Tag Archives: coast

Summer Jacks Explode

fly, fishing, jack, crevelle, hatch, outdoors, nature, eco, tour, airflo, beavertail, skiffs, flyfishing, guide, charters, redfish, bay, texas, coast, gulf — Double Trouble with Mr. Jack Crevelle

Port Aransas Texas – The fly fishing cauldron of Texas Coast Summer is boiling hot now and the Jack Crevelle are dishing out whoop-ass left and right! We are fishing the witching hours (non daylight) with good success on trout and ladyfish then at sunrise we are stalking tailing redfish pods on the flat and ending the morning chasing jack crevelle in the bay as are our primary targets.

By around 0900 when the rest of the crowds arrive to sweat it out on the flats, we are already finished working the tailing redfish pods and are pulling off into deep water to cool off and target wolf packs of marauding Jack Crevelle. Come test your skills and see if you have what it takes to battle these mighty fighters on the fly!

Call Capt Kenjo ASAP to book your July trips! Multiple days are highly recommended for all the fun you will be having! Don’t miss out!

BOOK NOW

Fly Fishing Texas Winters

redfish, marsh, fly fishing, red, drum, crab, texas, coast, guide, charters, fly, fishing, port aransas, catch & release, hatch, outdoors, beavertail, corpus, christi, skiff, life, aransas, pass, rockport, airflo, lines,

Personal Best Redfish for Mrs. Amy!

As fall leads us into winter, the redfish along the Texas Middle Coast have responded rather well. Dates in early December are still open and there are plenty more blue bird days to come! Book NOW! Call Capt Kenjo @ 361-500-2552 or email: ken@kenjofly.com

Now also accepting bookings for early 2019 (January/February/March) so if you have some bearings on your plans get on the horn and give me a shout! There are loads of fish in the mud through the winter and they tend to run on the larger than average size scale.

Bruce is 6’5″ tall… Makes this 29.25 inch redfish look small… No Justice!

If you live within reasonable striking distance, this is your time of year to just watch for weather windows and be ready to Strike! The days with bluebird skies tend to string together and usually by the second day of clear skies the fish are going nuts eating everything in sight! Those days will book up quick so I added a 10-day forecast link at the bottom of this page and one the homepage.

wadefishing, redfish, marsh, fly fishing, red, drum, crab, texas, coast, guide, charters, fly, fishing, port aransas, catch & release, hatch, outdoors, beavertail, corpus, christi, aransas, pass, rockport, airflo, lines,

Had to take a walk into that back-pond to retrieve this redfish for Ms. Willa

There have been many days of excellent numbers of redfish to work with and a few days where we had to look harder.

Blind Casted 25inch Red Drum

But we pretty much always find the fish even in overcast conditions! One day in particular we were covered up with big trout and we could see them good, if you know what you were looking for…

27.25 inches and still growing!

We had to work through shit-tons of kinks, then, just let it fly and John got a decent speck to hand before the bite was all over.

Other days we caught them over flooded cow paddies and ambushed them in the cattle trails. The falling tides from early fall drained rather quickly and during that time the fish were everywhere.

Happy Fish

Then we found them working in the back mud lakes around loads of shell. You have to time the tides right and know your water pockets very thoroughly or you didnt see any fish.

Bounty of Colors

Other days we caught alot of pumpkins, some floating and others cruising. On those early fall calm days the fish might have seemed spooky but really they just wanted super light-weight shrimp flies and dry fly casts and presentations. If you loose your zen while casting it was sure the fish was gone. Surprisingly a lot of fish settled down only a few feet away and let you get another chance at fooling them

Bruce is 6’5″ tall… Makes this 29.25 inch redfish look small… No Justice!

There are always moments when fishing from a skiff that fish pop-up in close ranges and sometimes even underneath your feet or opn the right side of the boat but with proper technique going from a locked and loaded position, many folks have been able

Best SLOW-MO eat from a redfish ever!

to catch those redfish only 5 ft away with a 9ft rod and 9ft leader! And I gotta say, I truly love the quick draw redfish bites! Those moments are excellent trainers for keeping your shit together!

On the days with the coldest water temps the fish were biting flies but you had to feed them seriously slow.

Holding Red

This guy ALWAYS gets his Redfish!

And these guys are sure to have had a good time, they can fish in the thick and thin, dark and stormy skies or calm bluebirds. If the winds are howling they just howl louder and then punch out a 60ft cast to put it in front of a voracious redfish!

Sunrise School

CALL NOW< BOOK ONLINE< GOOD WEATHER IS IN THE FORECAST!!!

Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552

Fall Run is beginning

port aransas, tailing, redfish, texas, fly fishing, guide, charter, beavertail, hatch outdoors, beulah, airflo, fall run, bull, school, trout, speck, rockport, corpus, christi, laguna madre

Baby Bull Released!

The weather has been a little stiff since early September when we got more than our annual amount of rainfall in about a 2 week period. This flooded the salt flats tremendously bringing life and nourishment to the little crabs and shrimps and called the fish that werent breeding into the lakes and ponds to munch on these tasty marine critters. Because the higher water levels were a little later in the year, not a ton of fish moved up into the way back lakes but we found’em in the skinny succulents as well as on the main edges.

This week’s Nor’wester is what we all have been waiting for and it has the water levels dropping rapidly and bait is seriously on the move now! Forget the forecast because the redfish party is starting! You dont want to miss the fall run this year, I expect to see quite a few HEFTY fish in the coming weeks and months!!!

Endless Possibilities

Even in the hardest conditions this cold front dished out, we found tailing redfish and some even had their backs out of the water. Just yesterday we wade-fished and had more tailing and backing reds, and every fish ate the fly when presented well.

Fortunately for us, there is a ton of freshwater heading south towards the coast from the mainland of Texas and this should help keep our water levels manageable and prolong the fall run through November at least. I also expect December to produce many great days of sight casting. Let go of your misconceptions that you cant see redfish without the sun, there are many techniques to apply to the day in order to “find” the fish when light is low or when the winds are blowing! And believe me, Capt Kenjo knows, because he goes fishing any day there isn’t a hurricane!

Another windy tailing redfish in hand!

So get your ducks in a row and Book NOW to view available dates for some awesome sight casting on the fly for Texas Redfish, they should be schooling up more and more as each day passes! Port Aransas has plenty of places to stay and their finest restaurants are open as well!

Bending the Bender

There are plenty more fish to be caught and the bigger ones should be moving up to the edges again soon. Just the other day I spotted a huge pig as she came up on the surface to slurp a big ole crab down the hatch! Call direct if you have any questions! – Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552

Deep Sea Smiles

“There once was a fish with the deep sea smile and it lived down deep in the sea a mile…”

redfish, fly fishing, texas, coast, gulf, mexico, guide, charters, skiff, beavertail, yeti, trouthunter, port aransas, corpus christi, rockport, laguna, madre, padre, bay, deep, sea, roundup, 2018, casting, instruciton, lessons, classes

Sunrise Surprise

When Jake called me up and asked me to fish the 83rd Annual Boatman’s Deep Sea Roundup there was no way I would turn him down. Simply because Jake is a great angler and sportsman, he is fun to fish with and can hang ten while throwing shots on the fly. Win-win situation even if we lose!

Early on Day 1 shortly after false dawn we landed this beauty of a redfish but my livewell pumps had died recently and we decided to ice the fish and hope she didn’t shrink too much by the 2pm weigh-in…

Official length and weight of this fish was 27.25inches (half an inch smaller than when alive) and 7.6lbs… Very likely a winning redfish!

Treat all Life with respect and everything becomes a gift.

On Day 2, we met at the dock well before sunrise again, this time Jake brought along his lovely bride Whitney, and Jake’s desire to see Whitney catch her first redfish on fly took priority. It was a gentleman’s gesture, and for me, there seemed to me to be no better gift than to give her the bow and shots at tailing redfish in the early morning hours of dawn. It was an honor for myself even to have participated and love seeing the beautiful expressions on everyone’s face when they get that redfish for the first time!

We still hunted for that lurking trout (21 inches was to beat from day 1) and Jake even spent the remaining time on the bow letting excessive amounts of mid slot redfish swim away untouched for that 1 chance at another tournament winning redfish and he displayed a level of patience that you don’t see often.

Captain and Crew! Yoop yoop!

Nonetheless, our 27.25in redfish on fly from Day 1 held up and we took 1st place in the Fly Division. Overall I would say this event was more than a success and a super fun time worth doing again and again.

“…And now, you see, our smiles shine down in the sea, at least a mile”

Spring Rush

Spring-time weather varies and one thing is certain, the wind blows. And then, once every few weeks, she tuckers out and lays down, which is what should happen MON-FRI next week. The forecast is looking AWESOME for sure, so call NOW to book your weekday of sight casting fish under bluebird skies and with feeding fish as far as you can see! 361-500-2552

redfish, fly fishing, port aransas, texas, coast, drum, wade, fishing, shrimp,flies, grass, wind, trout, spotted, speckled, sea, guide, bayou city anglers, tailwaters, roys bait and tackle, corpus, christi, rockport, laguna madre, padre, mustang, island, vacation, bull, catch, release

Wet wading wide open spaces

For the last few weeks, the fishing has been exceptional, despite raging winds and overcast skies. We adapt our techniques and application of fly gear depending on the weather and it has certainly produced some fine fish (see pics below)!

Redfish have been in such shallow water they cant keep their backs wet… I guess they are putting on their summer suntans early!

redfish, fly fishing, port aransas, texas, coast, drum, wade, fishing, shrimp,flies, grass, wind, guide, bayou city anglers, tailwaters, roys bait and tackle, corpus, christi, rockport, laguna madre, padre, mustang, island, vacation

Keep’em wet

Regardless of tides we are finding fish in very diversified locales which keeps the hunt extremely interesting!

Lawrence personal best trout!

Big healthy sea trout have been plentiful and are hold eggs for their spawn. Please keep’em wet and let them go so they can make BABIES!

Flounder Pounder

When going low and slow, flounder have also been coming to hand as surprise catches for the patient sportsmen!

Bonus fish have been oversized redfish in deeper holes (many thanks to Mark and Wolfe for insisting that I cast 60ft into a 35kt headwind) I owe ya’ll big-time for this fish!!!

Bull Redfish Release

AGAIN, the weather next week is forecast to be exceptional, and I expect the fishing to be eye-opening! CALL NOW to reserve your dates for next week!

Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552

Looking at Bait

fly fishing, redfish, drum, texas, coast, saltwater, clyde, port aransas, corpus, rockport, bay, laguna madre, corpus, christi, hatch, tfo, airflo, tailwaters, bayou city angler, roys bait and tackle, guide, charters

Texas redfish on Fly

Redhot redfish action today and non-stop for several hours! Landed 3 bonus keeper trout to boot!

Matchin the hatch meant alot though! The redfish were popping and crushing baitfish and throwing wakes coming up onto the edge then circling back around for their next ambush but if you werent imitating the prey they were after they wouldn’t respond positively at all. It didnt take long to realize what they were eating and it was pretty cool to see the red drum thrashing themselves into the grass to annihilate their prey and see baitfish spraying in all directions while a red drum cartwheeled in a sloppy attempt to turn around and get back in the water!

Dont miss out on another weather window! The forecast looks solid through the rest of the week/end and there is plenty of room on the flats these days! Give me a call to get on board and experience some aggressive spring run saltwater fly fishing in Port Aransas Texas!

There are loads of jacks in the bay too and we will be checking prime locations routinely between redfish flats / The 11wt is rigged and on the boat ready to do battle!

Back on’em tomorrow! CALL ASAP! 361-500-2552

Capt Kenjo

Change of Seasons

red drum, fly fishing, port aransas, corpus christi, beavertail, skiff, flats, guide, saltwater, corpus christi, rockport, laguna madre, airflo, flyline, wind, coast, hatch outdoors, redfish, drum, low tide, trouthunter, leader, tippet, charter, texas

Low Tide Pig

It can be hard to explain and even harder to forecast because the weather dictates fish behavior and creates or breaks patterns. So many variables come into play, it can be difficult to determine exactly which variables are the most influential at any given time. It is certain though that the changes in seasons overlap each other, as one weather pattern rescinds another one take over… slowly but surely.

The last few weeks had a few hard short-lived Northers with light winds remaining from the north signaling the redfish to move onto the edges of the flats and feed very heavily with the strong falling tides. Their bellies were full to the brim, and got those fish fat and looking like their bellies would explode if they took another bite.

31 inch Texas Bull Redfish

Then, that 2 week long “light early winter pattern” ended and the SE winds and partly cloudy skies took over again and have dominated the forecast for what will end of being about a 2-week period. This changed the fish pattern once again and we zigged when we needed too. Coupled with the full moon pulling out most of the tide before sunrise we jumped back to some of our late summertime patterns and continued to work over the fish despite some moderate winds.

Fast forward a few days from now and we should find ourselves back in an “early winter” pattern and we will zag then to stay on the best fishing we can find. This flip-flop of weather patterns will continue through December with each passing cold front lasting a little longer than the last.

This flood tide redfish was loving crabs in the succulents

Eventually the summer patterns will fizzle out and we will soon be into a deep winter pattern by January/February with the exception of those bluebird days when the sunshine warms up key flats and allows us to sight cast again. On those duck weather days though we will strategically fish deep water flats and structures to pull good numbers of fish even though the aren’t up shallow.

There is a “first” for everything!

Michael and Marjorie decided to come down and give me the opportunity to put them on their first sight-casted redfish (on the fly)… Their determination was proven and learned quite quickly that the sight fishing game changes everything and since last Saturday have already booked another date in December!

Schools of fish are appearing now with larger sized fish and schools appearing along the outer edges of the flats coming up out of the deep and small to medium sized school fish are popping shrimp up and down the shorelines regardless of wind direction. And now, tonight in the wee hours while the rooster sleeps, another Norther is expected to descend on the Coastal Bend and with that will signal the fish to “put on the feed bag” again!

In the skinny on the fly

With all that said, the next week or two should see traditionally amazing “winter pattern” redfishing and I look forward to showing all of you as much of the action as I can!

Contact me ASAP by phone or email for available dates! 361-500-2552 If I don’t answer I am probably wrestling some REDFISH!!! Not to worry Ill call you back soon as the sun sets!

Below are a few pics from guests that I had the pleasure of guiding during the summer months and it was a unique experience where they made spectacular catches! These are my favorite pics and the experiences leading up to them are always great!

Sunset Bull Redfish

Never Give UP!!!

Windy Day Redfish on Spin and Voodoo Shrimp!

This redfish was hard work in the end but completed Johnny’s first South Texas Grand Slam (sheepshead, trout, ladyfish and red drum)!

Jose caught this Houndfish in Aransas Bay

Wind Driven Cow Patties! Or the redfish been messing around! We caught redfish over the tops of these the week before when the tide flooded normally bone dry habitat! We EVEN caught redfish in the cattle trails too!

Open For Business

KenjoFly Charters is proud to announce that the redfish are hungry and returning to the flats in good numbers. Their presence will continue to grow exponentially over the next month or so. Having spent quite a few days on the water since Harvey searching from here to there and both near and far, the consensus was the same immediately following Harvey… redfish were small and scattered.

hurricane harvey, redfish, fly fishing, port aransas, texas, coast, bend, red drum

Best fish caught since Hurricane Harvey passed through the town of Port Aransas.

But now with the frequent Northers we are getting the extremely high tides are beginning to drain and the slot redfish are moving back onto the shallow flats and each day we are seeing an increase in numbers and size of the redfish. We even got to take shots at some absolute slobs this past Wednesday. I have tons more photos to upload. I’ll get around to that towards the end of this month if my availability doesn’t fill up (email me to learn available dates in late October early November).

I have joked in recent weeks that the town of Port Aransas looks no worse than after a busy July 4th weekend. It is my way of adding a little sense of humor to the wreckage that Hurricane Harvey left for us all to clean up. A huge amount of debris has already been removed from the curbs and I now have a nice mountain range [of garbage] to gaze upon. The trash in town seems to come out of thin air and accumulate in large piles overnight, and expect it to be that way for a little while longer since pretty much everything got trashed. The flats of course are not trashed as nature has a way or recovering from natural disasters MUCH faster than civilization.

redfish, port aransas, hurricane, harvey, texas, coast, bend, fly fishing, rockport, corpus christi

Best fish on Brad’s first day sight casting redfish on the fly. A 25 inch pumpkin tailer!

Some Guests have already braved the unfamiliar torn apart town. They ventured with me out onto the water dodging some new hazards in search of redfish and the weather conditions in the last week have been more than favorable to target these fish by sight from the skiff. A lot of new territories has opened up and reshaped much of the topography of the haunts that the South Texas redfish prefer. The redfish aren’t confused at all and the best indicator I am seeing is that the bellies of these fish are completely FULL.

The excitement is building each day and every time we go out in search we are seeing more and more fish. About half the fish are tailing and the rest are cruising crushing bait once pushed into ambush. There is no shortage of redfish at which to cast and Anglers are staying on point and busy most of the day taking shots at the hungry red drum. The average size is also increasing and in the near future schools of redfish should begin to appear as the North winds shift and begin to prevail.

October is fairly booked but a few dates are still available here and there. November last year proved to be a fantastic time leading up to Thanksgiving and I expect the timeliness to be similar if not early. Therefore late October is also prime (DONt MISS OUT!) and has a good number of dates available for anyone who hasn’t already booked with me. Simply give me a call and we will get things coordinated. Just call me direct! 361-500-2552

Succulent Crawler

Lodging is coming back around in Port Aransas as well as places to eat. Below are links to places local to Port Aransas and lists what is open to accommodate our Guests in this regard. Other lodging and food options are available in Corpus Christi area as well.

https://portaransas.org/wp-content/uploads/accommodations-reopened.pdf

https://business.portaransas.org/list/category/restaurants-re-opened-205

Hot Redfish

texas, gulf, redfish, coast, fly fishing, port aransas, rockport, corpus christi, laguna madre, tailing

Letting Go of Big Red

On the lowest of tides in South Texas the wildlife is thriving on most every flat. You can smell all the animals out there in the still clean air.

There is a plethora of migratory shorebirds of all sizes and colors, scrounging through the matted sea grass and mud of the flats that are now drained. Litle white-yellowish butterflies flicker about in the breeze looking for a mangrove blossom. The sounds of locuts and cicadas fgill the air but the cadence breaks everytime a redfish crashes on some bait along the shoreline.

For someone who has lived way out in the country and even in the big cities, the fragrance of Mother Nature is most appealing.

Aromas of fresh shrimp, crabs, oysters and fish permeate the morning air and my nose tells me it is going to be a fantastic day fly fishing the Lower Texas Coast.

Within minutes of setting up on the flat, we begin to see large fire-orange glowing triangles breaking the surface at over 100 feet away. REDFISH Schools! And Big’uns at that!

We are surrounded. There! 9 o’clock! 60 feet and closing! A fleet of six dark shapes emerges from the diamond glare of the sun. Swimming in a fighter-jet formation, heading straight for the boat are massive well-fed top-slot redfish sweeping across the flat crushing any bait that dares let them get too close.

texas, gulf, sheepshead, coast, fly fishing, port aransas, rockport, corpus christi, laguna madre

Bah Bah Bah!!!! She ate with reckless abandon!

“Hey Man?” the guide whispers loudly, hoping the angler on point can hear him but trying not to spook the gang. “There’s a tail at 11o’clock, 40 feet from your tippy toes. See that sheepshead looking right at ya! CAST!” The fly lands a foot short of the fish, leader straight and the game of chase begins. The man on the bow starts stripping and stripping and the fish follows, slowing closing the gap. Then suddenly, just when we think the fish is going to bail, she commits to eating and just nailed the chartreuse shrimp fly throwing a rooster-tail of water behind the line as it ripped away from the boat. “Ahhhh! Sweet!” the man on the bow exclaims.

Diamond Redfish

I Give me a call ASAP to get booked for prime fishing dates in August and September. NOW IS THE TIME! Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552 or email ken@kenjofly.com

Fly Fishing Summer Redfish

redfish, drum, fly fishing, port aransas, texas, coast, guide, saltwater, charter, airflo, sims, hatch, beavertail, marsh, spartina, grass, sunrise, mullet, crab, shrimp, fly only, catch and release, trout, speckled, speck, snaggletooth, sock, deep, water, skinny, culture, wade, fishing

29inch redfish in sock deep water

“There she is! 12 O’clock! 30ft and closing fast!” your guide says as you see him quickly drop to his knees in 8 inches of water pointing with the spare rod straight at the fish he just spotted. He secretly hopes you heard him and saw him go on point like a full-bred Setter. Your ears are in tune to his voice though, thanks to spending quite a few days together combing the flats on foot and fortunately, you hear him over the howling wind. A lone but large 30-inch redfish is barreling straight towards you out of the sparsely grown grass line and you barely have just enough time to make the cast. The fly lands right in front of the fish only 15 ft away from the rod-tip and she eats the little purple fly heartily.

Dates in June are still available. I have Friday/Saturday June 9 & 10 available immediately. Call ASAP to reserve your fun-filled day with target-rich environments, sight-casting to South Texas Coastal Redfish, Trout, Black Drum and Sheepshead.

Noah’s First Redfish

The weather has been excellent for tailing redfish as well. With below average winds right now we can fish from the skiff or on foot.

If you have the time in your day, extended day trips (12+ hours) are also available where we will make long runs to very isolated areas where almost every fish will try to eat your fly. Call Capt Ken direct for more details. 361-500-2552

Kenjo Fly Fishing Charters

Texas Saltwater Flats Fishing Charters