Published by: Harlan Kimball and Jacob Lutz 

A destination fly-fishing trip is one of best ways to create lasting memories on the water. They almost always start the same way: a couple of people sitting around the fly-shop bar, beers in hand, when someone inevitably asks, “Should we go catch redfish in Florida?”

The answer, of course, is always yes. The real question is whether the idea will ever make it out of the fly shop.

Luckily for Jacob and me, we have one of those friends who makes planning—and affording—a saltwater trip a whole lot easier than it should be. Ben McCormick, shop owner and guide, has been spending his winters roaming the marshes of North Florida. Word was spreading around the shop about the fishery, and we knew we needed to get down there sooner rather than later to see what all the fuss was about. 

Once the flights were finally booked, the excitement kicked in—and Jacob’s creative gears started turning. Neither of us had any real experience targeting red drum, but with some solid intel from Ben and his tight-knit crew of redfish diehards, Jacob started whipping up all kinds of fishy-looking fly patterns. 

Our selection of saltwater focused products continues to grow with every order we place! All of these bugs were whipped up with materials 100% from our shop wall, take a look below for some detailed photos, with some of our favorite salty materials highlighted....

After many hours of tying, the final product...  Jacob will tell us a bit about building this Redfish box from the bottom up!

       Front and center is the pattern we dubbed "The Sparkle Shrimp"...  It is designed to get down into the mud, and stir up some attention during murky low tide fishing. 

       The highlighted material on this pattern is the Umpqua 3.5MM Radiant Orange "Jig Bomb" tungsten weight.  It is attached to the bottom of the hook shank with 15lb Hard Mono , resulting in a fly that rides hook point up, and stays snag free as it is stripped over oyster beds, and muddy creek bottoms.

Full Material List: 

• Umpqua X-Series (XS506H) Jig Hook size #2 - #6
• Umpqua Tungsten Jig Bombs Radiant Orange 4MM - 2MM
• Scientific Anglers 15 - 30lb Hard Mono (Weed Guard) 
• Veevus Power Thread 140 denier red
• Easy Shrimp Eyes Fl. Orange Small
• Voodoo Fibers Olive (Hareline Dubbin)
• Chicone’s Crusher Legs Olive/Clear Regular  (Hareline Dubbin)
• Artic Fox Fur Olive (Hareline Dubbin)
• Polar Chenille UV Olive Copper (Hareline Dubbin)
• Barred Schlappen  Tan/Black(Hareline Dubbin)          

"Subtle Spawning Shrimp" 

       Planning out the weight of your patterns for water conditions/and species is very important in saltwater angling.  Next I wanted to make sure we had some lighter, more realistic shrimp patterns to fish during the clear, more spooky flood tide waters.  I avoided tungsten weight on these flies so they would suspend vs. plummet, and also hit the water more lightly.  On the Color Scheme I was trying to achieve a natural olive shrimp hue, with a nice “spawning orange” inner glow, for a hot spot.

      Once again the highlighted material here is the weight of the fly…."Painted Brass Eyes, Small" from Hareline Dubbin, seemed like the perfect choice of weight, and we have an awesome selection of colors to choose from….Olive in this case. 

Material list:

• Gamakatsu SL12S Big Game Hook 1/0
• Painted Brass Eyes Small Olive (Hareline Dubbin)
• Veevus Power Thread 140 Denier Olive
• Scientific Anglers Hard Mono 20lb - 30lb(weed Guard)
• FullingMill Salty Craft Fur Olive
• FullingMill Leggy Voodoo Brush Brown Olive
• Spawn UV Dubbing Slow Burn Flame
• Buggy Nymph legs Orange (Hareline Dubbing)

 “Galaxy Shrimp”

Another lightly weighted “Flood Tide” style shrimp, this time with a bit smaller body for an even more subtle presentation. The most unique material in this fly for me, is “UV Mottled Galaxy Mop Chenille Tan”, which makes up the body of the shrimp.  Before tying in and wrapping the Galaxy Mop, I trimmed the piece being used into a taper, mimicking the shape of a real shrimp.   

Material list: 

• Ahrex  SA250 Shrimp Hook size #6 - #8
• Painted Brass Eyes Small Tan (Hareline Dubbin)
• Veevus Power Thread 140 Denier 
• Scientific Anglers Hard Mono 15lb - 30lb 
• Easy Shrimp Eyes Transparent Brown
• Voodoo Fibers Rootbeer (Hareline Dubbin)
• Chicone’s Crusher Legs Olive Regular (Hareline Dubbin)
• Stretch D-Rib Olive (Hareline Dubbin)
• UV Galaxy Mop Chenille Tan (Hareline Dubbin)
• Arctic Fox Fur Tan (Hareline Dubbin)
• Barred Schlappen Olive/Black (Hareline Dubbin)

"Mud Minnows and More"

       The Redfish here are also know to feed on Mud Minnows as well as crustaceans, so I made sure to have some realistic imitations tied up for the spookier, winter conditions.  Once again the weight of the fly is kept on the lighter side of things, using  “Chicon’es Stealth Chain Eyes, Large, Olive Grass”.  These bead chain style eyes from Hareline Dubbin come in a variety of matte color options, and sizes perfectly suited for picky fish.

Also of Note FullingMill’s “Leggy Shrimp Brushes” make tying the head of this fly a breeze!

Material List: 

• Umpqua X-Series (XS506H) Jig Hook size #2 - #4
• Veevus GSP 100 Denier White Thread ( with tan marker)
• Chicone’s Stealth Chain Eyes, Large, Olive Grass (Hareline Dubbin)
• Scientific Anglers Hard Mono 15lb - 30lb
• FullingMill Salty Craft Fur Sand
• FullingMill Leggy Shrimp Brush Short Sandman
• Chicone’s Crusher Legs Brown/Clear (Hareline Dubbin)
• Art Markers (alcohol based)

"And More"

       My Idea here was to spin up a bug that could be used in multiple situations, and avoid a lot of fly changes. This patterns tries to emulate a mud minnow, shrimp, and crab all in one.  I used flowing materials without a distinct body shape, to create the illusion of a generic fleeing marsh critter.  This flowing motion, combined with a trifecta of colors found in all 3 food sources helps to target redfish feeding on multiple types of bait, without switching flies.

Hareline Dubbin’s rabbit products are the star of this pattern, Most notably their “Polychrome Rabbit Strips” dyed in Tan/Pale Purple/Pale Rust…  

Material List:

• Ahrex SA254 Salt Jig Hook Size #4 - #6
• Painted Brass Eyes Small Blue (Hareline Dubbin)
• Veevus Power Thread 140 Denier Olive
• Scientific Anglers Hard Mono 15lb - 30lb
• Polychrome Rabbit Strips Tan/Pale Purple/Pale Rust (Hareline Dubbin)
• Rabbit Strips Olive Variant (Hareline Dubbin)
• Spirit River Lite-Brite Plum (Hareline Dubbin)

Flood Tide Gurglers 

“El Tigre”

During Flood tide crustaceans can cling to exposed grass tips, often ending up on or near the waters surface, providing a tasty treat for a searching Redfish.  A gurgler pattern is a perfect fly choice to imitate this type of bait, splashing and popping on the surface.  These particular redfish are known to be smart and spooky, so I made sure to tie my gurglers in a “micro” size compared to most that are commercially available. The Ahrex SA210 Bob Clouser Signature hook #6 made a perfect foundation for these micro gurglers, as it is a very stout salt hook, available in small sizes, with just the right shank length for my preferences.   

Material List:

• Ahrex SA210 Bob Clouser Signature hook #6
• Veevus Power Thread 140 Denier Brown
• Scientific Anglers Hard Mono 15lb - 30lb
• Zap Fly Tyer’s Z-Ment
• FullingMill Super Pearl Tan
• Voodoo Fibers Orange/Black
• Spawn UV Dubbing Slow Burn Flame (Hareline Dubbin)
• Laser Hair 4.0 Medium Orange Brown (Hareline Dubbin)
• 3mm Hi-Float Foam Hopper Tan (Hareline Dubbin)
• 2mm Foam Flesh (Hareline Dubbin)
• Art Markers (Alcohol Based)

“Bat Crab”

       No it’s not supposed to be a bat, but the shape and color scheme reminds me of Halloween and flying critters.  I didn’t choose black/purple for the spooky vibes, but because it is a time tested color-way for triggering Redfish eats. My favorite Material in this floating crab pattern is “EZ Magic Dub, Medium Grey”, and it is perfect for making micro claws and legs for crustaceans…Not too limp, wont snag up on the hook, nice salty color options, and lots of crabby little fibers!

Material List:

• Ahrex SA210 Bob Clouser Signature hook #6
• Veevus GSP Thread 100 Denier White (with Purple Marker 
• Solarez Bone Dry UV Resin
• Scientific Anglers Hard Mono 15lb-30lb
• Zap Fly Tyer’s Z-Ment 
• EP Fibers Black
• Voodo Fibers Black/Purple
• 3MM Foam Black (Hareline Dubbin)
• 2mm Foam Purple (Hareline Dubbin)
• Easy Shrimp Eyes Small Purple
• EZ Magic Dub, Medium Grey”
• Arctic Fox Fur Purple
• Art Markers (Alcohol Based)

Let's get to the fishing: 

We had two full days of Ben poling us around the marsh. As any good guide does, he set expectations early. The flood-tide fishing hadn’t been particularly productive—North Florida had already seen several big flood tides the month before—but the low-tide bite had been spectacular lately. He said, we should expect to see a lot of feeding fish during the drop. 

And that’s exactly what we got.

From busting bait to crawling redfish, the marsh came alive once the water started falling. Fish were showing themselves everywhere—tails, backs, and even the occasional red launching out of the water after shrimp. Paired with the kind of weather you always hope for but rarely get, those 3–4 hour windows each day were pure, nonstop excitement.

Ben poling us around the morning flood-tide. A couple tails were scene and casted to but the redfish didn't seem in the mood to commit.

Pointing at a large mullet or a redfish boil? The world may never know... but we do know that outfit choice is questionable. Jorts? Really? 

The beach spot where we waited for the tide to drop and enjoyed some adult beverages.

Lucky jorts or pure skill? Jacob with his first redfish to hand. 

Where there are oyster beds, there are redfish. 

We spotted two fish busting bait in the back of a skinny creek. My first redfish to hand had a unique spot pattern. 

Day one was a success with a handful of redfish to the boat. The afternoon/evening bite on day 2 was one to remember. 

This fish was a textbook "crawler". Coming right at the boat and crushing Jacob's Sparkle Shrimp with confidence. 

Oh look, another redfish. I'll end the blog here without boring you with a bunch of grip and grins. 

If you ever find yourself heading south for redfish, swing by the shop for advice, tying materials and whatever else you might need.

Not from our trip, but local guide Stephen Johnson with Gold In' Grass Charters hoisting a large low tide redfish caught on Jacob's shrimp pattern.