Capt Bob LeMay

There's one other method in building drying mounts for your motor. Most tyers use a single large foam wheel... since I'm also a rodbuilder I long ago decided to use individual cork rings mounted on short sections of old fiberglass rod pieces. I have four or five of them that allow me to do two to three dozen flies at a time for production work. Here's a few pics.... Tight Lines Bob LeMay

If you decide to go with a slow turning motor, I've always used barbecue rotisserie motors (and each one has lasted for years and years). They usually come in a small rectangular metal case that's perfect for mounting onto an "L" shaped or "T" shaped wooden bracket. Since they usualy come with a small square socket to mount a square rod, it's a simple matter to use a slightly larger wooden dowel, and carve the end square to fit perfectly. My turning motors were originally meant for rod drying applications (I've been building rods for 40 years...) and only later used for turning flies.... One other thought - if you think you might be doing any demonstration tying, a portable battery powered turner might be another option since it frees you from all the usual extension cord hassles that come with a standard turner when it's being used outside of your shop....

That bug will work in the backcountry of the Everglades as well... particularly in winter when small (almost tiny)forage is on the menu for large fish that have moved from the salt all the way back up into freshwater...

If you have a choice the bucktails from Wapsi in any shop will always be very good quality. In the other direction if you want the best price always buy in bulk direct, by the hundred count, in each color needed (I'm a commercial tyer, so that's how I do all my materials, if possible). Tight lines Bob LeMay

...noticed that right away, did you?

The area accessible from Flamingo is so large that many learn to work (or favor) just a portion of it.... This time of year the best fishing lies in two directions - "out front" to the south into Florida Bay where there's miles and miles of very shallow waters and the target is large schooled up redfish mostly (and you need a skiff that floats pretty shallow...), or all the way across west to the Gulf coast north and south of the Little Shark river, miles and miles of creeks, rivers, and bays in a mangrove jungle setting where large numbers of giant tarpon are gathering to gorge along the coast before that first cold night in October sends them back offshore. If you choose to run to the west you've got your choice of an area that's 20 miles east to west and 40 miles north to south (from Lostman's River all the way south to Cape Sable). In a few short weeks the fall migration will begin and very gradually fish along the coasts will begin to move back inside for the winter where the water is a bit warmer. When that happens the action inside will shift much closer to Flamingo, that's when Oyster and Whitewater Bays begin to load up with bait and the trout, snook, redfish and others that will follow them inside... At the beginning of the wet season in late May the process will reverse and the fish will move back outside... You could fish out of Flamingo all your lifetime and only two things would be certain.... the first is that you'd never learn all there is to know about it, the second is that no two days are the same - ever. Every day I'm there I'm towing my skiff almost 100 miles each way and it's worth all the effort. Since hurricane Wilma in Nov of 2005 the only facilities at Flamingo are the marina with gas pumps, marina store (where they rent canoes, kayaks, small motor skiffs, and houseboats), two boat ramps (one for outside, the other the interior side), and a campground. The restaurant, motel, and cabins have never been replaced so you're in a commuting situation each day with the closest motels 50 miles away in Florida City.....

On the water out of Flamingo three of the last five days, mostly fly fishing... The pics will tell most of the story and, as expected, things are certainly heating up along the Gulf coast of the 'Glades. You've got to get going long before daylight to see the coast at dawn... since it's a 21 mile run to the west coast from the ramp at Flamingo... With very skilled local angler Cass Sumrall aboard we started off the day with popping bugs at small to medium sized tarpon. The darned fish blew up the bug on more than one occasion but never managed to eat the thing, so that was it for popping bugs. A quick change to a Silhouette and Cass was hooked up to a 30lb fish on an 8wt rod... He beat the fish handily but it didn't pose for a photo and we were on the hunt for bigger fish.. Running south along the coast we encountered a large school of jack crevalle - all from 10 up to 30lb fish and circling slowly like they were in spawning mode. Cass had several bites before hooking up but it was the smaller fish that were quickest to the fly.... with this fish a small one you can imagine how big the larger ones were... We went on to find much larger tarpon but never managed a bite and all the action slowed to a stop at midday.... The next trip had local angler James Banta aboard and again it was all catching and releasing with fly gear. That day the tarpon pulled a disappearing act most places but we still managed a variety of species on fly, including snook, redfish, trout ( all on the small side), ladyfish, macks, jacks, etc. This time of year the spanish mackeral are hungry enough to eat popping bugs (if they don't cut you off in the process...). catching macks on the fly is lots of fun if you don't run through all your bugs trying... Yesterday it was time for a father and son team. Young Charlie Hughes with his Dad, local pastor David Hughes, both looking for a big tarpon. At 11 years old it would be Charlie's first big tarpon, his Dad would be using the fly rod - and we had a great day. After quickly catching bait while watching big fish rolling all around us we got down to business. The young angler (all 76lbs worth) was set up with 20lb spin and a live bait on a 6/0 circle hook. In the first hour we went through almost ten baits with a few tarpon bites but many, many shark hits, losing our share of hooks in the process. Charlie finally hooked up with a big fish and it was off to the races... with David on the camera. Young Charlie did it all, and never let up on a fish that was much bigger than him. After about 20 minutes he had the fish to the boat for a leader and photo. I estimated the fish between 90 and 100lbs... and that's David holding on for the photo... you can see the circle hook right in the center of the upper jaw. A few minutes later a revived fish was released carefully. Next up was David using an 11wt rod and a great big black fly..... He jumped one fish that didn't stay attached, then hooked one solidly and we were back in business. That fish, estimated between 70 and 80lbs really put on a show with lots of long runs and air time. I was a bit busy and missed pics of the fish in the air but did manage one good father and son type photo at boatside... All in all it was a great day, young Charlie also caught and released several small redfish, a seven foot lemon shark, and we had big bites from grouper that just tore us up but didn't stay attached long enough..... To end the day we made one last try for a slot redfish and here's the result... a very nice Whitewater redfish that was just a little too big at almost 30 inches... it was Charlie's first big red and a great way to end the day. In the next five to six weeks the fishing is going to keep getting better, if that's possible... Tight lines Bob LeMay (954) 435-5666

Two different books....

The book that you're looking for is Backcountry Fly Fishing by Doug Swisher and Carl Richards. Along with tactics and gear there's a fair amount of info on crab patterns the way Richards does them. Can't say I'd give this book a thumbs up though... I found it difficult at best to get through. You might want to browse through it a bit before buying it... Tight lines Bob LeMay

More important than materials... is finding a class with a skilled tyer. You'll learn more in a session with a good teacher than you will in a year on your own. Here's how I'd go about finding one. Call your local fly shops to find out when their next class is scheduled and sign up if you can. The next question is to try to locate your local fly fishing clubs, attend their meetings and ask if they have formal or informal tying sessions. I used to do that sort of stuff for a local club some years ago one night a month and it was a freebie (one of the shops I tied for in that era provided the space, the anglers who showed up brought the refreshments, etc). Remember that it's very easy to buy lots of stuff that won't see much use. I buy the minimum in materials until you have a good idea of what you'll actually use... Tight lines Bob LeMay

This report will cover the last seven days with the best fishing during daytime trips out of Flamingo. Night trips this past week in Biscayne Bay were only fair at best... Out of Flamingo there's lots going on as we move towards that first cold night, five or six weeks from today. We're seeing large numbers of small to medium tarpon along Gulf side shorelines (particularly yesterday afternoon) when wind conditions are favorable. As long as the wind is generally out of the east (or north to southeast) you're in good shape. If the wind kicks up out of the west... go do something else. A few days ago visiting angler, Charles Ptak, caught and released a nice small tarpon on an 8wt rod with a small popping bug. Here's a few pics... For those that want to fish them, here's a pic of the bug we were using that morning.... Tied up on a #1 hook with a 20 lb fluoro leader and no shock tippet, these soft foam headed bugs (the Speed Bug) are just right for early morning fish.... Yesterday I re-visited the 'Glades and it was a mixed bag. We found trout, reds, snook, flounder, along the coast and back into Whitewater. My best fish was a 30" snook that jumped on a small jig, but I wasn't able to lip the fish and reach for the camera at the same time... the fish had no trouble breaking free instead of posing for a photo before the release. That afternoon the big surprise was a pod of Palm Beach sized snook not far away. Obviously a spawning aggregation, they just tore up all our gear. With only a few ladyfish for bait, every one was just killed the moment it hit the water on medium to heavy spinning gear. Unfortunately the fish were laying next to a bunch of downed trees and it didn't take them long to break off no matter what we did (and we were using 80lb leaders with the drag set to "exterminate"). These were big fish - the small ones were at least 15lbs... While that was going on there were a good sized group of small to medium tarpon rolling nearby.... I must admit we ignored them until it was time to make the 21 mile run back to Flamingo. The two night trips to Biscayne Bay were a bit disappointing. We jumped three or four tarpon each night but the fish weren't very hungry or in great numbers. We never saw any bait moving in the places we worked which might have had something to do with it. I suspect we'd have done better fly fishing but that's just a guess.... Tight lines Bob LeMay (954) 435-5666

Nice pomp....

Pink is one of my favorite colors for the interior of the 'Glades (and any where else with brackish water that's brown colored - world wide....). Here's a few pics that might provide some suggestions... Tight Lines Bob LeMay

For ditch babies you need a small fly - really small. I've caught them as small as six inches years ago. Something like a Crazy Charlie in a #4 or smaller hook size might do the trick. The bug I catch most of my small tarpon on is a simple Crystal Schminnow in size 4, occasionally size 6 in a pearl body with a white maribou tail. For the smaller versions I don't use bead chain eyes, preferring the simple, lightweight, plastic eyes. Here's a pic. By the way if you're finding ditch babies that far north, they'd better find a way to get back to the salt and head south soon... Tight lines Bob LeMay

Still spending lots of time tying for my local shop. With this 12 dozen completed I only have about 70 dozen to go.... Enjoy the pics Tied on a #4 Mustad 34007, this Peacock clouser has a synthetic and very small eyes This version has a bucktail wing and slightly heavier eyes on the same #4 hook This Crystal Schminnow on a Mustad #1 hook is a bit larger than the ones favored by anglers on the Gulf coast - it's meant for the surf on the Atlantic side (more about sizes later) this one has a tan wing and head the wing on this one is a lot more rootbeer colored than the photo shows my favorite winter color (but tarpon will eat this color year 'round) Here is a pic of weedguards ready to tie into place. They're done with #5 trolling wire (malin's) and each one is added towards the end of the process. That little hook is what's actually tied into place right behind the hook eye. The remainder of the head is then finished with that piece of wire sticking straight out (and in the way until you learn to work around it..). When the bug is finished, a tiny drop of superglue locks it in place. When dry, the wire is bent down into position, trimmed and gets a final small bend as shown in the pics. One last note. That Crystal Schminnow (my version) is meant to match small forage on the east coast. During September and October it also is a perfect match for the mature glass minnows that are so thick along the Gulf coast of the Everglades. We call them glass minnows, I believe the correct name is bay anchovie - in the fall they get as big as four to five inches long... Tight Lines Bob LeMay

Hooks are much like nails... you use the size and style that meets your needs (and that can be a wide variety, indeed). As a saltwater tier I occasionally need a much stronger hook than any freshwater tyer would ever use (the Owner Aki, and I'm buying them by the 1000 per size). I also like the Tiemco 600sp but can't get them in bulk. I also use a ton of Mustad 34007, buying them at the 1000 level per size as well. I actually keep on hand a variety of other hooks (including some that aren't stainless at all) for other needs. I noted that one tier specified a need for barbless hooks. Any fly that I tie for myself instead of for a shop starts with the barb being flattened. I've never bought a "barbless" hook, but everything I use is pretty much barbless.... I haven't noticed any difference in how well fish stay attached and I'm convinced that the hook bites a fish much better without that barb. Here's a pic of a hook style that was never meant for fly tying but it works like a charm when you're fishing deep. The pattern is a Whitewater Bay Clouser....

A word of caution about the Monic and other clear lines with a mono core.... I had one Monic clear floating line, an 8wt, that had taken the usual abuse showing a few scrapes and a nick or two in the line coating. One night one of my anglers hooked a nice small tarpon in the 30lb range and looped the line around the reel during the process.... As the line came tight he got a great jump that was punctuated by the usual sound of a break-off. Nothing unusual there, except when I went to re-tie the leader I found we were missing the last 20 to 25feet of flyline... The leader had a breaking strength of 20lb (my usual setup is a 20lb leader with a 40lb bite tippet at night for tarps). To put it mildly I was surprised since the leader should have broken long before the fly line (which is supposed to have a core of 30lb.) As you can guess that was the last Monic I've bought. I believe that if the coating is cracked or nicked the core is not as durable as a standard line with a dacron core - but that's just a guess on my part.

Little fies set up with no shock tippet at all are very effective when the fish are on small forage. I set up my anglers with a four to five foot section of 20lb fluoro looped to a heavier butt section (usually four or five fee of 40lb ande for an 8 or 9wt line) and we're in business. You'd be surprised at the size of the fish that will come to a tiny bug and actually stay attached - but of course each fish requires the bitter end of the leader to be trimmed back and re-tied.... Works like a charm for baby tarpon up to around 15lbs, and some surprisingly big snook. You'll lose an occasional fish set up this way but get a lot more bites. By the way, those turkey quill flies remind me of something similar in a balsa wood pencil popper. Very nice.

I just sent a long email to one of my anglers in Europe about that very topic.... I'll re-post it here (but in January water temps will have most fish way back up inside towards freshwater (and many times all the way into areas where it's totally fresh). All of what's below is for spring through early fall during daylight, the night stuff might be applicable in January if it's mild... "Here's what you need to know about it. On the west coast of Florida fly anglers have a few advantages. At dawn the sun is at your back giving very good visibility for snook that are ghosting along, sometimes within a very, very close distance to the sand... Flies are all fairly small with nothing much larger than a #1 and many times in the #4 size (occasionally even smaller, if needed) range. Patterns are all things that resemble very small bait in the "glass minnow" or bay anchovy size ranges (sparse stuff in white or tan, I'll have a pic or two at the end of this message). One of the most popular patterns is the simple Crystal Schminnow that was developed by a tier associated with the only fly shop on Sanibel Island. For leaders a 9 foot or a bit longer tapered leader with a tip ending in about three feet of 20lb fluorocarbon will suffice. As much as I always want a bite tippet of at least 30lb fluoro, most days I do without it since you're dealing with clear shallow waters and fish with very good eyesight.... Now for tactics... be on the water before the sun, that first 30 minutes of daylight is magic, some days the first two hours, as well. If you must fish at dusk the sun will be in your eyes and seeing fish will be very tough (but if you know where they are... working blind will work...). I like to walk very quietly along a beach looking for fish (they're hard to see on the sand, they seem to blend in as a very light gray shadow barely moving or stationary). Once I spot them I do as much as possible to keep a low profile and reach out to where they're holding on a 45 degree angle to the beach (at times I'll move 20 to 30 feet away from the water line if I think being close to the water is allowing them to see me...). Your retrieve should look like small bait darting a bit, pausing frequently to allow the fly to drop to the sand. If and when you get bit and hook up, don't even think about using the fly reel unless you are taken to it by a strong running fish. Snook are very quick, and reverse directions constantly - just hand strip them, it's the only way to keep your line tight. Be careful handling a snook. You can lip one with your thumb inside the mouth but the back edge of their gill covers conceals a razor sharp plate that will cut you to the bone if they shake their head and your hand is anywhere near that "cutter". For the best beaches near where you're staying get in touch with local fly shops any one of them from Sanibel south down to Marco Island will know where local anglers fish them.... A 7 to 9wt rod with a floating line is all you need for beach fishing. Experienced beach anglers will even go down to a 6wt when the wind isn't in the picture. Now for two other possibilities over on that side of Florida. Every pass or anywhere there's an opening from a bay out to the open water is a magnet at dawn and dusk for all the hungry fish. What you're looking for is the nearest place with a rock jetty and good moving water at dawn or dusk, particularly a falling tide since lots of bait will be getting moved out. Look for visible action and try to match the size of the baitfish. You're going to want a 10wt rod, if possible since the flies will range from 4 to 6" and a good pair of shoes for working on top of rocks to get near the action. Fish in these situations are likely to be large and powerful, getting hooked up doesn't mean you'll be successful but it will be fun trying for the first hour or two of daylight... My favorite line for this sort of stuff it usually an intermediate since I can work it at a variety of depths. The last possibility is night fishing. Over there any docklight will hold fish at night if there's a current. Many hotels on the water will have docks with lights. Walk softly on the dock if they'll allow you to access it and use the same small flies you'd use for beach fishing. Stay as far away from any docklight as possible, figure out which way the baitfish are coming from and work your fly the same direction. If you can get hooked up the fish will immediately sound down toward the nearest pilings so you will never have the luxury of handling them gently. Some docklights at night will load up with fish so you'll be in a sight fishing situation. Lots of fun if you can find the right docklight. The best ones are near ocean access and have pretty strong currents... Now for a few flies... the Crystal Schminnow, I do them with a wire weedguard but it's not really necessary over sand. I do them with beadchain eyes, plastic eyes for less weight, occasionally with lead eyes for strong currents, mostly from a #2 down to a #6 in white/pearl, tan/tan pearl, and other color variations. Seaducers in every color, but keep them on the small side for the beach, this sample is on a #2 hook and is a bit long in the tail... These Silhouettes are a bit large for beach fishing but work very well around jetties and dock lights when the fish are keying on pilchards ("whitebaits" in the four to six inch range). These samples are on a 2/0 Owner Aki hook, and about four inches overall.... This should point you in the right direction. Someday I have to expand a bit and turn this into an article..." Like I said most of this is for warmer months, in winter most will hunt inshore way back towards sweetwater. In the Naples area that means along the Tamiami Trail (US 41). Any small bridge with a water flow (usually north to south) is worth a look, particularly back twoards Chokoloskee/Everglades City... Tight Lines

I use a lot of shlappen for some of my tarpon patterns. I do it without any prep or folding, tying in from the butt of the feather, using as much of the "fluff" as possible. All I'm doing is making sure the curve of the feather in facing into the hook, tying it in place, then stroking the fibers from tip to butt to get everything standing up, then palmering it into place with a gentle stroke to the rear after each turn of feather. It may be a lot easier for me since I'm not doing the precision work required for salmon flies and I have no particular requirment that the fibers really lay down, just that they orient toward the rear for collars. Here's a pic or two of the finished product. Tight Lines Bob LeMay

Right on time the big fish have finally returned in numbers to the Gulf coast of the Everglades.... The area I'm talking about is a thirty mile stretch of coastline from Cape Sable north to Lostman's River. Small to medium fish never left to follow the spawning migration but they've been re-joined by the big fish now (or at least the first big schools have made an appearance). We found our first group last Friday hanging out in five to seven feet of water about 300 meters off the shoreline. The fish were just loafing there, widely scattered, at the beginning of the rising tide, finning, occasionally rolling. They were being so quiet that at first I didn't see them. We had to pole out for about five minutes before we saw one or two, then they were all around us, fish that ranged from 70 to about 100lbs. My angler that morning was skilled fly angler Joe Huggard, from Luxembourg. He's chased tarpon in Africa, South America, and always tries to make it down to my area when he's in-country. The fish didn't let us down. Joe got one of about 70lbs to the boat on a brand new Sage rod so quickly that I didn't have time to fire up the camera. His second one was a bit bigger but it did all the releasing soon after the hook-up. Soon after, the wind came up and we lost the conditions needed for that spot so it was off to other things.. The big fish should become more and more numerous during August, things get really good by September, and it will all end that first cold night in October (that's usually the end of the third week of October, right when the World Series is on). Standard gear for the big fish in my area.... a 10 to 12wt rod, a full intemediate fly line, and a large black fly. The fishing can be so good that guides from Chokoloskee/ Everglades City will make a 35 mile run across open water just to be along the coast at dawn... Tarpon heaven, or at least my version of it. Next time I'll try to get that camera working in time... Tight Lines Bob LeMay

Very nice bug... sometimes a darker color is just what the fish are looking for. Be careful what you call it though. In my area we have a booby prize called a "trashcan slam". All you need to win is a catfish, a lizardfish, and a puffer (blowfish) to qualify - all on fly gear of course... in the same day. I've actually had one or two anglers that have that distintion (if you can call it that..). Since puffers absolutely destroy any fly they come after it's considered good tactics to take the catfish and lizardfish first....

Wapsi's presentation lead eyes. They're painted and baked in quantity before being used in any pattern. The Offshore Clouser has the same eyes in a larger size.

While most guides this time of year are either working up north or thinking about a vacation.... I'm in the shop doing lots of fly tying. Here's a few pics, enjoy... This is the Silhouette tied up on a 2/0 Owner Aki hook. It's not only one of the most productive bugs in the areas I fish - it's been my signature pattern since the early eighties.... Here's some Speed Bugs on a #1 hook, pretty good food for small tarpon (and anything else right at dawn when there's no wind and the fish are in small bait). This is the Offshore Clouser in a 4/0 size. I don't do a lot of stuff for blue water these days, but this is pretty good for kings and bone-heads. The Blacklight Special, size #1... a very good maribou pattern. In winter conditions there's some days we hardly use anything else up in clear shallow coves and shorelines. This is one of the larger Seaducers I do for the shop in size #2, it's done in four different colors and two sizes, a #2 and a #4. Every few weeks I'll try to post up a few pics of the stuff I'm doing. Next time I should have some peacock flies as well. Tight lines Bob LeMay

Kirk, I've been doing business with Pat Dunlop since the business name was Rogue River and he's the man to talk to about any kind of custom braid, mylar, etc. I've had great results from him over the years (and still tie on one of their early, durable simple vises...