Snook and Jacks on fly

Colm

I'll be in southwest Florida for 2 weeks start of June and flyfishing the beaches and passes for snook and jacks primarily.
Can you recommend a selection of flies/colours for each.
Is it possible to target larger snook with larger pattern flies, if so what would be recommendations and any topwater fly recommendations would be appreciated too.

Leader and tippet: I generally use a short 7ft Rio Striper tapered 20lb leader and 20lb tippet for sea work in Ireland on an 8 weight rod. Will this work leader/tippet set up work for targeting snook? Any recommendations would be welcome on this score too.

mro1

There be a lot of flies that will work, here's a few of mine.
The Deceiver bottom left is 5" long so you can gauge the size of the rest of the flies.
Top right hard bodies were kept ready on a second rod to use when anything was crashing bait.

Mike

saltybum

Typically the flies for beach snook are white and about 2" long. The water is usually crystal clear and I use 10-12' long leader.
Once the sun is up it's quite easy to see the fish anywhere from inches off the sand on out.

Colm

Thanks guys, are there any recommended websites for buying snook flies? I'll be in Fort Myers for June 1st but would rather have a few in my bag arriving then scratch around looking for somewhere to buy them and I don't tie my own?

HookI

^^ check out the Schminnow by Norm Zeigler , but as mentioned white is right . I like 30 -35 lb flouro tippet

sunflower

Orvis sells flies at surprisingly reasonable prices, in this era of $12 tarpon flies. Though, looking, I wouldn't choose most of these other than the Grasset flies.

http://www.orvis.com/snook-redfish-seatrout-flies

SS Flies sells very fancy flies.

http://www.ssflies.com/info.php?info_id=70

Tgrass

Most flies should be as stated on the smaller size. I like flies that have bead chain and lead eye for the deepe water. This what I genereally use. You never know what will eat them

troutbom

I fish that area quite a bit. I like a 10 ft leader , 25lb fluoro bite tippet (you'll lose a few tho) . Go to fly for me, pearl grey over white Clouser, # 4 810 Dai Ricki hook, small white or pearl lead dumb bell eyes pearl Krystal flas. Worth buying a clear intermediate tropical sink tip. RIO makes a good ones. If fish real finicky drop down to 20 Lb tippet and # 6. If water off color chartruse over white good choice . My biggest(41") was on that , #2 hook, medium lead. Go up to 30 lb on that. Last year fish extremely picky by end of summer, went down to # 8 glass minnow flies. They keyed in on a tiny rust colored anchovy so I tied that up.

HookI

troutbom wrote: »

I fish that area quite a bit. I like a 10 ft leader , 25lb fluoro bite tippet (you'll lose a few tho) . Go to fly for me, pearl grey over white Clouser, # 4 810 Dai Ricki hook, small white or pearl lead dumb bell eyes pearl Krystal flas. Worth buying a clear intermediate tropical sink tip. RIO makes a good ones. If fish real finicky drop down to 20 Lb tippet and # 6. If water off color chartruse over white good choice . My biggest(41") was on that , #2 hook, medium lead. Go up to 30 lb on that. Last year fish extremely picky by end of summer, went down to # 8 glass minnow flies. They keyed in on a tiny rust colored anchovy so I tied that up.

Why were they picky at the end of the summer ?
water temps or available bait ?
I do like the rust color anchovy , very hoping to have results with it .

Tgrass

I think one of the things people tend to overlook is that the Snook when on the spawn are not as interested in eating as much once the water gets to be the right temp. Sometimes I think that has more to do with why you get a wink and a nod on your fly but no eats but all one can do is to keep trying.