- May 4, 2024
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This time of year can offer some of the best inshore fishing our area has to offer.
There is tons of bait that are migrating south, and predator fish are in pursuit of them.
Mullet, menhaden and glass minnows are the main baits for the fish. If you’re out at the crack of dawn and have an outgoing tide, you will witness very large schools of bait heading south. Be prepared to see fish blowing up on them. Once it gets to be around 8:30 a.m. and the sun is up above the trees, they just seem to disappear.
Not really, though. They just go to deeper water.
Jacks, ladyfish, trout, flounder, snook, redfish and tarpon can all be found feeding on the schools of bait.
Some of the best places to target feeding fish at dawn are creek mouths, openings that lead to the backwater and the banks of the Intracoastal Waterway. The falling water will bring the bait out of the backwater. This is the perfect ambush spot for feeding fish. They also like to keep the bait pinned up along the banks of the Intracoastal.
When trying to decide what baits to use, remember the old adage: “match the hatch.” By that, I mean if the fish are feeding on mullet and menhaden, go to a lure that resembles it, or just cast net some live bait. Try top-water plugs such as the Top Pup Jr. or a Skitterwalk. If you prefer soft plastics, use a paddle tail or jerk shad rigged on a jig head.
No matter what you decide to use, I would recommend tying your bait with at least a 30-pound piece of florocarbon. This will give you a better chance to land a small tarpon or a good-sized snook.
I don’t know about you, but I hate losing an $10 lure to a fish because it wore through my line because I didn’t use that leader material.
For those of you who flyfish like I do, I recommend using a floating line with a 9-foot leader that has a 12-inch to 15-inch, 30-pound florocarbon bite tippet. I say a 9-foot leader because the water is beginning to clear up. Any baitfish pattern in the color white is my first choice when it comes to flies. If I find tarpon, I will use a black/purple fly. I have designed a white fly that is an absolute killer on trout and snook, and I have been tying it in other colors that are deadly on redfish.
No matter what your choice of baits are, you need to get out there and fish.
