Fishing Megathread: Looking For Big Girls Who swallow

[Damor 1227]

OK, I know I've been all over the damn place with questions, but I finally committed to taking the boys to the NC side of GSMNP the first week of August, staying near Bryson City.  We've never been to the area.

Anybody used a guide there that they love?  Bryson City Fly Shop seems to be the big dog.  I like the look of either their Backcountry Brookies or Hazel Creek wade trips, as I'd prefer to GTFO for some peace and quiet (inasmuch is possible with two teenage boys).  They seem a bit unique in that they do only 2 anglers per guide max.  That would substantially increase the cost, but when have I ever made financially sound decisions when it comes to fishing?  And that would probably increase the boys' fun factor since they'd each have a guide to work with (I'm a lost cause).

Any other tips on the area are quite welcome.  I'm usually the type to plan out vacations a year in advance, so flying by the seat of my pants here is a bit new for me.

[BearSchlong 8000]

Took the Captain to the short rigs on Sunday.

[BearSchlong 8000]

This rain won’t stop and I’ve got cabin fever so I’m organizing a box of stuff my mom slipped into my truck a while back.

Right after dad got home from ‘Nam he went on a long trip to Mexico.

I’m guessing Acapulco. I just noticed the Bacardi sign in the background.

[justhookit 4165]

They got it wrong, we actually released 39. Sail fishing is really good for this time of year but unfortunately the blue marlin haven’t showed up yet and this is normally peak season for them. May take the boat up to Flamingo on Friday and give it a shot up there.

[justhookit 4165]

[TexasHooch 4994]

I caught a 10 inch Pumpkin Seed this week. Small for a fish in the grand scheme of things, but likely as close as I'm ever going to get to a state record for anything.

Here it is next to what I would normally describe as a big one:

[Zwylde 810]

Hit the surf  behind Woody’s in G Town yesterday in the rain for a bout an hour.  Gulls started working not far down from me so I moseyed towards them and started catching.  The shrimp were flipping out of the water to get away from the trout.  Eventually I was right in the middle of them and probably could’ve hand netted a few trout.  Never been in the middle of something like that.  Crazy.  Caught a quick limit and headed back to the truck.  Good times.  
 

Note: skipjack was kept strictly for jetty bait purposes.

 

[Zwylde 810]

Oh and somebody fucked up pretty good.  Not sure if Beryl related or not.

The pond behind Woody’s.

 

 

 

[BearSchlong 8000]

TIL that Skipjack and Ladyfish is the same thing.

[Zwylde 810]

1 hour ago, BearSchlong said:

TIL that Skipjack and Ladyfish is the same thing.

Oh yeah, we call them skips here in Texas.  Ladyfish most other places.  Kind of like the cajuns call ling (us Texans call cobia) lemonfish.

Also cajuns calling crappie, white perch.  I love all the different names.

 

 

 

[horn4life 3748]

14 hours ago, Zwylde said:

Oh and somebody fucked up pretty good.  Not sure if Beryl related or not.

The pond behind Woody’s.

 

 

 

Sponsored by Hight Tide!

Probably drove out there drunk at night, got stuck.  Stumbled off to come back and drag it out tomorrow... then the tide came in.  Oops.

[Spaulding Smails 1550]

15 hours ago, TexasHooch said:

I caught a 10 inch Pumpkin Seed this week. Small for a fish in the grand scheme of things, but likely as close as I'm ever going to get to a state record for anything.

Here it is next to what I would normally describe as a big one:

That thing is HUGE!  Where did you catch it?

I caught this 10.75" Bluegill in Onion Creek a few years back.  Hit a 5" Senko.  I couldn't believe it.  State record is 12.5".  I thought the same thing.  Probably closest I'd ever get to a state record.  

[TexasHooch 4994]

5 hours ago, Spaulding Smails said:

That thing is HUGE!  Where did you catch it?

I caught this 10.75" Bluegill in Onion Creek a few years back.  Hit a 5" Senko.  I couldn't believe it.  State record is 12.5".  I thought the same thing.  Probably closest I'd ever get to a state record.  

That's a pretty fish.  My pumpkin seed was caught on Pelican Lake in central Minnesota.  We were targeting walleye with a slip bobber and leach setup, but my fish was actually in the middle of a school of crappies.  

The record is apparently 10.25 Inches.  Mine was exactly 10.0.  I wish I would have gotten a weight cause he was fat.

[Braff Zacklin 13289]

23 hours ago, Zwylde said:

Oh yeah, we call them skips here in Texas.  Ladyfish most other places.  Kind of like the cajuns call ling (us Texans call cobia) lemonfish.

I thought skipjack was a type of tuna?

Until your post, I've only seen/heard Texas folks call them ladyfish, but I'm in landlocked Idaho, so I know very little.

I like to call them "tarpon in training" since they bear a resemblance to silver kings (and are closely related to them, I believe), only much smaller.

[justhookit 4165]

14 hours ago, Braff Zacklin said:

I thought skipjack was a type of tuna?

Until your post, I've only seen/heard Texas folks call them ladyfish, but I'm in landlocked Idaho, so I know very little.

I like to call them "tarpon in training" since they bear a resemblance to silver kings (and are closely related to them, I believe), only much smaller.

Yes skipjack is a type of tuna. Great bait for marlin. As to the fish in question I’ve always called them skipjacks too. Great fighters.

[fattyflattie 4633]

On 7/28/2024 at 9:45 PM, Zwylde said:

Oh yeah, we call them skips here in Texas.  Ladyfish most other places.  Kind of like the cajuns call ling (us Texans call cobia) lemonfish.

Also cajuns calling crappie, white perch.  I love all the different names.

 

 

 

I’ve used skipjack and lady fish both, but lady fish probably more as an adult. Usually it’s motherfucker that just broke off my spook.  Ling were always ling here for me, or crab etah when east of the Sabine. Crappie as a kid, sacalait as an adult and fished Toledo more.  Coonass/Mississippi guys sometimes call largemouth “green trout”. 

[horn4life 3748]

I am not the most religious fellow. But the times I feel closest to God, are often in greys and pinks of dawn.

But against that background and i thank the Lord for my blessings of family and friends, I realize God also has a sense of humor.  If not skippys/ladyfish would be delicious! 

Or as I am typing... Maybe there is a Satan... that would explain the excitement of the pull of a lady, and the disappointment with the taste... 😉 

[Lat22 3949]

Poor man's Tarpon  If you're lucky enough to get them to the boat, they usually reward you with a big pile of shit.  Great cut bait.

[Shot Caller 16]

OK, I know I've been all over the damn place with questions, but I finally committed to taking the boys to the NC side of GSMNP the first week of August, staying near Bryson City.  We've never been to the area.

Anybody used a guide there that they love?  Bryson City Fly Shop seems to be the big dog.  I like the look of either their Backcountry Brookies or Hazel Creek wade trips, as I'd prefer to GTFO for some peace and quiet (inasmuch is possible with two teenage boys).  They seem a bit unique in that they do only 2 anglers per guide max.  That would substantially increase the cost, but when have I ever made financially sound decisions when it comes to fishing?  And that would probably increase the boys' fun factor since they'd each have a guide to work with (I'm a lost cause).

Any other tips on the area are quite welcome.  I'm usually the type to plan out vacations a year in advance, so flying by the seat of my pants here is a bit new for me.

Bryson City is a cool little town…much more authentic, quiet and prettier than the TN side of GSMNP. I used Fly Fishing the Smokies guide back in August 2021 and we had fun. The rivers were muddy due to rain, so we went creekin’ up in the park in small water. Had a blast catching small trout the size of your hand.

[Damor 1227]

Thanks.  The owner of the Airbnb we're renting from is an actual local, and based on his strong recommendation, we're going out with Mac Brown.  Scares me to death.

Will report back.

[BearSchlong 8000]

I’ve used skipjack and lady fish both, but lady fish probably more as an adult. Usually it’s motherfucker that just broke off my spook.  Ling were always ling here for me, or crab etah when east of the Sabine. Crappie as a kid, sacalait as an adult and fished Toledo more.  Coonass/Mississippi guys sometimes call largemouth “green trout”. 

Dolphin, Dorado, Mahi Mahi. Thrice as nice.

[BearSchlong 8000]

Poor man's Tarpon  If you're lucky enough to get them to the boat, they usually reward you with a big pile of shit.  Great cut bait.

Good reminder as to why I don’t use light wire leaders at the jetty. I’d rather tie knots than scrub that stuff off the deck, but my catch rate on ladyfish and Spanish is still north of 70%.

[BearSchlong 8000]

The dogs woke me up at 2:30 and I said fuck it lets fish. Actually rolled over and said “It’s my birthday, intercourse or golf course?” And she murmured go catch redfish.

I’m in a cauldron of ladyfish and rat reds destroying shad. I’ve never seen such a raw amount of baitfish. A guide just slid by with some pissed off looking clients.

I’ve caught a half dozen rat reds and I’m at my honey hole for hog sized reds, a duck lake drain, the tide is right, and even the alligators are mauling shad like a blue whale takes out a krill pod.

But it’s a gorgeous dry day in southwest ell-ay.

[wd40 1976]

anyone know a good trolling motor guy in Austin/highland lakes area?  

I think it's just the gps fob (Motorguide), as one of the batteries had a rust stain on it.  can only get it to turn left, but there's also a random waypoint I accidentally found by hitting something on the number pad and it suddenly wanted to get there real bad...while on the trailer in my driveway.

Thanks.

-w

[Born to Run 6280]

On 7/31/2024 at 9:48 AM, Lat22 said:

Poor man's Tarpon  If you're lucky enough to get them to the boat, they usually reward you with a big pile of shit.  Great cut bait.

Best cut bait ever; but only fresh.  Turns to mush overnight.  When taking kids redfishing; I'll always go and target lasyfish first for "magic bait."

[horn4life 3748]

14 hours ago, Born to Run said:

Best cut bait ever; but only fresh.  Turns to mush overnight.  When taking kids redfishing; I'll always go and target lasyfish first for "magic bait."

I was farting around with my buddy last fall on that small pier, next to my buddies place at Cline's Landing.  We were getting good action, but I wasn't targeting big gaff tops and ladyfish.  So I decided to tie on a larger Circle hook to my pulley, and cut off about an 8 inch long piece of fat ladyfish.  (the pulley rig allows a longer cast with non-aerodynamic shapes.) Whatever was going to head that big chunkc of ladyfish was going to be something big!  I had purchased a a 5000 with a dual drag system, and set the drag very lightly with the second drag, and made myself a beverage.  Not even ten minutes later I hear a few clicks, then the drag slowly starts to sing, as that light drag is not noticeable on the light drag, then I just start reeling and that circle hook sets perfectly.  A couple minutes later, a 39 inch red was a quick pic and then a toss back in.  i then did the exact same thing again, huge chuck of ladyfish, 15 minutes, and a 38" red.

I had honestly thought the only thing that was gonna eat a chunk of bait that big was gonna be a shark.  So yes FRESH ladyfish are great baits.  Plus hald the bigger ladyfish you bring in are half way to death anyhow unless you get them on and off the hook super fast.  If you are trying to get distance with any check of cut bait, consider learning how to make a pully rig.  I do a lot of sure fishing and the casting distance where you have the weight of the bait and your surf weight compactly together, is a game changer from a distance perspective.

lady fish chunks and  circle hooks.  If you get a bite, it will be a fun fight!  The rig also acts as a shock leader if you don't have a cool dual drag reel like I do to let the fish run.  I cannot say how much I like my dual drag reels.  Fantastic for live suspended live baits boat or bigger baits from stationary positions.  Penn, Shimano and Bass pro brand have their own versions, but I am sold on using them on poles I don't want to have in my hand, but want to let the fish eat the bait rather than feel the drag and spit the bait like trout and reds my primary focus.

Anyhow the best way I have found to toss bait and weights the farthest.  

compact small bait clips replace impact shield in pic. Hook goes in the curve and paddle releases hook on impact 

I prefer these to a swivel as line feeds easier.

Secondary drag on back, primary engages when reeled

[Jerry Callo 8630]

That's a lot of pictures not to include the alleged 38" and 39" redfish.

[horn4life 3748]

27 minutes ago, Jerry Callo said:

That's a lot of pictures not to include the alleged 38" and 39" redfish.

I knew somebody was gonna give me shit for that.  

[Zwylde 810]

Yesterday afternoon had an hour before dark thirty.  Water temp felt like smooth 90+ degrees.  Could barely keep any shrimp alive with them boiling in the bait box.  27 and a 20 and a small future bait.  The 27 was worth the trip.

 

 

[Sam Lin 3534]

Saw this pic and immediately thought of the sailfish talk in this thread. Just incredible. Credit to the watermark photog, Amos Nachoum.

[Mac8111 2100]

We got on them last week in POC. Three days of fishing plus a floundering trip. I guess I didn’t take any pics of flounder but ended up with four. Was tough night.

[4th and 5 4903]

SPITX 

Edited August 18 by 4th and 5

[hookemATL 11503]

Multi species morning at Lakeline Park in CP. really nice little lake with lots of action in all the spots we hit up. 

[Mac8111 2100]

Wasn’t as good as the stuffed flounder of years past but it certainly was a nice little Sunday dinner

[Frank Drebin 5361]

Went offshore over the weekend out of Freeport -- to the floater rigs Boomvang and Nansen.  Caught a couple tile fish.  Cooking those fillets up tonight.

Also caught and released a really nice Sailfish.  And a mess of blackfin tuna, which honestly eats similar to yellowfin IMO as sashimi.  Other fish caught were rainbow runners and barrel fish.  Ate some of the rainbow runner as sashimi for lunch today.  It was delicious.

Seas were very comfy.  And the boat we were in got us out there really fast -- a lot different than the 38 foot cat hull I am used to fishing out of (which is comfortable, but slow).

[Braff Zacklin 13289]

Given the name, figured you'd prefer to spear lionfish.

[fattyflattie 4633]

3 hours ago, Frank Drebin said:

Caught a couple tile fish.

Makes my stomach jealous. 
 

3 hours ago, Frank Drebin said:

Also caught and released a really nice Sailfish

Makes my heart jealous. 

[Frank Drebin 5361]

12 hours ago, fattyflattie said:

Makes my stomach jealous. 
 

Makes my heart jealous. 

The family ate the tile fish last night.  First time I had it.  It was so good.

[huge 3774]

6 hours ago, Frank Drebin said:

The family ate the tile fish last night.  First time I had it.  It was so good.

Assume you dropped deep with LPs electric reels for the Tiles/Barrel?  Great eating.

[Frank Drebin 5361]

27 minutes ago, huge said:

Assume you dropped deep with LPs electric reels for the Tiles/Barrel?  Great eating.

Yes sir.  First time using electrics.

[huge 3774]

1 minute ago, Frank Drebin said:

Yes sir.  First time using electrics.

Works for snapper too.  Kinda fun, not knowing what you are bringing up.

Buddy has the state record on some weird rare grouper caught that way.

[Pescado_Rojo 19235]

The boy and I just got back from Permit fishing in Mexico.  Couldn’t have asked for better weather. Almost no wind and clouds were mostly gone by 9:30-10:00 every morning. Hot AF, though. First morning of the trip I stuck an 80ish pound Tarpon. He jumped 4 times after the eat, ran me 200 yards into my fly line backing, and jumped twice more before I fought him all the way back to the boat. I had him boat side, but he was still very green when the jr guide tried to grab the leader and turn his head. Fish jumped, ran again and cut my leader on her gill plate or something. Technically a caught fish, since the guide had his hands on the leader, but I didn’t get the hero picture. Oh well, here’s a few stills from the iPhone video my son shot. 

as for Permit, jr smoked his old man again with 3 fish landed to my one. Mine was tiny, too. The Permit equivalent of a 14” rat red. Here’s Rojo Jr’s

This last fish was a tank. Had to chase it down with the boat so it didn’t spool him. They jumped out of the boat to stalk it, and as soon as Jr came tight on it the guide started screaming for the jr guide to bring up the boat because he knew they’d have to chase it. 

[Damor 1227]

Damn.  Sucks to try to follow that, but I did promise follow-up on our first-time trip to the Smokies.

We didn't have a whole lot of luck, but neither of my boys nor I cared.  It was phenomenally beautiful and just felt like we were blessed to be wading those streams, whether we caught anything or not (factor in that I suck at fly fishing).  Gratuitous photos to follow:

The place we stayed was on the Nantahala river, which was beautiful and away from all the tourist garbage.  Recommended.  They let water out of the dam throughout the day, so the better wade fishing is in the morning or later evening.  Only on the way out did we drive by the upstream section of the river below the dam, which looks like it might have been better fishing.  Oh well, next time.

We did catch a few browns here, not huge but tons of fun, especially since we caught them on some of my earlier (and uglier) attempts at tying some elk hair caddis and brassie nymphs:

We spent one morning fishing Noland Creek in the park just outside of Bryson City:

Had a great time despite not catching anything.  I know there's fish in there, though, because as we were leaving one of our guides from earlier on the trip was pulling up.  I told him he was welcome for us leaving him all the fish.

I didn't (and honestly still don't) know a ton about the GSMNP, but it's basically bisected by Hwy 441, which runs along a branch of the Pigeon River on the TN side and the Oconaluftee on the NC side.  We thought it was weird that we only saw three other fishermen out there the whole time.  Found out from our guide later that most people stick to the larger stocked rivers instead of chasing tiny brook trout in little pools with overhanging branches.  Don't care, fished it anyway and wouldn't trade it for big fat stockers.

This was my best effort, and I was plenty proud of it:

My younger son caught this wild brookie as the last fish of the trip (his brother yelled at him for lipping it, but he didn't have his net):

So now about our guide.  Based on a local recommendation rather than the Google algorithm, we went out with Mac Brown.  Holy shit, this guy was phenomenal.  At this point we've been out with a good number of guides, and fortunately never had a bad one, but Mac set a new standard.  We learned more in one day with him than in all our other instruction combined (and a lot of it quite contrary to previous teaching).  The guy is a complete madman genius and a total blast to hang around with, knows everybody in or adjacent to the industry, and is one of those folks who you suspect might be mostly full of shit -- until he starts talking about something more in your wheelhouse, and you realize he actually knows a fuckton about everything (he was describing to my younger one how to do a better hookset in the context of the evolution of the mammalian brain and myelination pathways of the limbic system).  We've never had more fun catching so few fish, and this experience will make every day of fishing afterwards better because of what we learned.  I cannot say how much I loved this guy.

When we met him and were unpacking our gear, I knew we were in for a fun day when he about shit himself that we brought fiberglass rods (we usually fish smaller stuff here at home).  My prized rod is a custom Epic 4wt from New Zealand my wife got me for our anniversary, that I know I've mentioned on this site before.  When I put it together, he said, "Aw hell, I know the guy who started that company!  Let's take a picture of it with us and I'll send it to him!"  He proceeded to regale us throughout the day with tales of multiple insane escapades including helping with the manhunt for the 1996 Olympic Bomber.  It was like getting fly fishing lessons from Bill Brasky.

Anyway, this post has been waaaaaay too long, but suffice it to say it was a fantastic experience despite the few fish we caught.  Each one was a treasure.  This was a particularly emotional trip for me, as my older one is in college now and my younger is a HS Jr, so this is the age where they are growing into men, and I feel so blessed that we can share these experiences and a common interest in being terrible fly fishermen, both now and over the years to come when they will become competent and I will still suck. 

It was also particularly meaningful to me since, as I know I've mentioned on other Cormac McCarthy threads, that his book The Road holds a special place for me and my relationship with my boys.  I know I've also mentioned that my aforementioned prized rod bears an inscription taken from the book.  Part of that story was set in this region, particularly that highway alongside which we caught wild brook trout, and it was in the back of my mind for the entirety of the trip, in particular the closing paragraph, which reads:

"Once there were brook trout in the streams in the mountains. You could see them standing in the amber current where the white edges of their fins wimpled softly in the flow. They smelled of moss in your hand. Polished and muscular and torsional. On their backs were vermiculate patterns that were maps of the world in its becoming. Maps and mazes. Of a thing which could not be put back. Not be made right again. In the deep glens where they lived all things were older than man and they hummed of mystery."

[crash_davis 23040]

Maybe it's been discussed upthread so apologies but what happened to texaskayakfisherman.com site?

[Jerry Callo 8630]

4 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Maybe it's been discussed upthread so apologies but what happened to texaskayakfisherman.com site?

Looks like it vanished - maybe the site is just down temporarily.  I was on there a couple weeks ago and it was fine.  I was one of the first ten people registered on that site when it started.

[crash_davis 23040]

its been down for a few days, i think all week.

 

[Jerry Callo 8630]

On 8/22/2024 at 2:57 PM, crash_davis said:

its been down for a few days, i think all week.

 

TKF is back up today. 

[Lat22 3949]

I used to spend TONS of time on TKF.  I really want to upgrade my first generation Hobie Pro Angler but gotdamn $6000.

[Jerry Callo 8630]

6 hours ago, Lat22 said:

I used to spend TONS of time on TKF.  I really want to upgrade my first generation Hobie Pro Angler but gotdamn $6000.

Same.  I've had 6 or 7 fishing kayaks over the years.  Eventually sold them because I was too busy with youth sports.  A couple years ago, I found an old Ocean Kayak Prowler 13 on craigslist for $250.  What worked for me in the early 2000s works fine for me know.  All I need to paddle the San Marcos, Devil's River, or Brown & Root flats.  I might look to upgrade, but only if I could find a kayak that I could comfortable stand up and fly cast in - that isn't thousands of dollars.

[Braff Zacklin 13289]

4 hours ago, Jerry Callo said:

Same.  I've had 6 or 7 fishing kayaks over the years.  Eventually sold them because I was too busy with youth sports.  A couple years ago, I found an old Ocean Kayak Prowler 13 on craigslist for $250.  What worked for me in the early 2000s works fine for me know.  All I need to paddle the San Marcos, Devil's River, or Brown & Root flats.  I might look to upgrade, but only if I could find a kayak that I could comfortable stand up and fly cast in - that isn't thousands of dollars.

Have a buddy who owns one of these and swears it's stable enough to stand up in and claims to do so frequently.

https://www.nrs.com/nrs-pike-inflatable-fishing-kayak/p64e