Oh the winter time. In terms of fly fishing options, this season can keep anglers somewhat limited. Although the winter will require gloves, mad-bomber hats, and hopefully a nice hot toddy once you get off the water, this time of year can lead to some giants. Historically I have found that although the numbers of fish in the winter might not be as much in other seasons, this can be the best time of year to chase giants.

So this last winter, we headed back down to Louisiana to try and get on some beasts. With only a couple days to fish, this post is not going to be as long, but we made it happen.

To be transparent, the fishing was more difficult than it usually is down in LA. A massive cold front kept the fish in a funky mood, and many fish were extremely sensitive to boat movement. In LA, where the water is going to be dirty year round, many of the shots you get can be 10-15 feet from the boat. Needless to say, for this trip, we had to find our fish far out and make the shots count. In addition to this, the usual colors of black/purple/gold were all struggling, and we found ourselves having to resort to natural patterns (that made it even tougher for fish to see in the dirty water).

Needless to say, we still managed to get it done. We managed to get a few really nice reds in the boat, and the highlight of the trip came from the largest black drum I have ever caught on fly. The fish weighed 48-pounds and was an absolute brute. Unlike any other black drum I have caught, this fish fell victim to a chartreuse and tan redfish slider that was presented right on the nose. Usually these fish like bold, dark colors that they can go find.

Another trip to LA in the book, and another great father-son fishing trip. Like I said, with just a couple days to fish, this post is definitely a bit shorter, but good to get back on the blog grind again. Thinking next time we head down when it is a bit warmer to avoid some of the cold!

Tight lines,

Joe