Texas and Florida: Silver Scales and Spotted Tails

There’s nearly 1,000 miles of shimmering saltwater stretching between the Texas Gulf Coast and the Florida Gulf Coast. As the muddy bottom of the Laguna Madre transforms into the white sandy shores of the Keys, redfish and Tarpon make their rounds along this stretch of southern wild water.

By MAC AND RILEY ELLIOTT, TWIN FLY PRODUCTIONS Images by MAC ELLIOTT MEDIA

On the shallow, grassy flats of the Laguna Madre, redfish play a game of hide and seek under the warmth of the Texas sun. Meanwhile in the keys, the juvenile Tarpon hide under the shade of the mangroves.

The Laguna Madre

As twins, we were both raised gripping a tackle box in a shallow water boat in our home waters of the Texas Gulf Coast. In recent years, weekend fishing trips down to the Laguna Madre have redefined what “home waters” have meant to us in the search of our true Texan identity. These include the Laguna Madre (Mother Lagoon), a rare body of water found between Corpus Christi and Mexico. She’s one of six hypersaline lagoons in the world, meaning that the water is saltier than the ocean. Not only that, it is the largest hypersaline lagoon in the world! Many of the areas we fish are located on shallow flats that extend for miles and miles. The Laguna Madre is a very shallow bay system, with the average depth being only 3.3 ft. For this reason, a shallow running boat with a tunnel hull is popular in the area. We run a Maverick HPX-T, a technical poling skiff with a tunnel, allowing us to reach our fishing spots without tearing up seagrass and leaving prop scars.

Five hour car rides, followed by hour long boat trips down to a little deserted spoil island, have consumed many a weekend away from the responsibilities of the real world. What seems like countless waterproof packs, gasoline, fly rods, and cases of beer are packed and unloaded to the rhythm of a Jimmy Buffet song on the speaker- all for two days of saltwater bliss spent on the tiny skiff or spacious front porch.

Redfish galore

Sparkling Copper redfish fins and tails sliding alongside tan seagrass is what motivates us to travel all this way for a few days of fly fishing freedom. When fishing the Laguna Madre, we focus on flats varying from 8 to 16 inches deep. Oftentimes, redfish can be found tailing and sitting in sandy potholes. A redfish’s diet consists of crabs, shrimp, and small bait-fish.

As a family, we have had the opportunity to fly fish in many different parts of the world including Mexico, the Florida Keys, and the Bahamas, and redfish are still my favorite species to target on fly. Their willingness to eat a fly and the fight they give once they’ve been hooked rivals any other saltwater flats species. Reds are the perfect gamefish, and their gorgeous bronze bodies and their blue tails are a spectacular sight to behold.

“Oftentimes, redfish can be found tailing and sitting in sandy potholes”

The right gear

We use 6 and 8 weight rods when targeting redfish; as well as other species found on the Texas Coast, such as black drum, sheepshead, and speckled sea trout. An 8 weight provides plenty of backbone to deliver flies to fish with the regularly forecasted high winds on the lower Texas Coast.

On calmer days, when winds are less than 15 mph, the 6 weight provides a fun and exhilarating fight for redfish and other species found on the flats. Riley’s rod of choice is the Sage Salt, as it is a fast rod and provides plenty of strength to deliver quick shots to cruising fish. Paired with a saltwater line, such as the Scientific Angler Amplitude Infinity Salt, it allows the angler to make quick shots at fish which is the name of the game when it comes to sight casting from a skiff.

I like to pair the line with a 9 ft leader consisting of 30 Lb mono for the butt section, 20 Lb for the mid section, and 15 Lb for the tippet. When saltwater fishing on the TX coast, the reel you choose is very important. Having a quality reel with the proper brakes is important when fighting the larger upper slot and over slot redfish. I use a variety of reels such as Abel, Nautilus, and Tibor.

Flies for redfish

A variety of flies can be used to fool redfish. All of these flies resemble a crab, shrimp, or small baitfish down here. When fishing shallow calm waters, I like to throw a light fly as it won’t disturb the water when it lands and doesn’t need to sink very quickly. On days when the fish are feeding, redfish willingly chase these flies and bust the surface to eat them. On days when they seem more picky, crab imitations work best.

A fly fishing Mecca

Humid air pushes in from the Gulf and the dark mud graces the coastline with a kind of perfume that guides any Texas angler to the sandy and clear waters of the flats. This paradise is a rare beauty, and on mild winter days on the Laguna Madre, you could swear we were fishing in the clear waters of Florida. What was once a dingy old fishing cabin has become a kind of Mecca for the Elliott family.

With miles of shallow grass flats spanning as far as the eye can see just beyond the porch, the “Laguna Lodge” as we affectionately call it, is our little piece of heaven on Earth. The pride of this place is built into the rugged pier and hours of painstaking labor to replace it after each major storm. But some storms are hard to recover from.

Hurricane after hurricane, we’ve repaired the dock, roof, and fishing lights while seeking a few hours of fun catch and release fly fishing in the flats beyond. But with the recent freeze that devastated the coastal flats and communities of South Texas, the promise of plentiful tailing redfish is harder to come by.

«The Freeze»

In February of 2021 our coastline was hit with a major shock. Millions of native fish species were devastated as the water temperature plummeted into the thirties. The Laguna Madre bay systems lost thousands of Spotted Sea Trout and Drum as a result, in fact, an estimated 3.8 million fish across 61 species perished (Texas Parks and Wildlife, 3).

The entire ecosystem of the coast was impacted, leaving recreational species at risk and vulnera-ble. In a study performed by Texas Parks and Wildlife, the February 2021 freeze event appears to be larger than any other fish kill event since the 1980s (Texas Parks and Wildlife, 5). And that’s how we got here- balancing on the front of a Beavertail Skiff with eyes pealed against the bright Florida sunshine to spot the shadows of juvenile Tarpon below. Miles of intercostal waterway and gallons upon gallons of saltwater connect these two vastly different fisheries.

Tarpon in the Florida Keys

Over the past few years, friend and fly fishing mentor, Captain Danny Clark of Torch Key Charters, has introduced us to the thrill of fighting Tarpon on a fly rod in the lower Florida Keys. Danny runs a BeaverTail skiff which provides a stable platform for casting to Tarpon, as well as a dry smooth ride when crossing the open waters around the Keys.

Every year, starting in April, the great Tarpon migration occurs through the Keys. Between the months of April through July, thousands of Tarpon make their way through the Florida Keys, allowing anglers some of the best fishing in the world. The opportunity to sight cast to a 100 Lb tarpon in gin clear water is truly an experience every avid fly fisher should experience.

“The opportunity to sight cast to a 100 Lb tarpon in gin clear water is truly an experience every avid fly fisher should experience”

In addition, the opportunity to see a school of tarpon daisy chain over a bright sand flat is a sight to behold.

During the other months of the year, juvenile tarpon can be found throughout the Keys. These fish range from the 5 Lb to 30 Lb range and are extremely fun to catch when the big tarpon are not around. These are resident fish that stay in the keys year round.

The right tides

Tide is the name of the game when it comes to fishing for Tarpon in the Keys. These beasts are nocturnal feeders, and you do not want to target these fish on a full moon… trust us we have made this mistake!

When fishing for migratory tarpon, 11 and 12 weight rods are mainly used. This allows the angler to land the fish as quickly as possible without wearing out the fish too much.

I like to use a saltwater line with a heavy shooting head, allowing me to quickly present a fly to a moving fish. When fishing for the smaller juvenile tarpon, a 9 and 10 weight rod is preferred.

Flies imitating baitfish are primarily used when targeting these tarpon.

When casting to large migratory tarpon, I have learned that you don’t want to cast to the lead fish, as the lead fish is usually female and more wary of her surroundings. Instead, focus on the following fish, which are usually males who feel more safe and secure. In addition, when presented with the opportunity, the ideal position to cast is when a fish is swimming towards you, as you can drop the fly in front of its face and slowly keep the fly in front of the fish for a longer period of time. Just remember, you can put the perfect cast on a fish, but they won’t always eat. Tarpon are a very tough fish to fool.

The juveniles

Juvenile tarpon are usually found in and around mangroves on a high tide. These fish like staying under and around the mangroves as it provides them protection. Many times, you have to cast a fly up underneath the mangroves to present the fly to these fish. This leads to snagging many mangrove leafs with your fly!

An angler needs to be able to cast tight consistent loops in order to deliver the fly to the fish. A double haul is a must when sightcasting to these fish, or any saltwater fish for that matter. I like to use a shorter leader when sightcasting to these fish tucked in the mangroves, as it allows the fly to turnover quicker and easier.

The thrill of the chase

At the end of the day, Texas Reds and Florida Tarpon are two different creatures entirely, but one thing unites them: the thrill of the chase. Obviously, you can’t beat the fight of a 100 Lb migratory tarpon! It’s like having a runaway train at the end of your fly line. When you hook one of these silver bullets, all hell breaks loose. However, when armed with a 6 weight on a calm day on the TX coast, a 27 inch redfish puts up a fun fight. In our opinion it rivals all other flats species in its class.

We might be biased as Texas natives, but sightcasting to a redfish in less than a foot of water on the crystal clear flats of the Laguna Madre has its own special kind of magic. But we’ll leave that up to you to decide!

References Texas Parks and Wildlife. (2021, March). 2021 Winter Storm Coastal Fisheries Impacts. Texas Parks and Wildlife. https://tpwd.texas.gov.