Well That Sucked

[capt. ed]

On the Flats at daybreak. Fished till 1:00 p.m. without a bump. Water got COLD, and dirty in spots. Only good thing happened today was Flyguy giving me some Yank Assassins and Sea Herring imitators. I really like the herring with the big eyes and wide profile. Thanks Man!
I apologize on the fishes behalf to my customers Barry and John. Tough, cold day to take the skunk.

[Skmag357]

what is the warmest warm you found? We looked hard on sat and couldn't get anything over 52.

[flatsrat]

First light till about one as well...nothing either. 49 and some change... just ain't right for the middle of April. Ed I Told you I would call you back if anything looked good. Now you know why I never called you back.

[capt. ed]

Highest I saw was 50 today, but for the most part it was 49. Had 54 on Thursday when the fish were biting in the afternoon. Same on Friday when a little topwater was just getting started. woke up today to 27 degrees, plus all the wind/rain over the weekend . . . Sent 'em running and/or gave 'em lockjaw.

[DEEP POCKETS]

Sorry to hear guys. We had water temps as warm as 55 on Saturday, but water clarity was stained most places. Flats are definitely off this year due to the colder weather. My father always said when there was fresh/live herring available, the stipers would follow and the fishing is good. Hasnt been alot of herring available lately:thumbsdown:

[2dogs]

Yup, sucked for me to. First light till 2:30, for nothing. Marked fish deep.
Found some in 10' but couldn't get them to eat either.
I too met Flyguy for the first time today. Really appreciate his instruction and suggestions for my flyrod. Gotta call Colton. Thanks John.

[Flyguy784]

Well VF and I stuck it out far too long. 12 hours on the water, in before dawn out as the sun was setting. How's that for a total lack of common sense. We often joke about how hard core we are, hard headed more likely. Not a fish, not a tap, not a nibble. Brutal is a good way to decribe it. Cold, windy and grey. Although we marked fish at several locations, they had lock jaw. Went thru a couple tide cycles and went to the right place at the right time. In fact the fish did exactly what I thought they would and finaly got up on the flats 8 - 10 feet of water, as 2 dogs can attest, they would not bite.
Water temps had dropped several degrees over the last couple days of inclement weather. Turbidity was up again. I believe it just thru these fish off their feed. They were hunkered down, confused and very lethargic.
It was very nice however to meet Capt Ed on the water.It appeared that he did well in a sense. As I approached his vessel, Fred and I could see that he had apparently harpooned a walrus. It's massive hulk hung proudly on the front seat of the center console. Congrats Ed. :D
We met 2dogs (Ken) as well. Nice boat Ken. Fred and I discussed your line choice after casting your Leviathon, you definetly want to get either a Teeny TS350 or an Orvis DC350 for that stick. Especialy for that location. A floating line is fun to have when those fish get to feeding on top, but certainly not under the conditions that far more frequently exist on the flats. I always carry three rods, rigged and ready, one of the three will be a floater. But far to often don't even take it out of the rack. Those day's are comming as the water temp rises.
It was a pleasure to give Ed and Ken some Assassins. Ed, the Sea Herring pattern is a new one I'm working on. All I ask is that you report back on the productivity of these flies.
Fred and I worked hard, we always do. Yesterday apparently, to no avail. Next time bud.:thumbsup:

[Flyguy784]

Ed, you want to fish those Assassins with an extremely erratic strip. Much like you would fish a soft jerk bait. Twitch twitch drop, twitch drop, twitch twitch twitch drop, generaly gets bit on the drop. Change it up, it will get eaten.

[VF Fishhead]

2 dogs it was nice meeting you monday, next time you should bring the dogs - looks like you have room on the boat to play fetch:)

capt ed it was also great meeting you, you however could have used a bigger boat:D koo, koo Katchoo:eek:

[2dogs]

John, I talked with Bob first thing and placed my order. He recommended a Rio Outbound Custom Line. Any thoughts? I appreciate the flies more than you know. It was also a pleasure to meet you and VF. I knew it had to be you guys when I saw a boat with 8 rods scraping the clouds.
VF, I usually do bring my AWS. He was pissed I left him home. Next time I will bring him.
I do like my boat. Tried to sell it last year to buy a glass boat. Glad I didn't now. Hope to see you guys on the flats again soon.

[capt. ed]

Ok so we had my boat, 2dogs, flyguy and VF, and flatsrat all searching like heck and all come up empty. Now that's a bad day. I did hear of one fish caught up in the river, trolling.

[Flyguy784]

John, I talked with Bob first thing and placed my order. He recommended a Rio Outbound Custom Line. Any thoughts? I appreciate the flies more than you know. It was also a pleasure to meet you and VF. I knew it had to be you guys when I saw a boat with 8 rods scraping the clouds.
VF, I usually do bring my AWS. He was pissed I left him home. Next time I will bring him.
I do like my boat. Tried to sell it last year to buy a glass boat. Glad I didn't now. Hope to see you guys on the flats again soon.

Ken, let's move the fly line question over to the flyfishing forum.:thumbsup:

[Flyguy784]

OK, At this point Ken I'd follow Bobs recommendation. Rio makes a nice line. He knows those rods, I don't. I wish I could have cast it a little more. Remember what I told you about the cork.
I just didn't get to throw that thing enough to get a feel for what sinking line would work best. Definetly 300 - 350 grain. I'd have to try both to get it perfect.
Why the sinking line, now bear in mind, this is my feeling about it. Line choice is realy a personal issue. How you fish, where you fish and for what you fish all determine the best line.
I want a line with a sink rate of 6 - 8 inches per second. It'll get to the depth I want it to and if need be I can keep it 6 inches off the bottom in 6 feet of water on an 80 ft cast. I can keep it 6 inches under the surface if that's what's needed. I'm content most times with the 350 be it in Cape May along the jetty or in the rips. Flynnes at Sandy Hook and the tunnels at CCBT. Have your floating line on a seperate spool, there will be times when the fish are cooperative you can blast them on poppers, slidders and the like. Then it's nice to be able to quickly change spools and keep them on top. Yesterday was certainly not a floating line day. Keep a good leader on your spare spooled line. It'll make the change over much quicker, much. Hope that helps Ken.

[md10392]

Some guy from Philly have been getting them on cut herring. Lots in the 20b range, at least one per trip in the 30s, and the biggest at 41.

[Flyguy784]

OK, At this point Ken I'd follow Bobs recommendation. Rio makes a nice line. He knows those rods, I don't. I wish I could have cast it a little more. Remember what I told you about the cork.
I just didn't get to throw that thing enough to get a feel for what sinking line would work best. Definetly 300 - 350 grain. I'd have to try both to get it perfect.
Why the sinking line, now bear in mind, this is my feeling about it. Line choice is realy a personal issue. How you fish, where you fish and for what you fish all determine the best line.
I want a line with a sink rate of 6 - 8 inches per second. It'll get to the depth I want it to and if need be I can keep it 6 inches off the bottom in 6 feet of water on an 80 ft cast. I can keep it 6 inches under the surface if that's what's needed. I'm content most times with the 350 be it in Cape May along the jetty or in the rips. Flynnes at Sandy Hook and the tunnels at CCBT. Have your floating line on a seperate spool, there will be times when the fish are cooperative you can blast them on poppers, slidders and the like. Then it's nice to be able to quickly change spools and keep them on top. Yesterday was certainly not a floating line day. Keep a good leader on your spare spooled line. It'll make the change over much quicker, much. Hope that helps Ken.

Opps:nuts:

[AFISHN]

Yup, sucked for me to. First light till 2:30, for nothing. Marked fish deep.
Really appreciate his instruction and suggestions for my flyrod.

Flyrod,Ken?????Finally...you are going to give the fish a chance:razz:

[2dogs]

Yeah Tom, I decided to give the fish a fighting chance this year. SO far they're winning.

[Flyguy784]

The man has accepted the ultimate angling challenge. The fish won't be winning for long. Kudo's Ken, some guys are just happy with a worm on a hook.