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Fishing Megathread: Looking For Big Girls Who swallow


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22 minutes ago, hookemATL said:

So I was in Port A two weeks ago and took a run at reds with not a lot of luck.  I was fishing out of a kayak in Wilson's Cut and saw lots of actions and some finning but wasnt able to get one hooked up.  I plan to try this out again as soon as possible, but I was curious about what I could do to help improve my chances.  For reference, I was using an 8wt rod with a Lamson reel (SA redfish flyline and 10ft leaders) while tossing out some clousers and shrimp patterns mostly.  

Are you sure they were Redfish? Lots of fish tail and fin in shallow water. Catfish, black drum, sheepshead, even mullet will show fin tips. I think the best thing you can do is use the yak to get to where you want to go, then get out and wade a little. The extra height makes it much easier to identify what you're casting at. Also, put the fly on their nose. They aren't usually too shy about water disturbances, so don't be shy about casting close to them. I've had more than one red eat after I've hit it in the tail or back with the fly. 

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Thanks. That’s fair that they may not have been reds, I might have been just making an assumption there. I was out of the yak wading quite a bit and it was a HELL of a lot easier. 
 

Any specific spots that are conducive to yak/wading for reds in the area?  I went to Wilson’s Cut bc it was close to where we were staying but I would love to know any places that you recommend. 

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22 minutes ago, hookemATL said:

Thanks. That’s fair that they may not have been reds, I might have been just making an assumption there. I was out of the yak wading quite a bit and it was a HELL of a lot easier. 
 

Any specific spots that are conducive to yak/wading for reds in the area?  I went to Wilson’s Cut bc it was close to where we were staying but I would love to know any places that you recommend. 

Yea, there's a dedicated launch on the ferry road on the AP side. From there you can paddle across the channel and be in the lighthouse lakes in 5 minutes. Google Harbor Island Road Launch- Aransas Pass and look at it on google maps. 

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Just now, Pescado_Rojo said:

Yea, there's a dedicated launch on the ferry road on the AP side. From there you can paddle across the channel and be in the lighthouse lakes in 5 minutes. Google Harbor Island Road Launch- Aransas Pass and look at it on google maps. 

You rock, thanks boss.

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4 hours ago, hookemATL said:

Thanks. That’s fair that they may not have been reds, I might have been just making an assumption there. I was out of the yak wading quite a bit and it was a HELL of a lot easier. 
 

Any specific spots that are conducive to yak/wading for reds in the area?  I went to Wilson’s Cut bc it was close to where we were staying but I would love to know any places that you recommend. 

They whole area gets a shitton of pressure. It's the Texas beach vacation mecca for much of the state. Kids and moms play on the beach. Dad and teenage boys kayak and boat fish that whole area from Aransas Pass to Lighthouse Lakes to Wilson's cut to everything in between. That crystal clear water makes it even harder to fool the fish. 

I would temper your expectations. For 15 years, I kayaked fished most of the Texas coast. For me, that area is the hardest to pull a limit of reds and trout. Others will disagree.

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On 8/16/2021 at 3:28 PM, Pescado_Rojo said:

@troph One of the guys on the trip had one of these on a 10 wt. I watched him whip a 40-50lb Tarpon's ass in about 10 minutes. 24Lbs of drag, smooth as butter. He raved about all his Nautilus reels. Also, it's what DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt was using.  

Nautilus Silver King

had lunch with a couple of lawyer buddies this week, one spends a ton of time up in CO and fly fishes almost exclusively as his time off hobby and he sent me up to Tailwaters in Dallas for gear.  They are hooking me up. 12 wt Thomas & Thomas rod, cheaper back up for the 12 wt. and then an 8 wt set up too with a Scott rod.  they are putting me in the Ross Reels (two of them 12 wt / 8 wt) and swear by them.  https://www.rossreels.com/evolution-r-salt.html  then they will send me with flies for GT, bones, indo-pacific permit and a handful of other reef fish.  they said the guide can do the knots and he's happy to cast if we need an 80 foot cast.  he said practice before you go but that if I can cast under 40 ft decent i'll be fine.  I can cast 30 feet pretty reliably so I'll grab that extra 10 feet between now and then.

Edited by troph
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17 minutes ago, troph said:

had lunch with a couple of lawyer buddies this week, one spends a ton of time up in CO and fly fishes almost exclusively as his time off hobby and he sent me up to Tailwaters in Dallas for gear.  They are hooking me up. 12 wt Thomas & Thomas rod, cheaper back up for the 12 wt. and then an 8 wt set up too with a Scott rod.  they are putting me in the Ross Reels (two of them 12 wt / 8 wt) and swear by them.  https://www.rossreels.com/evolution-r-salt.html  then they will send me with flies for GT, bones, indo-pacific permit and a handful of other reef fish.  they said the guide can do the knots and he's happy to cast if we need an 80 foot cast.  he said practice before you go but that if I can cast under 40 ft decent i'll be fine.  I can cast 30 feet pretty reliably so I'll grab that extra 10 feet between now and then.

Great choices! The reel on my lap in that Permit pic is an Evo R Salt. Love the drag, my only complaint is the drag knob isn’t super easy to adjust in the heat of battle. I’d prefer a big knob, but that’s the same drag that’s on the Abel STS so it’s smooth as butter. 

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1 hour ago, Pescado_Rojo said:

Great choices! The reel on my lap in that Permit pic is an Evo R Salt. Love the drag, my only complaint is the drag knob isn’t super easy to adjust in the heat of battle. I’d prefer a big knob, but that’s the same drag that’s on the Abel STS so it’s smooth as butter. 

I agree that knob looks sleek a.k.a hard to find when pressed.  invoice for a full complete set up down to flies is coming back $4600 without discount (I've asked for one) with 2 premier rods, two nice reels and one back up rod that's $300 ish.  I'm choking right now, but I'm sure I'll get over it.  fuck this hobby is stupid expensive like idiotic stupid dumb expensive.  my girlfriend is either going to kick my ass or ask for a $5K credit.  I think I may elect for the ass kicking.

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26 minutes ago, troph said:

I agree that knob looks sleek a.k.a hard to find when pressed.  invoice for a full complete set up down to flies is coming back $4600 without discount (I've asked for one) with 2 premier rods, two nice reels and one back up rod that's $300 ish.  I'm choking right now, but I'm sure I'll get over it.  fuck this hobby is stupid expensive like idiotic stupid dumb expensive.  my girlfriend is either going to kick my ass or ask for a $5K credit.  I think I may elect for the ass kicking.

One of the reasons I got my son started so early. I figure if I keep him interested, he'll never be able to afford drugs. 

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10% discount coming.  you assholes are going to have to fish with me in mexcio and at the coast for me to get my money's worth on this shit. fuck.  $10K for two days of fishing, no lodging included.  damn GTs better chinese buffet / pizza buffet / golden corrale on my lines all day long!

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one more question @Pescado_Rojo  I assume the $900 rods are worth it, should I down grade my 8wt to a back up first then upgrade later?  that might save $500 or so.  lead with the nice GT rod and back up and a back up worth rod for bones? or should I just say fuck it.  they did say the 8wt would be great for texas coastal reds etc.

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Just now, troph said:

one more question @Pescado_Rojo  I assume the $900 rods are worth it, should I down great my 8wt to a back up first then upgrade later?  that might save $500 or so.  lead with the nice GT rod and back up and a back up worth rod for bones? or should I just say fuck it.  they did say the 8wt would be great for texas coastal reds etc.

They are all about weight savings. A 10wt TFO and a 10wt Scott Sector can probably cast similarly...probably less than 10% difference in performance. Where the Scott or T&T will shine is that it's lighter both in the hand and in energy expended to cast. It can make a noticeable difference on a long day of casting. 

If it were me, and I was looking to save a few bucks I'd spend more money on the rod I was planning to use more often. An 8wt is a very versatile rod. Everything from bones to Redfish to bass. You could find a place to use it pretty much every weekend in Texas. A 12wt is a pretty specialized tool. Tarpon, GEETs, offshore species like small tuna and sails, etc.   That's why I told you to spend the coin on a high end reel for GTs, but you could save a little on the rod. How many casts do you think you'll make to a GT in 2 days fishing? 

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So my friends on Rebecca won the billfish tournament out of Freeport last weekend and came in 2nd at Legends in Port A the week before that. They also won a tournament early in the season. Having a heck of a year. And I was supposed to fish with them for last weekend’s tournament but had a scheduling conflict. Sucks for me to say the least.

 

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On 8/19/2021 at 1:34 AM, fattyflattie said:

It’s alright man. I am thankful (for your wallet/retirement) that you don’t seem to be a gun enthusiast.  You don’t have to work nearly as hard to unass 4k in that particular hobby. 

4k might cover airfare and your first fitting?

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On 8/16/2021 at 12:41 PM, Pescado_Rojo said:

So Mexico was pretty cool.
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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Show’em the heartbeat monitor!

day 1 I was on a boat with a buddy and we had 11 permit eats and 6 to the boat before lunch. There were 2 instances where I was certain I was in the begin stages of cardiac arrest. It was quite literally too much.

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Show’em the heartbeat monitor!
day 1 I was on a boat with a buddy and we had 11 permit eats and 6 to the boat before lunch. There were 2 instances where I was certain I was in the begin stages of cardiac arrest. It was quite literally too much.

From cast to release, a Permit story told with a HRM
2e715d73cd546a25f89b66dff0aadc3d.jpg


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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Just wrapped up an epic and exhausting fishing run in POC. Wade fished Weds, Thurs & Friday, flounder gigged Thurs night and then fished with some coworkers from the boat today. Not every day was as fruitful as Thurs was but we had a great time.
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1e98787fb1fc2aae2049de46022c5830.jpg

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1 hour ago, davidg said:


Username.

That’s actually was the premise behind my username. About 20 years ago I caught the 2 biggest founder of my life on the same trip, on nearly consecutive casts. And I wanted to brag on 2cool and that was the best I could think of in haste.  One was a little over 26”, the other just under.  Both on shrimp tipped cocahoes in Christmas bay, in the first little cut about 100 yds from big mamas.  
 

ETA: 24 years ago. God time flies. I still use the chronarch I was using that day as my surf reel. 

Edited by fattyflattie
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56 minutes ago, DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt said:

About 6X longer than they’ll go when you’re casting to fish in waist deep water. 😜

Yep. The only time I get backlashes now is when I’m casting to fish I can see.  Buck fever on the water. 

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The answer is tree fiddy come on guys.   I can cast it tree fiddy feet. 
 

actually I’m averaging just under 40 I think but the loop is getting tighter. That 12wt is heavy it’s not as much finesse as a 5/6wt cast on a river 20-25 feet.  you actually have to put your body into it (that’s what she said). I’ve gotten to 54 feet with a tight loop by my calculation.  With the weight of it aiming is easier though. Also avoiding the tangle more and more should be a nonissue by next practice session. 
 

not in Dallas don’t have a close by body of water so the field has to work. I may take it out on the boat or too the dock this weekend by our under construction home. 

 

 

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1 hour ago, DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt said:

About 6X longer than they’ll go when you’re casting to fish in waist deep water. 😜

 

5 minutes ago, Lat22 said:

Yep. The only time I get backlashes now is when I’m casting to fish I can see.  Buck fever on the water. 

That Florida guide said I casted better on the fish than when I was practicing. Clutch city baby. 

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28 minutes ago, davidg said:

 


Fixed.

 

this fish...it was our last opp of what was a brutal day and rojo let me take it. fish were moving left and wind was coming into our face...i literally gave it everything i had and then some. 65 feet. i can throw 90 in my sleep at the park. shit just changes when the fish show up.

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2 hours ago, troph said:

The answer is tree fiddy come on guys.   I can cast it tree fiddy feet. 
 

actually I’m averaging just under 40 I think but the loop is getting tighter. That 12wt is heavy it’s not as much finesse as a 5/6wt cast on a river 20-25 feet.  you actually have to put your body into it (that’s what she said). I’ve gotten to 54 feet with a tight loop by my calculation.  With the weight of it aiming is easier though. Also avoiding the tangle more and more should be a nonissue by next practice session. 
 

not in Dallas don’t have a close by body of water so the field has to work. I may take it out on the boat or too the dock this weekend by our under construction home. 

 

 

Do you know how to double haul? If not that's probably worth learning - huge help with saltwater fly fishing. 

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33 minutes ago, mapplewhite132 said:

Do you know how to double haul? If not that's probably worth learning - huge help with saltwater fly fishing. 

I've got it down on the back cast but am working on it for the forward.   I think that's my extra 10 feet right there because as I false cast a few times the velocity gets going with just the back haul but then the weight of the line without more velocity causes the actual cast to fizzle out.  I could probably get more line out and have that final cast whip out their farther if I can get the front haul down.  I was calling it something else earlier.  but yeah, it's a game changer for getting distance.

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I would try invest in some casting lessons before the trip.   Probably the best ROI you will get on all the $$$ you are spending.  Nothing will be worse than not being able to make the cast with that 12wt when and were you need to regardless of conditions.

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9 minutes ago, davidg said:

I would try invest in some casting lessons before the trip.   Probably the best ROI you will get on all the $$$ you are spending.  Nothing will be worse than not being able to make the cast with that 12wt when and were you need to regardless of conditions.

just figured out that double haul is like winding up an old school toy that scoots around on the floor after winding it up.  I may have a casting lesson coming soon.  I'm not like totally new here to the cast, but yeah now that I've got the gear and the trip logistics are behind me I can keep moving foward with mad skillz acquisition.  Those fucking fish ain't got no idea what's coming.  a little humility sprinkled with optimism and a no fear of failure attitude.  "it was this big" stories coming soon!

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