Preparing for yourself - equipment, rigging and flies
Landing a 30-pound cool fish on your flytrap is easier than you think. The most important thing to remember is the simplicity of things. In other words, there is no need for a leader and tiplet section supporting ten different types of monofilament and fluorocarbon, and you definitely do not need the “newest and best” application for a roll or wand from Ross or Sage. A robust 9WT aircraft paired with your favorite arbor shaped drum reel - anywhere in the range of 7-10 - great for crushing large bass, while maintaining the “fun” factor. I return my drums, which I use to aim big reds with a couple hundred yards of a 30-pound test braided backing, and then use the Albright node to snap my line of flies, which is usually a cheap 9WT floating line. Tie the surgeon's end loop to the end of your line of flies, then, using the loop-to-loop connection, attach a section of a 40-pound test monofilament that has a rod length. To complete the process, take your favorite large streamer — for this application, I tie my bright, weighted streamers in the range of 5 to 7 inches — and use the Rapala Loop to tie it in your leader section. Now you are ready to download.
Yak attack
You do not need to go out and buy a boat, but you will need a kayak. Any “Craigslist Special” with kayaks in the kayak range from 10 to 14 feet will do its job. Just make sure it is navigable. Ensure that no water enters the hull of the canoe through any cracks, holes, stress points, or hatches. Be sure to take along the landing, measuring tape, pliers, additional materials for rigging, flies, camera and life jacket with you on a trip.
To start searching
Naturally, you will want to find an area where large sea bass gather. Orientation on them in apartments is possible, as they cruise on shallow water, which many apartments offer on a semi-regular basis, but it’s best to find somewhere where they can be found in numbers, as this can be especially frustrating to expenses in one It’s a wonderful day to look for flats aimlessly for a single perch bull, just to be a loose fish that is not interested in your presentation.
Since I'm in Pensacola, the three-mile bridge is the perfect place. If you are not in the Pensacola area, do not be afraid. Any bridge located in the gulf or the mouth lit by street lamps at night is usually a good area to start with, as large perch often feed on bait that collects in these lights at night.
Once you have found a spot, choose the night of the week where you do not need to get up early the next morning - yes, you will be aiming at this fish with the help of the “vision fishing” technique in the middle of the night, so be sure that you first need kayaking at night and bring a buddy!
Fish search
Launch your kayak and slowly approach the areas near the bridge, lit by street lights above. I prefer to approach from under the bridge, so I remain inconspicuous for the perch below when I look through the lighted areas of the water. This is a game for fishing, so keep your eyes peeled. Fish are fairly easy to see at night, as they emit an orange glow when they swim through the lights. If you do not find it in the first light that you approach, do not worry. Keep bright lights until you find them. As soon as you do, this is a play time. It is not easy to throw a flying rod while sitting on a kayak, but try to keep the false spells to a minimum so that you do not scare the fish you are aiming at. Place the fly 7-10 feet in front of the fish in the direction in which it moves. Take off the fly quickly to get the attention of the perch. When the fish inhales the fly, put the hook on the fish!
The battle
If you have never heard of the term “sledding” in relation to kayaking before, I will describe it to you. Here is a summary of the events that will immediately follow your crochet with a trophy-sized perch.
• The weakness in your line of flies will soon disappear, very quickly
• As soon as you get stuck with perch, you will be at the mercy of any direction that a fish feels like swimming - if she wants to go, she will go!
• The reddish, creating this bow at 90 degrees in your barbell will start towing you, perhaps faster than you can jump
Enjoy sledding on perch, but don't forget to hold on to your fishing pole! Remember mergers and bridges when perch tows you. I hold my paddle in my right hand, pressed to my side so that I can maneuver in a kayak during a fight if I need to. As soon as you carry the fish (often the other way around), try to put it on the yak side so that you (or your buddy) can scoop it up carefully using your landing net.
Your trophy
You have just reached your goal of landing a perch in the form of trophies, and it was on the buggy whip, perhaps the most difficult (and fun) way of aiming these fish! What will you do next? Pop a fly from the mouth of a fish, quickly measure, ask your buddy to take a few photos - be sure to smile, as you have to grin from ear to ear at this moment - let go of the fish, and then go all over again!
Bovine perch skiing is one of the most rewarding types of coastal fishing available in Florida, or anywhere else for that matter, and this can be done very effectively by keeping things simple and following some basic principles.
