"Treat" of the Week

I know this is a little overdue but get over it I have been busy assembling an entire Ikea apartment. (They make great stuff by the way!) 

The "Treat" is a throw back to the last time I was in the Florida Keys. We were in Key West on a family vacation and we of course brought our gear hoping to slip away a couple of days and hit some of the flats up. My uncle was leading my brother and I through some back trails along the coast when all of a sudden we came to a clearing where Key West lived up to it's name.

There was a little scramble in front of us at first I couldn't figure out but then when we got a little closer I figured it out. I'll let you decide for yourself what you think was going on here. There were three men in three different positions/locations:

• Man 1: Sitting up against a tree pants unbuttoned hand down said pants
• Man 2: Naked, lying face down across the path (My Uncle stepped right over him.. we went around)
• Man 3: Also naked sitting 50 feet away in a beach chair

The fishing turned out to be mediocre that day, yet it will still be a day I will never forget. Although sometimes I wish I could.

Fly Spotlight

Zebra Midge (Red)

This had been a fantastic fly for me up until the day I left PA. Hang your zebra midge 12-18 inches off the bend of whatever insect you are fishing on the surface and be prepared for a serious number of fish to eat this little midge. Granted with the bend of the hook and the bead you don't always make the best connection to the trout but it catches fish. There is no doubt about that. Tie up a bunch and drift them through "midging" fish and you will absolutely pick up a couple! Certainly you could tie these in different colors but I think red is key right now because the majority of the midges landing on me had a red body! Try it out and let me know how you do! 

Recipe:

Hook - TMC 2487 #18-22

Body - Uni 8/0 Thread

Bead - Copper or Silver matched to hook

Rib - Silver brassie ultra wire

Flies that have caught big fish recently!

Bead-head Pheasant Tail Nymph Files

Rusty Spinner Files

Parachute Sulphur Files

Sucker Spawn Files

Photo Submission: Key West!

With Brian just arriving to his new home in Key Largo it made me think about what he is about to get into with his fishing adventures.  My grandparents had a home north of Key Largo by about 3 hours on the Gulf side of Florida.  The fishing is a lot different then what we are used to on creeks, streams, and lakes but it is comprised of new challenges that are often just as rewarding. 

One of the amazing things about saltwater fly fishing is that you never know what species you are going to get into on the end of your fly.  A memorable moment that my father and I had was on a flats boat where we caught 9 different species of fish.  We've fished mangroves, casted off the front of a flats boat, and have got tossed around fishing in the surf.    

My personal favorite saltwater fly fishing is done in the mangroves.  If you play the tides right you can get a substantial amount of fish going to or from the mangroves depending on the tides.  You'll be pitching and stripping Clouser minnows to voracious snook (among a variety of other species) who will destroy flies consistently!  It's a blast!     

Another great opportunity that Ron Shealer and I have a common is with a saltwater outfit located in Florida.  AWS Charters located in Key West provides quite an adventure on the flats boat.  Tony Skinner, the captain of AWS Charters is an extremely knowledgeable saltwater fly fisherman and an all-around great guy!  If you are ever in the Keys, look him up, you won't regret it!

Tony Skinner with a beautiful Permit 

Tony releasing an extraordinary Tarpon!

Ron Shealer with a nice barracuda fishing with AWS Charters!

Mark Jewell with a Jack

Playing a shark on the fly!

Sulphur Spinners

Had an opportunity to get out on Spring Creek tonight after work from 7:30PM - 8:45PM and the Sulphur Spinners were all over the place.  The video above is from a riffle on Spring Creek where I snuck up and tried to get good footage of the spinners.


When all was said and done I caught somewhere between 10 - 15 brown trout.  The biggest fish was around 16 inches and had some really nice coloration.  Most of the fish that I caught resembled a college student who had put on a very healthy "Freshman 15."

A special thanks again to Andy Reynolds who sent us good shots of insects (caddis and a few sulphur shots) along with a picture of Brian holding a brown trout.


"Hey guys.  I was back in action this weekend on Spring Creek and wanted to share a few pictures I took while experimenting with the new camera.  These browns were caught at approx 3 pm on Saturday afternoon, just after I shed a couple layers due to the temperature rising a few degrees.  My guess was that's all it took to induce these sulphurs to come off as it was a little chilly in the morning.  I included some insect pictures for those of you that tie.  Enjoy, and tight lines!"

GoPro Spruce Creek

I finally got my GoPro camera and had a chance to use it this past Sunday.  This rainbow trout that I caught was the first video that I shot with the camera secured to the headlamp attachment.  The good thing is that I was happy about the first fish I hooked up with!  The not so good news is that I only had one battery at that time and it had died prior to hooking into the large rainbow that I landed later that afternoon.  Either way it is another fun way to document our fishing adventures.  I didn't work up enough courage to dunk it underwater yet but next time I get out (which is hopefully tomorrow), I will attempt to get some underwater footage.  Until then, let us know what you think of the first GoPro video!

To view the video full screen click here.

Enjoy!

Heading to the flats...

I am officially moving to Florida tomorrow so you are all going to have to bear with Kirk and I through this transition. I will be in route to Florida the next couple of days and then spending the rest of the week moving into my new place. 

But hopefully before long you will get some pictures of me like this.

http://keysflatsfishing.com/?cat=8&paged=2

Or potentially doing something like this..

http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/2-2008/keys-bonefish-population-census.html

And I will definitely be doing lots of this!

http://www.travelmuse.com/articles/florida-keys/florida-keys-overview

So come on down and look me up at the Orvis store in the Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo. I'll be the guy selling you fishing stuff. Itching to get out on some blue water looking for a tailing fish!