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Orlando’s White River

Fly Shop News

October 2014

Welcome to the Orlando White River Fly Shop. We hope you’re able to find

everything you need, be it rods, reels, line, flies, a shoulder to cry on as you

relate a story of a fish missed, or just someone to listen as you brag about the big one that didn’t get away.

Anyway, here’s what’s going on.

New Products and Special Deals

Enrico Puglisi Fly Patterns.

We’ve added a good number of patterns to the

assortment and I for one am glad to see the

increased variety. Everyone that’s been around

saltwater fly fishing for a while is familiar with

the material and the realistic baitfish imitations

that are possible when using it, but some folks

may not have seen the crab, critter, and spawning

shrimp flies that we now have available. I

especially like the crab and critter flies, but right

now (at this time of year) it’s all about mullet

and we have a good number of them either slow

sinking or floating.

Stop in and see them today and maybe you’ll

find one that just has to join your collection on

the water.

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Clinics and Classes Our classes are provided as regularly as possible. The best thing to do is call in to determine whether or not

the session is going to take place. Manpower requirements, special events, or weather may require

cancelling a session and we apologize in advance if this causes any inconvenience. Please call the night

before a casting clinic or the morning before tying class to find out if things are going according to plan. The

phone number is (407)563-5200.

Fly Casting: We offer free casting clinics Saturday mornings at 10 AM and Sunday morning at 11 AM, for

anyone who might need some help with their form or get the most distance and accuracy whether they’ve been doing it a while or just getting started. Equipment is provided if necessary, but if you have a rod, it’s best to learn and practice with what you will be using on the water. Our class size is limited to 8 people and

will require prior signup. Just call in to put your name on the list. We’re also going to offer one-on-one instruction throughout the week on a limited basis when time and

manpower allows. Just stop in and let us go through our work schedules to determine availability. This is your chance to get personal instruction and work on specific issues or skills.

Fly Tying: The next freshwater tying cycle starts on November 6, 2014. We’re tying five freshwater flies in consecutive weeks and finish the course with a session on rigging, casting strategy, and the like. Classes are held at 7:00 pm on Wednesday evenings in the fly shop.

We’ll have a sign in sheet available on the first class of each six week course for folks that plan to complete the sessions and receive a certificate. Newcomers are welcome to join the classes at any time but they won’t

be eligible for the certificate since they have not completed all six weeks of a specific course. Sorry guys. We will continue to alternate fresh and saltwater throughout the rest of the year so there will be other chances to get in on a complete six-week course.

Fishing Forecasts Central Florida Saltwater

I should hope you all can guess what the highlight of the

month is going to be based on the picture to the left.

Mullet! Mullet! Mullet!

The run will be going full swing by mid-month and we’ve

already got some good reports of action all along the east coast

as of this writing (9/24/2014), starting at New Smyrna and

moving on down through Melbourne. And it’s not likely to

slow down much until the colder weather settles in for good, sometime in mid to late November. The real trick

to the fishery is getting out there when the conditions prove to be conducive to casting a fly rod into the surf.

I’d like to see surf conditions to be 2 feet or less, a west wind, and a high tide sometime around 9:00 AM.

Those are the conditions I’ve come to like but I’m willing to bet that some of the regulars have their own

favorite as well. You just have to get out there and hit it at different times till you find the right combination.

One thing that I inadvertently discovered last year was the fact that the presence of mullet alone doesn’t mean

that the predators are there as well. Although we say a lot about “the mullet run,” I’ve come to believe that it is

more properly a “baitfish” run that includes everything from mullet to pogies and anchovies (glass minnows).

And finding a combination of these prey items is much more conducive to locating the predators than having

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only one type of food source. Finding a beach busy with shore birds picking up stranded glass minnows, and

the air full of diving pelicans and terns, indicates that spanish mackerel, bluefish, jacks, and ladyfish should be

in the area which draws the tarpon and sharks to the party. I think finding a complete food chain with a greater

number of links is better than having one level or size of prey and relying on the predators to be large enough to

eat that one species.

Fish the beach at this time of year by moving from location to location looking for all the pieces of the puzzle to

come together. Keep moving if something’s missing.

The inshore fishing should be pretty good as well as long as you are throwing a mullet pattern and the fish are

willing to cooperate. Getting one of the truly large redfish to eat is a tough proposition unless you’re willing to

chuck half a chicken on a ten weight. I’ve seen 40 pounders chasing down mullet that were approaching ten

inches and there wasn’t a fly onboard that would have gotten their interest. So in the end I would suggest

looking into some of the larger imitations made of synthetic material that will shed water easily and remain

light enough to throw on properly sized rods.

Sebastian Inlet should still be a great place to wrangle a snook or two through the rest of this month so get down

there and wet a line. A nighttime-outgoing tide is somewhat preferable but a moving tide is the key regardless

of which way it’s going. Just keep in mind that the fish turn around and always face into the current so many

times will be more productive to cast up current and maintain a tight line as the fly drifts towards you. I’m not

terribly good at that style of presentation so I’m going to leave the snook to you for this season.

Central Florida Freshwater

Not a whole lot going on around here other than the weather

cooling off and the days getting shorter. The fishing will

continue to get better and the conditions more comfortable as

we get further into fall.

I’ll be headed north for some steelhead action towards the

end of the month and it’s getting harder and harder to pay

attention on a regular basis. And let me tell you, pictures

like this one from my buddy Ron aren’t helping matters very

much.

Locally, we’re seeing an increase in traffic related to crappie

fishing and the late fall species. I think some guys are

jumping the gun a little bit but they want to be ready when the fishing hits its peak.

One thing on the horizon is the potential change of the fishing regulations of many of our premier bass fisheries

including Turkey Lake and Lake Underhill. Both of these have been managed specifically to provide a high

quality bass experience with quantity and quality being the goal. The FWC is considering changing or

eliminating the “No Possession” rules and opening most if not all of the lakes to recreational possession. I

would suggest that stakeholders take a look the proposed changes, and contact the FWC with your opinions on

the matter. Your voice may be the one that makes a difference.

Bass and panfish activity is going to increase and they’ll eat a bit more aggressively in preparation for the

winter months but before things really start cooling off, activity should be just short of spectacular. Bass will

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be schooling up and moving into the shallows earlier in the day making it a wonderful time to cast a topwater.

and they should be in the mood to hit just about everything that moves whether it’s a worm, fish, frog, or lizard.

The peacocks will be schooling up down south as well according to some of the experts but I don’t think I’ll be

able to dedicate the time to get down there to look for them but hitting the water for these boys can still be

productive throughout the fall. Start looking for structure that holds heat then be sure to hit those locations later

in the winter and then early spring. There are just so many fish in the region that you can’t help catching

something. I would concentrate on deeper water and throwing the sinking flies.

Here’s a picture of Andy while he worked his magic during the fly tying demonstration he put on a few weeks

ago. He had quite a crowd gathered around him and I’m sure everyone enjoyed watching him create some

beautiful Scottish flies.

Tippet of the Month I recently got into a conversation with a friend and fellow fly angler about line color, and it really got me

thinking about how much or how little the actual color makes a difference to us or the fish. I looked online

and determined that the jury is still out and is likely to be in deliberation until the zombie apocalypse levels

the playing field.

Let’s take a look at line color and try to arrive at a logical resolution based on a few simple questions.

Question: Why are fly lines colored in the first place?

Answer: Lines are colored to allow the angler to see them while they’re lying on the water so that he/she can

mend as necessary to control the drift and limit line-induced drag on the fly, as well as seeing it during the

casting stroke while learning what proper loop formation and control looks like.

Question: What does a fish see with regards to the line?

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Answer: I think that all depends on where the line is in the water column, the clarity of the water, and the

position of the sun relative to the line and the fish. It stands to reason that, a line laying on the surface of the

water, backlit by the sun will appear to be a dark line or shadow regardless of its original color, similar to

topwater flies and lures. A line that’s suspended in the water column or is closer to the fish’s level being

well lit by the sun will appear in color based on the individual fish’s eye and what colors of the spectrum it’s

capable of seeing.

Note: The most technically accurate definition of color is:

"Color is the visual effect that is caused by the spectral composition of the light emitted, transmitted,

or reflected by objects." (http://www.colormatters.com/color-and-vision/how-the-eye-sees-color) The

mind actually perceives color based on that portion of the spectrum reflected to our eyes from the object

we’re looking at, so, a backlit object doesn’t reflect light but rather casts a shadow.

Question: Why are most Intermediate lines clear?

Answer: Intermediate lines are intended to be suspended at, or close to the fish’s level so if they were

colored and used under well-lit conditions, the fish would see the color, thus being obviously out of place.

But no matter how “clear” the line is, it doesn’t possess the same light refractive properties of the water it’s

in, so it will never be truly “invisible” and will likely cast a shadow when backlit. The angler’s need to see

the line at this point is irrelevant because the line is submerged anyway and mending isn’t necessary. Why

not use a clear line all the time? Once again there are times we need to see the line such as sight fishing for

reds and bonefish. The colored line aids in judging distance and fly position, so having clear line under

those conditions might be great from the fish’s perspective but becomes a handicap from the angler’s.

Question: Why are saltwater lines more muted while freshwater lines more brightly colored?

Answer: Saltwater anglers are generally casting directly at a fish or location and don’t have a great deal of

current or adverse water conditions to correct (mend) for in order to get the proper presentation. We’re

stripping the fly to impart motion rather than using the current to take the fly to the fish. Seeing the line in

saltwater applications is only necessary for judging distance and achieving proper line control in the air.

Question: Why are many manufacturers creating lines that are two or more different colors?

Answer: Different colors are being used to identify the running line and shooting head portions of the line

which help anglers with casting performance and control. Some lines even have brightly colored sections to

function as integral strike indicators.

Question: What actually scares the fish upon fly presentation?

Answer: Any one of a combination of factors could be the reason a fish spooks off, line color, line splash,

leader construction, fly color/style/size, a weed stuck to a connecting knot. Line color is probably the least

of the potential problems since we should be keeping it as far out of the fish’s sight range as possible.

Question: Which colored line casts better?

Answer: The one that matches your shirt!

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Species of the Month

Wahoo: Acanthocybium solanderi Appearance: A member of the mackerel family, long and streamlined with about 30 dark wavy bars for

camouflage.

Habitat: Found offshore; generally not in schools.

Behavior: Known for their tremendous runs and shifts of direction.

State Record: 139 lb, caught near Marathon

Fishing Tips and Facts: Wahoo are caught by trolling bait and artificial lures on flatlines.

Additional Information: Image Credit: Diane Rome Peebles

Success Stories

Stephen’s showing us how it’s done with two Spanish Macs at the

same time. He ultimately had some trouble with more toothy critters

taking his catch, flies, and line from him.

I finally got my

flood tide red a

few weeks ago so

I had to show it

off. Tricky fishery

but well worth the

effort when

everything comes

together.

Conclusion In closing, we would like to thank you for your business and we hope to see you again soon. From all of us here at Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World Orlando, keep your dry flies dry, your wet flies wet, and may the wind always be in your favor.

Sincerely,

Brian “Beastman” Eastman