| Florida Times-Union
I realize you can catch redfish in Jacksonville any day of the year, but I would be committing journalistic malpractice if I failed to dedicate this report to the ol’ red bass.
There must be fifty ways to catch a red right now, from hand feeding a tailer in the spartina grass with the trusty eight-weight to horsing up a giant bull in the St. Johns River.
Here’s all you need to know about the marine forecast this weekend: you aren’t fishing offshore or in the surf. If you want to fish, just time your outing to avoid the scattered storms and find an inshore spot to hide from the wind, which will blowing hard out of the north and northeast all weekend.
Seein’ red
First and foremost, the flood tide fishing has been world class this week, thanks to a sustained nor’easter and a favorable moon. The marsh should continue flooding this weekend, and high tide will be hitting in the late mornings.
My buddy Steven Johnson said it’s been an off year up until the last few days, but he’s on ’em now. And while most of us were locked up in our cubicles — or makeshift home offices — Capt. Chip Wingo was knee-deep in flooded grass and spot tails.
“It was on fire. They were slurping all over the place,” he said.
Wingo said black and purple gurglers were the money fly on Tuesday, and he suggested using a white soft plastic bait rigged on a weighted weedless hook if you want to chase them with spinning gear.
And if you’re finding yourself wanting to try this fishery for the first time but don’t have a way to get into the marsh, reach out to any of the guides featured in these reports to book a spot before the floods runs dry.
The grass isn’t always flooded, and Capt. Ron Schurr said the backcountry bite has been good on the low end of falling tides. He’s using shrimp and jigs, which is also yielding delicious by-catches of black drum.
If flats boats and fly rods aren’t your thing, you have plenty of options to chase reds.
Want to play tug of war with a giant? Drop a mullet or ladyfish chunk or a crab knuckle in the St. Johns River channel between the inlet and Dames Point and catch one of bull reds that have migrated into the river.
“The rainy weather had the river really churned up, but bouncing from spot to spot, we caught bulls in decent numbers. The high outgoing tide seemed to be the better tide,” said Capt. Kirk Waltz.
If you want something a little sportier, you can catch slot and oversized reds on light spinning tackle at the jetties, river docks or in the creeks at low tide. Waltz said the fall mullet run has been hit or miss – “Rafts of them one day, none the next,” he said – but mullet are deadly baits and easy to find at low tide.
There are other fish besides reds to catch in Mayport right now, including tarpon, big jacks, mangrove snapper and big trout, said Capt. Steve Mullen, who caught a 26-inch gator this week.
“Had some big trout but not a lot of numbers,” Mullen said. “Best bite is on outgoing tides from high to low,” he said.
Further south, Capt. Leon Dana is honed in on the mullet run, which he said is in full swing. He said every predator can be caught on mullet right now, but he’s laser focused on the tarpon.
Christmas in September
Of course, many of us will not be fishing this weekend.
Saturday is the long awaited opener of the archery deer season in Northeast Florida. I suspect the boat ramp might be a little less crowded, but if you’re thinking about skipping opening day, think again: The bucks are rutting, and Saturday’s cooler temperatures could offer a short-lived opportunity to catch them on their feet during daylight.
With the help of Rick Stinson at Strike Zone, my trusty Mathews Drenalin is driving a new set of heavier arrows like tacks. With my gear in ship shape and my tree stands hung, it’s now up to me to seal the deal so my family can eat game for the next year.
Even though the hunt doesn’t officially begin until a few more days, I performed one final preparation on Wednesday afternoon with a trip to the store.
Forget the scent blocker or camo. Keeping peace on the home front is as crucial as finding hot buck sign in the woods, so I bought a bouquet of flowers, two bottles of wine and a pint of chocolate ice cream for my lovely, patient wife, who will be intermittently without a husband between Saturday and January.
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