Category Archives: Tournaments

Similar Fly Fishing Tactics Catch Speckled Trout & Bass

Approaching quiet water on a warm and muggy Gulf Coast morning, early risers in brackish backwater are slashing at pogies.  Instead of observing the aggressive behaviour of bass feeding near and on top, I overcomplicate the strategy and focus on baitfish skipping for their lives.  After an hour of failed attempts with minnow fly patterns, I switch over to a topwater foam fly.  By the third cast, the line is tight with the first of several small to medium-sized bass.

Bass on PopperFast forward six weeks to a 40F cold November morning.  The water is silent.  No sign of fish feeding.  The anticipation isn’t quite as high, but I know bass are close by, and maybe even a salty species since I spied blue crab on the feed in shallows the day before.  Topwater and dry flies are my favorite method to catch fish, and since dawn is breaking, and the water I am fishing is relatively protected, I tie on a bass popper fly.

Popper

Bass popper fly chewed on by saltwater speckled trout

The fish seem almost sleepy, but as the sun rises the water slowly comes to life.  The first sign of activity is the increasing frequency of nervous minnows rippling the surface.  Then as it often happens, I’m distracted from my current retrieval pattern while scanning the water for the next cast.  GULP..tight line…then it goes limp.  It’s one of those mornings when every bite counts, and that may just have been the one I regret.

Not long after, I make a short cast to structure at the mouth of an outflow, twitch the fly erratically, and let it rest.  CAWOOOM!  Fish on, and it feels like a heavy bass.  A real good bass!  But then I catch a glimpse of the light blue and silver hues and realize this is no largemouth.  What might just be the largest saltwater speckled trout I’ve ever hooked is putting up a fight that I fear may be over quickly.  Speckled trout have relatively thin facial cheek skin behind lip, and yet I need to put some serious pressure on this fish or lose it in the wood.  She runs underneath my kayak, and for several reasons I’m not in a position to cross over to other side of the vessel to continue the battle.  The only choice is unfortunately grabbing the leader by hand, and encourage the fish to turn and run.  I somehow lose tension and the fish runs.  She’s still on!  After two more runs, several head shakes, and teasing views of the trout just beneath surface, I am in near disbelief upon netting a fat 23.5″, 4.88 lb saltwater speckled trout on a topwater popper fly!

Speckled Trout 23_5

Author, Aaron Rubel, with a 23.5″ saltwater speckled trout caught on a bass popper fly

“Walking the Dog” is a popular technique for luring saltwater fish to topwater on the Gulf Coast.  It is not a tactic that I have been able to emulate with a fly.  So, after a couple years of futile effort trying to do so led me to re-think the strategy.  What I began to contemplate and eventually experiment with changed my perception that saltwater speckled trout and freshwater bass are species worlds apart.

Speckled trout are aggressive when on the feed.  Bass feed angry on topwater.  Speckled trout also like it on top early in the morning, especially on glassy water.  So, I tied some red and white gurgler flies that I had caught bass on prior.  On a November evening a couple of years ago, I cast to structure just like I would to bass.  This time though, it would be in the open salty waters around abandoned piers of Mobile Bay.  Fishing that evening wasn’t on fire, but I caught three trout, with one going 19″.  On a gurgler topwater fly!  The method used was by twitching the light fly with finesse I typically use to target bass.

Since then, the theory that speckled trout will react to smaller than typical patterns on top like those used for bass species have proved effective.  Next time you venture out to target sea trout, take along a two inch popper or gurgler fly, add action that evokes a predatory response to a struggling life form on the surface, and be ready on every cast to connect with a nice salty speck!

For more details on this technique and the exciting day that resulted after catching this personal best speckled trout, visit a story run on Kayak Angler Magazine at link: http://www.rapidmedia.com/kayak-fishing/categories/departments/4017-fly-guy-beats-them-all.html

 

 Copyright 2014 by icastinayak.com. All rights reserved

 

 

Fishing Tournaments Expand Horizons

Tournaments 1Top finishers of the 2013 Eastern Shore Fly Fishers Tournament Series final point standings:
Pictured from left to right are Chuck Fisk (tied 3rd), Jeff Deuschle (1st place), Aaron Rubel (2nd place), and Stacey Martin (tied 3rd).

I used to despise fishing tournaments, however, I’m finding that participating in them forces me to stretch boundaries beyond my comfort zone.  Before fishing in tournaments, I targeted just a few species.  I am now learning more than ever about many different fish and techniques to catch them due to the various categories and types of tournament formats that exist.  A lot of tournaments are awarding points toward overall standings for catching multiple species.  Additionally, fly fishing categories are popping up in a lot of places, which provides an avenue to measure my progress versus others participating.  One aspect I look for in a tournament is catch, photo, and release.  I think this is the best way to ensure tournament fishing doesn’t negatively affect the fishery.Tournaments 2

My 2014 Tournament Schedule:

Great Days Outdoors Magazine New Years Tournament: Month of January

http://bb.gdomag.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=10627

1st Place in Leopard Redfish category (award pictured above)
3rd Place in saltwater Sheepshead category

 

 

Eastern Shore Fly Fishers Bass & Bream Tournament: February 21-April 16th
Mobile Bay area

https://www.facebook.com/EasternShoreFlyFishers

2nd Place Overall Bass/Bream Combined

 

Mobile Bay Kayak Fishing Assoc Spots & Dots Inshore Saltwater Tournament: March 15th

http://www.mbkfa.com/cprtournament2014.html

Did Not Place

 

Lay Lake Open (Coosa Canoe & Kayak Fishing Tournament Trail): March 29th
Fly Fishing Division
Birmingham, AL area

http://coosariver.org/kft/?page_id=568

Did Not Place

 

Eastern Shore Fly Fishers Speckled Trout & Pompano Tournament: May 15-July 16
Mobile Bay area
https://www.facebook.com/EasternShoreFlyFishers

Did Not Place

 

Lake Neely Henry Open (Coosa Canoe & Kayak Fishing Tournament Trail): June 7th
Fly Fishing Division
Gadsden, AL area
http://coosariver.org/kft/?page_id=286

1st Place in Fly Fishing Category

 

River Bassin Kayak Fishing Series Regional: July 26
Saline, Michigan

http://www.kayakfishingseries.com/tournament.php?id=688

7th Place Overall

 

Mobile Bay Kayak Fishing Association 5 Rivers Fall Tournament: November 1st
Mobile Bay area
http://www.mbkfa.com/tournaments.htm

1st Place Speckled Trout Category – Won fly fishing against 75 competitors fishing conventional tackle

Kingfisher Classic: November TBD
Weeks Bay
Potential Fly Fishing Division
http://www.weeksbay.org/kingfisher.html

Did Not Place

Copyright 2014 by icastinayak.com. All rights reserved

Leopard Redfish

Leopard Redfish 1Photograph by: Jameson Redding
Angler: Aaron Rubel, with a fourteen spot leopard redfish

I was Informed Sunday evening that this 20.75″ redfish with fourteen spots (eight on one side) earned me first place in the leopard redfish category of the month long 2014 Great Days Outdoors Magazine New Years Tournament!


This fish hit three or four feet from the bow of my Hobie Outback kayak.  A great example of how stealthy a kayak can be.

It’s not all that rare to catch a redfish with more than one spot, although fourteen spots on a fish of this species is not so common either.  The characteristic is passed down through the family lineage of the fish, determined by combinations of dominant and recessive genes.  The most common is for a redfish to display one spot on each side, at base of the tail.  One spot on each side of a redfish can be compared to the most common eye color for humans being brown.  More spots, on the other hand, can be compared to the small percentage of blue eyed humans through combinations of dominant and recessive genes passed down through family DNA.Leopard redfish are beautiful creatures, and I’m thankful to have been able to spend a few minutes up close and personal with this one.

 

Leopard Redfish 2

Copyright 2014 by icastinayak.com. All rights reserved

Fall Tournaments On the Fly

Fall Tournaments on Fly 1Photograph by: Marty Smith
Angler: Aaron Rubel

An unusual award for an unlikely species.  Recently, I participated in a couple tournaments that benefited great causes.  In early November, the Mobile Bay Kayak Fishing Association held its’ annual fall tournament to raise funds and awareness for Heroes on the Water.  Following that up, I fished in the inaugural Kingfisher Classic.  The tournament’s goal was to raise awareness for the great work the Weeks Bay Foundation is doing to preserve and expand natural habitat as well as contribute toward educational and volunteer opportunities along the bay coastline.

Fall Tournaments on Fly 270 competitors signed up to compete for a $500 first place prize in five categories which included redfish, speckled trout, flounder, bass, and bream.  When I heard about the tournament, I was shocked and excited that $500 would be offered to the winner of a bream category.  There was only one problem.  The engine block in my kayak car had cracked days before and was in the shop being replaced.  That meant, I had no plan to transport my Hobie Pro Angler 12 to the water.  That is, until my wife generously volunteered her mini-van.  So, out came the seats and in went the kayak!

 

The rules stated that waters were limited to tributaries of Mobile Bay, which heightened the competitiveness of the bass and bream categories.  The salinity of Mobile Bay tends to challenge growth rates of area bass and bream.  However, I had been catching some relatively nice bream in previous weeks on the fly.

Fall Tournaments on Fly 3Low tide and peak feeding window that morning surprised me.  The fish fed better at low tide than when current was moving, and their location were predictably centered in river.

Fall Tournaments on Fly 4Fortunately, the cloudy day made for some great bream fishing and I was fortunate to place second in the category.  I was the only kayaker and fly angler among the 70 anglers in the tournament.  That was probably the most rewarding feeling of placing high in standings.

Fall Tournaments on Fly 5All fifteen bream caught during the tournament were on a black, chartreuse, and red top water fly.  I had tried various other color combinations of different fly patterns, but on this day they were turned on to the darker colors.

Fall Tournaments on Fly 6Pictured from left to right: Aaron Rubel receiving 2nd place award, Jeff Dute (Mobile Bay Press Register Outdoor Writer), and Ben Raines (Executive Director of Weeks Bay Foundation)

Thank you to the Weeks Bay Foundation for running this story in the Winter 2013 edition of the Pelican Post: http://www.weeksbay.org/pelican_post/pp-winter-low-res.pdf

Official results of all categories in the Kingfisher Classic as reported by the Weeks Bay Foundation:
Speckled trout:
1st place:  M. Wilson, 6.16 lbs
2nd place:  O. Harrison, 5.23 lbs

Redfish:
1st place:  J. Mann, 6.99 lbs
2nd place:  K. Olmstead, 5.95 lbs

Flounder:
1st place:  O. Harrison, 2.68 lbs
2nd place:  M. Foster, 2.02 lbs

Largemouth bass:
1st place:  W. Miller, 1.17 lbs
2nd place:  A. Dobson, 1.12 lbs

Bream:
1st place:  T. Nelson, .39 lbs
2nd place:  A. Rubel, .32 lbs

Copyright 2013 by icastinayak.com. All rights reserved