I took my first trip down to West Bay this morning.
I put in at Louis Bait camp about 6:00 am. Decided I wouldn't have time to make it to Greens Lake, so I paddled to the marsh about 1/4 mile past the railroad tracks on the west side.
I tried to stay in "scout" mode instead of fishing too much. I paddled most of the marsh, just looking around. I covered about 6 miles moving slow and steady, looking for obvious strikes. Within the entire marsh, saw very few strikes except for one shore-line that seemed to be getting hammered all day. The water was much muddier than I expected. I didn't see anyone back there all day except for one inconsiderate PB blasting through with his radio blasting rap.
I worked the shoreline for an hour or so, throwing clousers (green), crabs (green) and a small copper colored popper. I didn't have any luck, but when I crowded the fish, they were reds. I've never been one to sit in the kayak and fish, but the bottom was pretty muddy.
I'm trying to enjoy the learning experience of fly fishing the marsh. I spent 20 years getting to a point where I could consistently catch fish under most circumstances on conventional tackle. But, getting a little antsy after 4 flyfishing outings with nothing to bend the rod.
So...what tactics do you use in the back marsh? Do you get out and deal with the mud? Anchor up and cast from the kayak? Do you get on a shoreline and make parallel casts, or stand off and cast at the shore?
Any pointers would be greatly appreciated!
I put in at Louis Bait camp about 6:00 am. Decided I wouldn't have time to make it to Greens Lake, so I paddled to the marsh about 1/4 mile past the railroad tracks on the west side.
I tried to stay in "scout" mode instead of fishing too much. I paddled most of the marsh, just looking around. I covered about 6 miles moving slow and steady, looking for obvious strikes. Within the entire marsh, saw very few strikes except for one shore-line that seemed to be getting hammered all day. The water was much muddier than I expected. I didn't see anyone back there all day except for one inconsiderate PB blasting through with his radio blasting rap.
I worked the shoreline for an hour or so, throwing clousers (green), crabs (green) and a small copper colored popper. I didn't have any luck, but when I crowded the fish, they were reds. I've never been one to sit in the kayak and fish, but the bottom was pretty muddy.
I'm trying to enjoy the learning experience of fly fishing the marsh. I spent 20 years getting to a point where I could consistently catch fish under most circumstances on conventional tackle. But, getting a little antsy after 4 flyfishing outings with nothing to bend the rod.
So...what tactics do you use in the back marsh? Do you get out and deal with the mud? Anchor up and cast from the kayak? Do you get on a shoreline and make parallel casts, or stand off and cast at the shore?
Any pointers would be greatly appreciated!
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