New Batch of Poppers for the Upcoming Topwater Season

Productive time when there is 2 feet of snow outside, frozen lakes and general wintertime gloom and doom. I let the kids color the Waspi poppers with Sharpie markers, then I placed the eyes on and epoxied the whole body (to give it some durability against the bluegill and bass attacks). I'll be tying on the tails over then next few days. Yeah we could buy store bought poppers, but the eclectic look of these make catching fish on them even more fun!!!

Topwater Action in the Winter

Another cold day at the fishing grounds. High tide was at 0533 and I was at 4MR at 0730. As I have been using my fixed line rods a lot recently, I decided to breakout my Orvis Superfine Touch 8'6" 5wt and keep the rust off casting an adjustable length line. I tied up a foam sheet popper on a #14 hook and a squirmy wormy on a #16. I used the squirmy wormy until the bluegill tore the back half off. I ended up catching 10+ bluegs all blind casting and feeling the hits. Because of the extended reach, I was able to stay in ankle deep water and reach out to the opposite shore, and run the fly through the pool on the downstream side of the outfall. After the squirmy wormy took on battle damage, I switched out flies to the foam popper. I had epoxied on small googlie eyes instead of using the normal eye stickers and the body was pretty thick. Casting this fly brought me back to the sunny days of summer where you can count of dramatic hits from all the members of the sunfish family - which by the way includes the many species of bass. This fly took in more bluegs and two largemouths - and every take was a dramatic display of splashing water, rapidly snapping mouths and thrashing fins. Okay - maybe it wasn't that dramatic, but during the opening days of winter and all the gray, overcast skies and chilling temperatures it brings, the one thing that brings back the feeling of fishing on a warm summer afternoon is getting surface hits on a popper - what a wonderful resource 4MR has turned out to be (you just have to put yourself in a suspended state of awareness and ignore the fact that you are wading in the outfall of a sewage treatment plant)... what is the saying - desperate times require desperate measures??? I have gradually grown to greatly appreciate the slower casting mechanics of full flex rods - the Superfine Touch delivered smiles the entire session. In addition to the multiple bluegs and the two bass, I ended up with a few Green Sunfish and one Pumpkinseed brought to hand. I saw a huge channel cat sitting in a deeper hole, but just like the others before it - I could not entice it to leave it's slumber with the small flies I was pitching. Next time I'll bring out the Gulp crickets (catfish crack). It just hit me that we're not even in winter yet... the solstice isn't until December 22... I miss summer...

Here Fishy Fishy Fishy and AAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHH

It's the Annual International "Speak Like A Pirate" Day again - time flies huh?!? You still have a few hours by my clock to bellow out a hearty "AAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHH"!!!! And while we're on the topic of this entire blog - nautical/amphibious affairs, the blue pencil popper was tied up this very evening to entice the mermaids and other denizens of the deep to play tug-o-war. Or at least a decent sized bronze back aquatic football... Heck - I'll even take a bluegill at this point - I'm ready for the weekend - AAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH

Mini Frog Poppers

It was still cold and flurrying outside today. Despite what Pax Phil (the Groundhog) is predicting, Winter is still here. So no skateboarding for us today. I settled in at the tying table and knocked out coloring these sunfish poppers. I tied the legs on to one of them - I've got a whole week ahead of me with more of the same for weather - a couple of evenings after work and these guys will be ready for the bluegills out back.

Sunday Fishing - Part 3 - The Glorious Giant Trevally

The last phase of Sunday Fishing...

After playing with the Bonefish with the flyrod, I decided to throw a lure for a while to see if I could get a good hit.

I was using the lightweight rod/reel and a Mark White surface plug - the same one that picked up the Yellow Spot Trevally - Oh by the way - with that catch, I have caught four different species of Trevally - the Yellow Spot, the Thick Lipped, the Blue Fin and the Giant Trevally. My favorite to catch, clean and eat is the GT. In fact, I think this is my favorite fish period.

I had some chasers but no hits. I subsequently changed lures three times and still didn't get a hit.

Without a hit, I decided to bring out the big guns - my medium weight rig armed with a big Tsunami Popper.

I pitched it out and worked 180 degrees out from a line parallel to the shore along the rocky outcropping - working left to right. Nothing on the first pass.

I decided to cast the lure out in a way so that during retrieve, I could bring it in over a section of reef that had some big holes underneath. On the second cast, I got the strike I was looking for!!!

10 minute fight - I thought the GT was trying to break off on a coral head, but I was able to steer it back into open water. After more pulls - I landed this magnificent fish.

If you can't already tell, I have the utmost respect for the GT!!! This made my week (although not as big a thrill as the 25#'er)!