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Fall Fly Fishing and Weather Expectations

The weather this past fall never seemed to clear up with what seemed like never ending cloudy days. When that happens you need to adjust your expectations… cherish the calm days and try to make every shot count. This fall was full of less then desirable forecasts that we had to make the best out of. Although I did reschedule many days because the forecast was so dismal. We ended up fishing some days that didn’t have great forecasts and the fishing was still good, we also had some days that had great forecasts and ended up having terrible weather. The old saying is true that “you don’t know unless you go.” Reality is sometimes you do know and sometimes it’s a tough call, but if you go out with the right expectations you will always have a good time.

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Summer fly fishing options in Louisiana

This past summer started off strong with some jacks moving in relatively early and backing fish in ankle deep water(when the tide was right). But as soon as the jacks appeared they seemed to disappear and I was forced to fish in other areas. This paid off. What I found in these “other areas” were first of all more jacks, which was great, but also some very large redfish and plenty of sharks. I also did a nearshore trip on one of those perfect weather late summer days and it payed off with a plethora of species. I continued to occasionally try my typical Jack areas and although it was less action as I would of liked we had some jaction, caught some fish and I loved every second of it. Now I’m just looking forward to next summer and the endless fly fishing opportunities Louisiana has to offer. Above photo courtesy of Sam Collett @collettjsam on Instagram.

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Big Spring

This spring has been one to remember… Typically I stay in the interior marsh chasing slot fish in the 6-12 lb range. But this year the grasses grew thick early and choked up much of the interior marsh making many areas almost unfishable.  Although this is a normal process, it usually doesn’t happen until mid-summer. So this year, I started fishing the exterior marshes to escape the thick grass, and what I found was some very good fishing. Instead of the average 7 lb fish, I’ve been seeing lots of 10-11 lb fish and the occasional very big fish in the 25-30 lb range, not to mention a seemingly endless supply of tailing drum. It’s lookibg like the weather is finally stabilizing, as well, so the great fishing should hold up for the next month or two.

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Summer and Early Fall fly fishing in Louisiana

Jack fishing really turned on in August and stayed very consistent until we were hit with an early cold front around mid September.  This slowed it down big time. Luckily the interior marsh fishing really turned on at this point.  The reds were about as thick as I’ve seen them. Singles and doubles everywhere with random meatballs of 10-20 fish here and there. Solid fish size too averaging 8-12 lbs.   The best part about it is they were very willing to eat a popper.   I continually checked on the jacks here and there through early October and had some decent fishing but decided to switch gears to big redfish fishing the second week of October.  Just after Hurricane Nate rolled through there seemed to be big fish everywhere, but as quickly as they showed up they seemed to disappear. I was lucky enough to find them good offshore last week which was short lived due to the winds picking up.   Hopefully the recent cold front will inspire some fish to move in.

  

  
  
  
  

  

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Start of Summer Flyfishing

Typically with the start of summer we have the start of Jack season. I guess you could say Jack season has started but it is certainly not in full swing. It seems due to the ridiculous amount of rain we have had the past few weeks we have only had a few jacks move in.  We have boated a couple fish but still haven’t seen the numbers we would like. It does appear the rain is slowing down and the rivers are going down which should help immensely.  So in the mean time we have been doing the fall back redfish game which has been very good.   Also I have been spending some time trying to locate some good bass areas which just last week I found the motherload.   Due to rain on top the jack grounds I stayed inside the marsh and boated 32 bass on popper between 6:30am and 9:30am. Most were in the 1-1.5 lb range with a couple in the 2-3 lb range.  It was a pretty insane bite and another great summer option.


  
  

 

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Spring fly fishing New Orleans’ backyard

I am loving this spring. Overall we have had more sunny days then cloudy days and the fish are exactly where they are suppose to be.   Average fish size has varied depending on what region of the marsh you are fishing but overall I’d say we have had about a 8-9 lb average.  We have had many 10+ fish days and actually a good number of 20+ fish days(I think 4-5 days but I’m not sure and you can’t come down here expecting to catch 20+ fish on fly in 1 day).  All you can do is book your days and hope for good weather. Because as usual in Louisiana with good weather brings good fishing. It’s hard to beat a 70 degree spring day with blue bird skies and floating redfish in gin clear ponds…

P.s As per usual the topwater trout bite has been pretty good in the clouds. It’s a very nice fall back plan if you lose your vis.




  


  
  
  

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January and February Report

This past January proved to be one of the best Months of the season. Although we only had one hard front during this month we had very good pre front and post front fishing. February was warmer then usually which forced me into the interior marsh to target spring time fish that payed off with many fish in the 6-12 lb range and a couple bass as well. We also boated the largest black drum ever on my boat mid February.


   
  
  
  
  

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Solid December fly fishing in Louisiana 

As usual with this time of year the weather overall hasn’t been great. We had to reschedule a couple trips and made some not great weather days into some good fishing days. Thanks to a good number of big fish grouped up inside the marsh we actual have had some good success blind casting in likely places. Actually caught 6 over 20 lbs one day blind casting flies.

  
  
  

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Teaming up with Yellow Dog to Bring You Louisiana Redfish School!!!

We are excited to announce that we will be teaming up with Yellow Dog to bring you the first annual Louisiana redfish school!!!

Click the link below for more info…

http://www.yellowdogflyfishing.com/blog/announcing-louisiana-redfish-school

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Back to normal in November…

After a warm October it was nice to have some solid cold fronts come through and push some big fish into their normal fall/winter spots.  Cooler temps also brings some warm lunches for some of my foodie anglers…



  
  

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October Struggle

As many of you know I’m not big on miss leading people into booking with me. I’m all about being as truthful as possible in order to manage expectations. With that being said… This October was by far the worst October I have  ever experienced. It wasn’t a shock considering the water temp pretty much stayed in the mid to high 70s all month.  The big fish do not want to get shallow in those temps so most big fish were happy to just stay offshore. That mixed with almost constant 15-20 mph winds made targeting the offshore fish impossible.   Now we did have a handful of calm wind days which made for good fishing but overall October was a let down.  The only silver lining was with the higher water temps the Jacks stuck around later then usual.


  
  
  

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Jack season coming to an end…

I can’t complain about this summer’s Jack season. Although I had to deal with constant west winds and the floods in Baton Rouge pumping dirty water into my main Jack fishing area we had a very successful Jack season.

  
  
  
  
  
  

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Jacks of July 

Although we have had constant west winds, which is our least favorite wind direction in Louisiana, the Jack fishing has been very solid.  We have had some good pushing fish on the flats and lots of schooling action in open water. We boated a total of 35 jacks on fly in 12 days of fishing.  Biggest was 32 lbs and only 4 were under 20 lbs. If you’re looking for a strong fish that loves to eat topwater flies you should definitely come down and check out our Jack fishery.  

  
  
  
  
  
  

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There’s many opportunities during the summer when you’re fly fishing in Louisiana

During the summer months we try to get an early start to beat the heat, fortunately summer is one of the best times to hunt pushing fish. Both Redfish and giant Jack Crevalle become very active at this time. Their mornings are spent cruising flats in search of bait. Although we start earlier with low light seeing a fish pushing water is actually easier with lower light. Not to mention the fish feel more comfortable and tend to swim more shallow in low light. Watching a 20+ lb redfish or Jack pushing a wake from a football field is a sight every fly angler should see. Here are summer pushing fish we have caught in the past week or so…  Also through in a nice sheepshead and triple tail we ran into as well…

  
  
  

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Summer is here

This has definitely been one of the best spring seasons I’ve seen in a while and it’s looking like the good fishing should continue into summer. The fish in the interior marsh have grouped up and a 20 + fish school has been a common occurrence.  The temperature is the only problem with this time of year. I recommend starting early in the morning and fishing a half day to beat the heat.  The fishing also tends to slow down in the mid-day heat. Here are some pictures and videos from the past month.

  
  
  
  
  

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Spring + bad weather = put up the fly rod and grab the plugs

With the right conditions it’s hard to beat spring sight fishing for redfish…  That being said the weather is not always conducive to what you want to do. Lucky for us when the skies cloud up and the wind picks up, this makes for a perfect topwater situation.  Although you can’t see the fish before you cast you will certainly see the fish eat your lure which will still get your heart pumping.  It’s common to catch a multitude of trout in the 3-5 lb range and also redfish in the 6-12 lb range.  Topwater fishing can turn a bad weather day into a successful day on the water, you just have to be willing to try.

  
  
  

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Spring Redfish on Fly in Full Swing

It’s that time of year again when the water warms and the grasses start growing, filtering the water. The interior marsh goes from a milky mess to a sight fisherman’s paradise within only a couple weeks.  The season starts around March with a few pockets here and there clearing up. As the grasses continues to grow more and more areas get filtered out opening up new areas to fish. These new areas are where you find the most willing fish to eat. Because they have been living in dirtier water they have experienced little to no pressure. By April we have seemingly endless area to fish. Because of the mild spring  temperatures this fishery stays consistent through Mid to late June with fish being active throughout the day. This is a great time of year to get a multitude of opportunities at redfish from the 6-12 lb range. Spring is also the best time to see fish either tailing and backing on shorelines or just floating just inches under the surface. Also with the warmer temps expect to get a couple opportunities at large Aligator gar cruising the flats….

  
  
  
  

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Big Season finish with Big Redfish

Late February into early March has been pretty good this year. Although the water clarity has been some of the worse I’ve seen at this time of year, luckily the tailing action has continued to be good. The average size of the big fish has been impressive too 28-31 lb range(42-46 in).   Probably switching gears to fully spring fishing soon. Looking forward to short runs and backing fish.

  
  
  
  

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Great Weather Fly Fishing in Louisiana

It probably only happens a couple days a year but it happens…  Light winds and blue bird skies… This makes for some incredible Louisiana fly fishing.  The good weather makes areas fish able that otherwise would not be. Good weather mixed with anglers with the ability to get the job done is a recipe for an incredible day…


  
  
  

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Fly fishing for Little Redfish to Save the Day!

With the Mississippi River much higher then usual we have had dirty river water invading are normally clear winter big redfish zones.  This makes for a tough day to just go target big redfish.  Although I will try for a while,  at a certain point I just want to catch some fish… Fortunately the little fish in the interior marsh have been very plentiful. Most fish are from 6-10 lbs with a good bit of 11-12lbers and the occasional teener. With all this little fish action already it’s looking like we are going to have a very good spring.

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Tailing Big Redfish

I would consider seeing a 25+lb fish tailing in less than a foot of water one of the greatest sights you could see in the marsh. Now this isn’t something that happens everyday but if you have the right conditions this time of year and you’re in the right spot, your odds go way up.  Here are some tailers we have boated in the last month and I can promise you there were many more we did not get a hook in…


  
  

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The most wonderful time of the year… Sheepy season!

Starting in mid November and going through mid March is what I consider Sheepshead season.  Not to say there are not sheepies here through the year it’s just easiest to fish for them during these times. This is due to the fact the water in the oyster ponds tend to get very clear during this time. With the water being so clear, this usually affords you the opportunity to get good distance shots on the sheepies. Distance is important for two reasons. First they are spooky and will feel the boat even if it just slightly moves during your cast. Further away you are, less chance of them feeling the boat.  Secondly the distance gives you time to entice the fish to eat. Most of the time a sheepshead will not just swim up to the fly and eat, you really have to sell them the fly. 


  

 

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Winter fly fishing action

Although we have had a mild winter, we are still seeing a healthy amount of wintering redfish in the marsh.

  
  

   

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Fly fishing for jumbo Louisiana Redfish

There are six classifications of redfish size on my boat and they are …

Little fish – 8 lbs or less

Big little fish – 9-12 lbs

Teener/little big fish – 13-19 lbs

Big fish – 20-25 lbs

Big big fish – 26-29 lbs

JUMBO – 30+ lbs

Jumbos are not easy to come by, but a couple times a year the stars align and and we get a few jumbos in the boat.  Here are some from recent trips…


  

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Fly fishing for Different Fall Species

Although most of our customers come down in the fall to target redfish there are many other opportunities on fly… Foster has caught many big redfish on fly so he wanted to do something different. I was all about it…  We started in redfish areas passing on “most” redfish to target alligator gar and drum. It didn’t take long to get the drum and after a few missed hooks we got the gar.  The next day was shark day. After passing on a school of about 200-300 reds we found where the Sharks were holding. It didn’t take long to get one on the hook.

  
  

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