Two steps forward, one step back is a great description of our winter fish patterns. After a week of amazing weather, we experienced yet another cold front early in the week. Although this sent water temperatures plummeting yet again after only a few days, we quickly recovered. By March, our cold fronts will be milder, and low temperatures will rarely dip below 50 degrees. Fingers crossed this front marks what should be close to the end of our winter.
Warmer temperatures before the front brought some of the best redfish action I have seen all winter. Higher tides and south winds gave us some of the highest tides in months, allowing access to the many oyster bars throughout the sound. This fishing did not disappoint with a few afternoons of non-stop redfish action while bouncing live hand-picked shrimp on jig heads. During periods of unseasonal south winds, this bite was nonstop, with more than 20 redfish caught on afternoon trips. Most of these redfish measured 17-21 inches; what they lacked in size, the sheer numbers made up for.
Mangrove creek fishing was also a good bet during the lower tide periods for redfish. Many of the mangrove creek systems in the sound also produced fantastic redfish action, with a few more quality fish in the mix, ranging from 17 to 24 inches. Generally, these fish were on the deeper shorelines with faster-moving currents. This bite for me this week was better on chunks of fresh shrimp on the same 1/4oz jig head. This tight, narrow creek fishery requires a very short, accurate cast, then the moving water keeps the jig moving down the shoreline. One small mangrove pocket could hold several redfish if you could make that often difficult cast…