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Panama Red

Nothing but teeth

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I went to one of my favorite haunts today, heard some good pompano reports and thought I would see what I could do. As it turns out I did nothing noteworthy…The recent cold snap didn't seem to do much for the fishing,

 

I caught some spanish when I could get them to the boat before flipper got to them, some were decent size and pulled a good amount of drag. The rest…not so much.

 

Results of my tug of war with flipper…

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I moved to get away from the spanish and the dolphin. No luck…

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Sill had fun.

 

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Good to see you got out again, spanish are always loads of fun. We haven't had much of a spanish run, too much fresh tannic water and not enough baitfish. I have never lost a fish to a dolphin on the line, that must have been wild. They always waited until the release and then came and got it. Nothing like seeing a snook you just released go sailing six feet into the air.

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Were you catching the Spanish OTF? If so what kind of flys do you use for them?

Small whitebait patterns with lateral scale flash and white EP ultra shrimp on 40lb bite tippet

 

Good to see you got out again, spanish are always loads of fun. We haven't had much of a spanish run, too much fresh tannic water and not enough baitfish. I have never lost a fish to a dolphin on the line, that must have been wild. They always waited until the release and then came and got it. Nothing like seeing a snook you just released go sailing six feet into the air.

All the areas in the bay are stained, the only clean water I found was near the pass…I saw no bait and very few fish other than spanish.

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The fellas I talked with down around the ML in NSB hated the dolphin. They said that they drove off all the fish. The spot that I fished for trout had dolphin working the area everyday I was there and I caught a lot of trout. (mostly small though) The dolphin were big and were often within casting range. ....God, I miss the salt

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Panama, in your California days (you were from Cali right?) did you ever fish King Harbor at Redondo Beach for bonito? Your story reminds me of the seal lions out there. You would hook these feisty Pacific bonita that fight like hell but it was tough to get them to the boat for a release before the sea lions snatched them up. I was always amazed that those sea lions could catch up to a bonito. Sounds like clear water is at a premium up and down the coast this year.

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Soooo ... if I want to catch some Porpoise and Dolphin, I need to tie up some "Spanish Mackerel" flies? I'll have to look into materials for that !!!

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Funny how different areas fish... In my area of the saltwater Everglades we have lots and lots of dolphins (in small family groups up inside and out along the coast....) and I've never had the slightest problem with them. There are days I even use them as scouts (if I see them working a stretch of shoreline today - I might just work that area a day later -and exactly one hour later... if they're not around). I've seen them chasing snook and redfish along shallow shorelines (quite a show to see one at speed in less than 3 feet of water...) but they've never come after a single fish.

 

I had the opposite experience working as a mate out of Miami Beach. Dolphin would track us as we trolling heavy wireline gear for king mackeral in 90 feet of water then occasionally leave us only the head still attached to that big #3 Drone spoon. On one occasion the big dolphin missed and snagged the spoon... For the few seconds we were attached I thought our big 10/0 reel was coming apart....

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The fellas I talked with down around the ML in NSB hated the dolphin. They said that they drove off all the fish. The spot that I fished for trout had dolphin working the area everyday I was there and I caught a lot of trout. (mostly small though) The dolphin were big and were often within casting range. ....God, I miss the salt

Come on down, we'll go to the races one day and fish the next.

 

Panama, in your California days (you were from Cali right?) did you ever fish King Harbor at Redondo Beach for bonito? Your story reminds me of the seal lions out there. You would hook these feisty Pacific bonita that fight like hell but it was tough to get them to the boat for a release before the sea lions snatched them up. I was always amazed that those sea lions could catch up to a bonito. Sounds like clear water is at a premium up and down the coast this year.

Funny thing is all my saltwater fishing was done underwater with a scuba pro magnum 95 spear gun (Santa Barbara to San Luis Obispo) but, if you don't watch your stringer they will try for a free meal. Used to love watching them swim through the kelp … Only fly fishing I did was in freshwater around Redding (way north) for trout.

 

Soooo ... if I want to catch some Porpoise and Dolphin, I need to tie up some "Spanish Mackerel" flies? I'll have to look into materials for that !!!

Or try the baby fly, could prove universal!

 

Funny how different areas fish... In my area of the saltwater Everglades we have lots and lots of dolphins (in small family groups up inside and out along the coast....) and I've never had the slightest problem with them. There are days I even use them as scouts (if I see them working a stretch of shoreline today - I might just work that area a day later -and exactly one hour later... if they're not around). I've seen them chasing snook and redfish along shallow shorelines (quite a show to see one at speed in less than 3 feet of water...) but they've never come after a single fish. I had the opposite experience working as a mate out of Miami Beach. Dolphin would track us as we trolling heavy wireline gear for king mackeral in 90 feet of water then occasionally leave us only the head still attached to that big #3 Drone spoon. On one occasion the big dolphin missed and snagged the spoon... For the few seconds we were attached I thought our big 10/0 reel was coming apart....

I think our biggest problem is the long history of tourist feeding dolphins, when we moved here 20 years ago people were openly feeding them. Seems they have come to equate boats with easy pickings. You should see them during snapper season, can't tell you how many fish we've lost or had destroyed. As you said… It does make for some exciting moments when they run off with your fish.

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laugh.png The Baby Fly !!!
I'd almost forgotten that I am supposed to be going for Tarpon. Yeah, that fly might bring in all kinds of "fish".

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Come on down, we'll go to the races one day and fish the next.

 

Hey Panama. that is a wonderful invite. That fine fella PeterJay has extended the same invite minus the races but you are about 8hr. closer. I have been to the Navarre area a few times but never east of there. The panhandle is certainly a nice area. It was my first exposure to FL when I was 6 and I fell in love with the area and vowed to live there. I haven't made it yet but I am still young at 65. The family visited my uncle stationed at Eglin AFB during Korea. I remember it like it was yesterday. My parents bought me a captains cap as a souvenir and I kept that hat till I was a teenager. Mom finally got tired of seeing it and trashed it I suspect. I love to reminisce.

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My new hats have flaps over the ears and neck to keep the sun off. Wify thinks I look a quite silly while wearing them. Like I care. Better than skin cancer. I just need to get a patch with a gold anchor to sew on the caps. hehehe

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