5 wt for shore saltwater fishing?
 

Hi all,

I have a business trip to St. Croix, USVI coming up next week and would like to take my fly rod along to see what I can find from shore while there. Apparently there are bonefish, permit, tarpon, etc. While I do have an 8wt rod, it is a 2 pc and would be difficult to travel with. I have a 4 pc 5 wt and a 6 pc 4 wt. I was thinking of bringing the 5 wt with but curious what other more experienced folks would think of this option? I thought of picking up a Rio Grand line to overweight the rod a bit more in order to help fight the wind better.

I'm not sure that picking up a whole new 8-9 wt setup is in the cards at the moment, so trying to figure out if what I have will work. If not I won't bother trying to bring it along.

Thanks for any help. Oh, and if anyone has been there before and has some tips please let me know!

SS

A warm water, saltwater line would work better. Regular lines get really soft and limp in the heat

A bone fishing trip is on my bucket list but I when I go I will be packing 7 and 8 wt rods, a 5 wt just seems way too light.

For the species you are hoping to target, a 5 wt is way under gunned.

Thanks all. That’s kind of what I figured. I’m looking into a guide down there who will have gear to use. Saves me rushing out to buy something now that I may regret later. I appreciate the input.

For smaller species like blue runner and mojarra it’ll be good, but anything bigger you’ll have to buy a new rod (cuz the 5wt will shatter).

That's a good plan,,,, tropical saltwater flats fly fishing is a totally different game than anything we do in Canada,,, there is a very steep learning curve that a guide can help you navigate much faster and offers you a much better chance at some success than going it alone on your first kick at the cat.

Totally agree with the above.
5wt is not likely to have a happy outcome
One of the most common fish that you would hit from shore is a Jack Crevalle also referred as a Jack.
A 2 pound jack is a real tussle on a 7 wt and if you accidentally hit a medium sized one (a big one is 25lbs+) you could probably kiss your line and backing good bye, if not your rod.
Most folks use at least a 12lb or heavier bite/chafe tippet
The "problem" with saltwater is that the lunkers hang out pretty much in the same places as everybody else - if there are small fish, the big guys move in to feed so if you get a snook for example, it could be anything between about 1/2 pound and 20 pounds in pretty much the same water.

That is precisely what I'm doing on my first ocean flats trip. I thought about gearing up but why do that on a first trip. Get the lay of the land first through a guide and gear up later as you get experience on what you like. Then again, we could both hate it and only do this once...... ha ha ha ha ha.... no chance :)

Do whatever you can to get out and fish will your there; that said, don’t take the 5 weight. It will serve no purpose other than get destroyed.

First time out spend the $$ for a guide who can supply the local knowledge, tackle and flies. Nothing we normally use here is appropriate on the flats. Better to invest in the best polaroid glasses you can afford and a good flats sun hat so you can try to see the fish you are supposed to be casting at.... that is an acquired skill in itself.

You could make do with the 6 weight for bonefish no doubt! Definitely need a tropical line for sure though. Lots of people use 6 weights for bonefish on calm calm days.

Read that wrong.. thought you said 6 weight 4p not 6p 4 weight.

You are far more likely to see winds 15 - 20 mph plus (bring out the 9wt) than you will see 6 wt calm weather days. If I was limited to one bonefish rod, it would be a 9 wt simply so I can stay in the game on those all too common howling wind days with a rod with enough backbone to punch 30 -40 feet up wind. And you can always lengthen your leader if the wind dies and the bones are spooky.

I had flight issues on the way down, which shorted me the day I was hoping to use fishing. It probably wouldn’t have mattered as it was 30-40 mph winds every day making it pretty tough to cast accurately.