Next meeting 2 May 0600 PM to 0900 PM Speaker: Capt. Floyd Holder

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1 TBFFC Next meeting 2 May 0600 PM to 0900 PM Speaker: Capt. Floyd Holder Please join us as Floyd discusses how and where to fish the upper bay, north of the Courtney Campbell. This is a great area of the bay to fish from the Courtney boat ramp or from the Upper Tampa Bay Park. The park s canoe/kayak launch provides access to the creek and bay, which are excellent places for game fish, including red drum and snook. Floyd will have pictures of the fish you can catch as well as charts to guide you on where to try your luck. Fly Tyer Jeff Janacek Jeff is a good friend of our club and specializes in fresh water fishing for bass and pan fish. He will tie some bugs guaranteed to work at our upcoming Lake Calm outing in Odessa.

2 Directions to Our Meetings (0600pm): From I-75---Take Bruce B. Downs exit from I-75; go west 2 miles to traffic light, turn left on to Tampa Palms Blvd., then left on Compton Drive, and right at Compton Park. From I Take Bearss East to Bruce. B. Downs; then Bruce B. Downs east/north to Tampa Palms Blvd. Rt. on Tampa Palms, then left on Compton Drive and right at Compton Park. PRESIDENT S MESSAGE Welcome to May and the start of summer. Things will heat up on the flats with warmer water and more bait. Check our fishing report for tips. I hope you all enjoyed Capt. Bryon Chamberlin s presentation on do-it-yourself bone fishing. Bryon is a great guide and photographer and is always willing to share his knowledge with the club. Thanks to Bryce Etter for tying a classic tarpon fly. You will find instructions for his fly on page 6 along with contact info for him. Bryce ties professionally. We are seeking help in a fly fishing seminar at the East Lake Woodlands golf club on 20 May from 1-3 PM. We need two instructors and two fly tiers. This is a good opportunity for the club to introduce our sport to interested people in the area. I encourage new members to go to our website (TBFFC.org), click on articles, click on Wade Fishing Guide for tips on where and how to fish Tampa Bay. // Walt Durkin EVENTS 20 May - East Lake Woodlands seminar 10 June Freshwater outing, Lake Calm, Odessa OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS President: Walt Durkin Walt.durkin@aol.com cell Vice President: Ted Hagaman Treasurer: Rick Valeri Secretary: Dick Miekka Directors Patty Anderson Denise Bruner Bryon Chamberlin Pat Damico Robert Fischer Bruce Anderson Rick O Hara

3 TBFFC NEWS & NOTES Project Healing Waters helps disabled veterans through fly fishing activities. Our club sponsors PHW efforts in Tampa Bay. Club member, Joe Perez, has volunteered to lead the program in association with our club. Please support his efforts in this great cause. Joe informs me he has two openings for disabled veterans for the Crosthwait Memorial Fishing Tournament on 19 May. More details at the next meeting. Fly Fishing Resolutions of the Month Take a kid fishing! Practice tying knots at home for quick change on the water. Clean out you fly boxes Costa de Cocas Trip, 27 Oct to 3 Nov Capt. Frank Rhodes is starting to collect a $500 deposit for our annual trip to Mexico for a week s fishing for bonefish, tarpon and permit. Call Frank for details and to reserve your spot: This trip is a great value and loads of fun. I go every year and would not miss it. Abaco Trip Report. My wife and I spent a week in Abaco with Ted and Kathy and Bruce and Patty. We rented a beach house at Casuarina Point and had a super time fishing, sight seeing, relaxing and eating great meals we prepared. We saw tailing fish on beautiful white sand flats flats and even managed to catch a few. They are notoriously spooky in Cherokee Sound. Look for a future club presentation on this adventure.

4 Tips for TBFFC Is a Sinking Line for Me? Anyone who has fished with me, either fresh or salt water, knows I always have a sink tip fly line with me. On my boat, one of my rods is always rigged with a clear sink tip tropical line. When I have a new client who is having casting issues because of large loops, handing them a rod with a sink tip line immediately gives them better results. They often say, "I like this rod better!" Tight loops, always a goal with floating lines, are a disaster when weight, either with the line, with a heavy fly, or both, are brought into the equation. Slowing the casting stroke, enlarging the casting arc or angle and learning a continuous tension or Belgium cast will give you a smooth delivery when weight is added. Your fly will get to fish that are deeper very effectively. Pat Damico Fresh Water Bass. Most of our freshwater ponds have a healthy bass population. Even if never stocked, wading birds transport tiny eggs or fry to give panfish a start. The surface activity on your local community water impoundment will provide a clue. Bright, sunny days can help locate fish because they're often concentrated. Shallow ponds don't have a deep water escape from sun and heat. Docks, rafts, bridges, lily pads, undercut banks and logs provide a comfortable, shaded resting place for bass. Concentrate your efforts there. Use a 6- or 7-weight fly rod with a floating weight-forward line. Many companies offer a bass taper. Include a 9-foot knotless tapered leader with a 10-pound tippet. Foam or cork poppers that imitate frogs are great, but white, yellow, black and chartreuse, especially with rubber legs, will work. A weed guard prevents grass and floating debris from fouling. Cast from a stealthy position, avoiding your shadow. After landing on the surface, wait for ripples to disappear before giving it a small twitch, imitating a stunned food source. Work it slowly, pausing often. Walk softly on the shore to prevent vibration that will alert cautious fish. Fly fisherman Pat Damico runs charters in lower Tampa Bay and can be reached at captpatdamico.com or (727)

5 Remembering Lefty Lefty Kreh, one of the pre-eminent sport fishermen of his time, died in March at his home in Cockeysville, Md., north of Baltimore. He was 93. Lefty visited Tampa many times to speak at outdoor shows or hosted by local fly shops and clubs. I knew him only in passing with a few personal memories. One time, after watching him instruct, I got up to give it a try. Thinking I made a pretty good cast, Lefty said: Walt, you did not listen to a darn thing I said. He always had a smile and a good sense of humor. He favored simple flies you could tie in under a minute. Finally, he joked he came to Tampa Bay to fish for red fish as a warmup for bone-fishing in Andros. He said our red fish were even spookier and I agree. If you get the World Fishing Network you can enjoy watching Lefty in action on Buccaneer and Bones sponsored with the Tarpon and Bonefish Trust. Many shows are available on demand and one show featured Lefty as he turned 90 years young. Think about joining the Tarpon and Bonefish Trust to support all the work they do for our environment and favorite game fish.

6 BRYCE ETTER Classic Keys Tarpon Fly Materials Hook - Gamakatsu Sl12S short 2/0 Thread - Danville 210 tan Tail - Whiting Saddle hackles, grizzly. Flash - Krystal Flash root beer Dark barred ginger hackles. Body - Barred Marabou blood quill tan/brown. Legs - Brown schlappen. Eyes - Bead chain Custom Fly Tying oakcreekflyco@gmail.com Tying Sequence Wrap thread from hook eye to about 1/8 inch past barb. Tie in four tan saddle hackles, splayed, at the hook bend. Put one wrap under the hackles. Tie in one piece of flash, doubled, between the hackles. Add one drop of the Loon UV at the tie in point. Tie in one dark barred ginger hackle on either side of the hackles for emphasis. Palmer one marabou quill in front of the hackles, pulling it back at each turn. Stop at the hook point and then tie back with the thread. Tie in the schlappen in front of the quill and palmer it around, stopping about 1/4 inch from the hook eye. Tie in bead chain eyes in front of the schlappen. Lock down the wraps with Loon UV.

7 Abaco pictures: arriving on the flat, view from our porch, 6 lb bone fish lower left

8 Club member Steve Parker with a peacock bass and Capt. Frank with an exotic pan fish. They spent a day in the Ft Lauderdale area fishing the canals. Left is Jeff Janesek with a nice bass.

9 I found trout sitting on sand holes on the MacDill flat in late April. I cast my fly past them and they followed and ate when it got close to them. I hooked 7 and landed 3 trout, a couple over 20. I tied this fly a couple of months ago at the meeting and it continues to fish well. I have now named it the Rat Fly based on looks out of the water. The zonker tail is bigger and livelier in the water.

10 Capt. Rick Grassett is finding good action for his clients. Tarpon fishing is underway close to shore and redfish are on the flats. Capt. Rick Grassett (941)

11 Our new traveling club flags are on the move! Walt and Frank took one to the Amazon. Lower right on the Avalon II in Cuba. Lou and Walt at Casuarina Point, Abaco, Bahamas in April 2018.

12 Fishing Report and Forecast What a great time to go fishing! Capt Rick Grassett reports tarpon fishing will take off during May as migratory fish arrive along our beaches. Also look for Spanish mackerel, tripletail, cobia and false albacore (little tunny) in the coastal gulf. Snook will move into passes and the surf and reds and trout should feed heavily on shallow flats as baitfish become more plentiful. Blues, Spanish mackerel and more mixed with trout on deep grass flats of Sarasota Bay should also be good options. You may also find pompano, bluefish and Spanish mackerel on the same deep grass flats where trout are plentiful. They can be targeted in the same way as trout, but you may need to use wire or heavy fluorocarbon leader when toothy fish are around. You may find Spanish and king mackerel, little tunny, cobia and tripletail in the coastal gulf. Keep your eyes open for surface activity such as diving birds, breaking fish or baitfish being forced out of the water which could indicate the presence of mackerel, blues or little tunny. 8 or 9-weight fly tackle should be heavy enough, although your tarpon fly tackle is not too heavy for cobia. Look for cobia either swimming on the surface or around navigational markers or buoys. I have also found cobia swimming with schools of tarpon before. Tripletail may be found around crab trap floats or buoys. When fly fishing for tripletail, a floating line on an 8 or 9-weight fly rod with a shrimp or baitfish fly pattern, like my Grassett Flats Minnow, should get the job done. This is one of my favorite months of the year. If battling a big tarpon isn t for you, you should have plenty to do on both shallow and deep grass flats or in the coastal gulf. I ll be spending my time targeting tarpon in the coastal gulf unless conditions won t allow it. Fly fishing for tarpon is the pinnacle of fly fishing! Whatever you choose to do, please limit your kill, don t kill your limit! Kayak guide, Neil Taylor, reports he is experiencing full spring action; easy to find solid action right now. On the verge of summer, going our early is better. Baitfish schools are here so it is easy to follow hovering birds for wild activity. You name it, it's here. Pompano and flounder are making their spring appearance and they will only get better. Trout remain the easiest target. I found trout sitting on the sand holes my last two times out to the MacDill flat. I cast my rat fly past them and brought it back slowly; several ate it right away and others followed and declined. Anyway, I jumped seven and landed three for some good fun sight fishing.

13 2018 CALENDAR OF EVENTS Jan 20 Shad Outing St John s River Feb 9-10 FFI Enclave Mar 18 Annual Banquet Hunters Green Apr 12 CCA Banquet May 20 East Lake Woodlands fly fishing seminar June Beginners Clinic 10 June Lake Calm Freshwater Outing Oct Florida Sportsman Show Oct 27 Nov 3 Mexico: Costa de Cocas trip Oct 18 Carl Hanson Outing, Hillsborough River Early Nov Chattooga Trip for trout Nov 18 Big Gun, Picnic Island Dec 5 Members Year End Party Dec 7 Play Hooky at the Hatchery Dec 21 Don Coleman Outing, Ft Desoto

14 Member Benefits TBFFC is famous for its value and focus on the sharing of information, experience, and craftsmanship with its members. As a TBFFC member you will enjoy many benefits free or at nominal cost. Monthly Meetings with informative speakers Fishing Trips Sponsored by Members and the Club Group Clinics and Workshops Fly Tying Lessons One-On-One Fly Casting Lessons Shirts and Hats with club logo 80-page Beginner s Basic Skills Instruction Manual Annual Banquet Fly Casting Coaches Dade City Jeff Janecek South Tampa Steve Parker North Tampa Robert Fischer Dan Lagace Leigh West St. Petersburg Capt. Pat Damico Polk County Capt. Frank Rhodes Fly Fishing Guides Capt. Nick Angelo (813) Capt. Pat Damico (727) Capt. Bryon Chamberlin (813) Capt. Rick Grassett (941) Capt. John Hand (239) Capt. Frank Rhodes (863) Capt. Greg Peterson (423)

15 Corporate Sponsors These companies sponsored the Tampa Bay Fly Fishing Club. Some are members of the club. We urge you to patronize them. 3-WAY CONSTRUCTION, Robert Fischer PO Box , Tampa, 33694, (813) ALLIGATOR BOB S Gourmet Alligator Meat Snacks, (813) , BARBED STEEL CHARTERS, Capt. Bryon Chamberlin, (813) , captbryon@yahoo.com.. REDFISH LANDING GUIDE SERVICE, Capt. John Hand (239) THE FLY GUY, Capt. Pat Damico, (727) ,w ww.captpat.com, pat4jaws@hotmail.com SNOOK FIN-ADDICT GUIDE SERVICE, Capt. Rick Grassett, (941) , SWANN S FLY FISHING SHOP, Jim Swann, South 98 Bypass, Dade City, 33525, (352) Carbon Marine, 3916 W. Osborne Ave. Tampa Fl, 33614, Tampa Fishing Outfitters, 3916 W. Osborne Ave, Tampa, FL; , tampafishingoutfitters.com Dave Chouinard, Simms Fishing, , Fax: ; Dave@ChouinardOutdoor.com Tampa Fishing Outfitters Largest tackle shop on the West coast of FL great fly fishing gear 3916 W. Osborne Ave. Tampa Fl, Phone: Website: tampafishingoutfitters.com Carbon Marine Inshore fishing boat accessories, push poles and repair Joe Welbourn (813) jwelbourn@carbonmarine.com

16 Tel Hppt://captpat.com Chouinard Outdoor Associates, Inc Southeast representative for Simms fishing products Phone: Fax:

17 2014 Member Application Tampa Bay Fly Fishing Club Name: Date: Mailing address: City: State: Zip: Hm.Phone: Wk. Phone: address: Type of Membership: Please Check: One Year Five Year Please list names you wish to include in family membership Annual Dues: $25.00 Individual Membership $35.00 Family Membership $95.00Corporate Single Membership (includes one membership and Ad Space) $ Corporate Double Membership (includes two memberships or family membership and Ad Space in Newsletter) Five-year dues: $ Individual Membership $ Family Membership Please make check payable to: Tampa Bay Fly Fishing Club C/o Rick Valeri, 1404 Oxfordshire Ct. Brandon, 33510