Window Shopping

Local Fishing By Thomas R. Dempsey, M.D. CCI

Some days you just don’t feel like going all out.  Last weekend a friend and I went out on the Gulf just to look around and have some fun, see if we could stumble into some good fishing. The weather was clear, so we could take a flats boat, and I got a new pocket camera that takes good video. We launched on a Sunday afternoon out of Little Billy Goat Hole on Dauphin Island and headed across the mouth of Mobile Bay. There was a light chop on the water and a 5 mph North wind.

Our first stop was Dixie Bar/Fort Morgan.  A few pods of smaller fish were working the beach and a line of current as the tide emptied the bay. We stopped, got the camera out, and I went to the front of the boat to the casting platform. I was immediately into some medium sized ladyfish, then it was all small spanish mackerel. I switched out to the helm and my partner took the casting deck, catching what looked like the exact same fish (we should have clipped a fin or something). That played out pretty quickly.

As the sun was still high, we headed out to some of the closer oil and gas platforms.  The water was dark green (lots of fresh water) until we got about 10 miles or so out. At that point the visibility improved, and we could see about 20 feet down.  Baitfish finned lazily on top and a few reef sharks appeared from time to time around the legs of the platform. Not much excitement. We dredged with deep sinking lines, going about 50 feet down with a variety of fly patterns and retrieves, but to no avail.

We went back to Dixie Bar, caught a bunch of hardtails and ladyfish in the surf, picked up some better quality spanish mackerel on chugged poppers, took some more video with my cool, new camera, watched some coyotes (no kidding, coyotes!) walking on the beach around the old Fort Morgan battlements, then turned home and called it a day.

At some point you may have asked why I am writing about this trip. Because it is typical.  I love the screaming reel trips, but much of fishing is about putting in time on the water. A front had moved through, the water was dingy with little current, there was hardly a breeze, and not much was happening.  This goes into a mental file from which my brain sorts out patterns. At least we have a few cool little video clips

Cold Weather Fly Fishing On The Gulf Coast

Local Fishing By Thomas R. Dempsey, M.D. CCI

Where can I fish when it gets cold and yucky outside? That’s the question buzzing in our head while we sit around on our butts getting flatter and flatter staring at the ‘boob tube’ . Fortunately living on the Gulf Coast gives us the opportunity to go fresh or saltwater fishing during this time of the year. Hey, at least we are not breaking ice! So let’s talk about what’s available…

Let’s start with fresh water, plenty around and easy to access. Every farm pond, country club lake, drainage ditch, and apartment complex accessory pond has fish in it. Bass and bream don’t care about the esthetics, just water and food. So, what type of food is best for this time of year? Bass in the winter don’t want to work hard to find food so the food needs to find the bass. In cold weather the bass will be deep or extremely shallow. The deep ones are moving slowly if they move at all so sinking the fly deep with the help of a weighted line or fly gets into their strike zone. A slow strip feeling for subtle nibbles can pull these guys off of the bottom. For the shallow water fish coming up to get a little sun, the top water flies will work. Sometimes the fish will hold just subsurface, that’s when you want to throw a diver or a gurgler. Often the smaller bass will hang in the shallower water and can be really aggressive . 

Bream on the other hand only care about one thing, eating. If you can’t get them to hit a bead head nymph, they are not at home, period. Using a slow sinking weighted nymph is the best way to scan the water for bream. Even in the cold weather the bream will often hit a floating fly. The specific type does not seem to matter.

Saltwater fishing can sometimes be the best when the temp falls. Don’t lose faith in your go-to-flies of summer, they work just as well in the cold. Some of our local saltwater fish change their habits a bit when it turns cold. They may become more active as in  the case of redfish or less active like speckled trout. You just have to figure it out yourself.

However, all fish have to eat. YOU need to be there to ring the dinner bell. Check out the salt water flats for redfish in 1 to 3 foot waters. Trout may be deep so the sinking techniques may be necessary. Don’t neglect the nite kites on the piers. They draw the trout in the winter as well as in the summer. Look for them to be popping the small shrimp that glide along the surface.

It’s Almost Spawning Time on the Gulf Coast!

Local Fishing By Thomas R. Dempsey, M.D. CCI

Warm weather fishing is just around the corner so what can you expect? 

Let’s look at the fresh water first. Probably one of the most exciting fish to catch on a fly is a large mouth bass. Nothing compares with their explosive hit and the run. When the bass are spawning is the best time to target them with top water flies. In our part of the world, the spawn starts in February anywhere from the middle to the end of the month. While it is still a bit chilly in the early morning and evening ,hit them when the sun warms the water a bit. Later on in the spring you want to start fishing the bass a little earlier and later in the day. If you study the water in the early morning and right before dark, you can see ripples from the bass feeding on surface insects. That is a good sign that the bass are ready to eat your fly.  

Some tackle specifics… A 6 wt. or 7 wt. is a good way to start. Fitted with a floating line and a stout leader to turn over a big fly and you are ready. I like to use a tapered leader down to at least 10 lb. or maybe 12 lb. tippet. You need something stout to pull him out of structure. A 7-1/2 ft. leader is fine. Anything longer is hard to use with big bushy flies. If you like making your own leaders, using the following formula, it works well:        

                Butt tip 54″  40lb, 
                9″ 30lb, 
                9″ 20lb.,
                18″ 12lb. 
That will give you a tapered  7-1/2 ft. leader. 

Flies need to get the fish’s attention, so go with big and gaudy. Poppers that move a lot of water work great and any type of fly like divers, gigglers and deceivers also deliver. Remember that bass like structure so seek out fallen trees, stumps, and little coves with overhanging branches. If you get a hit but no hook-up on your cast, throw it back in there. Often times the fish is still around!   

Bream are also plentiful in south Alabama and will readily take a top water fly. Pound for pound, or better  ‘ounce for ounce’ there is not a better fighter. Those trout flies that have been wasting away in your tackle bag are the right combo with a 4 wt. mid-flex rod. Watching that bull bream slam a parachute on top gets you pumping. Bream live in every farm pond, lake, and ditch so you always have plenty of water to target. 

The bass and bream will provide entertainment throughout the spring and summer all the way through the fall until it gets really cold again. And if you are a “sacker” then bream and bass are good eating. We are lucky to have these species that are so available and willing to provide us fly fishing fun in Alabama, take advantage of the opportunity.

Night Fishing for Speckled Trout!

Local Fishing By Thomas R. Dempsey, M.D. CCI

With March fading and April coming in the speckled trout are showing up around the piers on the Gulf coast just primed for the night fisherman. Fishing under the lights for trout is as close to sight fishing as you can get without getting  a sunburn.

There are a few things to remember that can make your trip more productive. The best rod choice is a 7 or 8wt. with a weight forward floating line. This is one time when a bright color may help you see it better. The leader , about 7 1/2 ft. 15 lb  is balanced to turn over the commonly used flies. Placement is more important than the type of fly. These fish hit the fly so quickly that I doubt they can distinguish much other than size. The universal goto never miss fly is the chartreuse and white Clouser minnow. Other colors and patterns are just as good.

Often on approaching a light on a pier pole you can see the trout chasing white shrimp popping on the surface. Other times the water appears dead but the trout are feeding subsurface on small minnows. Sometimes you have to make a few casts to see what the deal is. The best way to “explore” is to cast right against the pole from 40 or so feet out. Strip in short 4 to 6 inch segments across the light on the water. No takers? Re-cast, let sink and count one thousand-one,one thousand-two, one thousand-three then strip again. Now you have cover the top and sub-surface feeders.

Still no bites? Move along to another light, but don’t despair, often when you return 30 minutes later there is a fish under that same light. Speaking of light, I have my own theory that the lights about 2 feet from the water and orangish in color are best. Just my observation.

Fishing at night really hones your casting skills. You have to know where your line is at all times which trains you to “feel” the cast . Casting 40 plus feet to a pier pole requires accuracy and the ability to judge distance and shoot line, skills you can use under any fishing conditions.

Remember, you may eat what you catch but release  the rest.

P.S. Wear your self-inflating life preserver especially if you fish at night and alone. 

Tarpon fishing – Bowing to the King

Local Fishing By Thomas R. Dempsey, M.D. CCI

That time of the year is here for the fly fisherman to fill his bucket list of species with a silver king.The tarpon migration that circles from the tip of Florida,up the Florida west coast,along the gulf coast, down thru Mexico and central America and back over to Florida  offers the angler a chance to catch a fish that less than one half of one precent off fly fisherman have done. But don’t despair,persistence  can reward you with a real trophy.                                                                                                                             

Beginning around the middle of May, hundreds of tarpon make their annual migration thru the shallow waters just off of the beach around Carabelle Fla., a small fishing town straight south of Tallahassee, 30 miles east of Appalachacola. This ritual lasts until mid-August and then is gone until it starts all over again next year. The water depth and clarity is perfect for sight casting for the silver king. Make no mistake,it is not a gimme. Everything can be ideal and the fish still may not bite.  

Tarpon fishing requires one to be proficient with a “saltwater quick cast” So what is a “saltwater quick cast” ? Simple, just what it says,a quick cast on saltwater. Going a little deeper, the salt water quick cast has three components:

1. Line management [controlling the fly line on the deck of the boat] .

2. Keeping your eyes always on the fish.

3. Delivering the fly as quickly as possible to the target.                                           

Some key points in preparation for fishing for tarpon from the deck of a flats boat will  help you be more successful in your quest. First make sure the deck is clear of anything that will hang up your line. Second, throw a clearly cast. This will establish an agreed upon distance that you and your guide can reference. Finally, direction, “3 o’clock RIGHT“, “9 o’clock LEFT” and “12 o’clock STRAIGHT AHEAD“. I have seen too many anglers look LEFT when I said 3 o’clock. Adding ‘right’ or ‘left’ simplifies the direction problem.                                                                

Tackle is a guide and angler preference ,but whatever you fish with,10wt. 11wt,or whatever, PRACTICE with the equipment you intend to fish with. Too many fisherman who have been using light gear all year long can’t understand why they have trouble with tarpon rods and heavy tackle. Many fishermen use this type of gear only once or twice a year. No wonder it is difficult! You are paying big bucks to fish, spend a little on a tune-up lesson on how to handle a heavier for and fly. And remember, LISTEN to your guide!

P.S. Wear your self-inflating life preserver especially if you fish at night and alone.