With the extension of red snapper season throughout most of December, the inshore shallow water snapper bite has one of the best bites. Most of the good pieces of bottom throughout the bays and nearshore along the beaches have had good numbers of quality fish. Light tackle has been key in getting a lot of the better fish to bite. I like using 20-30 lb braid with a 30lb leader, and no more than about a 1/2 ounce of lead. Sure, there will be some fish that get the better of you, but you will get far more bites and in turn more opportunities to put good fish in the boat.
Sight fishing low, negative tides and clear water is just one of the many reasons I enjoy hitting the water this time of the year. Redfish will be cruising the shallows, oftentimes exposing their backs and tails to anglers willing to put in the work to get to them. A patient, stealthy approach and an accurate presentation is required for success when fishing the extreme shallow water, where fish tend to be on the highest alert. Small soft plastic offerings and flies are commonplace in these scenarios and have both proven effective time and time again.
While the redfish are still thriving on the flats, specked trout have been making their way to the mouths of nearby bayous where the slightly deeper water offers them more regulated temps and congregations of food. Daily changes in conditions will have fish traversing back and forth between the flats and the bayou. On warm days you will see big fish laid up sunning on shallow mud and sand banks, while cold days tend to push the fish into slightly deeper water. I will typically target the bigger fish with suspending twitch baits, although soft plastics will usually produce more bites overall.
Flounder season opened back up at the beginning of the month and I have had a few decent reports of fish still sporadically being caught in the pass. The pass has the best congregations of fish however I prefer to catch flounder in shallower water as a fish of opportunity rather than a target species. When I'm sight fishing areas will lots of spotty bottom, or transitions from grass to sand I will work the edges of those transitions or spot cast to potholes where flounder typically like to lay up. I find that areas closer to the gulf that are primarily turtle grass have been the most consistent for me. Soft plastics, hair jigs, and live bait are all effective techniques to get flounder to bite.
Sheephead are on the move throughout the flats, slowly working their way toward the pass where they will congregate and spawn in the spring. Nearly every flat I have cruised down of late has had sheephead all over it. Sheephead are one of the most challenging fish I've ever tried to sight fish on the flats. Often they won't even let you cast a flat-lined live shrimp in close to them without them blowing out. That being said I welcome a challenge and an opportunity to hone my skills on worthy adversaries. Small hooks, light leader, and a long, long cast are requirements for success, as are patience and a heavy dose of persistence. Shrimp and small crabs are the way to go but occasionally they will bite a jig.
If you have additional questions about what's biting, how to catch them, or you would like to book a trip of your own, I encourage you to give me a call or shoot me an email. Tight lines!
