Gone Fishing

The Bonefish Flat is gone fishing. Trip reports to follow next week.

Killer Kwans & The OBX

If you follow The Bonefish Flat, you know that 2011 is the year of the redfish. We are at the halfway point of 2011 and I still don't have a red drum to hand.

That could all change this weekend. I've got my kayak ready and some killer kwans tied to head down to the outer banks this weekend. My dad and I are going to camp and fish in our yearly fishing trip.




The Killer Kwan

So far I haven't had the best of luck with reds, but I've got my stuff together and we will be fishing a spring tide so hopefully the spotted bass will cooperate.




Fresh Kwans

So why all this talk of Kwans for puppy drum, the fly is a cross-breed of shrimp and crab with an unknown orange thing tied onto the butt. I'm betting that orange thing is what sets the rat reds off.

If the Kwan don't work, maybe the merkin will.




The rest of my flies

Wish me luck boys and girls, it looks like it will be hot and channel bass can be tough to catch, but who knows, maybe I'll finally land a spotted tail. It would be great to post a trip report next week with a picture of me and a bull red!!

So I managed to call the red drum by 9 different names in this post, including rat reds, even though we think big here on the flat!

Friday Blog Props

I want to highlight some of my favorite blogs out there and so I thought I would kick it off with blog that talks about a fish that is near and dear to my heart: Bonefish.

Bonefish on the Brain is a great way to get a daily dose of your bonefish fix. Bonefish Bjorn is the Captain of the ship over there and he seems a lot like me. He's usually wishing he was bonefishing.

Bonefish Bjorn ripping a double haul.

His site has some great interviews with some of the greats in saltwater fly fishing. The interviews are archived and definitely worth a read.

Be sure to check out his site for a salty fix.

The Fish Truck

Every fisherman needs a fish truck. Mine is a 1999 Toyota Tacoma 4WD with an extended cab. My truck is about the only thing I have left from before getting married and its great for fishing. I've had it for ten years now and it gets better with age.

I've had it in the mountains for trout, at the beach for reds, and just today at the lake for bass. A fish truck needs some stickers on the back to show you're a legit fly fisherman. Mine sports my Uptown Angler sticker, a Scott Fly Rod sticker, Tibor sticker, the Federation of Fly Fishermen, and a Patagucci Permit Sticker.

What's your fish truck?

Weekend Fishing

One thing I've learned about marriage is that when your wife asks if you want to go fishing, don't stick around for her to change her mind. Saturday here in northern Virginia was really gray and calling for heavy rain all day. It looked like it would be too wet to fish. But it stayed gray with no rain, so I decided to head out to my new local lake with my kayak.

Turns out I've found a great new fishing hole. Lots of grass for bass to hide and a really secluded place to fish. A few other folks were kayaking around the dock, but once out on the water, I had the lake to myself.

View from the Yak.

I got to the lake in five minutes from my new place and was in the water 15 minutes after leaving. This is going to be a fun place to go when I need a quick fix. I managed to catch three small brim, but the big one managed to be elusive. I did see a really big bass jump, but no luck. At any rate, it will be a good reason to back.

Looks Fishy, Right?

The other great thing is that now that I have a garage, its very easy to get my kayak loaded. Basically I can just throw it in the back of my truck and head out. It's a lot easier to get out on the water so this should be a fun summer.

My Yak, a Wildnerness Ride, loaded up.

Tarpon Fishing Blowing Up

Hey folks, I meant to pass along this article in last weeks Miami Herald about the tarpon fishing in Florida. Apparently it is off the hook right now (no pun intended) so you guys should head down and land a big poon.

Odd's and Ends

Hey folks, just a quick update.  I finally have a good Facebook link to the site up on the right side of the site.  I also have a twitter link up so if you don't follow the Flat through these social media platforms, be sure to give us a like or a follow.

I've been stuck at 49 Facebook follower's for a week or two, so if you use Facebook, it would be great if you could be my 50th follower!!