Water temperatures crossed sixty degrees this week, and exactly on cue the slot redfish showed up hungry across the bay. If you have been waiting for a sign to book a spring trip, this is it — the next six weeks are the best shallow-water fishing of the year.
Where we found them
Early mornings, the fish are tailing on the grass flats near the creek mouths, feeding on fiddler crabs in less than two feet of water. By midday, as the sun warms the mud, they slide onto the dark-bottom banks where the water runs three to four degrees warmer. Pole slowly, keep your shadow behind you, and watch for pushes and nervous water before you ever see a fish.
What they ate
Live shrimp under a popping cork accounted for most of our fish, but the bigger reds wanted a challenge. A gold spoon crawled across the flat drew the hardest strikes, and on the calmest afternoons, cut mullet on a circle hook was unbeatable. Bring a mix — spring reds change their minds by the hour.
How to time your trip
A rising tide in the morning is the winning ticket. It floods the grass, pulls crabs out of their holes, and puts the reds in predictable lanes along the edges. Give us a call and we will match your date to the tide chart — that is half the job, and it is the half most visitors get wrong.