This week marked our first cold front of Fall, which quickly dropped our morning temperatures into the high 50s. Although this brief cold is a far cry from what most think of as winter, it’s a sure sign that patterns on the water are changing. October and November are what I like to call transition months, when fish are heading to the places they prefer to spend the cooler months. Water temperature can drop quickly because Pine Island Sound is very shallow. Seeing a more than 10-degree drop overnight is not out of the ordinary with a strong front.
Now our cold fronts have stated it will basically be the same weather pattern all winter. Timing when to fish can be the difference between a wide-open bite and a tough day at the office. When a cold front approaches, this always fires up the best bite as the barometer drops. Once the front passes, we are greeted with high pressure and usually windy conditions, which makes fishing generally a struggle. Conditions and fishing action will improve day by day until the next front. This same pattern will play out all winter long. Our cold fronts will often run on a 7-10 day pattern until spring.
With our water temperatures currently in the mid-70s, this translates into some of the best fishing of the year. Mild cold fronts like the one we just experienced are great, and they make the snook move towards the backcountry in huge numbers. Bait is plentiful on the beaches and on the grass flats, and with winter right around the corner, fish are on the feed. Redfish are not as affected by the cold, and action remains consistent with fish both on the flats and up under the mangroves on higher tides. Docks and jetties around our passes are still holding both species…