Bump In The Night

Strange things happen when fishing. Even stranger things happen when fishing at night.

We launched our kayaks right before sunset with an incoming tide and a plan to fish the lighted docks in a different section of the area that we've been targeting as of late. These docks were in deeper water, and stuck out into the current a bit more than the other docks we'd been fishing. We hoped to find snook.

The wind was an issue right off the bat, blowing 15-20 out of the north, the water was roiled up and wavy and the water clarity was murky. Luckily, we were heading south and I was hoping that the wind would calm down by the time we made our return trip to the put in.

The first docks we wanted to hit were dark, so we paddled into one of the inlets in an attempt to get out of the wind. We found some lights and went to work. Two underwater lights and one above water. Nothing. No feeding activity, no darting bait...all quiet. We paddled to the next set of lights - three docks in a row with above water lights on....perfect.

The first dock yielded nothing and after 15 minutes working DOA Shrimp around the light and adjacent shadows. Keith had moved to the second dock while I was getting my DOA from the maze of pilings it was wrapped around. He scored a nice trout within seconds of casting to the same light we had just moved from. I leapfrogged to the third dock and hooked into another good trout. The size of the larger trout mouths are quite different from their juvenile counterparts...maw-like and can eat quite large prey items. They seem quite a bit thicker as well. Keith had to get on someones dock at least once to retrieve his lure....

We pulled a few more fish out of these three docks and paddled on to find another spot. The wind had died down a bit, so we paddled out of the inlet to a perfect dock with a sweet light right above the waters surface. This dock was sticking out into the main channel, so the current sweeping by was stronger than that which was pushing through the inlet. We could see baitfish hopping on the surface and shadows beneath.

Now for the strange part....I started pulling out fish on almost every cast....a few dinks but mostly keeper sized trout. Keith was getting nothing. We were using the same lure, DOA Shrimp Clear-Red Flake, and he was pulling water while I was pulling fish. I don't get it. I switched over to a Storm Wild Eyed Shad in gray and black. These are 4 inch jerkbaits that look a lot like a finger mullet. I had it rigged on a 2/0 offset worm hook with the hook point inside the hook flap and no weight to allow for a slow sink rate and slight darting action. This worked better than the DOA Shrimp. I could see multiple trout getting into position and chasing it as soon as it hit the water. Keith managed to pull in only one fish out of this spot....Weird.

We paddled across the channel to a dock with green underwater lights. On my first cast, I caught my best trout of the night at around 20 inches. A beautiful, solid fish.

We continued working the docks with only a few more fish. Recorded a big "0" under the lights in another inlet....Weird.

Strange days (or nights) indeed.

Lights On, Nobody Home

In life and fishing, sometimes the things you plan might not go exactly the way you envision them, but if you improvise, adapt and overcome, you can go from scratching your head.... to watching your rod bend with a fish on the other end.

Keith and I paddled out to a string of docks that I found lighted on a scouting mission earlier in the week. The plan was to concentrate on the docks that were sticking out into the incoming tide and hopefully locate a few snook.

The problem was....someone forgot to tell the folks who live there to turn their lights on for us. It was a bit like Halloween. Several residents actually saw us out there and turned their lights off! I asked Keith to go knock on a few doors and ask them to turn their dock lights on, but he wouldn't do it. These same docks were lit earlier this week....I need to remember to bring the rolls of toilet paper and burning dog shit bags me thinks.

Now, I understand why some folks might not want folks fishing around their docks. I get it. A few errant casts clanging off their boats, fishing line draped across their boardwalks, and hooks left laying exposed to bare feet. I get it. A prudent fisherman needs only to realize a bit of respect to not do these things and to remember that you're literally in someones back yard.

Ok...back to the fishing part.

Conditions were just PERFECT. The sort of night that brings on a sense of Zen peacefulness...no wind, slick, flat calm seas, painted skies, and less humidity than you'd expect for an early September night in Florida. I could have just laid back and took a nap if there wasn't fishing to do. The water temperature is a bit cooler for sure.

So lights out on the docks we planned to hit.


We paddled into a clover leaf of docks in the inlets. It seems the lights were out more than on, but we could see feeding activity along the lights that were lit. The pattern was whomever got into position and got a cast off was almost guaranteed a hook-up.....cast....plop....thunk....tension....fish! Trout were everywhere. I started with a 9 foot leader and had to keep trimming it because it would get frayed. It's probably about a 5 foot leader now. The larger specimens really tend to put up a fight and I had a few that actually leaped free of the water. There seemed to be a lot more schoolie sized fish than the last time, but we were getting a few that were in the 18-20 inch range.


We came upon a submerged amber colored light that had quite a bit of feeding activity around it. I pulled a few decent fish out and just sat back to watch the them interact with each other. I often enjoy just observing the fish as much as catching them. What was strange was, I could see the trout, who were mixed in with a gaggle of sail cats, just lazily swimming on their side. A few of them looked like flounder and would require a bit of a double take.

The last dock that we hit had a light that was placed about 10 feet above the water. There was surface action everywhere for about a 100 foot radius around this light. You could cast in any direction and immediately have a fish on. They were feeding on finger mullet, greenbacks and shrimp....but I think you could have tossed a frying pan and it would have received a strike.

Daylight Dies

I arrived at the put in spot at 7PM. The conditions were ideal: Sun low in the sky, the tide was just starting to come in, a light breeze tickling the waters surface. The water temperature felt like bath water and was just ticking 91 degrees.

The plan was to head back to our favorite redfish spot and fish the oyster bar that backs up onto a lush grass flat. Keith was working the drop off along the channel and I was opposite him working the shoreline on the way back to the oyster bar. There was fishy action going on all around us with finger mullet scattering, fish wakes chasing, and birds wading and diving. The area was ALIVE! Perfect conditions....but...the problem was, someone forgot to tell the redfish to show up.


We worked the area and the entire water column with a myriad of flies, soft plastics, and Mirr-o-lures. Nothing. Not even a chase or a tap. When you see about 100 finger mullet scattering and spraying into the air, that usually means a bigger fish is chasing them. Casting past this spot and working the lure with the tide SHOULD trigger a hook-up, right? But once again, the fish haven't read the latest issue of Florida Sportsman.

After an hour and a half, we decided to target some docks with lights to see if we might be able to find some snook.

"Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light" (Who would've ever thought I'd resort to using an Eagles lyric?) There was an eerie green glow next to the seawall. The shade of green that you might see in a sci-fi film...around the same shade of green as my kayak. As we paddled closer, I could make out baitfish darting and large shadows chasing. It looked like some sort of sci-fi aquarium.


Bingo!

We started casting. Nothing. Changed lures. Nothing. Changed lures. Nothing. What would Captain Kirk do? "Captains log....suplemental....we've discovered an eerie.... green.... light with fish feeding around it....yet.....we can't seem to....catch any.... fish Mister!" (Wow...a Star Trek reference? Really?)

After 30 minutes of this, we decided to try another dock. This time, with a light that pointed downward. First cast, BAM! 22 inch trout! Keith got the hook-up on it's twin a few moments later. After about 4 fish each, all between 18 and 22 inches, and FAT, the action quieted. I made around 6 casts without a fish.

Time to move.



Over the next 2 hours, this cycle repeated itself over and over. Cast, catch, release. Cast, catch release. Cast, catch, release. Cast.....cast.....on to the next dock.

I think the reason that the first light didn't produce was because the light was projected upwards, giving the fish a better view of it's prey. Any other time, it's the opposite, with the light projecting down. All they can see is the profile silhouetted against the surface.

We eventually got tired and headed back in...today, my wrists are sore from horsing so many large trout out from under the docks. The bigger trout put up a harder fight for sure.....

Night Shift

Last night, Keith and I did a night trip. Arriving to the beach at around 7pm, we had excellent conditions. With an incoming tide, light breeze and sunset at 8:30, we hit the grass flat along the drop-off with no fish but a lot of diving bird action.

I set up a lighting rig with battery powered camping lanterns inside large, clear,water tight food storage containers fore and aft. Worked like a charm until the batteries died after 3 hours use. Keith said he could see me a long ways off.

Keith caught a small trout along the weed line, then we paddled over to the bridge. There was bait everywhere...glass minnows, needlefish, and majorra. I hooked up with a 15 inch trout on a shrimp pattern, but switched to a white baitfish pattern when I observed snook blasting bait on the surface.

I changed to a topwater, crease fly pattern which drew a few misses. I tried working it fast, slow, painstakingly SLOW to no avail.

Keith caught another trout, but we couldn't seem to entice any of the snook to take our offerings. I think they would have turned their noses up at live bait.

We worked the rock jetty, nothing....the bridge pilings...nothing....all the while watching and listening to "SLUR-POP!" happening all around us.

We headed in at about 1:00 am on a falling tide with a lot of activity still happening. Night fishing is great because the heat isn't as intense, the fish are out, and there is no boat traffic to speak of.

We'll be doing more of this night fishing to be sure!

Scouting New Spots - When?

In this installment of Scouting New Spots, we'll combine the things that we learned from the first post - Where? - and try to determine when is the best times to fish and how it goes hand in hand with where.

For starters, you need to understand that I'm not a marine biologist or expert on the subject of finding fish. All I'm doing here is passing on things that I've learned in the hopes of helping other people find fish on more of a consistent basis....I'm always learning new things too. This year, I've really been putting an effort into being able to find fish.

Now...when the best times to fish is an oft debated subject. Some say the best time to go is low tide, others will tell you high tide, and of course, the incoming or outgoing tide is thrown in there as well. Going at night or the break of dawn?

I've found through trial and error that fish can be caught at all stages of the tide, night and day...you just have to know where to fish.

At my special little oyster bar spot, there's an oyster bar on the edge of a drop off that backs up onto a lush shallow grass flat. My favorite time to fish this spot is at a dead low tide with the sun low in the sky. The flat is almost totally dry, but the water leading up to it and around the oyster bar can hold fish. This area just comes alive at this time, with little shrimp, fish and crabs coming out of their hiding places. I've witnessed redfish stacking up on the edge of this flat, working their way into the grass as soon as the water is deep enough to hold them.

In the wintertime, I've seen redfish at the lowest stage of the tide, holding in pools of water with the surrounding areas completely dry, waiting for the tide to come in. A deftly placed shrimp or crab pattern will be sure to draw interest in a situation like this.

Snook, on the other hand, are notorious nocturnal feeders. The Mad Snooker, Captain Dave Pomerleau can attest to this fact. I can't tell you how many times I've seen these fish cruising along a mangrove shoreline or hanging around a boat dock, thrown everything I can at them and either spook them or they refuse EVERYTHING. You'd think they either never eat, or are smarter than your average fish.

Truth be told, they DO eat, but at certain times...and only for a short time. I have yet to figure out the formula, but they DO prefer an incoming tide at night. Lighted boat docks with moving water is what to look for. They hold in the shadows, waiting for baitfish to be swept along in the current where they can dart out and grab one.

Flooding tides give gamefish the opportunity to catch prey among the mangrove prop roots. A deep mangrove edge should be explored at this stage of the tide. If you're not hanging up on prop roots or branches once in a while, you're not casting close enough.

But what do you do along the mangroves on a falling tide? A lot of large mangrove islands have "creeks" that, if you were looking at it on Bing Maps, you'd swear it was a checker board. These are breaks to allow for tide and current flows, since the mangroves are in the middle of a current, these creeks allow the mangroves to stay put and not be swept away. Where these creeks empty out, there is often a depression or hole. Fish like to wait in and around these holes on a falling tide to feed on the prey items that are swept out when the water level drops. This is a great spot to find any of the big three year round. Combine this with a low light situation, and the fishy fireworks can be intense.

Another spot that I found that holds fish no matter the time of day or tide stage is a sand flat that drops off into a channel. The edge of this channel is grassy. What I like to do is bounce a black and purple bendback down the hill as it were.

But why does this spot always seem to produce trout?
A few reasons to consider. The temperature of the deeper water makes the fish a bit more comfortable, the eyes of the fish are sensitive to bright light and on a hot summers day, cool darker water seems to be preferable to these fish. There always seems to be moving water along this edge and trout like to lie in wait to pounce on unsuspecting prey items washed to them in the current...tide changes from incoming to outgoing, they just turn around.

So any stage of the tide and time of day should find you still able to find fish, you just need to know where to look and at which time.

Scouting New Spots - Where?

One of the most challenging things about saltwater fishing is finding fish. You may find them one day and they won't be there the next. My friend Scott likes to say "Well Rob...the fish must not have read Florida Sportsman this month."

Knowing where the fish like to hang out and feed is the first thing I consider when scouting a new area. Sometimes I see a spot as I'm driving past, other times, I use Bing Maps to find features that fish commonly use as either a highway or a hole or hill that they might use as a current break. It's similar to bass fishing - the fish relate to contours and structure much the same as largemouth bass, but you have to account for moving water, time of day, and tide movement.

Here are a few things that I look for when looking for new fishing spots...

Is there grass? This is an important factor to think about. Favorite prey items for gamefish use grass to hide, feed and reproduce almost year round, so make sure sea grasses are in the equation.

The ICW from Memorial Causeway north to Anclote Key has some of the nicest grass flats I've ever seen. The water is always clear and the grass is always thick and lush....but....I haven't had much luck in that area. There are a few spots that I've found that SHOULD hold fish, like a grassy 10 feet deep hole in the middle of a 3 feet deep grass flat that doesn't hold fish for some reason. But on the other hand, when looking at a few spots on Bing Maps near Old Tampa Bay, I noticed an absence of grass. I was assured that there WAS in fact grass there, only to find the area as bald as I am...and ended up going home empty handed.

Deep water nearby? Gamefish are preyed upon as juveniles by birds and bigger fish. This sticks with them as adults. Deeper water acts as security for these fish and it's always a good idea to look for some sort of depth variation close to where you'll be fishing. Deeper water also holds cooler temperatures in the summer.

One of my favorite spots to fish is at Sand Key. There is a grass flat that drops off into a deep channel. There are always trout holding at or close to this edge. I've also caught snook and tarpon there. Recently, I was wading in knee deep water at this edge, catching trout and I noticed that the water blowing from the channel on the incoming tide felt about 10 degrees cooler than the water I was standing in.

Other structures - Oyster bars, sand bars, docks, pilings, rocks and rip-rap? Just like bass fishing, you have to locate the structure. Baitfish use these features to hide from gamefish. Gamefish use these locations as a current break and to be able to ambush prey. I like to find docks that house sailboats because they need to be fairly deep to allow for the keel of the boat.

Another of my favorite spots features an oyster bar. It's located between two mangrove islands with deep edges. The front side of the bar drops into about 6 feet of water. The back edge sweeps into a shallow grassy area that is mostly exposed during low tide. I've often witnessed redfish following the incoming tide into the grass, but make a stop along the front of the oyster bar foraging for mud crabs that make the oyster bar their home.

In the next installment of "Scouting New Spots", we'll focus on when to go.

YakAngler Comes To Florida

Mark and Adam, the founders of Yakangler.com are in Florida this week to hang out and fish all over the state. What I think is really awesome about this is the fact that they came to fish in Florida for a week instead of going to Vegas for the ICAST convention....plus they're really cool guys who love fishing!

First stop on their whirlwind trip was to go fishing for trout and reds with me.

I met them at the always popular Sand Key. Of course I was a few minutes late. Being a Wednesday, there was no boat traffic. The conditions were perfect with a slight breeze and no rain in the forecast. The tide was on the latter stages of outgoing and would be low about 2 hours after our arrival. Florida native Chip Gibson and his son Brad drove all night from Georgia to go with us as well.

They secured a few Emotion Grand Slam kayaks from David Sims at Action Watersports which are pretty nice boats.
We paddled out to "The Corner", a grass flat on the edge of a 20 foot drop off. I broke my rod on the first cast by trying to unsnag a hang up. We caught a few trout and a few lizardfish and a needlefish.
We paddled over to an island and found a strong incoming tide along a shallow flat that dropped off into a channel. We caught a few more trout and spooked a few redfish. Was trying to get Adam a fish before heading back to the beach, but were unsuccessful in our attempts.
It was a really fun day out fishing and I'm glad that we had the opportunity to meet up, fish and enjoy some wings and beer at Mugs after....

Kayaking Hangover And The Silver Kings

After fishing all day Friday and Saturday, by the time I was crawling up the beach with kayak in hand Saturday afternoon and sleeping the rest of the weekend away, on Monday, I was suffering the kayaking hangover.

Not like a drinking hangover where you're swearing you'll never drink again. The refreshing, relaxed, my hand feels like it weighs 300 lbs, I'm too tired to write sort of tiredness.

Friday Morning, I met Keith at Sand Key at first light. The tide was dead low and just starting to turn. We headed out of the Pass and worked along the rock jetty. When we go to the end of the jetty, there was a HUGE school of threadfin shad. The next thing I saw was a pod of tarpon about 60 yards away, headed in our direction. My plan was to hold within casting range of the threadfins (which were holding roughly in the same place) and wait for the tarpon to start feeding on them.

The tarpon approached the school....and kept going. I pulled my anchor and started paddling after them as fast as I could. They must have had other things on their minds....and managed to keep just out of range.

A while later, we got on a school of black sea bass. They were undersized but fun to catch.

Saturday morning, met up with Keith and Pettay. Same spot, but we paddled over to W island. Caught a few trout with Keith getting a really nice 20 inch specimen.

The was a school of bait right where we were fishing and a boat full of less than scrupulous folks decided to kick us off our spot in order to catch said bait....why do people have to be such douche bags?

It was a beautiful few days of fishing.....

The Fly Fish Chick

I'm sure you all know about Austin Texas' very own The Fly Fish Chick blog....but just wanna take this opportunity to say how much I like reading her site. She's a very good writer and quite an adventurous person. Check her out! You all know I don't recommend rubbish (unless I'm writing it). Now if I can just convince her and the Proffesor to hit the Keys in the spring during the bonefish run....just leave the IPOD at home please.