Big red trying to steal the fly from a smaller redfish
The finger mullet and pretty much all other bait species are thick this year and the fall run has only begun! Let’s hit’em hard! Give me a call to get on board for a buffet of species to target now! The fishing is good and continues to get better. On the right weather days we can fish around the jetties and hunt for big game. We are still seeing a few really big redfish over 30inches in the skinny water along with a good number of slot redfish.
Black drum
The black drum are also prevalent and although the black drum can be tough to feed with a fly, the right retrieve can get’em hooked up.
Give me a call if you want to get in on some of the most consistent action of the year!
August is prime time for best chances at a big redfish in shallow water. I have some weekdays available. Simply give me a call asap!
We have already worked one area that had a 20lber in there and today ran across some schools of top slot redfish.
Adam did well and nailed this 22.5inch redfish at a close range of 5ft.
Below is some short clips of the surprise Jack attack. Straightened 4 hooks, broke off a big monster Jack on 30lb leader and pulled the hooks on quite a few others. We chased them for 2hrs over 2 miles distance.
Hot hot hot! Thats the easiest way to describe dead of summer-time along the Texas Coast… If you are fishing gentlemen’s hours this time of year chances are you are seeing double from the potential heat-stroke, but now is when the old saying “early bird gets the worm” hold the most truth.
We have been pounding on some fine redfish early in the mornings with their tails up, and they are eating just about anything you throw at them so long as you don’t bomb the cast.
Do you see it too?
Delicate presentations are key, as most shots are coming at close range. By 9am though most of the tailing has stopped but then the sun is high enough to spot these fish in the water.
Topwater Redfish at Sunrise
I have been telling everyone lately, I have found 3 situations where it is imperative that we wade fish and will list them for you hear. These are also 3 excuses to buy a good pair of wading boots!
The fish are in such skinny water that the boat might bump or drag the bottom occasionally, and the sound that makes will scare the fish, even if it doesn’t send them bolting away it can give them lockjaw.
Windy Fishy
The winds are honking (usually any winds over 15mph). This makes it difficult to fish slow enough. If the boat is moving too fast along the flat then there isn’t enough time to spot the fish and the fish doesn’t have much time to reveal themselves to us, which limits the number of shots you get at each fish. In the afternoons I prefer to work into the wind with the sun to our backs that way we can move super slow along the flat and that gives us more time to find that well camouflaged fish in the grass.
This is the big one… when there are so many fish in one tight area, the boat itself can spook the group of fish, interrupting their feeding pattern and behavior. Stopping the boat simply isn’t an option because the boat creates noise and sometimes this cannot be helped. It is then best to park the boat off to the side, preferably behind some cover like cord grass to obscure it and then wade into the fishy area like a ninja, moving painfully slow.
Cord Grass Galore
August is a very good month for chances at BIG redfish in our area as those larger redfish are moving into the shallows to gorge themselves to get ready for the spawn. The boat records have been both set and broken during this month so I encourage you, if you want your chance at a sight-casted redfish over 30inches in super clear shallow water, this is the time to get on the books. Give me a call ASAP to secure your reservation! Keep your hooks sharp, Capt Ken 361-500-2552
Afriad of the tides changing. Afriad of breaking off all these fish in the sticks. We switched up to 25lb tippet and went barefoot wading today while out scouting for the next group of charters. Got on some sick action with countless shots at countless fish, none of them under 23 inches and all of them in 16 inches of water or less.
Tomorrow is open if anyone wants to get in on board last minute. Just give me a call and leave a message and I will return your call after 8pm tonight.
Today was filled with many moving targets and most of them were willing participants in this little game called fly fishing. Best fish measured 28.5 inches and kept David on his toes running in and out of the grass and mangroves that peppered thw salt flats of Mustang Island.
Hooked up again with a spare redfish on the sideloop
The tides are good and has steadily kept the fish moving up shallow and they are eating heartily. David learned the various techniques to entice those skinny water redfish quickly and displayed good form in waiting for those reds to set themselves up for the best shots. We fished only one area all day, never having to fire up the outboard engine until time to head home.
Nonstop action
All in all it was a fine day on the saltwater flats of the Texas Coast and much to be remembered.
Some dates in June are still available if you want to get on board and take your own shots at some of these fun filled redfish. Give me a call ASAP to get your preferred dates booked!
Some redfish have been visiting the shallows and these fish are up skinny on the feed. No nonsense, with a good cast these fish are pouncing the fly like a cat on a mouse.
Pothole redfish
When visibility is limited working the potholes strategically can also produce some decent fish.
I even tried taking a little video of the redfish feeding up shallow. Gotta watch the top of the frame to see it, and I don’t know if the quality is good enough.
Back at it tomorrow. I have some dates available this summer. Just give me a call and leave me a message. I’ll gladly return your call once I get off the water!
Hitting it hard tomorrow but Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday this week (June 7/8/9) are forecast to be excellent sight casting conditions!
Blue Bird Days are coming!
I am open these days so give me a call ASAP to book one or all three of these awesome days of fishing we have coming! 361-500-2552
The tides are beautiful and the fish are hungry! Right about this time last year the winds quit entirely and the skies turned blue for almost an entire month!
Tuesday (tomorrow), Wednesday and Thursday this week are going to be golden. Give me a call ASAP to get on board for an excellent chance at sight fishing the South Texas Coast. P.S. Wednesday & Friday are booked.
pulling tricks with the blue crab fly
If you happen to watch the weather reports and try to plan your trips around that, it is certain you will go mad as the hatter, unless of course you are already as mad as the mad hatter. In those cases you probably watch multiple forecast sources, and then throw it all out the window. If you try to determine the perfect weather window on your own and schedule everything last minute you will most certainly drive your fly fishing guide completely mad. He already has enough things to juggle without trying to convince his guest anglers that they are not meteorologists and even they are dead wrong most of the time. Regardless, the best way to learn how to fish is to fish in all the conditions that might get tossed at us.
Caroline stuck several of these trout in spite of less than favorable conditions.
As a true fisherman and mature sportsman once put it, “the best time to go fishing is when the chance comes. And the way to go is with a free and hopeful mind and an eye quick to take note of things. There will be days when the fishing is better than even the most optimistic forecast, and days when things are far worse. Either is gain over staying home…”
Today while we fish in overcast skies and windy conditions we will focus on topwater fly techniques and maybe some subsurface blind casting methods while the winds howl at our efforts. nonetheless we will laugh and have a good tine and learn some new things while we are at it. I fear the day when I would rather sit at home watching to boob-tube I stead of going out into the elements to make another fishy discovery.
Remember, the best guides don’t quit just because there is a little wind. Down here in South Texas if the wind does stop blowing you will certainly pray for it to blow again because the heat and humidity can make it hard to breathe and the bugs will eat you. If you learn to fly fish in the wind, you can fly fish most anywhere, most anytime!
I am beginning to love the effects El Nino is having on our fishing! The abundance of fresh water from the heavens last year has made for a super abundance of food for the fishes! The fishing has been way above average lately not counting against what madness went down in February.
Considering the quality and quantity of fish that I am finding… take your pick! Do you want shots at good numbers of fish or a few good shots at quality fish of several species? And even despite inclement weather, some fabulous fishing is occurring for dedicated anglers.
Gator trout pre-release
Fortunately, the new Beavertail Skiff is the driest ride I have ever had on a flats skiff and even in rough conditions this boat performs very well.
By any measure this new boat goes everywhere the old boat could get. That’s the most thrilling part! Or, well, maybe seeing more than a dozen trophy trout in one day is a little more thrilling but nailing a 28-inch below average trout really got the blood pumping. Our imaginations have soared for the week following and still continues to grow and call us back to the water.
I have been running into a real mecca of giant trout and even on the days we couldn’t sight cast we got them dialed in on topwater flies. Some glorious fish have been revealing themselves putting on the feed-bag, and even sometimes when the angler least expects it. Lessons are learned by all in situations like that… “Never take your eye off the fly!”
chartreuse and black fly
The redfish are also hungry and some 20+ fish schools of oversized redfish are begging to be caught. Chartreuse shrimp and mullet flies are my go to color and choice flies of all time regardless of light conditions. Then I go to blue crab flies (bigger is better if you ask me) and don’t forget to have some plain white topwater flies ready to zing! The majority of the black drum have been a little scarce from my normal operating areas the last week but those that I did find were close to 10lbs and have even found at least 1 drum per trip between 25-40lbs. Ya Ya!
Here also is a little video of my good buddy Bob playing tug-o-war with a very respectable trout on a fine day last week while breaking-in the new skiff. Give me a call directly to book your next Texas Fly Fishing Adventure! Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552
Salty Bendo on a 5 wt hooked up to a nice 22inch redfish in 6 inches of water
So I get this call, last minute, and Matt says, “Can we go fishing tomorrow?”
“Absolutely!” I tell him. “Be at the dock at 9am. Tomorrow is a fine day to use the 5wt!”
And sure enough, while the main water bodies were frigid, getting skinny in my skiff was the key to finding the right water temperatures and those little lakes and creeks had loads of redfish in them.
Uber skinny water redfish on 5wt couldn’t resist the chartreuse shrimp fly!
We didn’t find a single fish in water deeper than 12 inches. Matt did pretty work with his 5wt Scott rod and landed 9 redfish before 3pm! We got some very aggressive eats from these fish and the big ones we chased kept the excitement levels on top of the roof!
Forget about the weather and leave that up to your guide and it is sure he will put you on the fish!
