Tag Archives: rockport

Texas Fall Fly Fishing

Fly Fishing the Texas Coast in the Fall is an amazing time. Recent offshore rains have really gotten the fish in the bays feeding aggressively. We are experiencing some of the most awesome eats from redfish in the shallows now, thanks to the cooling effect of the rain!

fly fishing, texas, fly, port, aransas, fishing, tfo, red, drum, redfish, fly rod, airflo, take a kid fishing,
12yo Ella getting to play tug o’ war with some Texas redfish

Olive green crabs in size 2 and 4 are working well and small 2inch shrimp patterns in black/chartreuse or copper/tan color combos also working well. During low light conditions, we put on our Smith Optics Igniter Lenses to really turn the lights on.

In the low light conditions

We will adapt our strategies in the low light conditions by shortening the leader to 6ft. And use a larger 1/0 unweighted fly like crab or mullet imitations. These flies will usually have brighter colors like chartreuse green or red/white. This is so that the angler can see the fly better and the fish can also see the flies from a greater distance. Keeping our casts short and precise can make all the difference in the game. Topwater bites are also on the rise. During early morning hours and continue into the day if cloud cover and wind persist.

smith, optics, low light, igniter, over slot, redfish, texas, port, aransas, corpus, bay, christi, beavertail, guide, trips, adventure, red, drum, lighthouse, lakes, fly, fishing, port, laguna, madre, rockport
Creepin the skiff through dead mangrove sloughs in low light conditions. You can bet we used Smith’s low light Igniter lenses!

On random days in the fall the wind may persist. And so we need to stay prepared to adapt our strategies even more and hop out of the boat for a quick wade in the “Longest Mile”.

September dates are available NOW! Use the Book Now button to view availability. More and more red drum, speckled trout, and black drum are going to be pushing up into the shallows. You should be there to get in the action!

over slot, redfish, texas, port, aransas, corpus, bay, christi, beavertail, guide, trips, adventure, red, drum, lighthouse, lakes, fly, fishing, port, laguna, madre, rockport
Marks first over-slot red

BOOK NOW

Slow down and smell the fish

slow, down, smell, fish, big ugly, over slot, redfish, texas, port, aransas, corpus, bay, christi, beavertail, guide, trips, adventure, red, drum, lighthouse, lakes, fly, fishing, port, laguna, madre, rockport
Wade fishing Texas middle coast can make this drum your 4th fish in your Grand Slam (redfish, trout, flounder to round it out)

We got to slow down and smell the fish recently. This day did not disappoint. We had a lot of shots at fish like this surprisingly and we caught one each…

This big black drum was one that got the hook. It is quite a cumbersome ordeal to wrangle these big lethargic drum to hand. Oftentimes though, I too have to remind myself to slow down and smell the fish. Unfortunately these fish don’t smell like roses but the principal goes further than just enjoying the moment as the saying implies.

Wade fish the Texas Marsh to Slow down

It has its merits, and during the right time of year you could even land a grand slam of redfish, black drum, flounder, and trout on the fly or spinning tackle. Slow down and smell the fish is not all that bad of an idea if you’re a keen outdoorsman.

flounder, over slot, redfish, texas, port, aransas, corpus, bay, christi, beavertail, guide, trips, adventure, red, drum, lighthouse, lakes, fly, fishing, port, laguna, madre, rockport
Texas Coast wade fishing provides the low and slow angles needed to put flounder in hand

Certain bait species produce slicks and or oily residue on the surface of the water which can unique scents. When mullet are concentrated and being fed heavily upon, the wind will waft the odors of the mullet downwind and if you have a sharp nose, you can pickup on some of these locations. The menhaden and speckled trout are also two of the sweeter smelling odors. Some even say the trout slicks will smell like watermelon! Have you ever experienced the watermelon smells on the water?

Dates available for September, October and November!

You can book a trip now by calling Capt Kenjo direct at 361-500-2552, or shoot him a text message with your name and preferred fishing date and/or send an email ASAP…

over slot, redfish, texas, port, aransas, corpus, bay, christi, beavertail, guide, trips, adventure, red, drum, lighthouse, lakes, fly, fishing, port, laguna, madre, rockport, abel, reels,
Fly fishing for redfish near Rockport Texas

OR… simply use the blue button below for express and convenient booking! Then don’t forget to slow down and smell the fish!

BOOK NOW

Jacks in Town

Jack is back in town and these busters will test your angling skills. May dates are available NOW! With jacks in town, the excitement grows!

BOOK NOW

We got a nice day out front and went on a scouting mission. Within just a few hours we had raised 3 from the deep and one managed to swipe the half-and-half fly aggressively from below the surface. Within 10 minutes later the jack crevelle succumbed to our game of tug and war.

Take note of the “down and dirty” fighting technique with the 11wt fly rod.

The extremely low rod angles fight the fish with the butt section of the rod which applies maximum pressure to these brutal jack fish. You’ve got to put the hurting on the jacks in town, or they will certainly put one on you!

Jack Trip Exceptions: when the weather is too rough to search open water comfortably, we may default to the flats and do some wade fishing for redfish and black drum. These are great backup plans for a day. Often times though even a standard redfish trip gets interrupted by these jackfish! So either way, book a trip anytime this summer and Capt Kenjo will be certain to put you on some fish. And with emphasis on the fish of your dreams! There are also chances to locate and target big bull redfish but please note that these big redfish are not males (as the name Bull implies). The large redfish are actually most likely females as the male red drum do not grow as big.

Adults redfish mature by 3 – 5 years of age; approximate length at maturity: males – 28 inches, females – 33 inches. Red Drum can also grow to incredible sizes. At least historically they have. The largest redfish ever recorded was caught in the waters around Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. That redfish weighed an amazing 94 pounds and 2 ounces.

jacks, crevelle, crevalle, texas, port, aransas, fly, fishing, guide, adventures, things to do, fishing, beavertail, skiff, strike, offshore, in, town
Deep Sea Smiles

Wading for Spring

It is springtime now in Port Aransas, the tides are finally returning to the bay. And now the spring classic weather patterns are well established. We can experience fog, wind, light clouds, or fully overcast days, and plenty of bluebird days mixed in there too. What is difficult is predicting the weather. But, if you are prepared when wading for spring then you know what makes wade fishing the perfect method for catching more fish on the fly.

SPECIAL OFFER for dates remaining in April when wading for Spring Redfish

wading, spring, fishing, redfish, drum, red, black, fly fish, port, aransas, bay, flats, sight fishing, hatch outdoors, reel, winston, fly rod, simms zipits, airflo, rockport, fly, fish, corpus christi,
wade fishing redfish on the fly

Get 15% off a full day of wade-fishing (single angler only) when you book a trip for any available date remaining in this month of APRIL 2022!!!

Call NOW or BOOK ONLINE ASAP!

Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552

BOOK NOW

To get in the water with the fish changes the Angler’s experience entirely. In my experience, wading the marsh is more productive these days than poling it in the skiff. This lets us slow down and give the redfish and black drum a chance to come to us. Wading for Spring in the Texas Marsh can be exhilarating and if you have done it before you know it can be awesome sight fishing!

wading, spring, fishing, redfish, drum, red, black, fly fish, port, aransas, bay, flats, sight fishing, hatch outdoors, reel, winston, fly rod, simms zipits, airflo, rockport, fly, fish, corpus christi,
wet wading for redfish

Wade fishing is an up close and personal experience with a redfish in the Texas Marsh. Observing the red drum do what they do best can be enthralling. Last year saw 5 months of cloud cover from February to June and we wade fished the whole time and caught lots of redfish and drum on foot. Wade fishing the marsh is a highly effective and excellent method for dealing with less than ideal conditions such as wind and low light. So get ready to do some wading (Get your Simms Zipits here) for Spring-time redfish & black drum! They are here and the feedbag is getting going good!

Gentle Casts

How to fly cast gently.

One fly casting technique that proves itself very valuable in the saltwater world is learning how to lay down the fly and line gently. Producing gentle casts can mean great catching and less spooking of the fish you are stalking.

The real challenge though is performing these gentle casts while your eyeballs are popping out of your own head in your excitement! Staying calm and not rushing the cast produces more hookups than trying to rush and hitting the fish too hard.

Here in this clip you can see David does a great job maintaining his composure. This pod of redfish are tailing along the spartina grass edges. You can hear us whispering to each other as he makes 3 casts in order to get the crab fly in the right spot.

On such a calm day you can be sure those fish would have spooked had the fly been too heavy or if he had cast “down” at the fish. Communication on the skiff in the moment is also key to our success.

Landing the fly softly is achieved by aiming your casting loop about eye level above the fish. When presenting the fly, be a little more gentle on the final forward stroke.

fly, fishing, port, aransas, beavertail, skiffs, tfo, bvk, fly, rods, hatch, outdoors, finatic, airflo, redfish, red, drum, rockport, corpus, christi, guide, laguna, madre, texas, vacation, flyfishing, adventures, things to do, beach, gulf, coast, gulf of mexico, smith, optics, r.l. winston, winston, yeti, sight, fishing, sight-fishing, on the fly, how to, gentle, casts
David learned to keep his feet quite and got to work with several schools of healthy reds

To do this, stop the rod tip early in your forward cast. Leave it up a bit longer than usual as you let the weight of the fly line gently pull the rod down. It would go from the 1 or 2 o’clock position down in front to the horizontal position.

With a little routine practice, you can use your line hand to feather it all down slowly. This will help the fly line lay out straight and gentle. That way the fly lands right and softly. For those redfish, you want to be able to move the fly on the first strip. Then you will be able to set the hook properly. And that hungry redfish will then gulp down your crab fly. Fish on!

Book your fly casting lesson (off water) and then lets take it to the fish and put what you learned to the test!

Book NOW with Capt Kenjo! Great weather is in the forecast!

BOOK NOW

Whether the Weather

The weather forecast looks amazing! Come on down and get in on the prime winter days before they elapse! Call Capt Kenjo NOW to get on board.

redfish, photography, texas, coast, guide, on the fly, saltwater, fly fishing, drum, backlit, weather, whether
Guest Photo: A Texas red drum glistens in the backlit winter sunshine

Whether the weather, or not, winter-time is some of the best sight-fishing of the year.

Once the skies go bluebird after a cold front passes through, high pressures kill the wind and warm the shallow waters. Now is the time to strike! The fish wont be everywhere but usually this time of year you will find greater quantities of fish in an area and often times, greater quality of redfish as well.

BOOK NOW

Focus on niche areas in these seasons as extreme weather ebbs and floods and learn why fish are where they are when they are there.

fly fishing, wind, redfish, gale force, beavertail, skiffs, strike, wade, fishing, wading, wet, red drum, corpus christi, port, aransas, texas, rockport
Best fishing trip of the year? Yes, we got it done in 40 mph gusting winds and caught a lot of quality redfish, on foot.

All the different bottom types such as sand, grass beds, bars, mud, shell, back waters, and main shorelines all have potential to have fish at different times. The tide levels and weather patterns all dictate how and where we find the fish. It can be a slow feed on the fish’s part because when they are cold. Just don’t make them chase the fly down too far or too fast otherwise they will turn off.

Nonetheless, a slow feed does not mean the fish are not hungry because they certainly are. Miniscule strips timed perfectly with well placed and gently laid out casts will most likely get those cold but hungry redfish to eat the fly for you. Just think, this time of year, they cannot afford to pass up a meal either. Sight fishing is exceptional on the Texas Coast during the Winter months. Go outside and look up at the sky if you are nearby. Then call me ASAP to get on flats and catch some winter time redfish! Capt Kenjo can be reached directly at 361-500-2552.

Pulling on Hard Fish

We got lucky a few times recently and got to search offshore for tarpon and sharks on the beaches recently. Pulling on hard fish is one thing but not pulling too hard is another. On one occasion we got to take a few shots at some 4-5ft Texas Tarpon and Blacktip Sharks! We managed to hook into one and break it off right away and the sharks gave us a damn good run as well. Just look at the size of the hole in the water.

BOOK NOW

tailing, school, redfish, red, drum, r.l., winston, fly, rods, airflo, lines, beach, leader, blacktip, shark, fly, fishing, beavertail, skiffs, texas, port, aransas, hatch, outdoors, redfish, sight, casting, saltwater, black, drum, aransas, bay, corpus, christi, laguna, madre, guide, speckled, trout, sea
The Winston Alpha Plus Super Bend! The camera played a bit of a trick while filming the fight with a 5ft blacktip shark. This is the moment in which I am in the process of “letting go” of everything!

The @winstonrods Alpha 9wt is in this shot, and as you can see, it was taking a beating! I’m not intentionally holding onto the rod but this shot was a screen grab of film and the fish surged so fast and hard while I was leadering the 5footer, the beast pulled the rod through my hands “as” I was letting go of the leader. Note: the rod did not break under this strain!

BOOK NOW

duck, camp, winston, fly, rods, airflo, lines, beach, leader, blacktip, shark, fly, fishing, beavertail, skiffs, texas, port, aransas, hatch, outdoors, redfish, sight, casting, saltwater, black, drum, aransas, bay, corpus, christi, laguna, madre, guide, speckled, trout, sea
Working with sharks can be exciting!

SIDE NOTES: If you want to book an offshore trip for September, October or November let’s go catch’em up! Do it, get on the books. The weather window is hard to predict but there is pretty good hope this time of year for very calm seas. It is my preference that you fish as a single angler because the boat can get quite crowded when we are working out front with more than one angler. Having a strong double haul in your cast also helps incredibly well. We hope to find bonita out there soon too along with tarpon, sharks ladyfish redfish and sometimes trout. If the seas are tooo rough we will stay in the bay and fish the flats for redfish drum and trout.

duck, camp, winston, fly, rods, airflo, lines, beach, leader, blacktip, shark, fly, fishing, beavertail, skiffs, texas, port, aransas, hatch, outdoors, redfish, sight, casting, saltwater, black, drum, aransas, bay, corpus, christi, laguna, madre, guide, speckled, trout, sea, offshore, supercell, t-storm, thunder
Texas Coastal Fresh Water Rinse Down

BOOK NOW

fly, fishing, port, aransas, beavertail, skiffs, tfo, bvk, fly, rods, hatch, outdoors, finatic, airflo, redfish, red, drum, rockport, corpus, christi, guide, laguna, madre, texas, vacation, flyfishing, adventures, things to do, beach, gulf, coast, gulf of mexico, smith, optics, sage, yeti, sight, fishing, sight-fishing, on the fly,
Determined anglers catch fish!

BOOK NOW

Seasoned Black Drum

Spring is the time to be fly fishing for seasoned black drum and sunshine is NOT required! All along the Texas Coast black drum are moving and feeding, despite fog, rain, wind and bluebird skies. I highly recommend we wade fish for these “siphons of the flats” to be most effective in catching as many as possible and to keep from displacing the school of drum from their own dining areas.

black, drum, fly, fishing, port, aransas, texas, coast, corpus, christi, beavertail, skiff, flies, skinny, water, saltwater, guide, charter, trip, hatch, outdoors, covid, open, redfish, red, trout, speck, speckled, seatrout, tx, PA, surf, marsh, wade, spot, stalk, sight, cast, school, crab, shrimp, mullet, topwater, popper, winston, airflo, lines, reel, crack, pattern, bull, fiberglass, moonlit, hurricane, laura, hanna, surge, storm, jack, crevalle,
Sunshine not Required

While sunshine is not required to sight fish for black drum, and even redfish, one thing that helps a fly angler most on the Texas Coast is having a clean, quiet and straight cast paired with a smooth retrieve of the fly. If you can make the drum chase your fly you can get them to eat it. Game on! Fish ON!

black, drum, fly, fishing, port, aransas, texas, coast, corpus, christi, beavertail, skiff, flies, skinny, water, saltwater, guide, charter, trip, hatch, outdoors, covid, open, redfish, red, trout, speck, speckled, seatrout, tx, PA, surf, marsh, wade, spot, stalk, sight, cast, school, crab, shrimp, mullet, topwater, popper, winston, airflo, lines, reel, crack, pattern, bull, fiberglass, moonlit, hurricane, laura, hanna, surge, storm
Blue on Black

There are still a few dates available next week for fly fishing trips in Port A! So if you want to fly fish the Texas saltwater marsh on foot for seasoned black drum, sunshine is not required! Simply book online or give me a call asap to get some black drum in your hands despite the weatherman being such a sour-puss.

black, drum, fly, fishing, port, aransas, texas, coast, corpus, christi, beavertail, skiff, flies, skinny, water, saltwater, guide, charter, trip, hatch, outdoors, covid, open, redfish, red, trout, speck, speckled, seatrout, tx, PA, surf, marsh, wade, spot, stalk, sight, cast, school, crab, shrimp, mullet, topwater, popper, winston, airflo, lines, reel, crack, pattern, bull, fiberglass, moonlit, hurricane, laura, hanna, surge, storm, jack, crevalle,
Cast your hearts out! The black drum are chewing bugs!

Call Capt Kenjo immediately at 361-500-2552 or reserve online at your convenience with the button below!

BOOK NOW

If you care to harvest some drum, you can prepare your seasoned drum blackened style it like Emeril.

Fall Floaters Rolling Redfish

It is the beginning of the Fall Run and everything looks like a red drum target to me… “There they are! Hold your cast… Wait… Wait… OK! Now! Cast!” The Fall Floaters Rolling Redfish are certainly busting their guts with shrimp crabs and finger mullet right now!

fly fishing redfish texas trip guide port aransas rockport drum sight cast spot n stalk corpus christi simms beavertail airflo hatch outdoors adventure nature tour
10 spots wins the pot!

NOTICE: Last minute cancellation for next week (Nov 10-12)! Book immediately and get $100 off each day of fishing when you book all 3 days! Call Capt Kenjo TODAY to make your reservation. 361-500-2552

fly fishing redfish texas trip guide port aransas rockport drum sight cast spot n stalk corpus christi simms beavertail airflo hatch outdoors adventure nature tour
Chartreuse works!

Meanwhile, as soon as we hooked up to a redfish, the other fish in the vicinity started coming right for us! I try to zoom my $150 smart phone to “capture” the moment just as the redfish are right in front of us. To truly admire nature for all its pricelessness it is best to be there, in the moment. It is so cool just to see them doing their thing. Sometimes schools of redfish will push along a shoreline whopping any and all bait in their paths.

Redfish schools doing all sorts of tricks are abundant during the Fall Run. Floaters are when the redfish will hover just below the surface or swim by casually cruising. They are easy to see even in bad light. And if the red drum are not doing that you can expect the redfish to be tailing on crabs in the grass. Other times they are popping, whopping, and even have their backs out of the water belly crawling over the mud. Here is an archived article showing our catches of Fall Floaters & Rolling Redfish Tails. In a few days I will post a recent video of “backing” redfish in the mud right after a cold front and the water temps dropped to 56 degrees Fahrenheit!

Call now or BOOK NOW online for your express convenience! Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552