Friday, February 20, 2009

All in a day's work.



Everyone thinks that being a fishing guide is the greatest job in the world. Well, it is. However, what a lot of people don't realize is that mother nature plays a direct role in your fishing and financial success. My charters both today and yesterday have been cancelled due to wind and today cold and wind. February and March could be by far two of my busiest months but they are also the two months most likely to be blow out. With that said, the next question is what does a guide do on his day off when the weather is bad,we know the answer when the weather is good. I spent both yesterday and today tying flies in preparation for what I know is coming, long days on the water chasing big fish. If you have read this blog at all you know that spring and summer are by far my favorite times of the year. First the big jacks and cobia show up followed by the tarpon and permit, and let's not forget another one of Florida's overlooked fish, the little tunny. Okay, let me rephrase that for you folks in the northeast false albacore and for you locals here in south Florida, bonito. All these fish can put a strain on your equipment as well as your lower back. I have tied mostly poppers this week, I can't really call it my own creation because basically it is a big nasty Bob's banger but, for my blog I am going to call it the Corona slammer (see above picture). My slammer is tied on a 7/0, yes I said 7/0, Owner long shank trolling hook, it is very strong but not overly heavy. I use bucktail and krystal flash for the tail with a long ice chenille collar followed by a 3/4 inch foam head wrapped in holographic tape. I tied loads of different color combination but my favorite by far is the yellow and chartreuse, Corona slammer. The name was obviously inspired by my love of drinking beer while I tie flies and the color combination. This fly is not for the weak of heart but neither is giant jack fishing. I have thrown this fly on rods as light as 10 weights but I would recommend a 12 weight. I have some very exciting news coming up so stay tuned, and in the mean time try tying a few of these poppers and be creative.




my guide service website http://stuartflyfishing.com/
my photography website http://pbase.com/stuartflyfishing

2 comments:

InTheDrift said...

Is that the Hatch 9+? I have a 7 and 9+ and they are awesome reels. How are they holding up on the fish that actually require a $500+ reel?

StuartFlyfishing said...

Mike that is the Hatch 9 plus. I am actually their newest pro staff member and I could not be more excited about these reels. They have a killer drag system as you already know. They are not very known down here in Florida but I plan on trying to change that. Flyfisherman down here do not know what they are missing. I will have a post soon about the news, as soon as I get all my reels and have a chance to photograph them. Today was a big time on the giant jacks!