Tench on the fly

What a beautiful warm Thanksgiving day! Got a few hours in early before I headed home and into a food induced coma. Regarding the Tench. We have two small coastal lakes with established populations. Ive never caught any much bigger than the one here. Ive heard of 6-7lb fish coming from this water but frankly I would be really suprised.  They fight well for there size and by far produce the most slime of any fish I have ever caught. These two small lakes certainly hold the decendants from the first stock brought over by Italian imigrants in the 1800s as a food fish. They introduced into small farm ponds and other places from the Central Coast to Northern California.  I could be wrong, but I have never heard of any other US locations where they are targeted and caught on fly or bait with any regularity. One lake is about an acre in size next to horse stables adjecent to a beach trail system and the other is where I fished today. It's about 50 acres and a half mile long. A really shallow horse shoe lake with terrible access. It was shown to me so I'll just leave it at that.

Small tench were cruising around the shallows with some decent size carp. I was able to manage three tench and two Carp. All the ate a small Black Matuka. One carp was caught blind casting to mudders the other was a challow cruiser. The Tench also were cruising in and out of two shallow pockets.

I also hit two larger lakes to check the flats and it was really dead. A few deep mudders that I cast too but that was about it and i never connected. Not much life in the shallows with the cooler nights we have now so things have tightened up. They will be available right on through the winter but it's tough fishing and most days are going to be 0-1 or 2 fish on a good day.  Seasons are changing here and it's looking alot like fall in the Valleys with the Sycamore's and Willows lit up along the creeks.  I'm looking forward to winter!