Wow, What a Weekend for Trout and Spanish
 
Get your rods, reels and fly gear and get some striking fish.   You hear me talk all of the time about the inlets and what a great source of fun they can be during the first cool spells in this part of the state.  Well, it is time to take advantage of this hot action.  Here are a few ways, tactics and methods for having some of the fun that my clients have been experiencing.
 
Here are a few of the rigs that I take to inlet fish. 
 
Rods and reels:
 
I start by loading up several 6 1/2 to 7 foot long medium light Shakespeare spinning outfits.  I like the Shakespeare graphite rods with the New Shakespeare tidewater SS reels. Spool them with 20 pound test Power Pro.  I also like to bring a couple of heavier Ugly Stik rods in the 7 foot long range and they need to be the new custom series, USCS 1170 M medium action rods with the Tidewater SS 4840 or 4850 reels. These reels will hold about 300 yards of 30 pound test Power Pro and will cast almost any plug as far as you are going to want to throw.
 
Fly Rods and Reels:
 
If you have a fly rod, don't forget it because the fly rod can be great fun when you can catch a fish on almost every cast and if you leave the house without it you will kicking yourself when you get on these big schools of fish.
If you do not have a fly outfit try the Pflueger Trion rods,  with the Pflueger Medallist reels. This out fit is by far the finest, easiest casting rod out there.  Remember to spool the reel with Power Pro 30 or 40 pound line as the backing and for the fly line, I like the Orvis Weight forward Wonder Line. This line cast further than any on the market and with the weight forward design and with the weight forward design, it allows you to cast those heavier than normal big plugs and poppers. I always put one or two sizes heavier on the reel than the rod calls for.  This will increase you cast by 30 feet.  If you have an 8 weight rod, put 10 weight line on the reel.
 
Plugs, spoons, grubs and flies:
 
For the rods and reels, I like to have one of the medium action lighter rods with a big (100 pound test) black, barrel swivel tied to the Power Pro and to that about 3 feet of 50 pound test clear monofilament as the leader and to the leader a Clark Spoon. I like to cast the larger ones in sizes 1 or 2.  Clark Spoons have anew model that has a holographic flash on one side and these work great for this.  Mark Williams and I threw these at spanish, jacks and lady fish last week and had more fun that you can shake a stick at.

 
I take another light rod and tie to that Power Pro a MirrOlure Provoker or a MirrOlure Catch 2000.  I like the colors that imitate the bait and now the bait of choice is a mullet, so white, white with black or green back work well.  To the heavier rod I tie on another big swivel and to that some 50 to 80 pound test monofilament as leader. To the leader I like a biggggg bait like the MirrOlure 65M, 72M, 77M or the 85M.  These baits are heavy, cast a mile and sink. They can be worked so the twitch and look wounded, drawing attention away from the schools of bait and to them. Work these pretty fast and erratic.  Oh, be ready for a strike that will rock the boat.

MirrOlure Provoker                        Catch 2000                                           77M
 
Soft plastics also work well and the ones that you will find in my boxes are the Mr. Wiffle 4 inch in glow with chartreuse tail, all chartreuse, white and root beer. These work extremely well on a Jaw Jacker jig in sizes from 1/4 ounce to 3/4 ounce. Another good soft plastic is the Exude Sassy Shad and the Slimy Slug, the Sea Striker 4 inch curly tail grub in clear with silver flake is a great jack and spanish lure.
 
               
 
Now for the flies that you need to have in your box.  I have found that I usually carry a large selection of flies and to keep them organized, I like to keep them in a Plano 3600 or 3700 tackle tray. The new Plano models have great latches that keep the water out and the flies in the box. This also make for an easy way to work the boxes as you can carry a bunch of different patterns in one container.  All of these flies can be purchased at www.orvis.com or you can see exactly how to tie them. Orvis has a pretty neat web site, all you do is go to www.orvis.com, click on flies then the one that you want. You can order it right then or click on the fly and orvis shows you all of the materials to tie the fly and a large enough picture that you should have no problem tying your own.  I usually by mine.  Here are the flies that are happening right now and probably most of the year for trout, spanish, jacks, ladyfish and blues.
 

Back Country Popper    Flats Candy            Mud Minnow Slider        Kellihers Herring        Flexo Popper
 

Snookzit                        Wjebe Spanish Fly    Skipping Bug
 
The leader that I use for fly fishing this time of the year is 50 pound teat for the toothy fish, like blues, spanish and jacks and 25 to 30 pound for the trout and lady fish.  I like to bring two or three different weights outfits. I like a 5 to 6 for those calm days and smaller flies and a 8 to 10 weight for those days where the wind is up or I think I might get a chance at a tarpon or big jack.  I mentioned earlier about using Power Pro as backing, here is the reason. Regular 30 pound backing is about the same diameter as 30 pound monofilament and 30 pound Power Pro is the size of 8 pound monofilament. Which one can you get the most of on the same reel. By using Power Pro on the spool as backing you can get three times more of it than fly line backing, thus you can get away with using a smaller reel or when you do get that big jack or tarpon on, you will have enough line to fight the fish instead of watching all of your line peel off of the reel and head to the ocean, without you.
 
Now that you have all of the tackle and rigs, here are a few tips on when, where and how.
 
I like to get out there and look for the birds or the surface action. This is where the feeding fish are and all you have to do is get a bait in front of them and you will be hooked up.
 
The trout are going to be along the grassy edges where there is current. The tide has to be moving. I have had the best success on the incoming or the first of the outgoing in most places.  If there is deep water, you can fish all of both tides, as long as the current is moving.
 
For the sounds and inlets, I like the crack of dawn and the high end of the tide, look for the diving birds. The brighter the day, sunlight wise the better. It seems like dark dreary days just don't ball up the bait as well as bright sunny days. They are usually diving on smaller bait fish that a larger fish is pushing up. When you find these birds diving, you will most likely see fish crashing the surface. DO NOT GET ON TOP OF THEM. Stay as far away as you can. Cast past them and work your bait into the action. For the rod and reel action work the bait fairly fast and be ready for the strike.  If the fish are on the surface, I like to throw a plug or popper and work it a little faster than you would for top water trout. If the fish strikes DO NOT pull it away from him, wait until the rod is doubled over, then you know he is on. The Clark Spoons work great with long cast, working them just under the surface. The soft plastics, work good if you work them as if they were a wounded fish. Wind and twitch, stop winding, wind fast, twitch. Keep the retrieval changing to see what the fish like best.
 
For the fly, strip it as fast as you can, you cannot strip it too fast. When the fish strikes, hold your rod tip up and try to get the fish on the reel. Once it is on the reel, keep the rod tip up and work the fish, some will come towards you so be ready to turn that little handle as fast as you can. If you are going to palm the rim as a backup drag, you better get a clove. I still have a scar from two years ago when I thought I was tough and tried to palm a big jack. The smell of burning flesh is something that will stay with you for a while, especially when it is yours.  If you can try the larger poppers first, the action is so good when you can see a top water explosion and these are heavier and harder to throw, so try these until you get tired, then switch over to the smaller lighter flies.  With the large poppers you will not need a long leader, a 4 footer is plenty. This will help to get more distance on the cast.
 
This weekend I had a client that fished the fly all day (no bait, plugs or soft plastics) and tallied 19 trout, 1 blue and 2 lady fish. Not a bad day on the fly.
 
Remember mom and dad, spend some time with your sons and daughters taking them fishing and you will not be looking for them come Friday and Saturday nights, as they will be home in bed waiting to go the next day.

Christmas is just around the corner and a gift certificate for a day with Capt. Jim might make a good present for someone. They start at only $225.
 
Charter Information: Capt. Jim Hammond is an inshore saltwater charter guide in Jacksonville, Florida and can be reached to book a trip by calling 904 757 7550.

Moms and Dads: Remember mom and dad, spend some time with your sons and daughters taking them fishing and you will not be looking for them come Friday and Saturday nights, as they will be home in bed waiting to go the next day. (I am not just saying this because it sounds good. I MEAN IT, YOU WON'T BE LOOKING FOR THEM.)

Television Fishing Show:
Catch some local fishing action Tuesday nights at 7:00 pm and Sundays at 8:30 am on cable channel 7 WTWN in Jacksonville, the Beaches and Clay County and Thursday nights at 7:00 pm and Sundays at 12:00 pm on channel 22 WQXT in St. Augustine and St. Johns County.
 
 
This report brought to you by and
 
Good Fishing
 
Capt. Jim Hammond
jim@hammondfishing.com
http://www.hammondfishing.com
(904) 757-7550