Question:
I will be going to Tampa Florida
in 2 weeks and wondered if anyone
could tell me about fly fishing
in the Tampa area; where to go,
rods to bring, flies, fly shops
in the area, etc.
Answer:
I fished this area in February.
We fished for redfish primarily.
All Sight casting on flats. The
speckled trout were just starting
to move in. We tried briefly for
snook, but no luck. Sometime soon
the tarpon move in. I used a guide
that I would highly recommend. His
name is Paul Hawkins at 813-526-2438.
He does all kinds of light tackle
fishing, but I had the feeling that
he would cancel a spin fisherman
to take a fly fisherman.
He used to
be an Orvis guide, but gave it up.
We had one bad day and one good
day on redfish. Try to stay away
from weekends on the flats. There
is a serious Bayliner hatch and
it makes the fish real spooky. If
you're on your own, I'd start near
Ft. Desoto Park on the St.Pete side
of the Bay. There's an Orvis shop
in Tampa, but I know not where.
I found another combo shop that
was pretty good - Tom's, I think
was the name. It was north of St.
Pete Beach. For equipment - rods
6wt-9wt with all floating lines.
The red fishing was flats fishing
and sight casting. One day they
were spooky as hell. You couldn't
make a false cast without spooking
them. The next day you couldn't
scare them with dynamite. I used
flies furnished by Hawkins ($300/day).
He didn't have a name for them.
They looked like wooly buggers with
tails in bright colors.
