Today my clients Raul and Jorge experienced fishing in the backcountry of Whitewater Bay for the first time. We started our day targeting baby Tarpon using Rapala Twitching Rap on light tackle spinning rods as the sun came up over the horizon. We had a ball playing with these miniature Jurassic fish and managed to release 4 before 8 A.M. Next we turned our attention to Snook by fishing several of the creek mouths entering into Hell's Bay and Lane Bay. I have been finding the larger Snook have not yet entered into the deep backcountry areas instead they have been patiently waiting on the edges of the Eastern Wall of Whitewater Bay. The first lure I had my customers throw was the Rapala X-Rap in the XR-8 size because this is a very good fish locating lure. With its twitching action I can either keep the rod tip high to keep the lure working near the surface or drop the rod tip to get the lure down about 2 feet. Today I found most of the Snook near the entrance to Lane bay all piled up on an edge about 30-50 Yard wide. The key was always think of where they can ambush bait as they go by. Where there is an ambush point and current chances are you will find snook. After catching 30+ Snook we changed our efforts to Redfish which ended up being one of the easiest species of the day. All we had to do was change to a Bass Assassin scented bait on a jig head to hook up with several Reds. The technique here is throw the bait as far up in the current as you can and let it sink to the bottom. As soon as it hits the bottom slowly retrieve it so there isn't much slack in the line. When the reds pick up the scent they pretty much do the rest for you.
Tight Lines and Get Out There and Fish!
Captain Rich Smith is a Native South Florida Full Time Fishing Guide based out of Homestead, Florida. He fishes Biscayne Bay, Everglades National Park and the Upper Florida Keys. If you would like to get in touch with the captain you can reach him at www.CaptainRichSmith.com or (786) 299 - 4813
