THE JOYS OF SALT WATER SPECIES ON LIGHT TROUT GEAR

by - KEN ORR

What does a trout guide do for relaxation? Go fishing!
What else is there when fishing is your hobby, sport and profession?

I had been sitting on an invitation from a mate of mine Glenn "Jacko" Jackson who runs an oyster farm at Little Swanport to bring the family and fly rods down and have a go at the bream. It was more than opportune as a couple of weeks earlier Loomis had released the new range of Streamdance Fly Rods and I had a 5wt. maximum line speed rod to try out. I selected this rod in particular because it suits my attacking casting style. I am a firm believer in the old adage that "you can't catch fish without your fly in the water'; fast accurate casts and less waving around in the air. Wonderful loops and great false casts mean little when you are sight fishing, especially in still water, so to this day I still hear my father's terse words echoing in my ears "Get that bloody fly in front of the fish boy', but that's another story. So we headed down the mountain to Little Swanport and some saltwater fly-fishing.

We booked into a cabin at "Gumleaves" in Little Swanport and were amazed at the size of the complex. It has a pioneer museum, mini golf, tennis court, small lake, a significant adventure playground and great bush walks. I would guess it encompasses some 3-400 acres and for a get-a-way spot the kids would never be bored and you're only ten minutes from the beaches and salt water, but be warned there is no TV or phone so you can really enjoy the peace and tranquillity of this bush encompassed get-a-way as long as the kids enjoy outdoor activities and can entertain themselves.

The following morning Jacko took Marea, our youngest son, Shannon and myself out around the oyster leases to see what was going on. With an outgoing tide we set up a good burley trail to see what we might encourage into fly-casting distance.

Shannon had already grabbed the 5wt. Streamdance so we attached a 6lb fluorocarbon leader and a dumbbell eyed pink and white Crazy Charlie.  I had some concern and thought this rig might be too much for the rod but it handled the weight without a bother and delivered the fly with good speed and surprising accuracy. I must admit that when I mentioned to Graham Todd, the Loomis rod importer that we were casting such large flies on the 5wt. he was shocked, surprised and devastated at the thought of the fly hitting the rod and cutting it in two. It didn't happen and Shannon was in control, but I guess I should add that a fly strike can totally shatter a rod so take extreme care if you are using your trout rod with unwieldy flies.

Fish started to move up the burley trail and we lost count of the cocky salmon and good sized flathead that we hooked on the fly so after a couple of hours we were forced to move location and stop burleying to try and be more specific and target the bream.

Noel and Lois Jetson had joined us for the day and Lois was dead drifting bait and was catching as many fish on her 1950s light spin gear as we were on our 2003 fly gear but isn't that the beauty of fishing?  Lois had a ball and as Noel would say "It was just magic'.

Shannon continued to flay the water to foam with the new rod working the channels and drop offs hooking up on salmon regularly but around 1.00pm he hooked something solid. It took line at an amazing rate but fortunately using the butt strength of the rod to control the direction of the fish Shannon was able to turn it a number of times until some 20 minutes later he landed a lovely silver trevally and it was only the length of the rod that exceeded the width of his smile.

Shannon and the rod had performed really well and although he has grown up with a fishing rod of one sort or another constantly in his hand this was his first ever silver trevally never mind first on the fly. Whist at his age I was a mad trout fly fisher I can honestly say I never once contemplated taking my trout rod to the salt and if I had I am sure my father would have seen it as almost sacrilegious and would have objected in no uncertain terms to getting saltwater on his Hardy's. Back to the fishing and yes we did eventually knock off some nice little bream but I must admit the biggest bream of the day went to Jacko's son Kirk free floating bait and coming up with a lovely      4 pounder, just a great fish. Most fish were released for the day but Shannon's trevally found its way onto the BBQ plate back at Gumleaves completing a more than satisfactory day testing the new Streamdance fly rod on the many varied and challenging species of the Little Swanport River.

There is no doubt that most trout rods today can handle the fish found in salt water estuarine areas but normal 5wt. rods would probably be too light with 6, 7 or 8wt. being much more satisfactory. There is no doubt in my mind that the fast and powerful taper found on this 4 piece 9ft 5wt Loomis Streamdance GLX rod affords maximum line speed with maximum range giving you total control and deadly accuracy even in windy estuarine or lake conditions. This is a great rod and will become my personal rod if I can get it back from Shannon. If you are like me and like to get the fly in the water quickly and at any distance please have a cast at one of the Loomis pro dealers around the State who include "The Essential Fly Fisher" in Launceston, "Spot On Fishing Connection" in Hobart and "Tassie Tackle and Outdoors" in Burnie. I am sure they would be only too willing to show you the new Streamdance series in General and the Maximum Speed 5wt. In particular, it sure is a beauty. I really cannot wait to take this rod polaroiding in the Western Lakes, as it seems tailor made for me and my fishing style.

For the technically minded we were using Cortland W.F.5 floating lines model 555 with 12 ft parallel fluoro carbon leaders at 6lb breaking strain. This gave us fast sink rates on the moving tide and our fly stayed longer in the fishing zone enabling us to catch more fish. I always use fluoro carbon now for stream and river nymphing or wet fly fishing and you certainly wouldn't go to New Zealand or the Tongariro without a few spools in the fly vest.

If you are at all interested in exploring "Gumleaves" and utilizing their amenities from caravan, camping and back packer sites to full cabin accommodation give Lynne or Len Maynard a ring on 03 62448147 and I am sure you and the family will enjoy a great bush get-away.

Look out for our next trip when we take our Editor down to chase those beautiful bream on the fly.
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