4 Trout, 17-22", no shorts.
Started at 8:00, water looked like glass with the tide low & falling. I was determined to re-tie my CT & spook before putting in and the no-see-ums were evil. I had about two hours to fish and I went west to the outer bars. Slow Slow Slow. I worked out to Patty's Island and sat front row for some dolphin playing tennis with the mullet. It couldn't help fishing much but it was entertaining. As low as it was (.2) and me paddling in 2 inches of water it was obvious what fish were around. Mostly packs of mullet, bonnet heads & rays. Then I came across tailing reds, just like on tv. What to do? I was sure topwater would chase them off so I went to a 3" asssasin on a 1/6th oz Captn' Mikes redfish rig.
Land it soft enough in front and work it slow, ok...
Then do it at least 100 times until you accept it ain't gonna work. They were swimming right by me & I thought about just whacking them with my paddle. Gold spoon, weedless. That'll do it. Nada. Fine, I'm leaving.
I found 2 feet of water on the way back and got into 4 nice trout on the CT/white grub. Feeling redeemed I was off the water by 11:00. Not a topwater hit the whole time. I did see a shark that went about ~7 feet (? species) in barely enough water to swim.
Added up to another great day.
Wakulla Beach by Kayak 10/1
Moderators: bman, Chalk, Tom Keels
Lit! That is my kayak dream! Thanks for letting us know it can be and is lived! I will one day get me a 'yak and when I do that'll be the place I will go. I love to visit that place and wander around wade fishing. Tried to take the 13'er in from out, and it got too shallow, so I left it behind and waded about out there; and saw the same kind of dolphin show, this was crashing and circling in maybe 12 inches of water, at the mullet. I thought the dolphin was in trouble at first, but he was just huntin' and catchin'.
Sounds like you had a great show! God is Good! Life is Good!!
Sounds like you had a great show! God is Good! Life is Good!!
Was the Wakulla Beach Road in decent shape after the storms?
For what it's worth, I've had a measure of success on tailing reds on the Mosquito Lagoon & Banana River with a Mr. Twister Exude Crab--it has the "match the hatch" factor on its side. I have yet to try the Exude Crab here, but given the amount of crabs on the flats lately, it might do the trick to get those reds to eat.
For what it's worth, I've had a measure of success on tailing reds on the Mosquito Lagoon & Banana River with a Mr. Twister Exude Crab--it has the "match the hatch" factor on its side. I have yet to try the Exude Crab here, but given the amount of crabs on the flats lately, it might do the trick to get those reds to eat.
Rev, Thanks for the suggestion on the exude to "match the hatch". I was listening to the Sun am 620 fishing show and one of the captains was talking about mimicking what the fish are likely feeding on. I'm reluctant to think about redfish like I should a rainbow trout but I guess if I want to be a better fisherman (& actually catch more fish) I'll have to. Biologist's use the term "search image" to refer to the behavior of animals zoned in on a particular thing, be it flower color or bait size or whatever. We know the situation well from chasing Spanish that are feeding on anchovies and won't hit anything bigger than a hang nail. I would think that with all the food out there that the redfish wouldn't be that selective but if they are having a lot more success chasing crabs why bother chasing a fish? Makes sense.
Be the fish, figure it out.
Also, Wakulla Beach didn't seem the least bit affected by the storm.
Be the fish, figure it out.
Also, Wakulla Beach didn't seem the least bit affected by the storm.