Great White Caught on a Fly

This post was inspired by a followers comment about fishing for sharks off San Diego. A juvenile great white was caught on a fly in July. The fly looks a little funny from the pic. It's an interesting story none the less. For the full story Click Here.

Back from San Diego

I made it back from San Diego luckily without having to spend the night in an airport. Winter storms shut down most of the airports on the east coast the morning of our flight. We rescheduled our flight and figured there are worse places to be stuck then San Diego. It was fun seeing family and the last two days we were able to relax and didn't spend our time driving around all over the county. The weather was great and the family had a good time. I was even able to visit some of the fly shops there. I found one I never knew existed. Both shops were great and had good advice. I never knew there were bonefish in San Diego. I guess you can't sight fish for them. They hang in deep water near one of the far ends of a bay where the water stays warm year round. The shops did give me advice on trout fishing in the area and sight fishing for surf species such as halibut and corbina. I didn't bring my fly rod and the weather wasn't fishing weather at all. I still wish I took some time to wet a line some where. Oh well, there's always next time. The two shops I checked out were So Cal Fly Fishing Outfitters and The San Diego Fly Shop. There was a sale ad the SD Fly shop. I picked up a pair of convertible quick-dry Exofficio pants for $35.

Fishing Goal in Jeopardy

This year I decided to create a couple fishing goals for myself. The first one is pretty much impossible right now. That was to catch 12 different species that were longer than 12inches. You can click on the fish names to see pics of the ones I caught. The species were:

• Trout - Brown, Rainbow, Brook all over 12inches only counting trout once.
• Crappie* - measured fish with my foot but I think it was 12.
• Striped Bass - I think it's hard to catch a Striper under 12 inches.
• White Bass - Caught these for the first time this year. Luckily found a big hive of fat ones.
• Carp - Again a first. I've hooked a few before but this year I landed one.
• Catfish - Every year I always seem to some how hook a catfish. This year I caught a channel and a bullhead over 12 inches.
• Largemouth Bass - I finally caught a bass well over 12 inches. It was great catching this guy on top water and on film no less.
• Smallmouth Bass* - Not sure this guy is over 12 but pretty close.

The 12 inch fish that I targeted but never caught over 12inches or at all.

• Gar - Only went after them a couple times and finally saw one. But I couldn't catch one to save my life.
• Bluegill - For some reason I thought this was gonna be easy. Then I thought about the last time I saw a bluegill that was 12inches. I don't think I ever have.
• Redfish - I never made it to the coast to go after these guys. This was a big disappointment for me.
• Chain Pickerel - A friend caught one of these in the Eno and has pictures. I think he's the only person that has with a fly.
  
• Bowfin - Still looking for my first bowfin. I know where they are just haven't learned how to catch them.

My other goal was to catch at least one fish each month of the year. Usually Jan-Feb are my most difficult times but this year I got lucky. Mostly with the help of friends and great circumstances. I'm dangerously close to missing this goal. It's unbelievably cold this Dec. I leave for a week to go to San Diego for Christmas. So that gives me about 5 days to fish to get that last fish of the year and complete my goal. I wasn't going to include fish out of the pond by my work but I'm lowering my standards now and letting that be a possibility.

Prospecting

Even though we had our first snow of the year and probably one of the coldest weekends this year. I decided to try some nymphing on the Eno. I needed to get outside anyways. It's been a good two weeks since I was fishing last. The scenery at the trail head was picturesque to say the least.

I wasn't sure what to expect. When I saw the water I was amazed at how clear it was. It looked like a stream in the mtns. My friend and I jumped in the water and started working nymphs through any run that might hold a fish. When the sun came out the weather was really pleasant but once it went behind a cloud and a breeze hit it was tough. The water was very wadable with the exception of the dead moss on the rocks. It made some places more slippery than in the summer when algae is everywhere.I kept going upstream to a pool where there usually is big fish. I tried various nymphs and clousers. I didn't get even a nibble.I think it was just too cold and the recent snow put the fish down. The water wasn't that cold but the melting snow had to make the water temp drop pretty rapidly. After an hour I decided to call it a day. It was nice to get out and at least I tried.

The Best News Ever

So I'm working from home yesterday and getting ready to go with my wife to the Dr. The appt was right around my daughters nap time so my wife asked if I would be ok staying with her while she went alone. I wanted to go because today was the day we found out the sex of the baby. Finally, we could tell everyone and stop being asked every time we see anyone, "is it a boy or a girl?"

My wife left and I tried to not glance at the clock every minute or listen for the door to open. My daughter woke up way too early from her nap which is too often a occurrence lately. I try to entertain her and work the best I can. Anyone who has a 2yr old knows how effective that is. What is the human fascination with jumping on the bed? I know I loved it as a kid and my daughter can't get enough of it. The bad part is she comes dangerously close to flying off half the time.

Good thing we heard a key in the lock just as my daughter was getting more rambunctious. My wife comes in and I try to act interested but not make a big deal. We both know the answer I want to hear. She says "Well what do you think?" By a small attempt to hide her smile before she said anything gave me hope that she was gonna say a boy. I said "it's a boy?" My wife said yes and I really didn't think I wanted a boy that bad but when she told me you would have thought I just won the lottery. YES!!!!!!!!! I yelled, and proceeded to beat my chest and call every family member that would listen. I also did what anyone does in this day and age and updated my facebook status.

What awesome news and as lucky as we are to just have kids in general is a blessing. I'm glad to have the opportunity to experience what raising a girl and a boy is going to be like.

Pretty Funny Fish Story

A friend sent this to me this morning. I thought it was pretty good. The title is How Fishing Almost Destroyed my Childhood. Enjoy

The Neuse in November

A friend who knows the Neuse like no other invited me to go fishing this weekend. The weather looked to be great and after warming ourselves with some coffee we hit the water. The conditions were my kind of fishing. The sun had warmed up the air the water was low and clear. Perfect for wading.My friend had talked about using a new retrieve for bass. When he showed it to me I realized the way I fish for largemouth might be totally wrong. I had been using his so called new retrieve all year for bass. It was hit or miss. It was the same type of retrieve I use for striped bass.
Quick 4 inch strips with various pauses in between. I guess largemouth usually like a slower retrieve. The structure was perfect for holding fish. I went with a wooly bugger type pattern. I got some hits and eventually hooked a few fish. The hits were very subtle. As the temperature warmed up the fish became more aggressive.

Many times I would cast and before I even started stripping line a fish would be swimming away with my fly. By the time I brought them to hand the fish had engulfed the fly.The fish were definitely trying to fatten up before winter. The gills inhaled the fly so deep a few times I had a hard time removing it. The fish seemed to be in eddies and the trick was to start stripping immediately after the fly hit the water. If there was a log, bounce the fly off of it or get as close as possible. The fish seemed to be just under or near cover. There was some surface activity and I thought about using a popper but I was doing well with streamers. All of the fish were bluegill except for a small bass. The gills were pretty fat and some had a nice color to them. The trees were also displaying their last bit of fall color. The morning was pretty perfect. Things went how they are supposed to go, or how I think they should go. The flies that are supposed work did, every fishy looking spot seemed to hold a few fish and I never had a random snag from a tree on the bank. It's been awhile since I have caught this many fish in a short amount of time. That is what's great about blue gill. They are aggressive and plentiful. Today, life if good.