Category Archives: South Texas Fly Fishing Reports

Texas Fall Fly Fishing

Fly Fishing the Texas Coast in the Fall is an amazing time. Recent offshore rains have really gotten the fish in the bays feeding aggressively. We are experiencing some of the most awesome eats from redfish in the shallows now, thanks to the cooling effect of the rain!

fly fishing, texas, fly, port, aransas, fishing, tfo, red, drum, redfish, fly rod, airflo, take a kid fishing, — 12yo Ella getting to play tug o’ war with some Texas redfish

Olive green crabs in size 2 and 4 are working well and small 2inch shrimp patterns in black/chartreuse or copper/tan color combos also working well. During low light conditions, we put on our Smith Optics Igniter Lenses to really turn the lights on.

In the low light conditions

We will adapt our strategies in the low light conditions by shortening the leader to 6ft. And use a larger 1/0 unweighted fly like crab or mullet imitations. These flies will usually have brighter colors like chartreuse green or red/white. This is so that the angler can see the fly better and the fish can also see the flies from a greater distance. Keeping our casts short and precise can make all the difference in the game. Topwater bites are also on the rise. During early morning hours and continue into the day if cloud cover and wind persist.

smith, optics, low light, igniter, over slot, redfish, texas, port, aransas, corpus, bay, christi, beavertail, guide, trips, adventure, red, drum, lighthouse, lakes, fly, fishing, port, laguna, madre, rockport — Creepin the skiff through dead mangrove sloughs in low light conditions. You can bet we used Smith’s low light Igniter lenses!

On random days in the fall the wind may persist. And so we need to stay prepared to adapt our strategies even more and hop out of the boat for a quick wade in the “Longest Mile”.

September dates are available NOW! Use the Book Now button to view availability. More and more red drum, speckled trout, and black drum are going to be pushing up into the shallows. You should be there to get in the action!

over slot, redfish, texas, port, aransas, corpus, bay, christi, beavertail, guide, trips, adventure, red, drum, lighthouse, lakes, fly, fishing, port, laguna, madre, rockport — Marks first over-slot red

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Slow down and smell the fish

slow, down, smell, fish, big ugly, over slot, redfish, texas, port, aransas, corpus, bay, christi, beavertail, guide, trips, adventure, red, drum, lighthouse, lakes, fly, fishing, port, laguna, madre, rockport — Wade fishing Texas middle coast can make this drum your 4th fish in your Grand Slam (redfish, trout, flounder to round it out)

We got to slow down and smell the fish recently. This day did not disappoint. We had a lot of shots at fish like this surprisingly and we caught one each…

This big black drum was one that got the hook. It is quite a cumbersome ordeal to wrangle these big lethargic drum to hand. Oftentimes though, I too have to remind myself to slow down and smell the fish. Unfortunately these fish don’t smell like roses but the principal goes further than just enjoying the moment as the saying implies.

Wade fish the Texas Marsh to Slow down

It has its merits, and during the right time of year you could even land a grand slam of redfish, black drum, flounder, and trout on the fly or spinning tackle. Slow down and smell the fish is not all that bad of an idea if you’re a keen outdoorsman.

flounder, over slot, redfish, texas, port, aransas, corpus, bay, christi, beavertail, guide, trips, adventure, red, drum, lighthouse, lakes, fly, fishing, port, laguna, madre, rockport — Texas Coast wade fishing provides the low and slow angles needed to put flounder in hand

Certain bait species produce slicks and or oily residue on the surface of the water which can unique scents. When mullet are concentrated and being fed heavily upon, the wind will waft the odors of the mullet downwind and if you have a sharp nose, you can pickup on some of these locations. The menhaden and speckled trout are also two of the sweeter smelling odors. Some even say the trout slicks will smell like watermelon! Have you ever experienced the watermelon smells on the water?

Dates available for September, October and November!

You can book a trip now by calling Capt Kenjo direct at 361-500-2552, or shoot him a text message with your name and preferred fishing date and/or send an email ASAP…

OR… simply use the blue button below for express and convenient booking! Then don’t forget to slow down and smell the fish!

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Jacks in Town

Jack is back in town and these busters will test your angling skills. May dates are available NOW! With jacks in town, the excitement grows!

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We got a nice day out front and went on a scouting mission. Within just a few hours we had raised 3 from the deep and one managed to swipe the half-and-half fly aggressively from below the surface. Within 10 minutes later the jack crevelle succumbed to our game of tug and war.

Take note of the “down and dirty” fighting technique with the 11wt fly rod.

The extremely low rod angles fight the fish with the butt section of the rod which applies maximum pressure to these brutal jack fish. You’ve got to put the hurting on the jacks in town, or they will certainly put one on you!

Jack Trip Exceptions: when the weather is too rough to search open water comfortably, we may default to the flats and do some wade fishing for redfish and black drum. These are great backup plans for a day. Often times though even a standard redfish trip gets interrupted by these jackfish! So either way, book a trip anytime this summer and Capt Kenjo will be certain to put you on some fish. And with emphasis on the fish of your dreams! There are also chances to locate and target big bull redfish but please note that these big redfish are not males (as the name Bull implies). The large redfish are actually most likely females as the male red drum do not grow as big.

Adults redfish mature by 3 – 5 years of age; approximate length at maturity: males – 28 inches, females – 33 inches. Red Drum can also grow to incredible sizes. At least historically they have. The largest redfish ever recorded was caught in the waters around Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. That redfish weighed an amazing 94 pounds and 2 ounces.

jacks, crevelle, crevalle, texas, port, aransas, fly, fishing, guide, adventures, things to do, fishing, beavertail, skiff, strike, offshore, in, town — Deep Sea Smiles

Wading for Spring

It is springtime now in Port Aransas, the tides are finally returning to the bay. And now the spring classic weather patterns are well established. We can experience fog, wind, light clouds, or fully overcast days, and plenty of bluebird days mixed in there too. What is difficult is predicting the weather. But, if you are prepared when wading for spring then you know what makes wade fishing the perfect method for catching more fish on the fly.

SPECIAL OFFER for dates remaining in April when wading for Spring Redfish

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Get 15% off a full day of wade-fishing (single angler only) when you book a trip for any available date remaining in this month of APRIL 2022!!!

Call NOW or BOOK ONLINE ASAP!

Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552

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To get in the water with the fish changes the Angler’s experience entirely. In my experience, wading the marsh is more productive these days than poling it in the skiff. This lets us slow down and give the redfish and black drum a chance to come to us. Wading for Spring in the Texas Marsh can be exhilarating and if you have done it before you know it can be awesome sight fishing!

Wade fishing is an up close and personal experience with a redfish in the Texas Marsh. Observing the red drum do what they do best can be enthralling. Last year saw 5 months of cloud cover from February to June and we wade fished the whole time and caught lots of redfish and drum on foot. Wade fishing the marsh is a highly effective and excellent method for dealing with less than ideal conditions such as wind and low light. So get ready to do some wading (Get your Simms Zipits here) for Spring-time redfish & black drum! They are here and the feedbag is getting going good!

Protected: Prime Dates 2022

Consecutively Wading

When the weather turns sour, consecutively wading is a great answer!

It was one hell of a spell of bad weather that lasted 5 months straight. February to first week of June. First wind and fog, then wind and clouds, then rain, and Tons of it! To adapt, we spent damn near the whole time consecutively wading the salt marsh of the middle Texas Coast. And that is exactly where we found consistency when the going got tough!

redfish, fly, fishing, red, drum, texas, fly, fishing, texas, coast, beavertail, hatch, outdoors, r.l. winston, airflo, line, reels, rods, fly, port aransas, corpus, christi, rockport, aransas, pass, redfish, drum, red, black, jacks, wade, fishing, jack, crevalle, crevelle,,consecutively — Wade fishing Texas Reds during Spring Rains

The best way to deal with low light and windy conditions is to slow down. By getting in the water with the fish you can catch fish on difficult days while everyone else is waiting for the weather to break. Wade fishing makes our presence as small as possible and lets us go slow enough for the redfish to reveal themselves. Smith Optics makes their low light “Ignitor” Lenses and they can really turn on the lights during low light days.

With little reprieve from the constant wind, clouds, rain and lightning we waded on. Little did the famously preferred clear blue skies or moderate winds prevail. Pea soup fog persisted for 60 days and nights. Then came the rains and thunderstorms. And so did we. We continued wading and persisted and prevailed.

This year we managed very well all the inclement weather by wading on the days that dictated the need to wade fish. All in all, it came out to about 17 consecutive weeks. When we waded on redfish and black drum we got’em good too. It all felt so crazy to not pole the skiff for much at all if any for all that time. But with those kinds of weather patterns, we did what we had to do to adapt to the conditions and wound up catching quite a few fish!

Book your next wading or skiff fly fishing trip with Capt Kenjo.

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wade fishing, redfish, fly, fishing, red, drum, texas, fly, fishing, texas, coast, beavertail, hatch, outdoors, r.l. winston, airflo, line, reels, rods, fly, port aransas, corpus, christi, rockport, aransas, pass, redfish, drum, red, black, jacks, wade, fishing, consecutively, wading — Wet Wading the Texas Marsh after the rainstorm.

Gentle Casts

How to fly cast gently.

One fly casting technique that proves itself very valuable in the saltwater world is learning how to lay down the fly and line gently. Producing gentle casts can mean great catching and less spooking of the fish you are stalking.

The real challenge though is performing these gentle casts while your eyeballs are popping out of your own head in your excitement! Staying calm and not rushing the cast produces more hookups than trying to rush and hitting the fish too hard.

Here in this clip you can see David does a great job maintaining his composure. This pod of redfish are tailing along the spartina grass edges. You can hear us whispering to each other as he makes 3 casts in order to get the crab fly in the right spot.

On such a calm day you can be sure those fish would have spooked had the fly been too heavy or if he had cast “down” at the fish. Communication on the skiff in the moment is also key to our success.

Landing the fly softly is achieved by aiming your casting loop about eye level above the fish. When presenting the fly, be a little more gentle on the final forward stroke.

fly, fishing, port, aransas, beavertail, skiffs, tfo, bvk, fly, rods, hatch, outdoors, finatic, airflo, redfish, red, drum, rockport, corpus, christi, guide, laguna, madre, texas, vacation, flyfishing, adventures, things to do, beach, gulf, coast, gulf of mexico, smith, optics, r.l. winston, winston, yeti, sight, fishing, sight-fishing, on the fly, how to, gentle, casts — David learned to keep his feet quite and got to work with several schools of healthy reds

To do this, stop the rod tip early in your forward cast. Leave it up a bit longer than usual as you let the weight of the fly line gently pull the rod down. It would go from the 1 or 2 o’clock position down in front to the horizontal position.

With a little routine practice, you can use your line hand to feather it all down slowly. This will help the fly line lay out straight and gentle. That way the fly lands right and softly. For those redfish, you want to be able to move the fly on the first strip. Then you will be able to set the hook properly. And that hungry redfish will then gulp down your crab fly. Fish on!

Book your fly casting lesson (off water) and then lets take it to the fish and put what you learned to the test!

Book NOW with Capt Kenjo! Great weather is in the forecast!

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Whether the Weather

The weather forecast looks amazing! Come on down and get in on the prime winter days before they elapse! Call Capt Kenjo NOW to get on board.

redfish, photography, texas, coast, guide, on the fly, saltwater, fly fishing, drum, backlit, weather, whether — Guest Photo: A Texas red drum glistens in the backlit winter sunshine

Whether the weather, or not, winter-time is some of the best sight-fishing of the year.

Once the skies go bluebird after a cold front passes through, high pressures kill the wind and warm the shallow waters. Now is the time to strike! The fish wont be everywhere but usually this time of year you will find greater quantities of fish in an area and often times, greater quality of redfish as well.

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Focus on niche areas in these seasons as extreme weather ebbs and floods and learn why fish are where they are when they are there.

fly fishing, wind, redfish, gale force, beavertail, skiffs, strike, wade, fishing, wading, wet, red drum, corpus christi, port, aransas, texas, rockport — Best fishing trip of the year? Yes, we got it done in 40 mph gusting winds and caught a lot of quality redfish, on foot.

All the different bottom types such as sand, grass beds, bars, mud, shell, back waters, and main shorelines all have potential to have fish at different times. The tide levels and weather patterns all dictate how and where we find the fish. It can be a slow feed on the fish’s part because when they are cold. Just don’t make them chase the fly down too far or too fast otherwise they will turn off.

Nonetheless, a slow feed does not mean the fish are not hungry because they certainly are. Miniscule strips timed perfectly with well placed and gently laid out casts will most likely get those cold but hungry redfish to eat the fly for you. Just think, this time of year, they cannot afford to pass up a meal either. Sight fishing is exceptional on the Texas Coast during the Winter months. Go outside and look up at the sky if you are nearby. Then call me ASAP to get on flats and catch some winter time redfish! Capt Kenjo can be reached directly at 361-500-2552.

Pulling on Hard Fish

We got lucky a few times recently and got to search offshore for tarpon and sharks on the beaches recently. Pulling on hard fish is one thing but not pulling too hard is another. On one occasion we got to take a few shots at some 4-5ft Texas Tarpon and Blacktip Sharks! We managed to hook into one and break it off right away and the sharks gave us a damn good run as well. Just look at the size of the hole in the water.

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tailing, school, redfish, red, drum, r.l., winston, fly, rods, airflo, lines, beach, leader, blacktip, shark, fly, fishing, beavertail, skiffs, texas, port, aransas, hatch, outdoors, redfish, sight, casting, saltwater, black, drum, aransas, bay, corpus, christi, laguna, madre, guide, speckled, trout, sea — The Winston Alpha Plus Super Bend! The camera played a bit of a trick while filming the fight with a 5ft blacktip shark. This is the moment in which I am in the process of “letting go” of everything!

The @winstonrods Alpha 9wt is in this shot, and as you can see, it was taking a beating! I’m not intentionally holding onto the rod but this shot was a screen grab of film and the fish surged so fast and hard while I was leadering the 5footer, the beast pulled the rod through my hands “as” I was letting go of the leader. Note: the rod did not break under this strain!

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duck, camp, winston, fly, rods, airflo, lines, beach, leader, blacktip, shark, fly, fishing, beavertail, skiffs, texas, port, aransas, hatch, outdoors, redfish, sight, casting, saltwater, black, drum, aransas, bay, corpus, christi, laguna, madre, guide, speckled, trout, sea — Working with sharks can be exciting!

SIDE NOTES: If you want to book an offshore trip for September, October or November let’s go catch’em up! Do it, get on the books. The weather window is hard to predict but there is pretty good hope this time of year for very calm seas. It is my preference that you fish as a single angler because the boat can get quite crowded when we are working out front with more than one angler. Having a strong double haul in your cast also helps incredibly well. We hope to find bonita out there soon too along with tarpon, sharks ladyfish redfish and sometimes trout. If the seas are tooo rough we will stay in the bay and fish the flats for redfish drum and trout.

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Fall Seasons on the Texas Coast

Prime-Time is here on the Texas Coast for fly fishing redfish with the fly rod. We had a great last few weeks on the skiff in the bay and got offshore a time or two but the weather window barely cooperated out front. Good redfish drum and speckled trout catches were had in the bay and we got to tangle with tons of ladyfish and blacktip sharks out front. The tarpon evaded us on the one day we saw some. And with that, there is still much to look forward to as the fall seasons on the Texas coast transpire.

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tailing, school, redfish, red, drum, winston, fly, rods, airflo, lines, beach, leader, blacktip, shark, fly, fishing, beavertail, skiffs, texas, port, aransas, hatch, outdoors, redfish, sight, casting, saltwater, black, drum, aransas, bay, corpus, christi, laguna, madre, guide, speckled, trout, sea — Chris caught this 22inch speckled trout while casting to a school of tailing redfish!

The water is looking great and all of the bait species are abundant. This means that the fishing will become greater and greater and it has already been pretty exceptional the last two weeks. Looking at the forecast, the fall seasons on the Texas coast are about to get kick started into high gear! This will incite great runs of redfish, black drum, trout, and flounder. Dates for September and October are still available!

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The cooler water and air temperatures will really turn them on too. The last few weeks helped cool the water already. So get yourself on the books ASAP for fast approaching dates! Use the Book Now button to avoid delays in booking! Don’t miss this awesome run for 2021 as Fall Seasons on the Texas Coast. we’ll be sure to get you on fish so you can take your shots at some sight casted saltwater fish!

Dates for November 2021 are also available. Shoot me an email if you have any questions or simply use the button below! I am looking forward to taking you all fly fishing the fall season on the Texas Middle Coast!

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jack, crevalle, crevelle, texas, fly, fishing, texas, coast, beavertail, hatch, outdoors, r.l. winston, airflo, line, reels, rods, fly, port aransas, corpus, christi, rockport, aransas, pass, redfish, drum, red, black, jacks, wade, fishing, wunderground, radar, supercell, fly, fishing, weather, forecast, beavertail, skiffs, texas, port aransas, hatch, outdoors, redfish, sight, casting, saltwater, black, drum, aransas, bay, corpus, christi, laguna, madre, guide, speckled, trout, sea — Connor revives another big Texas Jack Crevalle

Kenjo Fly Fishing Charters

Texas Saltwater Flats Fishing Charters

Category Archives: South Texas Fly Fishing Reports

Texas Fall Fly Fishing

In the low light conditions

Slow down and smell the fish

Wade fish the Texas Marsh to Slow down

Dates available for September, October and November!

Jacks in Town

Take note of the “down and dirty” fighting technique with the 11wt fly rod.

Wading for Spring

SPECIAL OFFER for dates remaining in April when wading for Spring Redfish

Protected: Prime Dates 2022

Consecutively Wading

Gentle Casts

How to fly cast gently.

One fly casting technique that proves itself very valuable in the saltwater world is learning how to lay down the fly and line gently. Producing gentle casts can mean great catching and less spooking of the fish you are stalking.

Landing the fly softly is achieved by aiming your casting loop about eye level above the fish. When presenting the fly, be a little more gentle on the final forward stroke.

Whether the Weather

Focus on niche areas in these seasons as extreme weather ebbs and floods and learn why fish are where they are when they are there.

Pulling on Hard Fish

Fall Seasons on the Texas Coast