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| Angler Outfitters Outdoor Resources |
Articles: Flies of South Padre Island |
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Current Fishing Articles »
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Flies of South Padre Island
Author: Skipper Ray
Sea-Ducer: red and white #4 or 6
This is probably the most used fly in my box. It's just the ticket for our shallow water,(6 to 12") here along the Lower Laguna Madre. Very seldom does a red or trout deny this fly if presented right and in the strike zone.
Here in the Lower Laguna I usually tie them smaller and lighter though as it makes for a very slow sinking bug. Since the bottom is usually covered in grass it gives the angler more time to fish the fly before it fowls. Given the wind here it is also very easy to cast as well.
Deceiver: Chartreuse and white #4
I will usually go to this fly tied on a #4 and slightly shorter than normal, there again because of the water depth, when the Sea-ducer gets denied twice or more times. Sometimes it takes a color change but this one will usually work when a Sea-Ducer won't.
Clouser: Chartreuse and white, red and white #4 with medium size eyes.
This is the fly of choice for fishing potholes in the two to three foot of water depth. I also use this fly for fishing the edge of the Intercoastal Canal. This is usually blind casting for trout. I will tie them bigger, 1/0 or 2/0 for fishing tarpon and king mackerel and snook around the jetties.
Popping Cramp:
This is my concoction and it's supposed to look like a crab or shrimp. It's a top water that blops and pops when retrieved. It is a great fly for the angler who has problems presenting the fly in the strike zone, as the fish will come to the noise it produces. Being a top water fly the strikes are a lot of fun too.
The Popping Cramp came from my Cocktail Shrimp, which came from Gartsdale's Gurgler. I wanted a fly that sat higher in the water and made more noise than the gurgler. The double foam body did the trick. Adding the legs made it look more like a crab. I thought to myself, nobody has developed a top water crab pattern before, why not? This is a great top water pattern for redfish and trout.
Cocktail Shrimp:
The cocktail Shrimp derived from the Gurgler. With the tail of a Gurgler pointing up, what would happen if the tail went down? Would it wiggle like an old Lazy Ike lure? After several attempts I final figured our what it would take to make it wobble. You can't add too much tail to the bend when staring the tie and bend the hook just slightly more like a circle hook. Originally I was tying in a lot of rabbit fur and some long tentacles to make it look more like a shrimp. The harder the bend the more it wobbles in the water but the more it will spin in the air. So a slight bend works fine.
The Cocktail will dive, usually not more than about 6 to 10" and will almost suspend, and then slowly rise back to the surface. It's a great fly to use while fishing over those same potholes and catching those same trout I was talking about.
Flounder Pounder:
This is nothing more than a Clouser with a barred Hackle tied on both sides before the rest of the hair goes on.
This is to help it look more like a kellyfish, which is a flounder's favorite snack. It also has epoxy around the head and eyes for added weight but also to help it slide on the bottom without fowling on dead seaweed. When I developed this pattern I was writing an article for Flyfishing in Saltwater. This pattern caught no less than 150 flounder that year. (2002) It's a little chunky to cast on a 6wt, but with a little more line out the tip it will carry just fine. I also usually tie it on a #2 size hook instead of the #4 because it seems to hook up better. Fishing the FP is simple, let it sink along the edge of a drop off and with each strip use a strip strike to move the fly. The flounder will hit it as it's falling most of the time and when you go to move it again you will have set the hook on the fish. Plus it makes it jig off the bottom real nice too.
The Voodoo Spoon:
The spoon flies that I've used were all weighted, such as the Cave Wobbler. In our shallow water it had to be worked extremely fast to keep it off the bottom. So I came up with this pattern to be able to fish it more slowly and more shallow. It will still sink but not as fast as the weighted spoons. Which makes it perfect for shallower water. I typically blind cast with this spoon looking for redfish in about 2 foot of water when it's overcast and visibility is off. However, it works well on sandy bottoms while sight casting too. Trout, ladyfish, redfish, and pompano all take it with gusto.
I have taken a spinner bait blade and ground it down to this shape for a template. I then glued a 1/4" x 3" bolt to the topside of the blade for a handle and I can cut them out of Mylar tape using an exacto knife.
Tacking the tape on the hook with super glue holds it in place while I apply the 5-minute epoxy. Silver tape works the best because as the epoxy starts to break down it will yellow leaving you with a gold Voodoo Spoon. You can add all sorts of different types of eyes too under the epoxy.
Skipper Ray is a guide and freelance writer in South Padre Island Texas where he and his wife Judi own and operate Island Outfitters.
skipper@islandoutfittersspi.com
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