Too Fast, Too Furious - St. Marks Drift (Oct. 6th)

[fishTheBend]

You gotta love the strong eastern wind that made drifting wayyy fast for most of the day. However it wasn't too bad
staying in shoreline to get to points Stoney Bayou and beyond. Stayed up in Stoney for some relief from the wind for the first part of the day.

The grass wasn't too bad and water clarity was pretty good overall on the flats, with some areas
being a lil more churned up.

Had the most success on the top water again with some trout on jigs. Landed 2 18-19 reds which got
a prompt release and a few short trout. Lost one over-slot trout with the speed of the
drift definitely a factor not getting a solid hook. Otherwise enjoyed seeing finger trout pop my super spook up into
the air all day.

We're due for for a break with the wind, right?

[DixieReb]

It's been blowing pretty good lately, we fought the wind last week. It's good that some fish are biting anyway, just have to re-start your drift more often in the wind.

[silverking]

Thanks for the report.

A drift sock or sea anchor is invaluable when it's windy like it has been. I rigged one like this with a dock line with eye splice. Thread the splice through the bow cleat and it really slows the drift so you can keep baits in the strike zone longer.

Bought this one from a FL dealer off eBay. Had Covertime Upholstery add another longer strap to the apex of the cone. As you pull the dock line in close, you can grab the longer "dump" strap and pull, which inverts the cone and dumps the water. Easier to lift and you don't have any surprises inside, like a jellyfish.

s-l500.jpg (41.25 KiB) Viewed 5355 times

[onefishtwofish]

Do you use a drift sock? Just curious how bad the wind was. I have not been out a whole lot lately.

LOL Great minds think alike.

I also like how it holds the boat in the wind, making a rough day a little smoother. We put a float on ours, so if we catch something big, we can just unhook it and come back for it. Has come in handy a few times.

[fishTheBend]

Yep, had the sock out. Strong wind + tide = fast ride!

Thanks for the report.

A drift sock or sea anchor is invaluable when it's windy like it has been. I rigged one like this with a dock line with eye splice. Thread the splice through the bow cleat and it really slows the drift so you can keep baits in the strike zone longer.

Bought this one from a FL dealer off eBay. Had Covertime Upholstery add another longer strap to the apex of the cone. As you pull the dock line in close, you can grab the longer "dump" strap and pull, which inverts the cone and dumps the water. Easier to lift and you don't have any surprises inside, like a jellyfish.

s-l500.jpg

[Hit-n-Miss]

Was really weird at Keaton. With all the wind and the outgoing tide I expected a fast drift, but we did not need the sock all day.

[flatsbroke22]

This is the one I just bought. Great quality and price. It has a blue strap to pull in order to dump the water out like silverking was talking about. All other straps are red. Works great!

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Trolling-Sea-A ... 4902.l9144

[Hit-n-Miss]

I've been using a MINNKOTA driftsock for years. Light dries fast and works well.

[tailwaters]

As a kid we would throw a 5 gal bucket over the side and drag it to slow down out drift. I'm sure a drift sock would work better but it is an option.

[ugadawg]

I've used a drift sock for years. I really recommend getting a crab trap buoy and tying it to the end of your drift sock rope. That way if something big bites you can just untie and throw it overboard if you have to chase a fish down, then just go back and get your drift sock when the fight it over.

[silverking]

[quote="fishTheBend"]Yep, had the sock out. Strong wind + tide = fast ride!

Maybe you need a bigger sock? The colored dump strap for quick ID and adding a float/buoy are great modifications.

[Salty Gator]

Yep, had the sock out. Strong wind + tide = fast ride!

Maybe you need a bigger sock? The colored dump strap for quick ID and adding a float/buoy are great modifications.

The one I got from cabellas many years ago, had all that stuff already on it. And a little lead on the bottom so it sits correctly when you toss it out