Shad Fly Fishing with Mark Benson – Alligator Hunting, St. Johns River, Bass & Birdies, Florida, Ritz-Carlton

We dig into fly fishing for shad, alligator hunting and the Ritz-Carlton with Mark Benson.  Mark walks us through the steps to catching shad along with some other shenanigans including the alligator hunt.  Shad fishing has a lot of similarities to steelhead fishing so let’s dig into it.

Show Sponsors Hosted Fly Fishing Trips with Dave: wetflyswing.com/destination

Show Notes with Mark Benson

Flip Pallot was on the podcast in episode 70 and told the story of how he lived through the hurricane in 1992.

Mark is the head guide for the Ritz Carlton and for bass fishing on the Ritz’ properties.

We talk about the shad’s life history here and what a good run and day of fishing is like.

The best flies look like an anemic crazy charlie.  Here’s the standard crazy charlie video.

Mark notes the Delaware River and shad fishing.  There are a lot of fly fisherman using sinking lines in this area with the deep and heavy water.

Mark’s central Florida fly shop that caters to shad.

I noted the John McCloskey episode and how John puts together the pre trip in Georgia for Alaska.

Mark likes a G Loomis for his trout spey games.

A Founding Fish by McPhee is a great resource to check out for Shad.

Shingle Creek is the headwaters of the Florida Everglades and Mark’s primary stream he fishes.

We talk about the golf/bass fishing or fish and chips aka bass and birdies.  The course is open to the public so if you are into golf and fly fishing this is the spot.

The Beatles over Elvis and Mexican food are Mark’s goto random calls.

A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle is all about focusing on the present.

You can reach Mark at Mark Benson Outdoors.

Videos Noted in the Show

The Crazy Charlie

Conclusion with Mark Benson

We get into everything from alligator hunting to the easy steps to getting into some amazing shad fishing action.  This one was one of the fun ones as we get into some random topics including golf and bass fishing.

Show Notes: wetflyswing.com/ritz