6/10/2007

Started just after day light this morning in Bessie Heights. The tide was almost bottomed out and that isn't a good thing fishing the flats. There was little activity but I did spot 2 Reds working the edge of a pipe line cut the 1st hour I was out. I covered a lot of ground today, from the South end up to the North end of Bessie. I found several Reds working a small cove thick with grass about 8:30am. Yesterday the activity started about the same time. I moved on down to another spot that has held fish in the past and low and behold there were 3 small Reds working shrimp in this pocket. I was scouting but I couldn't resist casting a spoon fly in the activity. I hooked up with the 12" Rat Red pictured. The little guy put up a good fight on the Orvis Zero G 8WT. mid flex rod. I hope these small guys take up residence in this area and get to be big boys by next year. I left the Rats feeding and moved on North.The tide is still flat and nothing is moving except the thermometer. Finally around 1:00pm the tide started to come back in. I found several more 26 inch sized Reds working a shallow ridge where the current was flowing over it. A big thunder storm is building in the East so I cut over and fished the incoming tide of the main Bessie canal. The specks were working shrimp to the surface so I got out the spinning rod and popping cork and caught several schoolies and a few just legal Trout. They liked an LSU color DOA shad tail on a 1/4 oz jig under the cork.I have to say the popping cork jig set up has really paid off this year. I cast a chrt. clouser to the specks but they didn't like it.

I did loose a nice sized Flounder right at the boat earlier in the day that hit he clouser. All in all it was a good scouting trip. I saw approx. 14 fish that could have been sight cast to without much effort. Hopefully they will still be there Thursday!

Tight lines, Capt. Michael Rector