Happy fishing! Check out where the fish are biting in Big Bend waters
Fishing is a way of life for many. Not full-time mind you. Work, dinner, putting the kids to bed and telling stories. At any time if you like to fish, it may hit you.
I was first hit with the bug during the early 70’s, pre-teen. Saturday mornings were magical. Bill Dance, Al Linder and a couple others.
Nowadays with the advent of cable, fishing shows are a dime a dozen. Even yours truly was blessed to be in front of the camera for a couple years. My greatest pleasure was bringing a smile to those who needed it.
As father time creeps up, it’s more of a mission to spend as much quality time on the water as possible.
No boat you say? Once the sport is introduced to your veins it makes no difference. Back in the day, Lake Michigan offered some of the best pier fishing around. Compared to the Big Bend, this area is the bomb.
Fresh or saltwater makes no difference. The thrill of firing your bait into the abyss from a dock, bank or jetty is the ultimate.
Social media. We’ve all seen the pictures. Kids on vacay with mom and dad, day at the beach. Surf pounds against the shore. Birds dive just out of reach. Just a few more steps, now knee deep.
Sand fleas, frozen shrimp or squid. 8’ rod, 5000 series reel spooled with a thousand feet of line.
Lake Talquin offers excellent fishing from piers in Leon and Gadsen county. This time of year the odds increase. Live minnow, bass, crappie, catfish, even a striped bass.
They say wind is your friend. I disagree. Calm, sunny days in January and February along Florida’s forgotten coast is where nightmares go to die.
If you want to make a difference, even just one life, take a kid fishing.
Thank you.
APALACHEE BAY
Otto Hough (Facebook @myhometownfishing) says, ”Tough, downright freezing cold and blustery fishing conditions at the beginning of the past holiday weekend, but finally the winds diminished along with a smidgen of warmth returning Monday to afford many some afternoon catching opportunities. Over these next three days, warmer air temps along with light to moderate northerly winds will provide for some good pre-new fishing Friday, on through Saturday. However, Sunday looks to have a substantial amount of moisture in the air as a wet frontal boundary crosses over the waters of the Big Bend.
So, given strong negative low tides will be happening not long after sunrise Friday and Saturday, hit those deep river holes and cuts early on before Sunday probably becomes a washout. With winds primarily out of the north, not only will the morning tide be negative, it'll be an extremely low one, plus the water will be slow to return after the tide turns. So, it's safe to say some quality fish will be holed up early in the deeper spots. Take some time to offer up a lively shrimp or a softbait on a jighead spiced up with a dab of shrimp flavored ProCure as there should be some hungry fish down deep. By lunchtime or soon thereafter, those hardbottomed creek mouth flats outside the drains will have warmed a little, enticing a few trout and reds to roam during the afternoon rise. It'll be a good time to toss a MirroDine 17MR, worked slowly over the edges of the drains. Also, there will be a major solunar feed that will pretty much track the last three hours of the rising tide each day along with a late afternoon minorperiod.
Fortunately, with decent weather prevailing Friday and Saturday, weekend anglers; be it fishing from a boat, kayak or simply bank or dock fishing should be able to enjoy time wetting a line in one of the rivers, albeit there's a good chance a crowd will also be out there by midday. As such, be prepared to practice ramp etiquette along with boating etiquette too. Above all else, don't anchor up in the main river channel to create an unwelcomed hazard to other boaters/anglers. Boat safely! Just FISH!
ST GEORGE ISLAND
Captain Russ Knapp (850-653-5072) reports, “I hate to start off with bad news but the forecast for the weekend doesn't look great as of Wednesday afternoon with more never-ending cold fronts visiting the area. On Saturday you can look for seas running 2 to 4 feet and a NE breeze of 15 to 20 knots, while Sunday features a SW wind at 20 knots with seas running 4 to 6 feet and a good chance of showers. There is a chance of severe weather on Sunday so be sure to recheck the forecast as always.
If you look at the US Weather Service 7 day forecast on the right side of the page just under the map you will find "forecast discussion' in blue, just click on it and you will open up a world of good information. Tide wise at the Cut you will find a very low tide of -1.3 feet at 9 AM followed by a 1.5 foot high at 5 pm on Saturday, while Sunday has a 10AM low of -1.1 feet with the high around 6 PM at 1.4 feet.
In the bay this week, we unfortunately have no first hand reports but my best guess would be to fish in the rivers and creeks of East Bay where you will be sheltered from the wind. If the weather forecast changes in our favor than you can head to the Cut for Redfish or the bridges and oyster bars for Sheepshead.
Offshore, Capt. Jeremy Willoughby (850 323 0769) did manage to find a calm day this week and his party limited out on Mangrove Snapper while fishing live bottom in 40 to 55 feet of water using cut Spanish Sardines for bait.
Red Grouper season is open at the moment and if you can catch a calm day, Capt. Clint Taylor (850 370 6631) suggests fishing for them on live bottom with large live baits.
Capt. Clint says the reefs and wrecks are covered up with endangered Red Snapper and they will take your bait before it gets down to any Grouper lurking in the area.
Tip of the week -- never go exploring on a falling tide but do take advantage of very low tides that are on the rise to check out channels and holes in the bottom. This weekend features some of the lowest tides of the year so if you get out,take your time and look around!
MEXICO BEACH
Captain Kevin Lanier of KC Sportfishing charters (850 933 8804) reports, January has rolled in, and fishing changes have occurred. Check your regulations to see what you can keep, new bag limits, and size limits. As always, this time of year offers good inshore fishing and offshore can be good if the weather cooperates.
Redfish and trout are attacking baits in the bay and in the inter coastal in our area. While fishing one area of the intercoastal we caught a largemouth bass of all things. Shrimp and spoons are the best choice for these fish. Look for deeper channels in the bay and watch the flats early in the day as the water warms with the sun.
Offshore, Vermillion Snapper and Porgies are plentiful. Use 2 hook chicken rigs tipped with squid to load your cooler. This time of year, you do not have to travel far to catch nice fish. Avoid using large live baits and try not to catch and release a lot of Red Snapper. Move on if you find pockets. If you do catch a fish that is in a closed season, be gentle with it, use a descending device to release it. The more cautious and careful we are the more it will help our argument for more fish and more days Good Luck!
ECONFINA
Been tough fishing this last week, but there have been some nice reds and trout caught in the creeks at Econfina. Try fresh shrimp in the deeper holes in the afternoon on the rising tide.
Also some nice bass and panfish being caught in the Ochlocknee and St Marks River, once again the afternoons are best. Try smaller lures and slower retrieves in the cold water, sometimes I'll use a Bett le Spin or Ned rig and fish it slow. You can catch nice fish in the winter. Thanks, Capt Randy Peart (captpeart@yahoo.com)
BIG BEND KAYAK REPORT
Salt strong coach Matt Lanier (Matt@saltstrong.com) tells us, “I hope everyone had a wonderful week! The cold temps and strong winds were tough this past week, making it a bit difficult to get on the water, but Sunday offered a chance for some of us.
With the cooler temps we continue to have, the fish will normally be grouped together and will be holding in the 90/10 zone. This is the 10% of the water where 90% of the fish are at. Finding this zone is super important this time of year! Typically, finding wind protection will be important, as the calmer areas will typically have warmer water.
The trout that are schooled up, are still found in their usual haunts around structure and ledges and depth changes. This past weekend they were found in the deeper holes in creeks, and on the ledges of the flats. Be sure to use jig heads heavy enough to get you down in the deeper part of the water column, where those fish are at; and now that we are in the colder part of the year, exposed jig heads will be optimal, as there is less grass to get hung up in.
It can often be helpful to downsize the size of your bait in the colder months, going to a smaller presentation, to entice the bite from those more lethargic fish. The fish have a slower metabolism in the winter and will not use calories to chase a bait down like they will in the warmer months. Therefore, fishing smaller baits, on the bottom, is a great wintertime tactic.
With the warming trend, redfish can still be found roaming the flats in some of those late fall habits, cruising in creek mouths and oyster beds during the rising tide, and in the soft current seams of depth changes on the falling tide.
Productive lures range have been ranging from paddletails to shrimp imitations and hard baits (like the FRED Paddletail, Power Prawn, or the MR17), but the biggest factor is warmth. It the sun is shining, your lure choice can be a bit more aggressive, and you can fish faster, but if it is a dark and cloudy day, try to go something smaller, and more subtle to illicit those strikes from fish that are slower to react.The Florida Redfish Series Season Opener is coming up January 28th in Stienhatchee, FL at the Sea Hag Marina. Captains Meeting will be held Friday evening before the event at Sea Hag Marina, and both boaters and kayakers have a division for this years tournament series! This will be a great event to start off the Florida Redfish Series for 2023, and I’m looking forward to seeing everyone there! Be sure to go to flredfishseries.com for more information on this event and others upcoming.
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 creeks, creek mouths, and even 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!For an easy way to find the 90/10 zone, go to www.saltstrong.com/recipe for some tips on finding the fish in your area!
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
The Crappie fishing on Lake Seminole has been excellent to start the new year!
We have been catching some BIG Crappie! The Crappie have been coming out of 20 feet of water. Jigs and Minnows have been equally as productive.
I had a fantastic morning with Judi Petty and 10 year old Aedan from Crawfordville Fl.
For a Lake Seminole Fishing Adventure for Bass or Crappie, email me at lakeseminolefishingadventures@gmail.com and follow me on Instagram and Facebook @capt.paultyrefishinge
Local entrepreneur Jimmy Minor (in Yellow) and his uncle Mike, spent a few hours on the boat with Cliff “JR” Mundinger. Results were A+ with multiple keeper redfish brought to the boat. Holding up a biggun” is Uncle Mike. (Boatsticks photo)
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: See where the fish are biting in Big Bend waters
