North Florida Fishing Report

Fall-Winter Inshore Catching!

2011-11-08T08:20:00.000-08:00

The inshore and backwater fishing here in Northeast Florida is experiencing some of the finest action all year. With the passing of the first few cold fronts, the water has cooled down putting the flounder, redfish, black drum and speckled trout on the move and on the feed. The flounder run is one the best in several years, with some calling it the “greatest ever”. Thousands of fatties are migrating towards the inlets and off shore waters, making them easy to target along the edges of the St Johns River. Finger mullet fished on light jig heads and fish finder rigs from Mayport westward to Blount Island have been producing most catches. Bagging a 10 fish limit of these excellent tasting fish is not too difficult right now.

My favorite species, redfish, have moved into the backwater creeks in very big numbers. The cooler water combined with higher than normal tides have pushed the bigger upper slot redfish further in the marsh feeding on crabs and mullet. As the water temps continues to drop, I expect catches of 20 or more fish per trip, with December, January and February being some of the peak times for schooling reds. I prefer fishing light jigs tipped with shrimp or a small mud minnow along oyster beds. Lure fishing in the creeks systems is equally effective in the cold months. Small 3 and 4 inch soft plastics such as tube lures, Gulp shrimp and DOA shad tail lures, in darker colors are my choice.

Speckled trout are thick along the Intracoastal Waterway and the miles of creeks closer towards the inlets and ocean. I have been actually moving to get away from the trout lately, there have been that many. Most of these aggressive feeders have been in the 1 to 4 lb range, and usually will hit soft plastic mullet lures or deep running crank baits almost every cast.

Many people assume the fishing to be slower in the colder months, which is not the case.

The next 4 months are my favorites!

Capt. Ron Schurr

(904) 707-8328

www.fishingnorthflorida.com

Cold Weather....Hot Fishing!!

2011-01-05T10:09:00.000-08:00

Wintertime fishing in Northeast Florida is red hot for redfish! One of the great things about living in Northeast Florida is that we experience somewhat of a change in season from summer to winter. By the end of September, anglers are to some extent,” burned out” with the dog day’s of summer and welcome a couple months of cooler weather.

Many people are surprised to discover that most of our best inshore fishing is during the colder months of the year.

Although our winters are mild compared to rest of the country, we do get a handful of freezes each year. Such cold weather is usually short lived as Jacksonville averages only 10 to 15 nights below freezing. Average high temperatures from February to April range from about 74 degrees in the afternoon to low’s dropping to around 50 degrees at night.

Anglers along Florida’s First Coast get “fired up” with each passing cold front. Cold weather means redfish…..lot’s of them! The saltwater creek systems along Intracoastal Waterway are taken over with large schools of redfish. Schools of over a hundred fish cruising along oyster lined creek banks are not uncommon. The darker tannic waters surrounding Jacksonville and St Augustine which are the norm in the summer months become almost crystal clear as the water temperatures drop into the mid 50’s.

Schooling redfish and clear water…….some of the best sight fishing opportunities you can experience. Because the water is cold and bait is scarce, redfish take advantage of the swift currents of the tide to bring food to them. This enables these fish to expend as little energy as possible while feeding. Finding these large schools are not as easy in the wintertime, as they are congregated in small ambush points back in the creeks, but as soon as you do find em….”Katy bar the door”! Catches of 30 to 40 redfish each trip is not uncommon.

The “Shrinkage Factor”…for the baits. Scale down on the size of the bait or lure in cold water. Fish exposed to low water temperatures have a much lower metabolic rate and tend to focus on baits that are small and easy to eat. Short 3 or 4 inch soft plastic grubs, tubes, and jerkbait lures in darker colors and live mud minnows on jigs are a good choice when fished very slowly along the bottom. My buddy Captain Tim Cutting likes to say “when you think your fishing the lure too slow…..slow it down some more” Great advice for cold water fishing.

2010-08-26T08:18:00.000-07:00

The month of September is the start of everything that is good here in North Florida. The dog days of summer are almost over, a welcome relief from an extremely hot and humid summer we experienced this past season. Anglers on the First Coast will be greeted with somewhat cooler and breezy conditions while on the water.

September also marks the beginning of highly anticipated events such as the kick off of both college and pro football. North Florida has a huge football fan base, supporting the Jacksonville Jaguars, Florida Gators and Florida State Seminoles respectively.

But in an angler’s calendar, September means only one thing: Tailing redfish in the flooded marsh grass.

For those “in the know”, the words “Tailing Redfish in the grass” is almost a revered term, spoken only amongst close fishing friends, not just discussed openly in public. Mention a great top water trout bite or talk about dozens of rolling tarpon along the inlet at any local tackle shop and you may turn a few heads. Utter the words “tailing redfish in the grass” and now you got everyone’s full attention. Tailing flats are little pieces of hidden treasure and everyone holds their cards close to their chest.

From September till around Thanksgiving extraordinary high tides associated with the full and new moons will flood normally dry acres of grass within the marsh systems bordering the Intracoastal Waterway from Fernandina to St Augustine. Redfish and Sheepshead ride the high flood tide to feed on marsh crabs and small fiddler crabs normally not accessible on normal high tides. This type of fishing, unique to this area, is pure sight fishing at its finest. Finding, stalking and (hopefully) catching a 10lb Redfish who is on patrol in less than 2 feet of water, often times not more than a few yards away. That is the reason we sleep with a tide chart under our pillows for the next 3 months and schedule our “honey-do’s” on anything but the high tides. The next 3 months look to have over 70 days of flood tides; my wife is not going be happy!

To get a shot at what outdoor writer Joe Julavits labeled “Bubba Bone fishing” the forces of nature need to corporate. Tides of 5.4 feet or higher are pretty much the benchmark in determining if it will “flood”. Strong winds also are a factor and will push more water in or hold water out depending on the direction. A strong Northeast or East wind forces more water on the flat and a brisk West wind will hold back the amount of water flooding the flat.

“The grass is always greener”…………..but not so much in this case. Not all the grass in the marsh is wade-able and not all the grass has the “look” conducive for tailing Redfish. The greener high grass that usually borders the flat near a creek or deeper water has a soft, muddy bottom. Not good for walking on. The shorter grass, usually just next to the tall stuff is darker in color, slightly brown or a hint of purple. That’s the stuff! It’s kind of like a golf course, the high grass is the fairway, and the short grass is the green. And like in golf, you want to be on the green!

Most anglers will scout along the edges of a potential flat using the trolling motor or pole to locate tailing fish. It’s also important to have someone scouting from the elevated poling platform. Scan the flat looking for splashes or more importantly, a tail sticking up. Once the water gets to the “magical” depth on the flat, and/or tailing fish are found, stake out and continue the hunt on foot.. Witnessing a redfish with its nose buried in the grass and its tail straight up out of the water, waving at you is an awesome sight. But it can also be maddening as most Redfish can’t see your lure, while trying to root out a tasty crab face down in the grass. The plan is to cast well past the fish and quickly retrieving the lure a couple feet in the fishes path while he is still tailing. Once I get the lure in range, wait for the fish to upright itself and slowly move off. I then like to gently twitch the lure a few times to get his attention The next couple seconds will test your nerves… and your heart, which will be in overdrive. Twitch….Twitch…..Explosion……fish on! Don’t forget to breath!

As Julavits explains: “It may be the most exciting couple hours of hunting/fishing you’ll ever experience in Northeast Florida. There’s no blind casting, no soaking bait on the bottom, hoping that something will swim along. This is pure visual, happening in calf-deep water within a few yards of where you’re standing. And all the pressure is on you – screw up, and the fish is gone.”

Capt. Ron Schurr

(904)-707-8328

www.fishingnorthflorida.com

North Florida Fishing Report Aug 2010

2010-08-07T09:46:00.000-07:00

Inshore and river fishing has been outstanding the last 2 weeks. Summertime fishing in the backwater creek systems can be challenging this time of year due to massive amounts of baitfish, crabs and shrimp. Even with the abundance of bait, the redfish have settled into more of an ambush mode, rather than chasing bait throughout the creeks. This make catching them easier. Cory S and two buddies had 15 Redfish on one small mud flat drop- off last week. This was an impressive school of Redfish with the smallest fish measuring 25" and two fish were over 28", great fighters.
I have also been catching more Flounder recently. Usually 4 or 5 each trip using mud minnows on jig heads.

The St Johns Inlet has been loaded with oversized Redfish, Tarpon and Sharks. Last Wednesday my daughter and I set out for some light tackle Tarpon fishing. We quickly found plenty of small pogies along the beach behind Hanna Park. We were fishing the pogies on 1/4 oz jigs along the rocks on the south jetty and on Kristen's first cast she was hooked up. Her tarpon only jumped once, then stayed down deep, towing us offshore. After over an hour of battling she landed her first Tarpon. A major accomplishment on inshore light tackle. Great Job!