Beat the Trees!

Julie really put the smack down on a bunch of trout by walking the dog with a K-9 Walker!

Even the building New Moon couldn’t stop the bite this week. Now that we’re in the Fall season high water cycle and the water temps are slowly cooling you’d be hard pressed to fail as long as you beat the trees!

Sure, there are fish on the flats and there are fish working the drop-offs as well as most of the other usual places we target. However, I love fishing tight to the bank when the water is high. Also, there is little need in natural bait right now if you’re taking advantage of this pattern. If the angler is a decent caster and can stay out of the tree limbs the reds, trout, snook and juvenile tarpon will readily pounce on a three, four or five inch soft plastic.

Ken finally got that snook he was after on a recent trip with Capt. Mark Wright

Weedless spoons are killing the fish too when they’re in the mood for a faster moving meal. Before I forget, top-water walking plugs like Tsunami’s K9 Walker are catching upper slot trout during the early mornings
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After a good two hour top-water sunrise bite early in the week Ken and Julie needed a rest. We tossed out some mullet chunks as they enjoyed a cold drink and a snack. It took a while for them to rehydrate as the redfish and catfish were still hungry enough to go through a bag of frozen finger mullet.

After their kinda-sorta break they started throwing Z-Man four inch Diezel Minnowz and Jerk Shadz. Ken slammed and Julie would have too if her snook hadn’t managed to cut through the leader!

Later in the week Tony had his way with upper slot trout and slot reds on his bone colored top-water plug. Offering them a quick moving spoon if they missed the plug a few times resulted in many slot reds. Tony’s only snook bite turned into an unplanned boat-side release with a last second head shake and a spit hook.

The temps are cooling and the bite is heating up. Now is the time to enjoy the lagoon!