Yesterday a local, beginning fly angler asked for some advice when targeting speckled trout... This was my reply

At dawn when it's calm (or at dusk in the same conditions) trout eat surface patterns really well. I like poppers and deerhair sliders (or Dahlberg Divers). You'll need a long cast across a moving current with a fairly light leader (tippet no heavier than 20 lb). Lay your fly out and just let it drift for a moment or two, then pop it with a sharp, short strip so that it makes some noise but doesn't move much, then let it sit again. Trout love to come up to the surface and look at something in trouble for a moment or two before attacking. That's what you're aiming for. Work places where you've had success with other methods in the past. I'm very fond of having one angler work a topwater plug while the other works the popping bug.... I always tell my anglers to expect that the first hit will be a miss and not to react to it... the second strike won't miss at all... Line management is critical, you want the tip of your fly rod in the water pointing directly at the fly at all times. All your hooksets need to be with your line hand (a strip strike) not the rod if you want to succeed.

Once the wind is up (or nothing is hitting topwater...) go to sinking patterns like Seaducers, my own Silhouette, good sized Clousers with large beadchain eyes (the Whitewater Special works really well in Biscayne as well as the backcountry..). You'll be able to find a good selection up at the Ft. Lauderdale Fly Shop (I'm one of their tyers...) and tell the folks there exactly what you're going after. If one of you is a tyer, pick up a sample or two then tie your own... I work sinking patterns pretty much the same as topwater - always across current. If you aren't in slightly moving water, go where the water is moving if you want any bites... Sub-surface, work your flies with a medium retrieve, strip - pause, strip - pause. You're trying to look like a crippled bait, an easy target. Trout don't like to chase fast moving stuff - they're much more likely to sit and attack something as it comes by if it looks easy...

One last thought, everything that's sub-surface needs to be as weedless as possible. Over the grass flats in Biscayne Bay you'll spend a lot of time getting stuff off of your flies otherwise (and nothing will touch a fly with the slightest bit of grass or weed on it...). That's why most of what I tie for the shop (and use myself) has a wire weedguard... Hope this helps, here's some pics of the flies to try...

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I do the Silhouette (first fly) in every color under the sun, it's similar to a Seaducer, but with a Deceiver-style tail and lead eyes.. worked at the mid-depths or near the bottom it's just right when a pilchard is what they're eating...

The second bug, a Razor Cut Mullet, is a slider that works well when fish are working small mullet.

The third pic is a small, soft head popper on a #1 hook that we've had great success with... work it like a very small minnow that can't swim, it's got to look like it's trying to swim and make a little noise every time you do a very short, sharp strip...

The last pattern is a Clouser style fly (the Whitewater Special) on a 2/0 hook with a wire weedguard and very large bead chain eyes. Some days it's almost all we use... Note that the wing is almost twice the length of the hook...


Tight Lines
Capt Bob LeMay
(954) 435-5666