A lot of y'all have already seen it. For those that haven't, here's a good laugh for you! Can't beat fly fishing humor...

For the past week I've been down in Florida soaking up the sun, the smell of salt in the air, and the fishing. Which were all abundant.

 If you haven't heard, the Sunshine State is Heaven on earth for anglers! There's plenty of opportunities for fly anglers too.  I took those opportunities and did what I could to make the best of them. Given I fish freshwater 99.9% of the time, saltwater fly fishing was an entirely different world for me! Last Thursday, I fished with former Davidson River Outfitters guide Josh Almond down on Sanibel Island. Big snook lurking just inches from shore were on the menu from sun up until about noon. Fish upwards of 30"+ were cruising just below the waves. As fly fisherman, Josh and I were following these fish along the shoreline in attempt to lure them to our white Schminnows and Clousers. Like mentioned, snook were the main course on the menu, but bonnetheads cruising in the shallows sidetracked me several times. One of them, which Josh spotted making a beeline for shore, pushed 4 ft. As the shark got within 10 ft, I tossed my Merkin Crab out ahead of his path. He turned and inspected my fly, but quickly rejected. 30Ib mono would have been useless in landing him, but the 5 second fight would have likely been worth it! Josh landed a very nice snook (see pic below) the previous day, but we failed to find snook that were willing to eat on Thursday morning.




Later that day, it was time to fish one of the jetties on the island. Other than a run in with some manatees and Josh's fish being "baracuda'ed" right at our feet, we didn't get into anything substantial. It was still one of the best days of fishing I've had in a while. Sometimes catching isn't nearly as exciting as the things you experience while fishing.

On the last evening, I fished Sanibel following a

nasty storm. The tide was just rolling in and baitfish were moving in by the thousands. I tied on a Schminnow, and fished it just below the surface. Strip, strip, strip, stop. Strip, strip, stop. Nothing. As soon as the fly hit the water on the next cast, a streak of silver shot out of the water and my rod bent. Baby tarpon? It was close enough... A close cousin to the silver king, the ladyfish. Just like the tarpon, they seem to stay in the air more than the water. They're not 200Ibs, but they're an absolute blast to catch on the fly rod. After a few more on the fly an approaching storm and dusk drove me off the water. In my book, it was an excellent finale to the trip. Big fish are fun, but sometimes the little guys can light up the day.


It was a nice change of pace! In the end, it's good to be back in NC.

 -Tyler

Believe it or not, this was my first trip this year to my favorite stream in the eastern US. It was an excellent first trip of the year though! Here's some pics...











-Tyler

Had a great afternoon catching a ton of these guys on dries and a 2wt...


...Followed by some photography. Below are photos of an old store that looks to have been built back in the 1800s. A little creepy looking, but gave me an excellent opportunity to get some shots of history...

Fellow Carolina angler/tyer Jule McDowell shows us how to tie a generic shad/baitfish pattern that I'm confident will put fish after fish after fish in your net. This fly says big fish (and multiple fish) all over it. (Video produced by Buddy Price. You can view the rest of Buddy's videos on his Youtube channel, FlyFishVideo.

I'll admit it, a very busy schedule has left me no time to blog, fish, or ultimately have a life. Now that things are starting to calm down a bit, I'm hoping to post (and fish) more.

Judging by all of the reports I've been seeing on social media and numerous blogs, fishing is red hot right now. There's a whole list of bugs that are hatching, temperatures are perfect, and the fish know it. Get out and enjoy if you can!

Wild streams

If you want to get away from the crowds, try fishing a nearby wild stream. They're fishing well right now and as long as the drought doesn't get too bad, they'll continue to fish well. Take a small box of dries (maybe a Green Weenie or Tellico Nymph on the side) and start counting fish. Try a yellow Stimulator, Yellow Para Adams, Yellow Elk Hair Caddis, PMX, Trude, or a Turk's Tarantula. Yellow seems to be the color of choice right now.

DH waters

The DH waters were recently stocked and should contain plenty of fish. Most generic patterns will serve you well. Try a #12-14 yellow Stimulator, #16 Elk Hair Caddis, #14-16 Yellow Para Adams, #14-18 Copper John, #14-18 Pheasant Tail Nymph, Green Weenie, Squirmie Wormie, etc.

Send in your NC fish pics and I'll slap them on the THFF Fish Wall!

-Tyler