Wednesday, July 28, 2021

07.27.21 How about some jelly with that fly?


     With the tides for the week heading into dead low at first light I figured I had maybe one day to catch something before the tide cycle gets better. As always there too early and had to search for water around 430 am, which was when dead low hit. I did find some on the north side of the groin but there was no one home. Surprisingly there wasn't any sign of life or bait like there has been. 


     What I did find when light showed up was a jellyfish hatch that covered the beach scarp and my fly with just about each cast. By the time I left and the tide was midway, there was a sheen on the water and the water column was full of them from top to bottom. I looked it up and found them to be salps, which belong to the family tunicates, and are more related to human beings than jellyfish, although that it was they look like. They are usually in long chains, but separate as they drift into shallow water and in the breaking surf. (Source HERE)


    I think the combination of dead low and the choking salps had something to do with the absent bite. Rich was down and caught a few small fluke casting out on or over the bar with a combination bucktail/Gulp. Leif and I couldn't find a bite in the closer and shallower water. Bring on the fall already!