Most bachelor parties include strippers swinging on poles and an absurd amount of alcohol, followed by a head banging hangover the following morning. With J.C. getting married later this month, his idea of a bachelor party was a little less mainstream. Instead ofstrippers we were in search of schooling redfish on the beautiful grass flats of Steinhatchee, FL.
We set off on Thursday from Vero Beach after working a half day and arrived later that evening. Anticipation was high as we knew (or thought we knew) what was in store for us the following morning on our first day of fishing. We awoke to the smell of coffee and immediately noticed that the cold front had arrived and the wind was blowing more than we expected.
We launched at Hagen’s cove which is only possible on a high tide which was fine since we planned on returning the following high tide. Fishing was decent in the morning but high winds and cloud cover kept fly fishing to a minimum. A few decent reds and trout were caught before a storm coming in from the Gulf caught up to us.
Launching the boats at Hagen’s turned out to be a bad idea as the rain came early and we had nowhere to go. Dry land for about 300 yards from us to the ramp meant that we were going nowhere anytime soon. We rode out the storm and after about four hours of getting rained on we finally got in.
When we woke up on day two we checked the weather and to our surprise the rain chances had dropped and the outcome was looking pretty good. Gusty winds were still present so fly fishing was still tough as clouds made sight fishing nonexistent. “Drift sock deployed” became a common quote on the skiff as this was probably our most valued item aboard. It slowed us down perfectly to present soft plastics where as without it we would not have been able to cover as much ground with a jig.
As our last day of fishing was coming to an end, we heard a yell coming from the distance and we knew somebody had hooked a pig. We idled over to see J.C. holding a 38″ redfish which he caught in about three feet of water on a DOA jerk bait. An awesome way to end an amazing trip!
After a long day on the water nothing is better than some drinks and playing Kan Jam.
Accommodations were provided by Steinhatchee River Inn. If you are going to stay in this area, this is definitely the place to do so. Julie in the front office is the best! She had fresh brewed coffee for us every morning and always made sure we had everything we needed.
Some more pics…
Nice! not every day someone comes to our back yard to fish. If you think fall is a good time you should consider coming back in the winter. Big trout move up on the flat as well as those stud redfish.
Yea I have fished there in winter as well and the trout fishing is no joke. Might make a trip there this winter if time permits.
Great article as always…. I have been to steinhatchee aka ” the hatch” a few times. It truly captures the old Florida feel. Btw what kind of skiff is the light blue one that has salt marsh?
It is a Salt Marsh Skiff made in Ft. Pierce, FL. It is a sister company of Ankona I believe. Great little boats!!!