Winter finally has settled in here along the Nature Coast of Crystal River and Homosassa. With temperatures hovering around a bone chilling 69 degrees life is tough here in the sunshine state. Please don't let me sarcasm fool you, our winter months are refreshing after a fairly warm summer and we always look forward to the cool down each year. So what exactly does the cooler weather mean for the fishing?
Inshore anglers can expect shorter runs, bigger schools of fish, and extremely hungry fish. Huge schools of Redfish, Black Drum, Speckled Trout, Jack Crevalle, and LadyFish will all be extremely prevalent on the flats, in the backcountry holes and in most of our local rivers. All of these species are being targeted right now and it's not uncommon to catch all of these species while fishing a particular area. Most of these fish are feeding heavily in anticipation for the winter so they tend to be quite large and in charge for the time of year. We are targeting these fish with spin gear using both live and artificial baits but if you're interested in a challenge bring along a fly rod and target some of these fish in the extremely clear and shallow waters, which our area is "World Famous" for.
During a few of my most recent charters we have been targeting ladyfish within 2 minutes from the dock. Known as the "Poor Mans Tarpon" the lady fish is one of the most fun fish to catch because of its hard runs and acrobatic jumps. If it was edible it would definitely be the most sought after game fish in Florida but it is sought after on my charters because it's a great fish for kids to catch and it's some of the best bait our area has. (Just a note the boat record on lady fish is over 150 during a ½ day charter).
We use cut Ladyfish on my charters when targeting huge schools of Giant Redfish and now is the time we're targeting some of the biggest Reds of the year. During the last few weeks I have spotted over 10 schools of Reds pushing 20+ fish to a school I know had to have well over 100+ fish in it. When targeting schools this large with fish ranging from 3-20lbs a stealthy approach is key and the anticipation of their feeding patterns is even more important. Normally, I prefer live shrimp when targeting Redfish, but if you have a school of 40 fish coming down a shoreline and you pitch a shrimp in front of them, chances are the pinfish are going to eat your entire shrimp before the Reds ever knew it was there. Cut Ladyfish acts as one big piece of chum and it will definitely last longer and get the attention of some of the hungrier Reds in a large school.
So as I sit hear on my back porch watching the rain and the leaves fall I finally have a chance to reflect on what a great couple of months it has been and what an AWESOME year 2009 was. Awesome catches of Redfish, Black Drum, Spanish Mackerel, Sheephead, Tripletail, Cobia and Tarpon Inshore and Grouper, Snapper, Kingfish and Bonita Offshore all combined to make 2009 one of the best fishing years in past memories. If you're interested in creating a few memories of your own for the 2010 fishing season feel free to call or email for availability.
REMEMBER! RED HOT FISHING CHARTER GIFT CERTIFICATES MAKE GREAT CHRISTMAS GIFTS!!!!!!
Capt. Kyle Messier
(352) 634-4002
kylemessier@yahoo.com
WWW.REDHOTFISHINGCHARTERS.COM
