hold my rod with the lugworm bait underneath. The shock of feeling the bang disoriented me for an instant before I realized that it was a fish. Oh my, I had one on the line!
My first fish from the ocean turned out to be a sillago, and not a horse mackerel. This fish widened my eyes to golf balls because the largest sillago I had ever seen was at a restaurant and was about eight and a-half inches long. This beauty was well over 12 inches. Catching a dozen more would give me a sillago tempura dinner for two. But as it turned out, none of its friends came by for the tempura party. I kept the big sillago swimming in my bucket of seawater, and decided to release it at the end of the day, The fish got its freedom back, while I ended up being hooked.
This outing was a valuable learning experience. The big mistake on my part was not choosing the shrimp for bait. Little did I know that horse mackerel are not known to go after lugworms, but sillago are. Another mistake which I later realized was that the hook I was using was much too large. I was in the habit of using large hooks while black bass fishing, but using a smaller hook would have led to catching a number of sillago, instead of just one monstrous fish.
There were many more mistakes along with things learnt with each ocean fishing quest. But that's all part of the excitement and adventure. I can hardly wait to tell you more.
Black bass fishing was quite enjoyable, and it always amazed me that bait was not needed to go after them. Knowing when to use jigs, lures or rubbery worms usually brought good results and hardy tugs and pulls on the hook before the black bass were landed. But the ocean was in front of us and neither my wife nor I had ever tried ocean fishing.
We headed for a local fishing supply store one fine morning to get the essential rods, line, and hooks. Being frugal by nature, I opted for lugworm as bait instead of the frozen block of shrimp as my wife suggested because the block looked so big, and I couldn't imagine using all the bait in one outing.
The fishing area we selected was near the entrance to Numazu Port. Numazu is known in Japan as a mecca for horse mackerel fishing, and the dried fish is said to be the best in the country. Horse mackerel was what I was expecting to catch, without realizing that my bait would not allow it to be my target fish.
The air was sweet and fresh, the sunlight was warm and soothing, the ocean was flowing smoothly in deep blue, but even after an hour had passed, the fish were not biting. I can still recall that day after well over 20 years have passed, along with my wife commenting at that point that we should have bought the shrimp as bait.
The strangest thing happened a few moments later. It felt like someone banged a wire hanger against my fishing pole. I did not know how to cast my bait on my first ocean fishing attempt, so all I did was to hold my rod with the lugworm bait underneath. The shock of feeling the bang disoriented me for an instant before I realized that it was a fish. Oh my, I had one on the line!
My first fish from the ocean turned out to be a sillago, and not a horse mackerel. This fish widened my eyes to golf balls because the largest sillago I had ever seen was at a restaurant and was about eight and a-half inches long. This beauty was well over 12 inches. Catching a dozen more would give me a sillago tempura dinner for two. But as it turned out, none of its friends came by for the tempura party. I kept the big sillago swimming in my bucket of seawater, and decided to release it at the end of the day, The fish got its freedom back, while I ended up being hooked.
This outing was a valuable learning experience. The big mistake on my part was not choosing the shrimp for bait. Little did I know that horse mackerel are not known to go after lugworms, but sillago are. Another mistake which I later realized was that the hook I was using was much too large. I was in the habit of using large hooks while black bass fishing, but using a smaller hook would have led to catching a number of sillago, instead of just one monstrous fish.
There were many more mistakes along with things learnt with each ocean fishing quest. But that's all part of the excitement and adventure. I can hardly wait to tell you more.
Upon seeing the words bait cast fishing, many people and search
engines visualize a particular kind of fishing reel, commonly known as a
baitcast reel. But this is not what http://www.baitcastfishing.com is all about. This site discusses casting bait from land or a surface which does not include a fishing boat.
Anyone can enjoy this fun filled leisure activity and learn to target and catch the desired fish. Use of high quality rods, reels to include both spinning and baitcast, specially designed bait baskets, and fishing floaters are encouraged. Instructions and tips are given for customizing and shaping your essential gear.
Hopefully, you will find the site worth looking at, and take part in this wonderful sport of bait cast fishing and share its pleasures with others, as well. It's a healthy outdoor activity which can be enjoyed for a lifetime!
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Frank_L_Leslie
Anyone can enjoy this fun filled leisure activity and learn to target and catch the desired fish. Use of high quality rods, reels to include both spinning and baitcast, specially designed bait baskets, and fishing floaters are encouraged. Instructions and tips are given for customizing and shaping your essential gear.
Hopefully, you will find the site worth looking at, and take part in this wonderful sport of bait cast fishing and share its pleasures with others, as well. It's a healthy outdoor activity which can be enjoyed for a lifetime!
Thursday, 19 July 2012
Teach Your Kids To Fish
You know your kids love to try new things. They have been blessed with the same adventurous spirit that you have. After a long, cold winter, they are tired of the indoors. But you are not sure what you can do with them that they have not yet tried. Boating and fishing offer you a great way to spend time with your children and to create memories that will last a lifetime. You can do several things that will allow you to make the most of your time together.
No matter how young or old your children are, involve them in everything that you do as you embark on your fishing journey. Your kids want to feel needed and this is the perfect opportunity for them to help you. There is no better way to instill a sense of accomplishment in your kids than to allow them to help you with "grown-up" jobs. Depending on how old they are, assign them certain small things for which they are responsible. Some of these include ensuring that everyone has a personal floatation device and letting them coil a line. Your children will walk away at the end of the day with a renewed sense of confidence in their ability to help Mom and Dad.
Keep your children busy while you are fishing. They prefer to stay active. Plan your fishing outing accordingly. Include exciting water activities such as snorkeling, tubing, or looking for various wildlife. Of course, showing them the basics of fishing will forever keep them and you busy! There are enough details involved in the sport of fishing that you will need to take your kids on multiple trips before they are fluent in the language of the angler.
You have an excellent opportunity to teach your kids while fishing on a boat. You have the ability to teach them new skills that they use long after you have caught your last fish. Merely being on the water allows you to teach kids new things about their environment. You can also teach them about boating, fishing, and safety skills. Try to incorporate these teachings into fun, intriguing activities.
Introduce them to new and exciting things as they are ready. For example, create a game that teaches nautical terminology. Focus on words like port, starboard, or bow. You should build upon this knowledge. After they know these terms, help your children learn the best way to safely drive a fishing boat or cast a fishing line. Always be an observant teacher. The combination of boating and fishing allows for an enormous amount of learning.
This type of hands-on learning lasts a long time. Your children will benefit in many ways. They will discover things that help them become better fishers and boatmen. Participating in an activity that is thousands of years old teaches them about tradition. They will eventually be able to teach their kids all that you have taught them. This includes many of the elements of responsibility that come with helping adults achieve a goal.
Your children will have unlimited amounts of fun as they encounter new settings, new climates, and new wildlife. Most importantly, fishing and boating with your children will give you the chance to spend quality time with them. This is worth more than all of the fun had and the lessons learned.
As seen on : Funny Boy Fishing - Catches His First FISH!
As seen on : Funny Boy Fishing - Catches His First FISH!
Wednesday, 18 July 2012
Tuesday, 17 July 2012
Monday, 16 July 2012
Fishing For Hong Kong Sea Bass
As seen on : 男子独身钓到一头超大级别的大鱼.flv
It was a few years back when I was living in the Hong Kong. I
decided to move there after I graduated from university. A good buddy of
mine was already working in Hong Kong and convinced me to come try
working over there too. So I packed my bags and off I went to the "far
east" to try something new. I started working as an English teacher. The
life there was fast paced and exciting. The nightlife was unbelievable
and it felt like I had landed on another planet! But soon I adapted to
this new exciting lifestyle and it became a normal way of life for me.
It was around this time that my inner urges and my curiosity as a "born
to fish angler" forced me to wonder if it was at all possible that the
busy Hong Kong harbour had any fish in it worth chasing. I felt like I
was ten years old again wondering if the Toronto Harbour had any fish to
be caught! I found out back then that there were fish there, "why can't
they be here too?", I asked myself.
Finding fishing information in Hong Kong was quite difficult initially because of the language barrier. I kept asking around and eventually I talked to my hair dresser and he told me to go to a nearby fishing shop and talk to them about fishing possibilities. I was so excited at that moment because I knew if there was a fishing shop, there had to be some sort of fishing to be had! So right after my haircut, I hurried over to the local fishing store! As I went through the doors of the shop there was a big board of fishing pictures. I scanned through all of them, I saw pictures of squid caught on rod and reels, pictures of GT's caught off of oil rigs, snappers caught off of tropical beaches and mangrove looking areas and then I saw a picture of something that looked more like my fingertips. I saw pictures of a this one giant fish being caught at night off urban city lit shorelines. It sort of looked like a snook and kinda' had spots of a sea trout, the mouth of a large mouth and the shine of a steel head. All these characteristics were things that equaled fish I must catch!
After seeing the fish that I wanted to target, it was time to figure out what I was gonna' need to know to catch this fish. I started trying to talk to the guys that worked in the shop, especially the guy I saw on the board with all those giant fish. I brought him over to the board and pointed to that awesome looking fish that I was aching to come in contact with. He then replied to me in Cantonese "ahhh, lo yu". So the fish on the board was called a "lo yu" but I soon figured out that it was called a Sea bass in English. I started to try to explain how I would love to catch this thing and asked where to go. The guy looked a little confused but after a lot of broken English and Pictionary style sign language he started to catch my drift. He then brought me to the wall of lures and pointed to a bunch of red head white body minnow baits. So picked a few but then the guy took over and suggested a few. I gladly excepted his help and walked out of there with a variety of lures. The lures were consisted of lipless crank baits without rattles, pencil stalwarts that barely broke the surface and an assortment of sizes from 2-6 inch minnow baits in natural and red head colours in floating and sinking models.
The next day I came back with a few of my rod and reel outfits to see if I had the gear suitable to bring these things in. I had a couple of calcuttas spooled with 14 pound test on a seven foot and six and half foot rod both in medium actions. The guy looked at it and said, "ok!" and gave me the thumbs up! I asked him where I should go and he said "Wan Chai" harbour. My bilingual friend that was with me at the time asked him if I could go with him and his friends some time and he said no problem come next week and we'll leave from the shop around 7pm but bring about $100 hkd which was about $25 can. He said we were going to use this money to rent a boat. Next week finally came and I was off to the shop to meet the local guys from the tackle shop! There were three guys there waiting with the same excited anxiousness I had with their tackle on their backs and their rods in hand. We couldn't speak the same language but I had a good feeling we could definitely bridge that gap through the love of fishing! We then all jumped in cab and took off for the harbour.
When we got there, there was a man wearing a rice hat waiting in one of those junk boats you see in Bruce Lee movies. We all jumped in his boat and were off into the middle of Wan Chai Harbour. It took about a ten minutes to get out to some stationed ships. The ships were well lit so there was a shade line from light to dark created by the ships light. The guys from the shop pointed and told me to cast along the shade line and in between the docks and the boats. I was starting to like what I was beginning to understand about these fish. It was becoming clear that these fish behave a little like large mouth. Before I made my first cast I was overwhelmed by the futuristic beauty that surrounded me! It was a breathtaking moment, it felt as if I was fishing in the movie Blade runner!! The Hong Kong skyline at night is something to see, especially when you're fishing in the middle of the harbour and you're surrounded by it all! Its really hard to put into words but all I can say is I'll never forget that moment and that I'm getting chills as I write at this very second.
After my exhilarating moment I rushed to the front of the boat and hurled a cast along side a giant ship with a Yo-Zuri Red Live vibration bait. I pulled it along waiting for a bite but didn't get anything. Every cast felt like I was going to get bit. Around my tenth cast, I pitched a beauty cast underneath a rope and in between two boats where the lights from the boats was pouring down on the water. As soon as I engaged my spooled I felt a heavy thug on my rod. I swept into it and the thing started stripping drag like a steelhead on steroids!! After a sharp and heavy run a fish about 6lbs shot out of the water like a giant smallmouth! I couldn't believe it was only 6lbs, the thing fought like you wouldn't believe.! The local guys were pretty impressed and were surprised how I could get my casts in there like that but little did they know how long I have been bass fishing back in Canada. As the night progressed, the fishing kept getting better and better as the tide level started to drop. I later learned that when the harbor water level is at its highest and the tide starts to drop is when the fishing is best. So new moon and full moon periods were best. When the water and tide is still, fishing for these things are the worst, its like fishing in a severe cold front situation up here. From my understanding I think the tide stirs up the water and oxygenates it greatly and in turn creates fish activity.
Anywayzzz, we must have caught about twenty or so of these crazy fish between 2-8lbs. Although I lost a giant (maybe 14 lbs or so) on 8lb test on a medium light action spinning outfit. I couldn't do anything with that light rod, the fish just took off and broke me off around a piling. I put that rod down for the night and stuck with my heavier action bass rods. As we headed in for the night, we did one last stop along a boat that was a restaurant park on the harbor shore. The light was pouring off of this boat as well, the guy from the shop launched a pencil bait alongside the boat and nailed one more nice one about ten pounds! The people on the boat eating were cheering, it was hilarious! We didn't catch anything after that and the tide was pretty still by that time so we decided to head back in. Boy oh boy was I happy, that was the best 25 bucks I've ever spent!
As for the rest of my days in Hong Kong, I discovered that there were tons of other places to fish from
shore at night. Any well lit piece of harbour front that had shade as well was becoming obvious to me that fish could be holding. I fished all over the city and caught many giants in the twenty pound range!!! To my surprise very few people were fishing for these beautiful creatures, I know in Japan the anglers would have been all over this opportunity. When I did bump into other anglers they were just fishing really for food and not for the sport as much. I was surprised that most of them didn't believe in lures and seemed amazed when I reeled one in on something artificial. It still remains a mystery on how big the population of Hong Kong is and how small the population that actually gets out fishing. They don't know what they're missing! Sea bass still remains one of my very favourite fish to catch. Who wouldn't want to catch a fish that acts like a large mouth, fights like a steel head on steroids and jumps like a small mouth! I can't wait to go to other cities around the world to find out what other urban gems lurk beneath the surface!
Finding fishing information in Hong Kong was quite difficult initially because of the language barrier. I kept asking around and eventually I talked to my hair dresser and he told me to go to a nearby fishing shop and talk to them about fishing possibilities. I was so excited at that moment because I knew if there was a fishing shop, there had to be some sort of fishing to be had! So right after my haircut, I hurried over to the local fishing store! As I went through the doors of the shop there was a big board of fishing pictures. I scanned through all of them, I saw pictures of squid caught on rod and reels, pictures of GT's caught off of oil rigs, snappers caught off of tropical beaches and mangrove looking areas and then I saw a picture of something that looked more like my fingertips. I saw pictures of a this one giant fish being caught at night off urban city lit shorelines. It sort of looked like a snook and kinda' had spots of a sea trout, the mouth of a large mouth and the shine of a steel head. All these characteristics were things that equaled fish I must catch!
After seeing the fish that I wanted to target, it was time to figure out what I was gonna' need to know to catch this fish. I started trying to talk to the guys that worked in the shop, especially the guy I saw on the board with all those giant fish. I brought him over to the board and pointed to that awesome looking fish that I was aching to come in contact with. He then replied to me in Cantonese "ahhh, lo yu". So the fish on the board was called a "lo yu" but I soon figured out that it was called a Sea bass in English. I started to try to explain how I would love to catch this thing and asked where to go. The guy looked a little confused but after a lot of broken English and Pictionary style sign language he started to catch my drift. He then brought me to the wall of lures and pointed to a bunch of red head white body minnow baits. So picked a few but then the guy took over and suggested a few. I gladly excepted his help and walked out of there with a variety of lures. The lures were consisted of lipless crank baits without rattles, pencil stalwarts that barely broke the surface and an assortment of sizes from 2-6 inch minnow baits in natural and red head colours in floating and sinking models.
The next day I came back with a few of my rod and reel outfits to see if I had the gear suitable to bring these things in. I had a couple of calcuttas spooled with 14 pound test on a seven foot and six and half foot rod both in medium actions. The guy looked at it and said, "ok!" and gave me the thumbs up! I asked him where I should go and he said "Wan Chai" harbour. My bilingual friend that was with me at the time asked him if I could go with him and his friends some time and he said no problem come next week and we'll leave from the shop around 7pm but bring about $100 hkd which was about $25 can. He said we were going to use this money to rent a boat. Next week finally came and I was off to the shop to meet the local guys from the tackle shop! There were three guys there waiting with the same excited anxiousness I had with their tackle on their backs and their rods in hand. We couldn't speak the same language but I had a good feeling we could definitely bridge that gap through the love of fishing! We then all jumped in cab and took off for the harbour.
When we got there, there was a man wearing a rice hat waiting in one of those junk boats you see in Bruce Lee movies. We all jumped in his boat and were off into the middle of Wan Chai Harbour. It took about a ten minutes to get out to some stationed ships. The ships were well lit so there was a shade line from light to dark created by the ships light. The guys from the shop pointed and told me to cast along the shade line and in between the docks and the boats. I was starting to like what I was beginning to understand about these fish. It was becoming clear that these fish behave a little like large mouth. Before I made my first cast I was overwhelmed by the futuristic beauty that surrounded me! It was a breathtaking moment, it felt as if I was fishing in the movie Blade runner!! The Hong Kong skyline at night is something to see, especially when you're fishing in the middle of the harbour and you're surrounded by it all! Its really hard to put into words but all I can say is I'll never forget that moment and that I'm getting chills as I write at this very second.
After my exhilarating moment I rushed to the front of the boat and hurled a cast along side a giant ship with a Yo-Zuri Red Live vibration bait. I pulled it along waiting for a bite but didn't get anything. Every cast felt like I was going to get bit. Around my tenth cast, I pitched a beauty cast underneath a rope and in between two boats where the lights from the boats was pouring down on the water. As soon as I engaged my spooled I felt a heavy thug on my rod. I swept into it and the thing started stripping drag like a steelhead on steroids!! After a sharp and heavy run a fish about 6lbs shot out of the water like a giant smallmouth! I couldn't believe it was only 6lbs, the thing fought like you wouldn't believe.! The local guys were pretty impressed and were surprised how I could get my casts in there like that but little did they know how long I have been bass fishing back in Canada. As the night progressed, the fishing kept getting better and better as the tide level started to drop. I later learned that when the harbor water level is at its highest and the tide starts to drop is when the fishing is best. So new moon and full moon periods were best. When the water and tide is still, fishing for these things are the worst, its like fishing in a severe cold front situation up here. From my understanding I think the tide stirs up the water and oxygenates it greatly and in turn creates fish activity.
Anywayzzz, we must have caught about twenty or so of these crazy fish between 2-8lbs. Although I lost a giant (maybe 14 lbs or so) on 8lb test on a medium light action spinning outfit. I couldn't do anything with that light rod, the fish just took off and broke me off around a piling. I put that rod down for the night and stuck with my heavier action bass rods. As we headed in for the night, we did one last stop along a boat that was a restaurant park on the harbor shore. The light was pouring off of this boat as well, the guy from the shop launched a pencil bait alongside the boat and nailed one more nice one about ten pounds! The people on the boat eating were cheering, it was hilarious! We didn't catch anything after that and the tide was pretty still by that time so we decided to head back in. Boy oh boy was I happy, that was the best 25 bucks I've ever spent!
As for the rest of my days in Hong Kong, I discovered that there were tons of other places to fish from
shore at night. Any well lit piece of harbour front that had shade as well was becoming obvious to me that fish could be holding. I fished all over the city and caught many giants in the twenty pound range!!! To my surprise very few people were fishing for these beautiful creatures, I know in Japan the anglers would have been all over this opportunity. When I did bump into other anglers they were just fishing really for food and not for the sport as much. I was surprised that most of them didn't believe in lures and seemed amazed when I reeled one in on something artificial. It still remains a mystery on how big the population of Hong Kong is and how small the population that actually gets out fishing. They don't know what they're missing! Sea bass still remains one of my very favourite fish to catch. Who wouldn't want to catch a fish that acts like a large mouth, fights like a steel head on steroids and jumps like a small mouth! I can't wait to go to other cities around the world to find out what other urban gems lurk beneath the surface!
Passion best describes Taro Murata. Introduced to fishing at the
age of 3 by his grandmother, Taro's love of fishing remains
unchallenged!
Growing up in downtown Toronto, Taro had limited access to rural fishing experiences. Taro then began exploring and fishing every body of water that was accessible in downtown Toronto. He challenged the myth that good fishing was only found in northern locations. Taro's experiment of fishing urban waters quickly proved to be an overwhelming success! This philosophy of fishing urban waters even influenced where he went to university! Talk about passion!! He researched various universities that didn't meet his criteria of being next to a body of water until Taro chose Carlton University in Ottawa. His decision for going there?, "because it's located along the Rideau River and the Rideau Canal!" He quickly proved his theory correct once again. His enthusiasm and passion for fishing quickly spread across campus introducing the sport to a new generation.
After completing university, Taro found himself teaching English in Hong Kong. Surrounded by water, fishing was never far from his mind. It was during this time that Taro began to combine his love of fishing with his natural ability to teach. Taro's passion and energy transformed fishing into an art form! He wanted to spread the word that you could catch fish in urban waters! Taro has taken this philosophy all over the world; from monster Sea Bass in Hong Kong to Stripers in the Bronx!
Taro created Fish City TV to introduce urban fishing to the masses. He wants to share his wealth of knowledge with the hope that they too will be inspired! Like Taro always says, "get fish or die trying!" Taro is also a top ten tournament angler, a full time sport fishing guide, http://www.fishcitytours.com
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Taro_Murata
Growing up in downtown Toronto, Taro had limited access to rural fishing experiences. Taro then began exploring and fishing every body of water that was accessible in downtown Toronto. He challenged the myth that good fishing was only found in northern locations. Taro's experiment of fishing urban waters quickly proved to be an overwhelming success! This philosophy of fishing urban waters even influenced where he went to university! Talk about passion!! He researched various universities that didn't meet his criteria of being next to a body of water until Taro chose Carlton University in Ottawa. His decision for going there?, "because it's located along the Rideau River and the Rideau Canal!" He quickly proved his theory correct once again. His enthusiasm and passion for fishing quickly spread across campus introducing the sport to a new generation.
After completing university, Taro found himself teaching English in Hong Kong. Surrounded by water, fishing was never far from his mind. It was during this time that Taro began to combine his love of fishing with his natural ability to teach. Taro's passion and energy transformed fishing into an art form! He wanted to spread the word that you could catch fish in urban waters! Taro has taken this philosophy all over the world; from monster Sea Bass in Hong Kong to Stripers in the Bronx!
Taro created Fish City TV to introduce urban fishing to the masses. He wants to share his wealth of knowledge with the hope that they too will be inspired! Like Taro always says, "get fish or die trying!" Taro is also a top ten tournament angler, a full time sport fishing guide, http://www.fishcitytours.com
As seen on : 船釣石斑
Sunday, 15 July 2012
Introduction to Fly Fishing the Indian River Lagoon
As seen on : Fishing the Indian River Lagoon - 8/15/2010
I started fly fishing at about the age of 13 with my
grandfather's fly rod, mostly for bluegills and bass in the few
freshwater ponds I found growing up near Satellite Beach, Florida, and
continued for a while after moving to Titusville, mostly at Fox Lake. My
rod was a 5 wt. freshwater rod, not really designed for the seatrout
and redfish of the Indian River Lagoon system, though I did manage a few
seatrout here and there using small streamers designed for freshwater
rainbow and other species of trout normally associated with cold-water
northern and mountain streams.
I have now purchased a fly fishing outfit designed for saltwater fishing and fly fishing is rapidly becoming my favorite way of fishing, especially when wading our extensive grass flats associated with the Indian River Lagoon system, and at the same time I'm starting to believe that you will catch more fish than with conventional tackle, as flies will more readily imitate many of the smaller invertebrates, and baitfish species present within the lagoon system. In fact no other artificial in my opinion imitates our summer populations of Glass Minnows, or Bay Anchovies, quite like a light colored streamer. While flies typically do not have the action that many plugs, spoons, and other lures have, the feathers or other materials used in their construction usually provide an undulating movement governed by a combination of your stripping action during the retrieve and minute water movements that give the fly a lifelike look that can often drive gamefish wild. Plus they are usually smaller in size that other artificials, which can not only draw strikes from more wary fish, but a greater variety of species can be caught as well. With the same # 6 "Crazy Charley" pattern I have caught fish ranging to 2 lb. Seatrout to Pinfish. Not that I really get excited about catching the pinfish, but if I manage to catch a legal size Mangrove Snapper while fishing for Redfish or Seatrout, I'm not going to complain.
First of all, with saltwater fly fishing you will be casting larger, more wind resistant flies than you would with a freshwater trout rod. Therefore you will be using a larger more powerful fly rod throwing a heavier line. In fly fishing, unlike spinning, it's the weight of the line that carries to lure during the cast, not the lure carrying the line. With that said, let's explore what you will need to get started fly fishing the Indian River Lagoon.
Fly Rod, 7 to 9 wt., 9 ft. Mine is a Redington Crosswater, 9 ft. 8 wt. four piece.
Fly Reel with a reliable drag. I use a Phlueger Trion that holds about 100 yards of backing and an 8 wt. fly line.
Fly Line, 7 to 9 wt. weight forward taper or saltwater taper. For best year around results get two lines, one formulated for warm weather and one for cold. The warm water or "summer" lines will get too stiff during the winter, while the lines designed for cold weather or "winter" lines will get to limp for effective casting in the summer. I bought mine at the fly shop in Titusville and Gary used wrapping thread to put loops in both ends of my fly lines, and then sealed the wrappings with rod varnish to keep them from unraveling. This allows me to change lines as the weather changes, while the front loops allow ease in putting on new premade leaders.
Backing, about 100 yards or more. A fly line is typically 90 ft. in length, not enough to fight a large fish that make a long run like a large redfish on the flats could do.
Leaders; you can make your own tapered leaders with increasingly lighter sections of line, but having factory made tapered leaders is just too convenient! A tapered leader, one that starts out thick at the fly line and tapers to a smaller diameter is virtually a must to get the fly to lay down right after the cast. Mine taper to a twelve lb. tippet.
Flies; I like the "Clouser Minnows" and the "Crazy Charley's". These are tied so that when in the water the hook rides with the hook up. This prevents you from snagging gobs of seagrass or mangrove roots while fishing the shallow shoreline flats. Other shrimp and minnow patterns will work as well. I use these tied on about a # 6 hook.
You will need something to cut your line in order to change flies, etc. fingernail clippers are excellent for this and can be attached to your tackle bag with a lanyard, always keeping it accessible. You will also need a way to remove a hook from a fish (hopefully). Longnose pliers can be used, or many flyfishers use medical forceps which can be clamped to a shirt pocket, or the strap of a tackle bag for easy access, especially if wading or fishing from a kayak. I also carry a boga grip which allows me to grab a fish by the bottom jaw, remove the hook, and release the fish without ever actually touching the fish with my hands and removing it's protective slime coating. I clip this to the strap of my fishing tackle bag or a belt loop while wading. That way, it's always there when I need it.
Last you will need a tackle bag to carry your equipment. While there are many specialized fly fishing tackle bags and vests, some costing hundreds of dollars, the Plano bag I got at a local department store works just fine and cost me under $20.00. These will usually come with one of their molded plastic tackle boxes with the moveable dividers, but will hold several. You can buy as many as you need for a few bucks each, or, if your wife is into crafts and uses Plano boxes to store beads and other small craft items, you can dump them in a drawer and steal the boxes. Just be prepared to fish as much as possible, camp for weeks on end, and eat what you catch because it will not be safe to sleep at home, and you will likely no longer have access to your bank account.
I have now purchased a fly fishing outfit designed for saltwater fishing and fly fishing is rapidly becoming my favorite way of fishing, especially when wading our extensive grass flats associated with the Indian River Lagoon system, and at the same time I'm starting to believe that you will catch more fish than with conventional tackle, as flies will more readily imitate many of the smaller invertebrates, and baitfish species present within the lagoon system. In fact no other artificial in my opinion imitates our summer populations of Glass Minnows, or Bay Anchovies, quite like a light colored streamer. While flies typically do not have the action that many plugs, spoons, and other lures have, the feathers or other materials used in their construction usually provide an undulating movement governed by a combination of your stripping action during the retrieve and minute water movements that give the fly a lifelike look that can often drive gamefish wild. Plus they are usually smaller in size that other artificials, which can not only draw strikes from more wary fish, but a greater variety of species can be caught as well. With the same # 6 "Crazy Charley" pattern I have caught fish ranging to 2 lb. Seatrout to Pinfish. Not that I really get excited about catching the pinfish, but if I manage to catch a legal size Mangrove Snapper while fishing for Redfish or Seatrout, I'm not going to complain.
First of all, with saltwater fly fishing you will be casting larger, more wind resistant flies than you would with a freshwater trout rod. Therefore you will be using a larger more powerful fly rod throwing a heavier line. In fly fishing, unlike spinning, it's the weight of the line that carries to lure during the cast, not the lure carrying the line. With that said, let's explore what you will need to get started fly fishing the Indian River Lagoon.
Fly Rod, 7 to 9 wt., 9 ft. Mine is a Redington Crosswater, 9 ft. 8 wt. four piece.
Fly Reel with a reliable drag. I use a Phlueger Trion that holds about 100 yards of backing and an 8 wt. fly line.
Fly Line, 7 to 9 wt. weight forward taper or saltwater taper. For best year around results get two lines, one formulated for warm weather and one for cold. The warm water or "summer" lines will get too stiff during the winter, while the lines designed for cold weather or "winter" lines will get to limp for effective casting in the summer. I bought mine at the fly shop in Titusville and Gary used wrapping thread to put loops in both ends of my fly lines, and then sealed the wrappings with rod varnish to keep them from unraveling. This allows me to change lines as the weather changes, while the front loops allow ease in putting on new premade leaders.
Backing, about 100 yards or more. A fly line is typically 90 ft. in length, not enough to fight a large fish that make a long run like a large redfish on the flats could do.
Leaders; you can make your own tapered leaders with increasingly lighter sections of line, but having factory made tapered leaders is just too convenient! A tapered leader, one that starts out thick at the fly line and tapers to a smaller diameter is virtually a must to get the fly to lay down right after the cast. Mine taper to a twelve lb. tippet.
Flies; I like the "Clouser Minnows" and the "Crazy Charley's". These are tied so that when in the water the hook rides with the hook up. This prevents you from snagging gobs of seagrass or mangrove roots while fishing the shallow shoreline flats. Other shrimp and minnow patterns will work as well. I use these tied on about a # 6 hook.
You will need something to cut your line in order to change flies, etc. fingernail clippers are excellent for this and can be attached to your tackle bag with a lanyard, always keeping it accessible. You will also need a way to remove a hook from a fish (hopefully). Longnose pliers can be used, or many flyfishers use medical forceps which can be clamped to a shirt pocket, or the strap of a tackle bag for easy access, especially if wading or fishing from a kayak. I also carry a boga grip which allows me to grab a fish by the bottom jaw, remove the hook, and release the fish without ever actually touching the fish with my hands and removing it's protective slime coating. I clip this to the strap of my fishing tackle bag or a belt loop while wading. That way, it's always there when I need it.
Last you will need a tackle bag to carry your equipment. While there are many specialized fly fishing tackle bags and vests, some costing hundreds of dollars, the Plano bag I got at a local department store works just fine and cost me under $20.00. These will usually come with one of their molded plastic tackle boxes with the moveable dividers, but will hold several. You can buy as many as you need for a few bucks each, or, if your wife is into crafts and uses Plano boxes to store beads and other small craft items, you can dump them in a drawer and steal the boxes. Just be prepared to fish as much as possible, camp for weeks on end, and eat what you catch because it will not be safe to sleep at home, and you will likely no longer have access to your bank account.
Dean R. Pettit is the author of Space Coast Outdoors, an online
resource for self guided outdoor adventures along Florida's Space Coast,
and includes locations and other information about Fishing,
Birdwatching, Kayaking, Hiking, Biking, Backcountry Camping, Surfing,
Windsurfing, Snorkeling, Golf, and more.
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