AS SEEN IN THE NOV/DEC 2007 ISSUE

For most of us in the sport fishing community, the attributes that differentiate an exceptional angler from an average one are pretty well established. Patience of a saint, the ability to study and learn from our surroundings and being able to think like a fish are just a few. Here’s one that I think is my personal best; stubbornness! Bull-headed, never- give-up, fly-in-the-face-of-popular-belief stubbornness! If I did not possess this “gift” (believe me, that’s not what my wife calls it) I would have never landed my first South Florida sailfish on fly. I probably would have made a couple half-hearted attempts and eventually called it quits. Worse yet, I would have listened to the advice and opinions of more than just a few who believe, “You can’t catch sailfish on fly in Florida!”

AS SEEN IN THE SEPT/OCT 2007 ISSUE

Fly Fisherman’s Workshop

Like professional golfers and major league hitters, avid fly-fishermen are athletes. They understand that remaining at the top of their game, means the fly rod must continue to be a seamless extension of their arm - comfortable and fitting in every way while outputting maximum performance with the greatest level of efficiency. Problem is when purchasing an off-the-rack long stick - even from a leading manufacturer - there is always something that you wish you could adjust. Whether it’s the length of the handle, the feel of the reel seat, the butt section, the number of pieces or maybe it is the color of the blank or the number of guides. There always seems to be one minute factor that just doesn’t feel or look right. Now, obviously anglers can still be quite effective with a less-than-perfect stick. That fact is undeniable. But will you be achieving your absolute full potential? I don’t think so.

AS SEEN IN THE SEPT/OCT 2007 ISSUE

Long-stick lessons for surfside linesiders

Roll-casting my crustacean to a large but compact school of cruising fish along a quite stretch of barrier island beach during a recent recon mission, I could only imagine what it would have been like pursuing game fish along this once untamed Gulf Coast region.

AS SEEN IN THE JAN/FEB 2007 ISSUE 

Fly-fishermen penetrating further up secluded creeks than ever before are finding success on a consistent basis. With a little ingenuity and sense of adventure, you, too, can get in on this exciting ultra-skinny water fishery.  

From an angler's perspective, the old adage of, “Up a creek without a paddle” is not necessarily a bad thing. Reason being, Southwest Florida's coastal terrain features countless rivers and creeks that lead deep into the remote Everglades backcountry. These arteries and capillaries contain sharp edges, pools, and deep holes where fish like to live, stage for feeding, or ride out bad weather. Watch out though; some of these remote creeks are so shallow and so obstructed with overgrown trees, they're only accessible by canoe or kayak.

AS SEEN IN THE JAN/FEB 2007 ISSUE

For anglers of all kinds, knots form the critical link between you and the fish. Without properly tied knots, you are completely wasting your valuable time on the water- and fly-fishermen are not exempt.

As a full-time professional fishing guide, I am extremely critical about knots because I need my clients to land the greatest percentage of fish possible. My reputation and livelihood depend on it. As a rule, when a paying customer steps foot onto my boat, the first thing I do is cut everything off the end of his or her fly-line and start from scratch.

AS SEEN IN THE MARCH/APRIL 2007 ISSUE

Taming Giant Tarpon – the proper presentation is a SAD one.  

As a native Floridian and professional light tackle guide, I’ve fished for and connected with countless tarpon along Florida’s West Coast. Specializing in fly fishing from Homosassa to Charlotte Harbor and Sarasota to Tampa Bay, I’ve been pursuing silver kings since the age of 14.

When talking tarpon, one immediately envisions giant, leaping silver fish, and rightfully so. Being a true game fish of world-class merits without the blue water requirements, no fluffiness is needed here. Here’s a species recognized to be at the top of the fly fisher’s game which provides more enjoyment than most athletes in the entire sporting world could ever know.

AS SEEN IN THE MARCH/APRIL 2007 ISSUE

Visiting sunny South Florida for the first time? Looking to accomplish a number of angling’s greatest challenges that you’ve been dreaming of? Conquer all of your fly-casting problems with the world’s best instructors.

My client, who shall remain nameless because I sincerely wish to KEEP him as a client, was finally coming down from his euphoric high as we drove home. He had just finished his first night-snook trip, and although he was still a little bit dazed from the experience, he slumped in the passenger seat of my truck and simply couldn’t stop babbling about catching three slot-sized fish.

AS SEEN IN THE SEPT/OCT 2006 ISSUE

They say fooling permit on fly is the pinnacle of shallow water fishing success.

For those who haven’t already achieved this level of fame, the following advice will stack the odds in your favor when going up against the Florida Keys’ most elusive adversary.

AS SEEN IN THE SEPT/OCT 2006 ISSUE

Today’s fly anglers are reaping the benefits as chemistry, advanced technology,
and manufacturing ingenuity have transformed this once primitive component into a specialized part of our fly tackle equation.

What would it have been like to employ archaic tackle in pursuit of gamefish glory? Can you imagine stalking the spooky ‘grey ghost’ on the flats with nothing more than a rod’s length of tapered horsehair fly line? Or perhaps roll casting to a pod of laid up tarpon in a distant backcountry bay wielding nothing more than a split bamboo stick with a length of the era’s finest linen material?

AS SEEN IN THE MAY/JUNE 2006 ISSUE

Two distinct challenges one simple solution

When stalking the flats with a fly rod, the angler perched on the pointy end of the skiff must be many things. He must be a presenter of the fly, making an accurate cast without spooking his quarry. He must be the teaser of fish, reading their subtle body language and moving the fly accordingly to convince the fish that this concoction of fur and feather is the real thing. During the periods between shots at fish, the angler must also be the keeper of the fly line coiled about his feet.

AS SEEN IN THE MAY/JUNE 2006 ISSUE

Key West guides break new ground with the regions toughest target

Back in the 1970s, landing any member of the tuna family on fly was pretty darn difficult. Sure, plenty of bonito and small blackfin tuna were caught by trolling ballyhoo and primitive cedar plugs, but no matter how hard you tried, tuna just couldn’t be teased to the boat like dolphin – they pretty much blasted baits at mach speed and quickly disappeared. As the 21st Century approached and fast, light-tackle boats started to appear on the scene, fly-rodders were finally able to chase schools of busting tuna and bonito crashing baits just off the reef. Typically, this type of activity only occurred during the winter months when conditions were far from ideal.

AS SEEN IN THE MARCH/APRIL 2006 ISSUE

As avid fly-fishermen and fly tiers, all of us have vivid images which instantly pop into our heads when certain words are mentioned. Even a hint of “saltwater” or “fishing,” and immediately every fly fisher who has ever plied his craft in the brine visualizes images of a favorite species or pattern. 

AS SEEN IN THE WINTER 2004-05 ISSUE

The DT Special was put together by friend and guide Captain Duane White many years ago. He used it to catch snook off the Marco Bridge. I started using it to catch snook around the lights in Naples Bay. We found that it was a killer fl y for catching snook in the clear waters along the beach as well.

AS SEEN IN THE WINTER 2004-05 ISSUE

Can you whiz a fly into a stiff 20 knot breeze? You bet ya’!

I never set out to become a fly fisherman. I’ve always loved the sport and catching fish on spinning gear was always fine. As the addiction encompassed my life, I became intrigued with different tactics. I eventually found that simply baiting a hook and dropping it into the water was not satisfying my piscatorial urges. The passion for precision technique that radiated from fly anglers was enough to pique my curiosity for the secretive knowledge possessed by these wizard casters.

AS SEEN IN THE 2004 FALL ISSUE

Fast, powerful and aggressive, hordes of invading Spanish mackerel make ideal targets for South Florida’s novice and professional fly fishermen! Get out there and make the most of this winter’s mac attack!”
The relentless wind has settled down, and in the near perfect weather of another Florida winter day you head offshore to find the surface of the Atlantic seething with frenzied fish. You cast your fly, let it sink and then strip as fast as you can until, WHAM! You're hooked up and the line disappears off the deck from the blistering speed of a hard charging Spanish mackerel.

AS SEEN IN THE 2004 FALL ISSUE

With the fall bait run about to commence,
fly fishermen can expect explosive action with tailing reds.

The small hairy bug never broke the surface tension of the water. It lay there patiently waiting to be coaxed into life by its master. “Just let it sit until the fish’s tail goes down” were my instructions to Bob. The golden tail ahead of us slowly submerged. “Start with slow strips,” I said. Under my tutelage Bob was on his third fish of the day, so he already knew what my instructions would be as he instinctively moved the fly before I even spoke. The water erupted in a large boil behind the fly.