Happy Fishing! Check out this weekend's Big Bend fishing report
APALACHEE BAY
APALACHEE BAY
Otto Hough (Facebook @myhometownfishing) says, ” Sadly, the past holiday weekend conditions offshore severely limited anglers in the pursuit of red snapper and shallow water gags. Of the four day special red snapper season, only two of the four weekend days allowed for enjoyable fishing conditions, but limits were plenty for those anglers targeting red snapper and the gags. Make note: December will be the last of gag fishing in Florida waters till September 10, 2023.
Now, the unseasonably warm days have served to heat the skinny water tempps of the Big Bend upward into the high 60s. As such, the creek mouth flats and submerged oyster bars have again begun holding quality trout that have been easing back out the rivers to enjoy the warm nearshore waters, but not all the trout that are well up river. Early topwater plugging the skinny water should generate plenty of strikes, especially on bone/orange grilled One Knocker, Moonwalkers, Super Spooks and Skitterwalks during this warm period over the weekend.
So, the long and short of it over these next three days will find angling opportunities in both the rivers and nearshore waters when pursuing trout and reds. In the nearshore waters, those submerged oyster bars and rockier bottom areas should warm quickly each morning given full sunshine and daytime temps in the mid 70s in the current forecast. Those warmed up locations ought to produce well during to mid-to-late morning rising tides, even more so if the bars are holding actively feeding mullet schools. As an extra bite stimulato, there's a major solunar feed period over the last three hours of the rising tide each of these three days. Tidal flows during the swings are on the increase too. All positive bite stimulating factors to consider when targeting trout.
Even as the nearshore waters have warmed dramatically, there are still lots of trout, reds and sheepshead well up the rivers. Offering up a lively shrimp tipped on a jighead in the river holes and/or deeper river bends ought not last long if fishing the rising tide into late morning. Also, slow drifting the fringes of the main river channels while working a MirroDine, HeavyDine or good old fashion sinking Mirrolure ought to find some takers. As for me, I'm a huge proponent of slow trolling the rivers with a gold/orange bellied or bone Bomber Long A to locate the holes that are holding quality fish, then start plugging the hole(s).
Now, there's a bonus when fishing that's returned to the waters of the Big Bend, whether it be inshore or offshore. Flounder season reopened December 1st. However, remember that flounder must now be at least 14 inches to be legal with an angler limit of five (5) per day, down from ten in the prior season. If slow trolling outside for gags over shallow water rock piles, know that the halos around the larger piles are also holding post spawn flounder. These tasty fish are fun to jig up around the rocks. Slow jigging an one ounce white bucktail jig tipped with a pearl or white softbait is an alluring offering for the flounder worked in 12 to 18 feet of water, as well as for the rock bass, aka black sea bass.
As always, wear an auto-inflatable PFD, especially while motoring. Remember, an auto-inflatable PFD only counts as a Coast Guard approved PFD if worn. If not worn, a standard PFD must be on board for each person on board. Be safe on the Big Pond wherever the boat may go this weekend. Have fun, boat wisely, just FISH!!
ST GEORGE ISLAND
Captain Russ Knapp (850-653-5072) reports, “Well for once the weather this weekend looks pretty good with winds from the East blowing 10 to 15 knots Saturday morning and then laying down to 5 to 10 knots for the rest of the weekend. The seas are predicted to start out at 2 to 3 feet Saturday AM and then drop off to 2 feet into early next week which will make good boating conditions both in the bay and offshore. Look for early morning low tides at the Cut in the 0.0 range followed by early afternoon 1.1 high tides and closing out with late afternoon low tides around .8 feet. As always recheck the weather before you head out as forecasts change often and rapidly which can lead to a big surprise of the "not good" kind.
In the bay, Capt. Dan Fortunas ( 850 980 0101 ) reports that while the Flounder bite is slowing down, the Sheepshead bite is picking up as the water temperature cools off thanks to all the cold fronts that have been rolling though.
As of last weekend the Bull Reds were cruising the Cut while the Silver/White Trout and Whiting were hanging out on the oyster flats and on any structure off the beach . The Sheepshead really like to be around structure such as the bridge pilings and the cuts though the oyster bars so look for them there. The strong cold front on Wednesday may or may not have moved the fish so you're going to have to check things out and look around until you find them. Bait wise, live bait or cut fresh Mullet for the Reds, orange "fish bites" for the Trout and Whiting while the Sheepshead would love you to present them a live Fiddler Crab or bit of fresh Shrimp.
Offshore , Capt. Clint Taylor (850 370 6631) start out your day fishing for Gag Grouper with large live bites on live bottom and then move to the wrecks and reefs for tasty non Red Snappers and Black Sea Bass. Be sure to bring the chum with you and fish small live baits or fresh cut bait for the Snappers and Sea Bass.
Tip of the week -- You can solve your Sheepshead cleaning problems with two words -- Electric knife -- my good friend and mentor Capt.Del Gray taught me long ago about the joys of cleaning Sheepshead with the wonder tool. Capt. Del always cut the fillet off with the ribcage on and after skinning the filet removed the ribcage for a boneless piece of fish ready for a great dinner.
KEATON BEACH
Capt. Pat McGriff, (onemorecast@gtcom.net) reports, “Matt Williams of Woodstock, Ga. with a 39 inch 26.8 pound redfish caught November 25, 2022
We had a Great weekend on board One More Cast this past weekend as we fished in the fog Friday and stayed out in 8 – 10 feet of water fishing for Black Sea Bass bringing in 23 keepers for Matt Williams and Debbie Barstow of Woodstock, Ga. I decided to go in and look for a few trout and reds; so with an hour and 20 minutes before the Hi we drove in to 2.5 ft. of water and proceeded to land 7 keeper reds keeping two and then put 8 keeper trout in the cooler releasing 5 more over 19 inches. We caught our bsb on Assassin’s 1/4 ounce electric chicken jigheads paired with Assassin’s Sea Shads in the New Penny pattern. Saturday, Matt said he’d rather just stay out and catch bsb all day so we did. We brought in 40 with a 15.5 inch monster our largest weighing 1.2 pounds. That is, our largest bsb, as Debbie hooked and landed a 36” bull red on 12 lb. test weighing 24.5 pounds while bouncing for blacks.
Sunday we got a late start and with only a few hours to fish we opted for trout and caught their limit of ten with a 21” fish our largest. Matt caught and released a 28 inch red.Gulf water temps which had crashed to 51 degrees last weekend rose back up to 89 – 69 degrees by Sunday afternoon after the morning rains. I would expect the trout which many had moved to the mouths of creeks will have adjusted and settled in 2 - 4 feet on the rocks and grass flats adjacent to rocks.Live shrimp under Back Bay Thunders accounted for most of our trout and reds while we did manage a few on plugs and plastic. Hard lipped jerkbaits should produce this weekend in water 65 –70 degrees.
ECONFINA
Captain Randy Peart, (captpeart@yahoo.com) says, ”Catching lots of Bass in our local rivers, try fishing the small creeks with small Spinnerbaits and plugs. I often use a 1/8 oz Bettle Spin with a gold blade on a ultralight rod, catch lots of small bass and panfish, even a bonus Redfish or two!
Lots of Trout and Reds being caught at Econfina, try a Cajun Thunder with a 1/8 oz jig and Gulp Shrimp under it or gold spoon for the Reds.
Trout moving into the river pretty good and the Grouper are still biting good in 20 ft of water.
MEXICO BEACH
Capt. Kevin Lanier of KC Sportfishing Mexico Beach, Fl (850 933 8804) reports” Fishing has been good this last week and should continue for a few more days I believe. As we battle weather front the Red Fish are thick. Live finger Mullet is the key.
Most people do not know that December can be an amazing month for Grouper fishing in our area.
These fish move in from the deep water and can be found in as shallow as 40 feet but mainly found in less than 100 feet of water. Live bait is a must. Some of my friends fished the same day we did and had only dead bait and came away empty handed. Find structure and find fish. This is a commonsense thing, but it really rings true right now. I prefer to run out a little farther than you need to because of the number of fish in the deeper areas right now. We have also seen some giant Red Snapper while fishing for Grouper. These must be released but man are they incredible to fight and release
Inshore has the Red Fish on the prowl. Morning low tides and very calm water have made them easier to spot. These fish can be caught from shore as well as a boat. Be patient when you are sight casting. You may see a cobia tagging along.
Get out there because we put Gag Grouper to bed December 31st
BIG BEND/PANHANDLE KAYAK
Salt Strong coach Matt Lanier, (matt@saltstrong.com) tells us, ”I hope this past week has served you all well, filling yourselves with wonderful Thanksgiving leftovers! I know I have! But when I wasn’t stuffing my face, I was on the water feeding the fish!This past week has been a bit breezy, and wet, making it tough to get on the water some days, but the fish haven’t stopped their feeding activity! The bite is on fire right now, so this would be a great weekend to hit the water!
Fish are feeding heavily as they are looking to fatten up right before we get into these long colder months when their metabolism slows down. That means it’s a good time to be on the water wetting a line.
With this current warming trend, and light winds this weekend, you can still find fish in their Fall patterns, and their related ambush points. Points, drains, feeder creeks, and even docks with good current flow, are great places to look to target for our favorite inshore species.
Redfish will be found around oyster bars or hard bottom near shallow areas where the heat will hold better in the cooler part of the mornings. Be sure to use a weedless presentation (like a Hoss Helix Hook) when fishing the oysters though, as hang-ups and break-offs can be frustrating!
Trout will be holding at depth changes and deeper structure while feeding. Find the current coming around points and feeder creeks and creek mouths, and you can find the fish. Paddletails are a great option to use to target these speckled fish. Be sure to use the appropriate weight to get your bait down in the water column where those fish are. Popping corks with shrimp imitation or paddletails are working well on the flats for trout as well.Redfish may still hold shallower early in the mornings and move around some as the water temps warm up some in the afternoon, and with all the shrimp that is in the water now, a live or artificial shrimp (like the Salt Strong Power Prawn, or VooDoo Shrimp) is a great option. During this Fall to Winter pattern these fish are typically dialed in on larger presentations and baits, so larger size paddletails like the Salt Strong Bomber are great options as they do a great job of matching-the-hatch with the bait they are feeding on. A bonus is, when throwing big baits, you get BIG fish!Some fish, redfish, trout, and even sheepshead, are already being found up in the rivers as well, and we will continue to see more in that area as the temps continue to drop in the upcoming weeks and months.
Topwater can still produce great in the morning and even into the afternoon on those calm days, so be sure to throw those favorite topwater lures (Moonwalker, Skitter Walk, One Knockers) with that enticing walk-the-dog action for those big fish looking for an easy meal.
Be sure to fish in areas with good current flow! That is important when looking to locate fish! If you find yourself on the water and fishing in a spot where you haven’t gotten a bite for the last 15 minutes… it’s time to move. Keep looking for the 90/10 zone where those fish are holding. Don’t waste time in unproductive areas. The fish are moving and so should you!
To get the kids on some fish quickly, a live shrimp or (GULP!) under a popping cork around creek mouths and grass lines is a solid producer of fish. And the best part is you never know what you’ll catch because everything eats shrimp… EVEN ME!
If you plan on getting out this weekend, always make sure you check (and double check) your gear and the weather. But most importantly… STAY SAFE & HAVE FUN!
LAKE SEMINOLE
Capt. Paul Tyre reports, “As we enter into November the Bass, Crappie and Stripers / Hybrid fishing should be very good! The water temperature is in the mid to upper 60’s and the Flint River and Chatahooche River arms of the lake are clear due to the lack of rains. Spring Creek is clear.
The Bass fishing on Lake Seminole has been very good this week! With the cloudy weather the top water bite has been good, lures like Frogs and Buzzbaits have worked well. The water temperature is averaging in the low to mid 70’s and the bait fish are moving shallow. The Fall is a great time for Bass fishing Lake Seminole as the Bass feed up for the winter.
The Stripers and Hybrids are still schooling on the main lake and in the Spring Creek arm of the Lake. Buck tail jigs and spoons have been productive on the Hybrids and Stripes.
The Crappie fishing has been very good so far and the BIG Crappie are biting!
For a Lake Seminole Fishing Adventure give me a call to check availability at 850-264-7534 , follow us on Instagram @ Capt.paultyrefishing or email me @ paultyrefishing@yahoo.com.
LAKE TALQUIN
FV BOATSTICKS reports, “Crappie fishing on Lake Talquin is really picking up with multiple limits reported this past week. The main river is holding the largest concentrations of fish.
Trolling continues to be the best option for covering water. 1mph is the speed most target. Pull your jigs with the current for best results.
A fish finder is recommended to find fish quicker. Look for the bait, crappie won’t be far behind. Always troll with your bait higher than the fish”.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Happy Fishing! Check out this weekend's Big Bend fishing report
