Tag Archives: fly fishing techniques

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.

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,

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.

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,

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…

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,

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.

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,

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.

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, pumpkin

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

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,

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

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,

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.

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,

Holding Red

 

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,

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!

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, school, tail

Sunrise School

 

 

 

 

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

Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552

 

 

 

 

What We Learn

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

Often-times I am amazed at what we learn when spending time in the outdoors observing wild animals in their niche habitat. If you can slow down enough you will be amazed. Somehow, there are times when I see a fish and begin reading its behavior and I soon anticipate that the fish is going to make a turn there, and then we will have a good clean shot with the fly.

Return guest Tom (6’3″), caught this redfish 20 feet from us only seconds after I dropped to my knees and went on point as this 29 inch over-slot redfish came barreling towards us in sock-deep water through a thin line of spartina grass. Despite cloudy conditions Tom has learned how to present a fly close range to a fish that is closing the gap fast. Come fish with me and learn how to keep from over-shooting the fish that are charging you head on.

 

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

Look at that smile!

First-time Guest Barrie worked well through a tough day and prevailed when he learned how to lay the fly gently on the water and tweak his fly selection to entice some very spooky fish that had been keeping him on his toes. Dark grassy bottom, cloudy skies with plenty of wind made it difficult to see the fish but once he knew what to look for in this situation he was soon taking shot after shot at fish left and right. You can just feel the sense of accomplishment Barrie has just by the look on his face! With no time to loose, Barrie will be back again in June to overcome a whole new set of challenges.

 

 

 

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

Gail stuck 3 trout in 3 casts. The big one ate first but got away under the boat, but the other two just wanted to a photo op with such a fun lady!

 

Spotted sea trout, or speckled trout, are one of the most difficult fish to sight cast on the fly. Their body shape and markings make them excellent at the game of hide-and-seek, and their patience to lay motionless for extended periods of why many fisherman pass over some fine trophies without hardly ever knowing that a big sow trout was laying in wait for its next meal. It is a true spectacle though when you finally get a legitimate cast at a big ole mamma trout and she charges your fly like lightning then turns away at 90 degrees without breaking stride in defiant rejection of the chosen offering. Rumor has it this is common for trout anglers to experience which is why so many of them wade very deep edges looking for “easy-pickins”.

 

 

 

 

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, houndfish

Traffic be damned, we spotted this houndfish at 80ft, closed the gap to 65 feet and Jose threw the fly right where it needed to be!

Its always good to be ready and being able to throw a clean cast out of 80-90 feet will prove to be invaluable in the salt even if the majority of the time only 30-50ft cast are necessary. Some fish just wont let you get closer and this houndfish was the same, as we moved towards the houndfish, it moved away from us and we were barely able to close the gap enough for Jose to fire off a beautiful cast and get the fly right where it needed to be. On the business end of this fish, rarely spotted inside the bay.

Thats a wrap

redfish, guide, fly fishing, port aransas, corpus christi, rockport, flats, saltwater

Redfish Swim

Ladies and Gentlemen… its a wrap folks!

This year of 2016 has been fantastic with many wonderful days sight-casting redfish of all manners. We got to see tons of fish!

They were laid up, crawling, cruising, floating, tailing, schooled up and blitzing in schools down the grassy shorelines, crushing any and all of the helpless baits that were so abundant this year. Over clean hard sand, in clear water brown bottomed creeks, out among the turtle grass patches and tickling their chins over the fine-haired shoal grass.

backing redfish

By my observations, fish numbers are up, mostly thanks to all the rain Texas has received in the past couple years. This benefits the bottom of the food chain and over time the bounty moves up. 2017 will be another chart topper!

Many thanks to all the Guests who fished with me this year, every time, every one of us got in on some great days, and mad props to those who stuck it out during the more difficult days. The unpredictable weather is exciting and the Number 1 reason why it is important to learn a wide range of techniques in casting. We all still managed to get our hands fishy and learned quite a lot in the process adapting our equipment and techniques to get in front of the fish.

redfish, guide, fly fishing, port aransas, corpus christi, rockport, flats, saltwater

Admiration of the Redfish

There were many first timers as well who got their first taste of saltwater fly fishing, and I know for certain that they are just as hooked as the fish they finally caught! I cherish these moments because then, even a small fish is GIANT!

Looking forward to 2017, the early months in the year can have exceptional opportunities to sight cast. Timing with the weather is easier in Jan/Feb/March so don’t hesitate to call and get on the books to reserve your date. This past Jan/Feb/March was incredible and if you ask me, its quite the best time to fish.

Merry Christmas to you all, and a Happy New Year! Here is a little video from when the fish were blitzing down the grassy shorelines. Tight Lines and Sweet Fishy Dreams!

 

 

Full Swing Fall

Dredge yer Reds!

Dredge yer Reds!

Fall is in full swing and the tides are favorable right now. The skies have been interesting to work with playing with our eyes as the light dances between the thick and thin clouds. Nonetheless, the sight fishing has been good at times and more surprisingly the muddin redfish schools we found on a super windy day was a blast with double hook-ups on both fly and spin occurring 3 times.

Rusty got'em!

Rusty got’em!

When we are able to stalk the flats slowly with good sun and skies the redfish haven’t been far apart and are willing to eat just about any crab or shrimp fly when presented well to an unsuspecting redfish.

Looking at fish looking at bait.

Looking at fish looking at bait.

There are still hoards of bait like crabs, shrimp and finger mullet way up in the marsh in the super shallow water and as our tides continue to fall so will the bait and this will draw even more redfish and trout up shallow to feed heavily. Alot of the grass is still flooded and the crabs will be needing to make a big move soon as the air temperatures drop.

1st Time Sight-Casted Redfish

1st Time Sight-Casted Redfish

This trend should continue for a while more and November and December can see some awesome sight fishing days as the weather usually mellows-out a bit during this time. The fish are responding to the continued drop in average water levels and temps putting on the feedbag to regain their strength after spawning and to prepare for the onset of winter. Just ask me why winter is my favorite time!

Doubled up Mud Reds on fly and spin in windy conditions!

Doubled up Mud Reds on fly and spin in windy conditions!

Today the water temps in knee deep soft bottom flat read 76 degrees in one dead-end slough and not far away in another marsh drain it read 81 degrees… Granted these two areas are completely different which is indicative of the dramatic difference in water temps.

By making these observations it became apparent that the fish in the cooler location seemed to be sulking on the bottom over soft sand, not moving and just deep enough we couldn’t see them. These fish should be worked extremely slow, like crazy slow and from a distance.

Orange and Blue Fall Colors on display

Orange and Blue Fall Colors on display

Park off to the side, best to have some grass as cover, then make a long cast and dredge the bottom with the fly, long and slow with a little twitch at the end… The fish will hit on the twitch. This is a surefire method for fishing a 2-3 foot deep flat when you cannot sight the fish yet you know they are there from other signs.

In the warmer water the fish were certainly more active and were a little more visible because they were cruising or crawling instead of laid-up. These fish can be stalked one by one as your guide poles you through the maze of channels in the grassy marsh.

There are dates open in November and only a few remaining in December. Give me a call to book even if you decide to race down here on a whim last minute. We are locked and loaded and ready to float! Keep the hooks sharp, Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552. Also now taking reservations for Winter!

October Marsh Landscape

October Marsh Landscape

Big Fly Combat Missions – Fly Line Control required

While average size baits in the 2-5inch range seem to be prolific most of the year, quite a few large gamefish can be caught using a technique which is extremely effective when larger baitfish are present, thus making it possible to use the larger flies which can produce some very large fish. Line control during casting is the most critical key in success and it will most certainly get your heart beating when a huge predatory fish lunges out of the darkness and swallows your 7-9 inch fly in plain sight!

Although the typical approach to fishing these seriously big flies on weighted fly lines is the typical dredging technique where the fly and line is simply laid in the water (not really cast) and allowed to sink as the boat drifts away but this standard big fly technique can be slow-paced and most anglers can find it boring.

The other technique which I call the “rifling method” incorporates more of an extended & intense workout with breaks in between fishing holes… It is a seriously active technique in fly fishing, which requires a good strong casting arm, a mean double-haul and an ability to maintain line control in a way which has the fly line land straight with line tight. This is necessary because this technique draws instinctual bites from huge predatory fish and they will move on it within the first 15 seconds the fly hits the water and explains why it is necessary to have the fly moving back toward yourself as soon as it hits the water. The difficulty is solved by making the cast complete in 1, 2, 3 powerful strokes and distance isn’t a problem with these heavy sinking lines as long as line control is maintained. Casting parallel or at slight angles to these ledges and breaks in terrain is the key.

Big fish regularly prowl the deep & dark edges along shallow sandbars and other hard breaks along underwater terrain. It is on these second and third points of an estuary where large baitfish are ambushed violently.

Sitting in deep water close to the most vertical shoreline with a steep slope yet one that flattens out enough on the top edge to hold a few feet of water is important. This is a perfect location for big fish to sit in the dark shadows down below and look up onto the edge of a carving shelf and when it sees helpless baitfish it races up and grabs the fly and heads back to the deep to reposition its food for better swallowing.

Deploying these tactics can bring a huge rush of adrenaline to the sport and is certainly exciting in locations where big fish roam the oceans, gulfs, bays and estuaries frequently. Give it a try next time the variables are right (location/large forage present) and let me know how it turns out! I can think of a dozen species where this combat technique would produce very large results during several periods throughout the seasons! Give it a whirl and worst case there is nothing wrong with a little strength training!



Kenjo Fly Fishing Charters




Hot Fall Fishing Action in NYC

Cat is out of the bag but loves the water!

The fall saltwater fly fishing season in New York and vicinity is HOT!

nyc false albacore fly fishing

Blind casting can be rewarding when fish are near but seemingly "out of reach"

Cooling air temps and the subsequent fall in water temperatures in New York provide special times when multiple species can caught from shore, jetty, or beach. In NYC’s marine saltwaters, its the Striped bass, bluefish and false albacore that draw people from their slumber and delay them in the evenings! Yeah!

As someone who has fished from shore enough to be considered down-right crazy by the locals, I encourage you to find your favorite areas and work them thoroughly, steadily, and with routine and even at regular intervals such a 3 evenings in a row, or two pre-dawn mornings back to back. This will hep you see minor changes in the habitat and structure of the beach, and how the current runs at different tide stages. Soon then you will learn, Hey! This spot fishes best during top flood tides and this spot holds bait better on the bottom half of  outgoing/incoming tides. You may also discover that the current comes closer to shore at a certain stage in the tide than at other times! Thats always a plus! I always looks for places where my line move sideways when cast into the water. This confirms that current is present and saltwater fish absolutely love the feeding advantages that strong current provides them.

Fly Fishing from the beach or jetties can be very rewarding if good strategy is practiced. Don’t let the other fisherman around you discourage you, or tell you if the fish are biting or not although I cant help but stop and ask because I live to hear fishing stories.

Perhaps though, it is possible that they just didn’t figure out the bite that day and maybe they didn’t use enough finesse to make a catch. I just prefer that the fish tell me whether or not they are hungry! Many times I have gotten up-to-the-minute reports from others telling me nothing is eating. Then after I get out there and spend some time working an area the fish usually tell me if they are interested or not! A few aspects of saltwater fly fishing (particularly in the Northeast) that should be mentioned here is that there are a few key things that can be done to get your own first-hand opinion on how the fish are biting. Worse case you’ll get in some good practice casting!

Once you settle into an area that looks fishy, work your flies through the entire water column. I typically start with a fly that rides shallow in the water, for better visibility which gives me the chance to see a fish follow or even strike the fly. This will tell me if the fish are playful and if they follow but reject the fly, then I can make minor adjustments to my approach, technique of presentation and fly selection. It is also important to start fishing by making short casts, essentially fishing the area within a 40-ft radius of your feet. If then there are no takers, I will begin working the water column from the top down, casting further out as I continue prospecting. Make casts in ways in which the fly and line have time to sink (such as when casting up current) and follow the fly back down, across and behind, as if swinging spey style.  Keep the line tight and stay in contact with the fly at all times. This will help you cover water in a uni-lateral direction. Pay close attention to currents whether they be up, down, or across as well as the vertical part of the water column. This will help you rule out unproductive water as well as help you determine where in the water column the fish are feeding and what the fish have in their preference lists. Usually I will also throw two or even three patterns through a certain area before moving on. The fish pictured above ate on the second cast of the 4th fly pattern I had selected to fish in that area.

Additionally, don’t overlook your tippet selection if you are in the mood to tangle with a false albacore. Even in stained or dingy water slightly off-color, I find that dropping my tippet to 15-lb TroutHunter 0x fluorocarbon tippet still pays off when most others are not getting bites at confirmed fish such as when casting into a boil or breach. You can get TroutHunter tippets in Manhattan at Urban Angler. Spools are 50 yards, yes thats right, FIFTY Yards!

Lastly, I strongly suggest using the two-handed stripping technique, after the cast, the rod is tucked under the arm and both hands are used, palms up, to strip line in. The most known benefit of this technique is to allow you to move the fly faster but in my opinion the most invaluable benefit of this retrieve is that one hand always has contact with the line in which case you can detect even the most subtle strikes, or strikes from fish that come straight at you as well as allow you to set the hook in an instant without having to reach for more line. One hand or the other remains in contact with the line at all times. Strip setting is now made faster because the hook can be set with either hand at any given moment! The trick of using this retrieve to its fullest potential is to strip line smoothly with both hands, but doing so slowly, and only fast enough that you maintain tension on the line during the retrieve. Then you can change it up a bit by adding a twitch or two and or making a longer pull with your stripping hand. Stops and starts of the fly can also be finessed from most any fly using this technique so long as you keep the rod tip pointed at the fly line where it enters the water.

Close but not close enough

Notice the bay anchovy is not two-tone . The bottom of the tail is also the same color as the back of the fish.

Fly Tying tip du jour:   Clousers Minchovy (modified minnow)

When tying Bob Clouser’s monument fly, the Clouser Minnow, use a short dubbing loop to dub the body of the fly behind the dumbell eyes with Hareline Ice Dub or SLF Prism dubbing. This covers the tread wraps but also imitates the silver lined stomach cavity that the bay anchovies have so distinguished. On the bay anchovy, their bodies are almost completely translucent tannish brown. The only two body parts on a bay anchovy that are not translucent are the lining of its stomach (silver/opaque) and their eyes.

Therefore, if you tie a clouser minnow in all tan buck tail with dumbell eyes of choice, then dub the body of this fly with some pearl flash dubbing as mentioned above, and Voila, you have a more precise imitation. Note: tan is not the only color scheme to use, I also ties these in off-white, light olive, dark olive, pink, chartreuse, and even black and purple. Use similar and corresponding shades for the dubbing as well to keep the color scheme common.

Remember to keep your hook sharp (Go Tiemco!) and get out there and fish for the fresh air and practice if for nothing else!

Keeping the hooks sharp,
Captain Ken Jones
Kenjo Fly Fishing
ken@kenjofly.com