Lines in the Sand: Fly Fishing for Snook in the Summertime

[Music] blistering heat air thick enough to drink through a straw [Music] and faint puffs of offshore wind whisping off the mainland the longest days of the year upon us some despise the dog days of summer for just these reasons but there's one place where the minds of many fly fishermen wander off to the beach [Music] over 1300 miles of sand laden shoreline in case the state of florida and come summer you can find snook hugging tight to the coast as they traverse the southern half of the peninsula as the days begin to lengthen and water temperatures rise snook begin to flush out of their haunts in the dark-bottomed backwater estuaries procreation is on their mind and like wildebeests on the serengeti these fish make their way towards the inlets beaches and shallow water reef systems along the coastline their summertime retreat [Music] wake up enjoy your cup of coffee make sure that bagel is extra crispy and don't hit the beach until the sun has lifted off the horizon that's beach prime time armed with a nine weight fly rod and a white bait fish fly the search for snook begins snook is by far my favorite species to target growing up fishing for them with my dad it's just always been the fish that's on my mind that i've obsessed over and targeting them from the beach with a fly rod is been my favorite way to do it it's a one-man game that's between you and the fish and everything rides on you to make it happen there's nothing else to distract you nothing else to spook them out it's you and that fish when i go beach snook fishing i look at four factors the wind the tide the water clarity and the sun on this day everything lined up as soon as we got to the beach i could see all the features that these fish were going to be holding on although many beaches may look the same to the naked eye the topography can vary immensely once you reach the water's edge troughs sandbars depressions rock and reef are all variables often changing daily and snook frequently use these features when on the move or feeding tides will determine where the hunt begins as well a strong incoming tide may have fish pushed practically on the sand as they feed on croakers in the whitewash catch it at the bottom of the outgoing and chances are you'll be thigh deep standing on the sand bar casting out into deeper water as fish cruise the reef edge pay close attention learning to read the beach can only pay dividends in beachside silver [Music] i was able to feed one right off the rip and it was a nice fish don't get me wrong but i saw plenty way bigger fish crews in the same area and i went to go chase after them but those great conditions that i had quickly changed that big ball of fire in the sky is your best friend when sight fishing clouds are a curse when it comes to snook from the sand in a snap of a finger the lights are out with conditions dwindling i had to make a move it's crazy that a 15 minute ride down the beach can be night and day when it comes to conditions with the water being so clear the majority of the bait is white silver and almost iridescent at times so white's always a good starting point for me a little bit of flash in it and sometimes they want it riding up high on the surface sometimes they want it down low so weight varies as well you just kind of gotta let the fish dictate what they want mother nature's laid the cards out on the table but now it's my job to pull one into eating my fly so i spotted a fish probably 100 yards down the beach and i could tell it was big just from the silhouette it kept coming my way and as soon as i lined up my shot the sun disappeared although i lost sight of the fly that big snook didn't and matching the hatch paid off because she wolfed it eight eight nice fish oh man that feels nice nice little pack of fish just came through and uh nice lead on her front fish actually which is not often the case front fish ran out charged it didn't let it get out of her sights and here we are as soon as i hooked the fish i knew it was one of the biggest snook i've ever hooked with a fly rod and i just had to say a prayer that she didn't chafe through the leader or pull the hook and luckily it didn't oh boy oh boy what a fish yeah it's a real one ah that's what we come for after releasing that fish i was on cloud nine my biggest snook on fly to date as if my knees weren't shaking enough already i have a shot at an even bigger fish and i knew the presentation had to be on point sometimes these fish want it six feet out in front of them a nice lead not spook them out but this fish happened to get up in a school of bait with a couple others and the perfect light presentation right on her head triggered a reaction bite and she didn't even hesitate this one's bigger than the last one washed him with school like five fish he just came in and came in and ran these minnows real hard they stayed right up on the shoreline and uh just happened to make a good enough cash for oh boy drag sticking oh oh my boy wow this is by far my biggest snook on fly perfect hook set right in the corner of the mouth got lucky there we go oh man what a fish what a fish this was the fish i've been trying to catch with a fly rod for years and to catch two fish of that caliber in the same day i mean that is the epitome of why i love beach snook fishing with a fly rod ah the dog days of summer for anglers willing to endure the heat the allure of countless cruising beachside snook is certainly worth breaking a sweat over [Music] you

Channel: Deep See Visuals

Views: 64,056

Keywords: snook, fishing, fly, florida, summer, beach, ocean, offshore, linesider, sport, sportsman, sightfish, summertime, bait, sand, sun, salt, saltwater, fish

Id: CsqOO-yKbyg

Length: 8min 52sec (532 seconds)

Published: Fri Feb 19 2021