Fishing is absolutely on fire right now. Schools of pilchards are abundant throughout the bays, and this is the best time of year to do some live chumming for a variety of fish. Even if you decide to fish artificials, locating these schools of bait and fishing in or around them will yield good bites and lots of action.
Early morning topwater on the flats is still producing plenty of action from speckled trout and redfish. Most of the redfish, in small packs or as single fish, are cruising along the shoreline or laying up in sandy potholes. Bigger groups of fish have been in slightly deeper water between 3 to 10 feet. Many schools have been holed up under docks, tucked tightly underneath whatever shade the dock might provide. Most of the time, you can catch redfish around docks with soft plastic jigs, but if they are picky, a medium sized pinfish with a light split shot will usually do the trick.
If you want to catch the big bull reds, target the bridges on the bottom half of a strong outgoing tide. You can also catch them on the bottom in the pass, around the points, or over submerged rocks.
Look for speckled trout in 2 to 5 feet of water around grass flats, points, the mouths of creeks and bayous, oyster bars, and other similar features that give them cover and a place to feed. Artificial shrimp, jigs, surface lures, and all kinds of live baits will work well on specks.
There are still plenty of mangrove snappers around all different types of structures. Inshore, I like to target them in about 5 to 10 feet of water; however, some of the better fish have been closer to deeper water. Drop offs with good current and some type of structure are what I am typically looking for. If you have pilchards, try throwing a few free baits out to see if anyone is home, and have one ready to toss if you see fish busting the chum or coming up to investigate.
Although I have not really been targeting them, when I am fishing for redfish on drop offs in about 10 feet of water, I have been catching some really nice Spanish mackerel mixed in. Not big numbers by any means, but a couple of 4 pound fish here and there as a bonus. It has been more on jigs than anything else, and also when I am using a faster retrieve.
If you have additional questions about what is biting, how to catch them, or if you would like to book a trip, I encourage you to give me a call or shoot me a text.
