March 2011

As the northern states are still getting pounded by snow and foul weather it seems that the spring weather is in our very near future here in central FL. With spring weather brings spring patterns for our fish like the influx of bait , a little higher water and my personal favorite spawning trout. While were on that subject this is a great time of year to catch some very large trout but with that being said they need to be handled with care do to the stress they are already going threw. I like to fish the grass flats with pot holes and lots of bait working either a popping cork or a top water in the early morning. As the sun rises a little higher in the sky i will move to 3 to 4 feet of water working soft plastics and twitch baits. As for the red fish they can still be found in schools roaming the flats looking for a easy meal . Do not neglect looking in the schools of mullet for red fish mixed in they may no be actually feeding on the mullet but what they are stirring up off the bottom. I like to target these fish in several different ways you can start with live shrimp,cut bait and live pin fish. For artificial I like to use soft plastics,aqua dream spoons and hard baits either twitch baits or top water.And now for a little beach action,if you have the ability to make it out of either Canaveral or ponce inlet you target cobia. Look for a nice calm day with alot of sun this is a run and gun style of fishing. You want to look for rays cruising or jumping and the cobia should be traveling under the rays. A long casting rod with a buck tail jig or a large swim bait is a good choice. Capt Patrick Rood www.spotntailcharters.com