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Fly Fishing Schools

Fly Fishing Techniques

Fly Fishing the Beach

If your a saltwater flyfisher and you have not yet tried the beach, sit back, read on and I will see you out there when you finish reading. By the way, you will get some strange looks from the bait soaking fraternity, and be advised that there is no Trout out there in them there waters. But after you land a 2kg Golden Trevally, or a 500gram Bream, they all want to learn more about this saltwater fly fishing. So if you don’t mind talking, keep your captures as private as you can or get ready to talk your head off.

The beach offers some exciting fishing for a wide variety of species, from Flathead to Pelagics. Wide open areas, free of obstacles to foul your cast, except for those curious on lookers, who really did not want that ear pierced, so watch out for them. The beach offers a variety of fish grouped together in a small area, in either a hole or gutter. These formations tend to be my most productive areas to fish. However every day is not the same so if you get a chance to fish the sand banks, give it a shot. Fish tend to move out of the holes and onto the banks at the top of the tide, providing them with a chance at dislodged and new food supplies. Also generally speaking, you are normally fishing over clean sand beds, free of nasty fly line shredders and snags. This of course does not mean there is nothing to snare your line, at times there is and you should be aware of any such structure. However this is just another area which attracts fish and another method you have to get around to catch them.

The purpose of a hole is to provide an area into which water flows back to the ocean. Gutters form parallel to the beach and carry the receding waters to the hole. There is always movement in both these formations and this movement carries food particles within it. Water washing over a sand bank dislodges food from the sand and carries it into either a hole or gutter. Bait schools can be found in either formation, which provide smoother water for them to feed and hide from their predators. A hole can be quite easily found, usually defined by darker water, with no wave action breaking through it, close or near to the shore line. The darker water is an indication of deeper water and is usually assisted in its formation by a rip. The hole protrudes out towards the ocean and may or may not have gutters attached to each side. Sometimes the hole may angle back to the ocean, but this is dependant of wind, current and several other trivial matters. Gutters or drains, run parallel to the shore line. Waves generally do not break in these areas, although they produce a dumping wave onto the beach. A well defined gutter may form right on the shore line and become quite deep as the tide builds.

My best results have come from holes and gutters and it is the edges of these formations that I generally work. Fish swim along the edges looking for food. This food may come in the form of many things but usually in the form of sea creatures. Crabs, shrimp, mussels and an endless host of other things are dislodged from the ocean floor. These piscatorial food scraps are swept along in the wave or water current, sometimes ending up in either a hole or gutter. And so it is that fish swim not so mindlessly but relentlessly up and down, round and round the edges of the formation, with an ever keen eye watching and waiting for that food morsel to be washed into the hole or gutter. There in lies a clue as to the best or most suitable fly patterns and fish location.

Fish in these locations tend to be a little spooky, so it is best to stay three to five metres from the edges of the formations. I like to cast parallel to the edges, working the fly two or three metres into the formation. Generally speaking I strip line slowly as water movement in these areas tends to give the fly plenty of action. The beauty of this movement is that it is natural movement, doing the same thing with the fly as happens to normal food particles. If you have proven the location by sighting or catching a fish, cast onto the sand bank and let the water movement carry your fly into the deeper water, then simply wait for the hit. If you are not getting hits on the edges, chances are the fish have moved in towards the centre of the formation. This usually indicates that they have been spooked. You may have to wait for them to return to the edges before you continue getting hits. It may also be that larger predators have moved into the area. Are you ready for them? Usually not but the shock value is a great rush.

I like to carry Crazy Charlies and Clousers in several colours and sizes. These shrimp type patterns seem to be the most productive, unless I am targeting a specific species. Both these patterns have taken many a fine fish. The more common species that fall victim to these patterns are Bream, Flathead, Whiting, Dart and almost the entire Trevally family. I have also taken Tailor on these flies and lost them as well, the fly that is, deep in the gut of the fish. But is that not what all good fish stories are made up of!

For the beach work I have a preference towards an 8-9 weight rod. Any smaller and I feel you are looking at breakages. My preference is towards a Shooting Head with 30 metres of running line.

Ok there it is, now I suggest you grab your gear and shoot straight up to the beach. Waders are of great value, a stripping basket an absolute must and a good set of polarised sunglasses vitally important. Watch your back cast as that resistance is usually an interested onlooker. The beach is a great place to fish, an ideal place to practise and an opportunity to catch a bag full of different species. Another plus when the conditions are right, you do not have to cast a full line. Once you locate the fish you may very well find, you only need to roll cast back to where the fish are. If the fish are there, you will normally find them no more than 5 to 10 meters from your feet. Watch your shadow and step lightly or you will spook the fish. Spook them too often and they will refuse to eat your fly.

So go, get out there and explore your local or preferred beach. With a little time spent and thought given, I am sure you will be making more trips to the beach more often.

Good luck and tight lines, it is a great place to be.

Dredging Flies for Snapper

Chrysophrys Auratus – So they tell me. I just call it a Knobby if it’s big or has a knob on its head; and a Pinky if it smaller and no knob. Much easier. Shallow water snapper tend to have a smaller knob than a deep water (65mtrs +) snapper. The large bump doesn’t denote age, only its feeding habits. It’s a theory that they will use their heads to nudge food off the reef.

fished for snapper for a living and the biggest snapper nearly always come from relatively shallow water (water less than 20mtrs). One of the biggest I can remember was caught off the rocks by Ray Reinberger when I lived at Angourie in the early 70’s. It was an awesome 34lb! My first introduction to snapper fishing was casting unweighted pilchards around the shallow reefs and washes in the Yamba to Coffs Harbour area and out to the Solitary Islands. Rigged on a set of gangs, usually unweighted, using a 10’ rod and an old Alvey side cast reel with no drag. Great fun. Then like most commercial fishermen, we went wider and wider, out to grounds where 10lb of lead wasn’t enough to hold bottom and you had to use double handed Alvey deck winches.

Snapper really love reefs that have been disturbed by big swells, big oceanic and tidal currents. I find that snapper tend to be in a little deeper water (deeper than 30’) when the ocean is calm and clear due to offshore winds and I’ve found them in very shallow water when it’s stirred up by wind or swell.

When setting up in shallow water, it’s important to be as quiet as possible especially banging on an aluminum hull. I actually like to switch off my motor and drift the final bit to the start of the drift so as not to spook them. I never travel above idle when anywhere near where I think the snapper are. Best times 3hrs around daylight and dusk, especially if there’s a tide change. The higher the sun the deeper I fish. Overcast days can produce increased activity during daylight hours as it offers cover to the spooky snapper. Snapper are very shy particularly during daylight in shallow water.
Snapper tend to slam a fly and run very hard. That’s what I really love about them, and the fact they’re fantastic on the table.

Burley will increase your chances of finding snapper. Burley should be like smelling the onions on a barbeque; the scent should attract them to the food source - your boat. My burley concoction is very simple. Everything that is not moving is cut into a cube the size of your thumb nail. To this you add bran, chook pellets & tuna oil. Once on the water you add sea water just enough to make very thick slurry. This is ladled into the water at the rate of 1 scoop (1 cube and a little of the mix) at a time. When the contents of one scoop disappear you put the next in. The strength of the current will determine how quick this will be. The trick is a consistent unbroken trail. Snapper will lose interest if the trail is broken for a while, say unhooking or fighting a fish. Keep the trail going.

The technique we use is very similar to fly fishing for bass when they are down deep. I concentrate in areas where the reef is between 5mtr to 20mtr deep. Local knowledge is definitely an advantage but don’t let that deter you. All major shallow reefs are shown on local navigation charts and this is a very good starting point.

A good working sounder is a great advantage, an even better advantage if you can fine tune it to read even the smallest detail. What I like to find is a show of bait or actually the snapper themselves. How can I tell they are snapper you see on the sounder? Well, truth is you cannot tell. You make an educated guess by adding what you see on the screen to the local knowledge you have already learned. Even not seeing a show of fish on the sounder doesn’t mean there’s no fish, they maybe grazing over that particular bottom and were 50mtr away when you sounded through. All good bottom structure is worth a try. Sometimes you’ll be surprised.

I like to anchor when there’s a lot of current or drift when the current is slow. I do prefer a bit of current, the old saying “no run - no fun” is very true. A good working sea anchor is a definite advantage especially if there’s a bit of wind.

Of course the best lines are fast sinking lines, really any fast sinking line. The main issue is that you know where your line is at all times. The more you know about the sink rate of your line and fly combination the more success you’ll achieve.

Snapper will eat a wide range of flies, woolly things, hairy things and of course my favourite Clousers. The fly is not the main factor for success - it’s the fly line and knowing where it is in the water column. The best results don’t come from being able to cast 100ft but from learning where the fly is on the end of the fly line as it sinks towards the reef. As your skill level increases you’ll be able to “shine the dumb bell eyes” on the reef itself without getting snagged.

So have some fun and spend a relaxing day dredging a few flies around your local shallow reefs you’ll be surprised what you’ll find. We’ve found Kingfish, Trevally, Bream, Tailor School Mackerel, Sweetlip, Parrot and even Longtail Tuna.