Greetings from Capt. Dave & BAYMEN!

On board this morning, Dave & Zach from Oh Deer Tick and Mosquito Control. At first light, overcast and threatening rain (!). Air temps 56, water temps about the same. Winds light SE.

We found fish pretty quick and picked up one striped bass on LT. Then, the rains started in earnest. Torrential rains. We all got soaked to the bone but kept at it for an hour. The fish were ULTRA selective and I could not break the code with LT. Five different sizes/colors of light tackle and they ignored everything. With the brutal rains and ultra selective fish, we headed for port to reschedule this charter. Fishing is supposed to be fun.

MISERABLE, GLORIOUS DAY: Part II
I went up into the parking lot to find my truck had a soft tire. I drove up to the house, fired up the air compressor and pumped it back up. Then back to harbor. Heavy rain was brutal but I was bullish today and was not going to let the rains and the striped bass beat me. The boat was filled with water. I pulled the scuppers to get some of it to drain. I realized my manual bilge pump was back at the house in the other boat. I drive back and get it and suddenly, the rains let up… I go back to the boat, pumped it out and then decide I am going to scout for tomorrow’s Fly Fishing charter with fly-ins from Texas and Michigan. I really wanted to break today’s striped bass code and get these fish to take a fly. Today’s charter was all light tackle and tomorrow’s charter is all Fly. All my fly gear was back at the house. Once again, I drive home, load the fly gear into the truck, and head back to the bay. I am totally soaked to the bone with base layers, a wool shirt, a chamois shirt, and in my Grundens – all cold and clammy. With the rains stopped, I decided to change into dry clothes. Back to the boat, pump out the water, and head out onto the bay. I find fish, tie on today’s Code Breaker fly (VERY IMPORTANT FLY SELECTION – SEE THE PICTURES BELOW) and lay out a long cast on the head of a striped bass: WHAM! Fish On! A Keeper! That fish hit in two feet of water up on the flats on a rising tide, and gave my 8 wt TFO and Orvis fly reel a workout! Right into the backing. Awesome! Got him to the boat, unhooked him, and watched him swim away… And then, you guessed it – the rains started again in earnest! Light at first but soon torrential. Then like a monsoon. Harder than the hardest rain of the morning. The boat filled with water and I pumped the bilge 85 times by hand to get it out. I was immediately soaked through for the second time today. Back on a small school of striped bass, I laid out 75 feet of line on rolling fish. I decided to try and see if I could get the bass to take my fly on almost every cast, using a trout tactic. They had been feeding like trout all morning, not like hungry striped bass. So here is what I did. I DEAD DRIFTED THE FLY. I almost never use this tactic for striped bass. But this morning, this was the money! Quietly set a drift up tide of the bass. Wait for them to arrive close enough to cast. Lay the fly just ahead of the feeding and rolling fish. Let the fly sit. DON’T MOVE IT. Wait… Wait some more…. Then one light twitch, and let it sit some more… WHAM! Fish on! This went on all morning and the fish slammed my fly non-stop!  The torrential rains continued without let up. I would catch a fish, release it, pump out the boat; catch another, release it, pump out the boat. It was raining so hard, my knee high muck boots filled with water! My waterproof ORVIS fly fishing coat soaked completely through! There was near zero visibility at times and I could not even see where I was going without using my chart plotter. I finally decided to throw in the towel and head for port. I had cracked the code, I was confident I could get my charters on fish on the fly in the morning. I pumped the boat out one last time and headed in. A miserable, glorious day indeed.

The bait and the fly. “Match the hatch” trout tactics.

“Happy Captain…”

One of many fly rod striped bass today

Clouds of micro bait 1″-1.5″ inches long. I hate you.

Capt. David Bitters, BAYMEN, baymenlife.com 32 Years Guiding The Bay. Still In Love.

Soli Deo Glorai!