Specs on a fly in the OBX sound!

[kiko13]

OLd Man and I went out with Capt. Bryan DeHart on Monday and we caught some nice specs (up to 19") on the long rod! Capt. Bryan specializes in light tackle and flyfishing in the sound and other areas of the Outer Banks....class guy!

Ernie

[David M]

WTG Ernie! Glad to hear you and Doug got into 'em. Did you guys get any pics? I always love to see specks. They are one pretty fish.

Thanks for the report. David

[Fat Tire]

More like Reds and Blacks. Chartered Capt. Barrett Brown out of New Orleans. Wonderful Guide. Despite the poor conditions he put us on fish. Could not have had a better time. Cannot wait to get back down there. 1 Flounder, 3 Black Drum (19, 23 and 27lbs) 2 Red Drum (9 and 11lbs)

[Fat Tire]

Sorry kiko13. Brain Fart!!!

[BAY DOG]

Good job Ernie! What, no east wind? - TonyH

[The Old Man]

First off, Ernie gets big ups for inviting me and being a generous guy...

We TEED OFF on the specs using popping corks w/ a jig-head underneath...I've never fished that way before, and it is really effective AND a helluva lot of fun...the fishing was so good that it was stupid, but the technique is a little tricky and requires some skill and practice. We caught specks (lots of them), a couple small flounder, croaker, and one puppy drum. Probably put 40+ fish int he boat in less than 4 hours. I already bought a few of those popping cork rigs....

Then we got into some good water/wind conditions for the fly rod, and started catching fish that way, 8-wt w/ intermediate line and Halloween colored clouser...got another 6-8 specks on the fly rod

AND ERNIE GOT HIS FIRST EVER SPECK ON THE FLY ROD

Bryan is a class guy and very generous w/ info, he got us into good fishing immediately. I would recommend him for a guide on the OBX without hesitation.

Thanks again Ernie, I hope we can get out on the yaks this Friday. I drove by Oregon Inlet, there are some nice spots near the launch...also New Inlet looked good. Hope you get into some fish today, although it's already blowing out there (7:00 a.m.)

-- Doug

[kiko13]

Today, I went out solo in the kayak (100 degrees and 20+kt winds) and managed to catch more specs on the fly rod and a puppy drum on the popping cork. Hotter than all get out! After drinking 4 bottles of water in 4 hours, I called it a day after getting a headache. Don't need heat exhausion!

DavidM- pix will come later....lots of them!

BayDog-No east wind but a nasty SW wind! I did managee to throw the 9 wt a few times though.

OldMan- my pleasure and Friday sounds good to me. The area I fished today had lots of bait but short on strikes.

Fat Tire- no worries....sounds lke some good fishing!

Ernie

[Flying Fish]

Doug: That popper--jig combo is pretty much the standard way of fishing for specks along the southeast coasts; I've done it in FL and in LA, and it is fun; I've even got some of those floats somewhere in my basement if you want to try the method for rock next time we're in Chesapeake Bay. But I'll take the fly rod any day. Glad you both got into 'em.

FF

[kiko13]

The jig combo was not the normal "popping" cork. It was a "clickling" float. Nevertheless it was effective. Trying again in the morning in the yak and ZI am hping for calmer winds.

Had it not been for the winds, we would have melted down here. Never seen it so hot!

Ernie

[Flying Fish]

Hi, Ernie. The locals have almost never seen it that hot down there, it was 104 in RDU today, one degree shy of the all-time record. We had only two really beastly days up here, 98 at DCA on Tuesday and 102 on Wednesday (yesterday), but it's cooled off a bit with a little rain.

I want to see one of those "clicking" floats, maybe you or Doug can bring one back with you. I was going to come down there myself next weekend, but sadly I need to be on the other coast then for a memorial service. You and Doug catch a bunch more fish for me.

FF