Rokkie in the Grass

Rookie in the Grass

 

By Chan Ritchie

The bright reflection caught the corner of my eye. I scanned the slick, quiet water far to the north. There she is, near the tree line, two hundred yards away.  Her tail went down long before I got close, but occasional surface ripples allowed me to track her. At fifty feet I could see her, like a bronze snake slithering slowly over grass barely taller than my ankles. Now the hunter was truly the hunted. My steps became stealthy as I chose the best angle from which to approach. Fishing near the trees where the grass is short and the water is gin -clear is First Coast sight-fishing at its best. Even better if they are over the open sand. Cruising fish in these conditions are al-most impossible not to catch. I circled around to my right and laid the fly down a perfect six feet in front of her. As the fly touched down I gave it a fast, aggressive strip. SWOOSH!! Water shot skyward as the powerful tail instinctually catapulted the predator toward her prey, a rooster-tail of foam in her wake. I quickly stripped again and she found a higher gear. Here it comes! Here it comes!! BAM!! The violent collision caused me to release the line so the leader would not snap. She headed for the far away creek, spinning my reel as she left. Ten years ago I may have spooked this fish.

 

Some of you are now thinking-Six feet? Isn’t that too far away to place the fly? Were you taught to put the fly three feet in front of her nose and move it slowly? I tried it that way myself when I was a rookie. I lost count of how many fish I spooked. Face it, when new to the sport we are not great casters. Combine the wind with an overdose of adrenalin and casting accuracy becomes a liability. Even when I made a perfect cast the fish often would not strike. Other times the slightest movement of the fly would send the fish fleeing for the creek. There had to be a better way.

 

Redfish are in the grass for one reason, to eat. For her to ignore your fly would be like a hungry man deliberately walking into McDonalds just to marvel at the ambiance. Why then do so many fly fisher-men fail to draw strikes in the grass and then cast repeatedly until the fish spooks? Simple, the fish does not see the fly. Or if she does see it, then she may be on guard because your fly plopped down too close and invaded her comfort zone. She has frozen while she assesses what it is that just rattled her.  All creatures have comfort zones. If I sneak up behind you and slowly reach around and put my hand in your face, then you with be startled. However, a fast movement of my hand from 10 feet away will have no effect other than to catch your attention.  Get a grass-redfish’s attention without putting her on guard and she will strike almost without exception. It’s in her DNA. Predators have large egos. They hate for anything to get away from them…especially if they are in feeding mode. Therefore, your fly need be only close enough for her to see it as it tries to rapidly escape. I call it the sight-zone.

 

Change your approach to reds in the grass and you can draw a strike from nearly every redfish at which you have a decent casting scenario….and it does not have to be perfect like the scenario you read above.

First, upon seeing a redfish, slow down. She is likely not going anywhere. If she is in tall grass, then wait her out. She will eventually move to better water.

Second, a fish with her head stuck in the mud will not see your fly. Reds will tail on a crab, and then start moving again. Cast when she is up and moving. The closer she is to the surface the better the chance that she will see your fly.

How far out in front of her you should cast will be determined by the thickness of the grass and water clarity. If she can see it, then she will hit it. I try to stay outside of three feet where the chances of spooking her are minimal. (Experienced grassmen catch reds every day by setting a fly down inside of three feet, but you ain’t that guy..not yet.)

If the grass is sparse and the water is not too dirty, then I like 4-6 feet. Remember; strip the fly when it is at her eye-level and keep it at her eye-level. Make it move! Get her attention! She will not spook at that range. If she sees it and starts charging, then keep taking it away. Her predator instinct will take over…..and she will hit the fly like a flaming red lightning bolt.  Again, be patient. Wait for the right casting scenario. Better to wait three minutes for her to get up and cruising than to succumb to red-fever and cast into a poor situation.

A small foam strike-indicator placed eighteen inches above your fly can be magic. Often you will cast, but the fish will stick her head back in the mud or she may turn. She may disappear. Rather than disrupt things by picking up the fly, leave it lying there. Keep your eyes open and be patient. Very often she will end up back on a collision course with your fly. The strike-indicator will allow you to easily locate your fly and judge when it’s time to strip aggressively.

 Fewer casts in the air means less chances to scare. Remember, DO NOT let her get right on top of the fly before you strip. You risk spooking her. Imagine that your crab saw her coming and he is getting out of Dodge before she gets there. Let her get just close enough to witness the attempted escape.

The fly does not much matter. These fish will hit just about anything that can be mistaken for food so tie up something that is your own…and put an excellent weed-guard on it.

Remember, no one ever caught a red when the fly landed too close. However, you can catch a bunch by landing it far and stripping it fast. Fish the sight-zone, put some live-action into your strips and hang on. It works almost every time.