I spent most of Friday morning breaking camp back at James Island, and had everything clean, dry, and packed up by 9am. I was going to head back to Washington, D.C., early, but the wind was back down to a more respectable 10-15 knots from the northwest, and I opted to head out to Folly Island one last time to fish the Inlet River to the east again. An expedition on foot would have the sun behind me as I worked along the river inlet to the northwest, allowing me to see cruising fish, and my casting arm would be safely downwind for accurate presentations. I opted for an intermediate line and baitfish patterns for the day’s fishing, as I had not spotted a single crab or large shrimp all week. When I crested the dunes at the end of East Ashley Road, the inlet was right before me, though with considerably less sand exposed than at low tide on Tuesday afternoon.
I hunted and fished all the way to the marsh end of the inlet, before finally spotting a nice redfish hugging the bank. I took my time getting into position to drop a cast to him, but at the moment of truth, a crabber came blasting around the corner in his skiff, completely ignoring my gestures to use the other side of the channel to get to his traps. The fish was gone in less time than it takes to tell the story! I waited for the redfish to return for more than twenty minutes, but the ebbing tide had picked up to a solid 2-3 knots and there was no longer enough water on the edge for him to hold. I ended up fishing all the way back down the inlet to the beach, blind-casting to any hole or piece of structure that looked fishy, but not so much as a bump. I got everything all put away, and was on the road back to Virginia by 2:30pm to beat the Friday afternoon Charleston traffic, but not before taking a little revenge on the oysters who had taken a dozen or so of my flies during the course of the week’s fishing. As it is said, revenge is a dish best served cold!
Tight lines everyone, spring is just around the corner and things will get popping again. Fish after the warm fronts when you can, and I know you’ll have better luck!
Kim Z.
Conditions: Water Temperatures – 54F by the ocean inlets, and as high as 64F in the marshes before the cold front moved in and all the wind turned the water over. Water Visibility – 2-4’, though the windier days saw it drop to 1-2’ in places, already noted. Weather - Warm and pleasant conditions early in the week gave way to stormy, blustery, and cold weather, which put the fish off any chew they might have been on. Flies Fished – Clouser minnows, white/white, olive/white, tan/white; 2-3’ shrimp in tan and gray; and jiggy crabs, root beer and brown.
sorry to hear about the bad boating. good lesson on perseverance ill remember this next time i get discouraged after a mere one-day trip. sent you a pm
Nice post and pics. I enjoyed the read. At least you had a week on some beautiful water. It was some rough weather about that time.
Those oysters looked good - know that!!
Cold fronts,(falling water temps.) in February put the reds in a more aggressive feeding mode. It all depends on if you can find good water out of the wind as to your success on the flats.
Thanks for the kind comments men, sorry it took so long to get the photo thing figured out to properly complete the post.
Say Raddaddy, please pm me as to where I might have looked last week to have found the fish, so I can get a better idea for a return trip in the future. Turned over a “lot of rocks” in some tough conditions. Thanks.
You are very limited fishing from a kayak not only with range but visibility. There were fish in some of the area you posted (not necessarily great sight fishing), but it seems that the weather/water conditions did not allow you to sight fish very effectively in those areas especially from a kayak. When the wind is howling, you have to know the flats out of the wind that hold fish, but they are hardly ever spaced close together, AND there is no guarantee the water will be clear enough for tossing arties or flies. I applaud your efforts; Fly fishing in a kayak is definitely a challenge at its best.
quote:Originally posted by z-finman
Thanks for the kind comments men, sorry it took so long to get the photo thing figured out to properly complete the post.
Say Raddaddy, please pm me as to where I might have looked last week to have found the fish, so I can get a better idea for a return trip in the future. Turned over a “lot of rocks” in some tough conditions. Thanks.
I love your reports. I took a vacation from Monday morning and read the whole deal while enjoying my coffee. You’ve paid your dues and will be rewarded handsomely on your next trip down.
