REPORT FOR THE WEEK ENDING 1/25/2003 by Capt. Butch Rickey Cold fronts, cold water, and slow fishing continue to be the order of the day here. There seems to be no end to the cold weather. That pretty much leaves speckled trout and sheephead as our main targets unless you have a boat that will get you into a half a foot of water to chase tailing redfish in the northern part of the Sound. Although sheephead are good eating, and good fighters, they are very hard for the inexperienced to catch. We have a saying that goes, “To catch sheephead you have to set the hook just before you feel him bite!” Enough said. I choose trout. I had a trip on Wednesday with Barbara and Bill Smith, and Barb’s dad, Joe. These were wonderful folks. They were fun, and patient with the slow fishing. We worked a lot of potholes on the lowest part of the incoming tide, and caught a few trout, but never got a good bite going. As the water got higher, I took the gang to try for redfish around some oyster bars. By that time the wind had kicked, and casting was difficult for them. And, we only actually saw one red. They seemed to be absent. So, in desperation to get something pulling on the end of their lines, I went into Long Cut looking for trout, and maybe a stray snook or ladyfish. We did find lots of trout, but true to what is typical in Long Cut, the were all undersized. Well, at least it was action. We ended the day with plenty of trout caught, but only two keepers in the well. Although we also used some shrimp, most everything was caught on Bass Assassin jigs. What’s always the most important about any trip is that we had a great time fishing and getting to know each other, and enjoying this beautiful estuary we call Pine Island Sound. And, Bill and Barb promised to come back during warm weather to see what the fishing here can really be like. There’s talk of the coldest weather in decades on the way next week. Just what we need. If we could get even a week straight of warming weather, I think we’d see the fishing really turn on. Tight Lines!