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It was another slow week, but at least I'm beginning to see some bookings for the coming season. My one trip this week was with one of my favorite old friends, Mike McMahon, from St. Leonard, Maryland. Now that bait is drying up I have made the switch to artificial baits for the duration of the winter. I knew Mike had the casting skills to be able to chunk spoons, jigs, Rattletraps and such at the mangrove shorelines.
After a major cold front last week, we were now on the front side of another one, which meant warm, moist air pulling up out of the south, and very moderate temperatures. We were looking at a high in the mid 80's.
Mike's wife Jo dropped him off, and after a hi and a hug Mike and I were off. It was just beginning to get light, and as we rode along Mike and I talked about how this was our favorite time of day to be on the water. I just love leaving the dock in the dark and watching the sun break on the horizon as I'm riding along in the cool morning air.
We were already about half way through an incoming tide, and I thought we might have enough water on the flats to have the redfish moving up to feed. We stopped at a beautiful spot that almost always holds reds in good numbers, as well as snook, to begin our day. I tied on a silver spoon, and gave Mike a jig. We anchored on the upwind side of the island and began to work the shoreline. It was only a couple of minutes until we had the first redfish of the day. He hit the bait on the fall, before the reel handle was ever cranked.
There was a bit too much debris on the bottom to be able to work the jig properly, so I tied on another spoon. A gold one with a hammered finish made by Bagley. Very nice spoons. As we worked our way around the island, we caught several more reds, all on spoons. It was typical winter redfishing, which means mainly puppy drum, as we call them. But, they're still feisty and fun to catch. Mike also caught one beautiful trout before the tide was over. And, boy! Was it over!
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We moved on. The wind had kicked pretty well out of the southeast. Everything was covered. At our next stop we worked over a beautiful area that's usually full of snook and redfish when the tide is right. There weren't as many redfish as I had hoped, but there were plenty of big snook. And, they weren't about to move to eat a bait. In fact, they didn't want to move at all until they felt really threatened. So, we got very good looks at them as they finally spooked and scooted by the boat.
We worked the area hard, as well as another area not far away, and never had a hit that I can remember. We did get a great snook show. We moved north to another expansive flat, and to my surprise never saw or pushed a fish. They just weren't there. At the next stop not far away, we again found big snook and some reds, but they were lockjawed. And, that was the MO for the rest of the day. I did catch a little barracuda, but that was it. Once that tide turned those fish just weren't eating.
But, we had a blast. Mike and I both love to toss plugs, and I think this was the first time he'd ever been here when there was no bait. As Mike said, he could chunk plugs till the sun went down.
Mike did send me an email the next day telling me that he had managed to catch a small snook out on the beach where he was staying. It was small, but it got him his Slam for the vacation. He was as surprised as I that there was still a snook on the beach in late November after several cold fronts. But, he was there, and Mike tricked him.
That next front is on our doorstep now, and is supposed to pass through here Sunday. I have trips Monday and Tuesday, and I just hope it doesn't blow them out or completely shut the fish down, as the fronts so often do.
Be sure to check out www.BestFishingBooks.com, Books and gifts for fishermen from my friend Jim Dicken!
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