Dr. Tom Earnhardt, a former law-school professor who is host of UNC-TV’s Exploring North Carolina pioneered fly-fishing for false albacore more than 20 years ago. Since then, they’ve be written about in fly-fishing journals across the country.
Guide Rob Koraly likes to fly-fish for false albacore. They’re bigger, tougher, more abundant, exciting and available than bonefish and more realistic than tarpon, and they’re right in our backyard. Who needs tropical sand flats?
Fat Alberts can wreck any normal fly rod, so you need a 9- to 10-foot, 10- or 11-weight, and somebody with you to help de-hook the fish in the boat.
Casting is for experts, but you can cheat by slow-trolling the fly past the school.
Favored lures are Craiser and Deceiver flies and Crease poppers made with flattened foam to form narrow bodies and tied with bushy tails. They’re fished on slow-sinking lines with a 15- to 20-pound tippet that will usually withstand the punishment.
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