If you pack plenty of hand sanitizer for the gas pumps, ramp fee pay boxes, etc., getting out on the water away from crowds and the risk of coronavirus is the perfect prescription for the upcoming weekend. And for a change, it looks like the weather is going to cooperate, too. Water temperatures are on the rise and bait is returning to the shallows. The spring coastal fishing season is about to kick into high gear.
Pinfish aren’t thick on the grass flats yet, but finger mullet, needlefish and ballyhoo are more prevalent. With water temperatures pushing into the upper 60s shrimp will be more common as well. Spanish mackerel, bluefish, pompano and cobia should be arriving by the end of the month, if not sooner. Trout are still holding in the tidal creeks, although the shift to the grass flats is underway. Redfish continue to roam the shorelines and flat in singles and pairs, up to schools of dozens of fish.
The warming trend is a good time to tie on a noisy topwater plug like a Rapala Skitter Walk, MirrOlure Top Dog or Heddon Super Spook. The action and rattles will goad trout into multiple strikes and the redfish aren’t too picky, either. Other effective lures right now are fake shrimp and touts like the DOA 1/4-ounce shrimp in near clear or gold glitter or the Sureketch touts on a light jig head. Root beer and white with red tails are good tout patterns. Chartreuse is also good with the current crystal clear water.
Aqua Dream weedless spoons in gold, silver and watermelon are great search baits to locate the redfish. Big trout also won’t hesitate to eat them. Once the pompano arrive, try a Nylure jig or the new 2.75 DOA shrimp bounced along the sand troughs. Pompano feed by keying in on puffs in the sand, so keep tight lines and pay attention to the casts. The large sand troughs/shoals on either side of the St. Marks River channel are prime pompano haunts. The barrier islands to the West are exceptionally good.
With the possible chance of some morning fog, winds are forecast to be light throughout the weekend. Tides are not particularly strong, although there will be enough water movement for decent feeding windows. High tides will occur before dawn and again in the late afternoon, with weak lows around lunch time. Per the solunar tables, peak times to be in the zone will be from 6 to 8 am and again the last hour or so of daylight as the moon is up and then down. The first hour of the incoming tide after the lows should also be good.
Copyright 2020, Capt. Dave Lear. All rights reserved.