Tarpon Town-Sunny and 90!

We hit the right week this time.  7 days of fishing, only one "lost" morning to winds, and the afternoon was a good one that day.  We had two mornings of "Fantasy Fishing" with rolling tarpon surrounding the boat and crusing every mangrove island.  There were a couple of slower days where we only found a few fish in some creeks or lone groups crusing by themselves.  Three of the days were what I've become acustomed to calling "average," with plenty of shots and lots of hook-ups.  We were just in the right places at the right tides several times a day, with favorable conditions and happy fish. This was the most consistent fishing I've had of the 7 winter trips I've made to Campeche.  We did not go offshore to fish for the larger fish on deeper grass flats, but I didn't miss that at all.  We didn't have to spend endless hours poling up long creeks either.  The fish were near the creek mouths and along the mangrove fronts for the most part.  I've already re-booked for the end of October, and I'm sure there will be another February trip in 2018.  I love this place, the guides, the folks, the shrimp, and the best sport fish on the planet--the Silver Prince.

On the hunt at sunrise

Our host Raul's new fly worked very well

A daily sampling

Great sight fishing in Campeche's clear water

Once in a while we see a decent snook

The best coconut shrimp in Campeche at La Pigua Resturante

February!

A little warm window before the next front.  Weather was beautiful today, but the fish?  Not quite as hot as before.  I arrived an hour earlier at 10 am thinking I'd get the jump on 'em.  Wrong.  Still had the high water! Didn't see a fish until 11. Flow started dropping about 11:15.  That's precisely when the fish started rising too.  Just not quite the numbers rising as two days ago.  Bugs about the same, just enough.

These now "regular" double-peak flows for electricity make me crazy.  Dam releases peak at 8am at 2440, then are stepped down to 1180 by 10:30 am, and are ramped back up to 3300 by 7pm!  Where I'm fishing 7 miles below, there's about a two-hour delay from dam releases.  I see the water drop begin around 11am.

It ended up being a no-CDC day, and a no-Harrop day.  That limited my fly choices!  By choice.  The softies worked well though.  Cheap-O's, I didn't even tie.  Kinda cool to use shitty flies sometimes. Confidence builder for later.  I could see 'em too.  The best one was an 18.

2400cfs at 10am

No risers yet

Rod lived here until 11

Winner of the day!  Dry and dead-drifted.

I put the little rock on the big rock and both were under water at 10.

At least a foot-deep drop in water depth.

Just enough of these to raise a few

Then down river

To some bank/scum feeders

Hackled soft-hackle

On the drive out at 4pm

Theres the window of low water

End of January

Its been a long, cold, cloudy January.  I've been looking forward to today since last spring. That first above-freezing, sunny, calm weekday of the year.  There's nothing like it for the rest of the season.  Nobody on the river and eager fish rising to any bug floating by them.  Midges and BWO's, constant, all day.  The fish feel it.  They're hungry.

Yea, its still cold, and there was ice in the rod guides for a while.  But the sun has been shining for three days now, and two of them got above freezing. Not a breath of wind in the air, so today was the day to get it started.  It's not spring yet, but this is a hint, a glimmer of hope, a break-out of sorts.  I lasted about 4 hours, feet frozen in the icy water, and hands going from frozen to useable because I was intent on "keepin'  'em wet."  Never-ending heads to target.  Maybe 5 degrees warmer in a couple days, before the next round of shit.

I could see heads as I approached from 200 feet away!

It was full of 'em

Of course . . . 

For the Baetis eaters

The only 'Bow

New Years Day Dries (1250 cfs)

Opportunity knocked.  Above freezing (barely) for the first time in over a month.  Last week, on a day off, I built a rod I wanted to cast.  I got a new waterproof camera for Christmas I wanted to use underwater. I had the day off following a pretty busy December.  So all signs pointed to the river.

My first choice of places, where the sun shines during mid-day, was blown out.  10-20 mph and not a bug in sight, so it was plan B.  Seven miles back upstream, and down into the dark depths of the canyon just below the dam.  The sun shines down there for about 2 1/2 hours a day this time of year, and I had already missed an hour and a half of it, but it wasn't blowing.  There were midges, and a few little rising pods of the most desperate trout.  Not the "nice ones" of down river, but they were eating, and I was feeding, on top, on New Years Day.

The rod, a graphite IM-6 8-foot 4 weight, feels good.  The tight, "off the chart" guide spacing is great. It feels more like a June hatch rod than a midge rod, but I knew that going in.  It'll get some use when the March Browns, Drakes, and PMD's appear.  It kinda resembled one of my Sage GII Lightlines and an old REC made by John Bradford.  

The camera is going to help make some cool and different shots for the ole blog this year.  I miss-framed nearly of them today, but its kinda hard when I'm in the shade, with a little wind, 37 degrees, sleeves rolled up, one hand on a wet trout, and the other hand on a camera under the 41-degree water.  I don't recommend it, but I got a few.  I know what I'm looking for.  A few were close.  They will come.

The couple+ hours of casting mainly served to remind me to be patient with the season.  The sun is slowly making its way (perceived) higher in the sky as we head into spring.  There will be warmer days ahead not that long from now.  The fishing will only get better from here, even though I fed a dozen fish or more today.  The bigger ones will come out to play next month.

The sunny pool

Of Course!

This one out-performed the Harrop midge, and was easier to see.

About my limit these days.  Actually, I prefer 50 and up.