Fly and Light Tackle Adventures: Topsail, Bald Head, Carolina Beach, and Southport

       I had Matt from Lynchburg Va. on board today for a fly trip on the Lower Cape Fear. Matt  who once made a living guiding on the Trout streams of Colorado just began fly fishing the salt a couple years ago, and being like most fly anglers, his fly fishing career is filled with the goal of taking as many species on the long rod as possible. So, after a couple years of Stripers and Speckled Trout on the Chessapeake, he decided it was time for Redfish. Wind was the theme of the day as we arrived on the flats and began blind casting with Shrimp patterns to small sections of flooded grass in the lee of tthe wind. As soon as the tide started to ebb, young of the year white shrimp started raining down the bank in front of us, and Matt made a weak side cast well in front of the pod of shrimp and began stripping the little Caves Wobbler fly rythmically, and soon had a nice 25 inch Red tracking his fly. After a masterful strip strike, he enjoyed several strong runs before bringing the fish boatside with a huge smile and shaking knees. After releasing his fish, he quickly snipped off the fly and retired it to the box containing his other "first fish flies" There is a mindset among fly guys that others in the angling community don't always seem to share(and I'm not speaking of eliteism), it's the challenge and the pursuit that seems to fill our dreams, not the fish flopping in the cooler. After taking a quick drink, Matt simply stated " I accomplished what I came to do, the rest of the day is about taking in this beautiful scenery", and with that he broke down his rods and just observed and talked about all his other fly fishing experiences as I poled through the marsh for the remainder of our trip. Thanks Matt, and I will see you soon on the New River for some mid summer Smallmouth!