Back In The USA - Part 4

At last things have started to hot up, slightly cooler guf sea temperature and the bait fish start to arrive, maybe it's time to get lucky.

Out early on the beach and the sea was guite calm, fly rod was set up with a home tied pattern of blue & silver with a crystal hair wing & tunsten bead eyes. Good cast and a fish hit really hard, on for about 30 seconds with a big strong run before it came free, checked the fly when it came back on the stainless steel saltwater hook was well & truly bent, must speak to my supplier. Fish came to the fly at a steady pace, then tailed off.

Switched to live shinners later in the day and hooked up with some energetic Spanish Mackeral, then spotted some large Snook crashing into the schools of bait fish, tossed a shinner in the area and hey presto the fight was on, a snook of about 3 ft long took the bait and went tearing off. Thought I was in control until it cleared the water and threw the hook - gutted. Had a slighly smaller one do the same a short while after.

Spanish Mackeral were giving me a hard time due to the amount of clean cut offs I was getting both to the fly and bait, so much so that I switched from 25lb to 30lb flourocarbon tippet, even trying Rio wire leader at one point but the bites seemed to disappear so went back to the flouro.

More snook crusing by and a quick cast and a very strong pull and I thought I was in only to see the distictive wing flaps of a ray heading far out into the gulf, managed to get it back under control and get it to the shore to find one very angry stingray of about 3 foot across, gingerly unhooked and it safely headed back into the gulf at a more sedate pace.

Flounders, Blue Runners & Needle fish have all also played there parts in this trip, one more full day left and heres hoping the snook turn up to play, if not then theres always the Tarpon in June when Cheshire Fly Fishing is back on Anna  Maria.

There may be chance of one last post before I leave this beautiful island if not keep following as I update you on my fishing journey - next major stop river Nith, Scotland  for the last few days of the salmon season, here's hoping for tight lines.

For more photos and fishing course information visit us on our Facebook page Cheshire Fly Fish or web site www.cheshireflyfishing.co.uk.