Wednesday, August 09, 2006

My first Saltwater fly fishing trip!

My father, his fishing buddy and I made a trip down to the Texas Coast this past weekend. I caught the "Texas three", 2 Reds, 2 Speckled Trout and 3 Flounder. I caught them all on chartreuse Clouser Minnows that I tied. Wow, can reds fight. If you haven't ever had the chance to tie into one on a fly rod, I highly recommend it. We fished the Bays between Matagorda and Port O' Conner. It was HOT, but fun! The only pictures I got were of my dad fighting either a large shark or Jack Crevail. We never saw the fish but my dad put up a good 40 min fight with 6 or so runs down to the spool, then the line broke. We think it was a shark because the end of the line was frayed, possibly from the sharks rough scales.

My buddy and I have scheduled a guide for the Little Red River in Arkansas for late October. Like the guide said, the hardest part is the wait and I can't wait. The guide service I decided to go with was highly recommended by fellow fly fishermen (http://www.ozarkangler.com/).

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hello tight_loops,
Seeing the paucity of comments on your blog I thought I should at least write to encourage you a bit.
Welcome to the wonderful world of flyfishing. Allow me to share a few words of wisdom from Thoreau. With a bit of good fortune you will come to a full understanding of them in time:
"Many men go fishing all their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after"
There is so much wisdom in those few words that some men never come to understand them. Seek that epiphany for yourself.
I see you live near Rowlett Creek. I was raised near lower Rowlett Creek on Rowlett Rd. just West of what is now Lake Ray Hubbard. It was a good place for a boy to grow up in the '40s, '50s & '60s of the past century. In my early youth it wasn't yet heavily polluted and held Bass and Crappie as well as bream and catfish. In later years it was so heavily used as an open sewer by the cities upstream that it stank at long range. I'm sure that since various cities now take drinking water from the lake into which the creek flows that the pollution has been reduced to some degree, but I can't help wondering how much. It is, in any case, a rhetorical wonderment for me as I escaped from the Metromess @ 16 years ago and took refuge in the hills of the Arkansas Ozarks near the trout fisheries that lured me for so many years.
Avail yourself of the fisheries on the Blue River and the Lower Mt. Fork. Many who preceded you put in a lot of work to make them happen and you can honor that devotion by your own enjoyment of the resource. In your own turn give back to the resource by loving it, protecting it and encouraging others to do the same.
There is an interesting forum regarding the Lower Mt. Fork fishery that is complements of the Beavers Bend Flyshop that you may find rewarding. You'll have to do a search for it as your publisher wouldn't allow the URL.
You might consider making contact with Robin Ryhne in McKinney. He is a consummate flytyer and knowledgeable about your area. And one of the 'good guys'. If you wish you may tell him the 'old man at the Bluff' told you to look him up.
I also commend to your attention the Dallas Flyfishers club. it is composed of a lot of 'good guys'.
I see you have booked a trip to the 'Lil Red in October. It is an experience you won't soon forget. For many reasons. Hint: be prepared for 'combat flyfishing'. Despite that aspect you may be lucky enough to catch a fish that will require no instant growth hormones in the retelling of the catch.
FWIW, on your way home from the 'Lil Red leave a bit of time to swing by the 'Lil Missouri below Lake Greeson in SW Arkansas to take a look at the trout fishery there. It's in easy weekend distance from where you live and has much to recommend it.
If you wish you may contact me for questions about fishing Arkansas.
Tom @ Buzzard Bluff