It is a tradition for my fishing partner Mike and I to go fishing on our birthdays, mine is Oct. 3rd and his is Halloween. Since this year the 3rd and 31st are on a Sat. we decided to go a day early. I was up at 4:00 a.m. so I revisited an old pattern that I have not tried in a while, the "Topwater Seaducer". I used to fish this pattern often but had trouble with it spinning. I had an early morning epiphany and thought I would try palmering the "head" hackles in opposite, counter rotating, directions. And having an hour to kill before Mike's arrival I tied two up. Winds were strong out of the west/southwest at 6:00 am but we went anyway. In an attempt to get out of the wind we put in at Shoreline and under an incredible crimson sunrise headed for the docks across the way. Fished a topwater BeerBelly fly with only minimal results. Switched to my new, and hopefully improved, Topwater Seaducer. She cast beautifully and I picked up a 16 inch speck and a 12 inch grouper within a half hour. Moved over to East of the EPA, winds died, water turned to glass and I picked up 2-3 short specks and the 20 incher below on the same fly. Mike put on the other Topwater Seaducer and immediately landed a couple short specks. Winds picked up again but more southernly so we went to the grassbeds by Portifino. There, on the same two flies I picked up a second 16 inch speck and two shorties, while Mike landed an 18 inch red and lost another about the same size. By now the winds were strong from the west so we headed in to the bar at Ozone for some afternoon celebratory beverages. For me it doesn't get much better than having a successful day of fishing, solving a tying problem, and then ending it drinking with a great friend.
Poor photo of Topwater Seaducer, camera on wrong setting
the color of this speck was a gorgeous golden bronze