Tampa Bay Fly Fishing Report • December 2019 – January 2020 from Captain Russ Shirley.

Saltwater Fly Fishing Guide – Captain Russ Shirley, Tampa Bay. On board the ‘Salty Fly,’ my custom, Mark Scott original Silver King flats skiff, anglers caught various species on the flats the past 2 months. With a December and January having a few good weather days, even on the lousy days there were plenty of Snook and Redfish. Fishing the south side flats from St. Petersburg to Ft. De Soto and beyond, my anglers caught many Snook and a few Redfish, both on fly and light tackle.

December, 2019.

December 24, 2019. I had the pleasure to have aboard fly fishing anglers Mike Plowucha & brother-in-law Steve. Starting with 10 to 15 knot winds out of the north and cold front skies, the boys decided they’d rather use light tackle and not fight the winds. Using Z-man soft-baits, they enjoyed one of the best artificial bait Snook bites I’ve seen in many years. Out of maybe 10 bites, they brought about 7 or 8 fish to the boat, including one Redfish too.

 

 

 

 

January, 2020.

January 24, 2020. Fernie, British Columbia fly fishing guide Sebastion Stewart fly fished with me on the north side of Tampa Bay. Even with gusting winds and very little blue skies, he enjoyed a full day of spectacular sight-fishing Redfish of all sizes, many looking to be near the mid-30’s range. Luckily, we both had and used the same Smith Optics Amber Lens color for these cloudy days, giving us a much better advantage when sight-fishing a challenging, cloudier day.

 

 

 

January 25, 2020. Matt Albright enjoyed some great, shallow water sight fishing on fly for Snook and Redfish.

 

Saltwater Fly Fishing Tips from Captain Russ

When fishing very shallow, grass flats, it’s important to have the necessary skill levels of accuracy and distance with your casts. Most fish will eat if the fly is presented naturally, with the right feeding angle and correct fly movement. Dealing with wind is something every angler, especially fly fishermen, will need to adapt to. And that old saying, “The wind is your friend,” is very true. The best advice I can give you is: 1) Learn how to throw the tightest loop possible. 2) After you’ve been successful throwing that tight loop consistently, commit your tight loop casting to muscle memory. 3) Then, and only then, learn to double haul. This is saltwater folks, and the fish don’t like to hang near you or near the boat. Also, to assist your success in this environment, polarized sunglasses are probably the single-most important item needed. Personally, and after all these years, I use Smith Optics Ignitor Lens for normal skies, and their Amber Lens for cloudy, low-light conditions.

Capt. Russ Shirley
Salty Fly Charters
St. Petersburg, Florida
Website:  https://www.captruss.com
Email:      russ@captruss.com
Phone:     727-459-3896