Salt and Butter; The 2 main ingredients in any amazing southern cooked meal. Well, now the same is proving true for a day on the water here in the Lowcountry. Salt (water) and the Redington Butter Stick. This year the new 6 and 8 weight Butter Sticks were introduced and I was eager to get my hands on the #8. That's our go-to rod weight here in Charleston when chasing Reds on the fly and I couldn’t wait to get a fiberglass option in my quiver.
My first day out with the Butter Stick, admittedly, started out rough. I took the rod to a friends house, who has a dock on the marsh and was just throwing a line off the dock to get a feel for the rod. Having been fishing the CRUX for the last year, my casts were all over the place with the Butter Stick. The rod is shorter and had that crazy buttery flex I’ve grown to love with other Butter Stick models. I had to tell myself to slow down, which isn’t a bad thing. Much like in life, it's not bad to just slow down and enjoy the moment! Once I had my casts comfortable and accurate, then came the real test. While working off the dock, a Redfish tail popped up about 10 yards in front of me. I made a few casts, dropped my drumbeater pattern in the path of this feeding Redfish and BOOM! He ate, I set the hook with ease, and let the line start screaming. Although the Butter Stick has a ton of flex, it also has plenty of backbone for a solid strip-set. The line took off and the fight began. I had this rod bent through the cork on what would end up being a beautiful Redfish. The flexible feel of the rod exaggerated every run, head shake, and roll, but the rod was still able to handle anything this Red threw at me. You really can’t beat the feeling of fighting a fish on fiberglass. You get a totally new connection and experience with this rod.
What I’m getting at here is this; The new Butterstick sizes, especially the 8 weight, need to be in your arsenal for saltwater fly fishing. It's now my go-to rod for this year and probably many years to come. Its such a blast to use and a very welcome change of pace to me. I always tell my clients to at least give it a try and it never disappoints. It casts like a dream, has the guts to fight anything on the flats, and will give you a feel and connection to the fish unlike any of your other rods will.
