Lanark and Carrabelle River Saturday 12/10

Koenig · Post by **Koenig** » December 12th, 2005, 1:27 pm

Got shrimp at the BP in Panacea. They had some awesome shrimp, good size and very healthy, got 100. Still like going to Scott's better. Great guy.

Oh, yall ever used the cooler with news paper trick to keep shrimp alive? It works famously, and we didn't have to stick our hands in cold water all day! If not here's the trick. Get a small cooler, 6 pac size or a little bigger. Fill a quart size or sandwitch size Zip Lock baggie with ice (which ever will cover the bottom of the cooler) and lay it on the bottom of the cooler. Take a section of news paper and wet it thuroughly with salt water, maybe five sheets thick or so, and place it flat on top of the baggie kinda stuffing it in there. Then place a layer of shrimp, enought to cover the paper. Then place another layer of wet paper then another layer of shrimp and so on.... ending with a layer of wet news paper on top. Very important, when going in and out of the cooler make sure you always cover the shrimp back with the paper and close the lid, they will die otherwise. They will also die if they get too wet that is why the baggie is important as well. We use this trick all the time and it always works if we follow the above instructions. Im not exactly sure how it works but I think the cold puts them into some sort of suspended animation because as soon as you hook'em or hit the water they wake up. Weird! If anyone knows the science as to how that works, fill me in. Curious...

Ok so we put in at a $5 ramp up the Carrabelle River at a marina. Did like mjsigins said and fished around the 98 bridge with no luck. Ran up river a little and fished some deep area around docks and rock debris with no luck. Decided to brave the cold and run on over to Turkey Point. DANG IT WAS COLD, we had to take a break half way there! Fished the oyster bars by the Lab channel, picked up one 18` keeper trout but no other bites. After that we ran out past Dog Island to hit some structure. We found a ton-a-fish but we couldn't get them to bite. We ended up caughting two grouper at 20` and 24` on a stretch 25. Those were just lone stragglers, couldn't get the fish on the structures to hit anything we had. Then we had to call it a day. Besides the cold the weather and conditions were great and we had a great time. Biggest things was trying some place different. Again, I want to thank you guys for all the great feedback! FISH ON!

catchin1 · Post by **catchin1** » December 12th, 2005, 4:10 pm

Yea I learned that shrimp trick when fishing at Orange Lake. Cept there its some tiny Azz grass shrimp. Figured it might work on the larger ones.

Post by **mjsigns** » December 12th, 2005, 7:20 pm

Glad to hear you all at least connected with some groupa. Which ramp in Carabelle did you all use? 5$ seems mighty cheap. Did you find the public ramp? ...

If you got a minute, just a few questions....

That shrimp trick sounds more economical than what I use, but if it works for you "go for it"

Did you all try jiggin around the bridge, or just drop them shrimps to the bottom and wait?

Around the shoals, what was the water clarity like, and what was the average water temp?

----------------------------------------------------
Saturday- the "bite" jsut seemed soft, if not totally off. If I had known how smooth it was going to be offshore I too would have taken my trolloing poles.

I think we need to time it up (match it) with the solunar feeding tables to have them "limit" kind of days. Next really good day to fish looks like Friday December 30th, but I don't think I can wait that long before the next trip....

Water temps will still be quite cold, and I feel sure most of the fishes will have developed good cases of "lock-jaw"

Thanks-

MJ

Post by **Chalk** » December 12th, 2005, 9:48 pm

Actually the 27th is the best day according to my solar/tide being a 9 on a scale from 1 to 10, 10 being the days you call in sick to work and go fishing....Today was an 8, Sunday a 7 and Saturday was a 5.....Actually the last week of the month starting on the 26th through January 11 you should be fishing....Curious to the statement that the fishes will develop "lock-jaw"...Curious as to what will give them "Lock-jaw"

BTW WTG...

Post by **birddog** » December 12th, 2005, 10:09 pm

Chalk wrote:Actually the 27th is the best day according to my solar/tide being a 9 on a scale from 1 to 10, 10 being the days you call in sick to work and go fishing....Today was an 8, Sunday a 7 and Saturday was a 5.....Actually the last week of the month starting on the 26th through January 11 you should be fishing....Curious to the statement that the fishes will develop "lock-jaw"...Curious as to what will give them "Lock-jaw"

BTW WTG...

According to Rick Taylor's Astro tables 12/15 was the best day of the month. 12/30 will be the best of the remaining days in Dec. Of course none of this means anything unless you believe in that sort of voodoo/witchcraft.

And good job fellas, glad ya'll braved the elements and had a good time.

Post by **mjsigns** » December 13th, 2005, 12:06 am

Chalk Asks......

Curious to the statement that the fishes will develop "lock-jaw"...Curious as to what will give them "Lock-jaw"

Usally a sudden or gradual drop in water temperature. It calls for different fishing tactics than those of summers' 70-72 degree feeding temps. i believe the colder water slows their metabolisim such that they don't eat as much and what they eat is digested at a slower rate. They just loose that varracious appetite and must be finessed into eating anything.... There in "lock-jaw"....

Post by **Chalk** » December 13th, 2005, 8:37 am

I guess them 100 trout days when it's 20 degrees and you have ice on you rod guides are the "lock-jaw" days I am used too....Lock-jaw as I know it is associated with high pressure and post front weather patterns...never heard it associated with cold water...Some of my best days have come on the coldest days...when the water was below 50 degrees

BD...the site I use says the 15th is a 5 and the 30th is a 7....Regardless you ain't gonna catch nothing riding a horse

Here is the one I use....http://66.135.8.10/tideserver/index.asp
I do plan my time on the H2O with the chart, but I tend to go when I can go as well...

Post by **Fighting Conch** » December 13th, 2005, 8:53 am

a really big tide swing coming up this weekend

Koenig · Post by **Koenig** » December 13th, 2005, 10:28 am

MJ,

Don't know about a public lanch. We put in at some small marina, they used the lock box like at the light house. Heading west on 98, we took a left just after the bridge. There are two ramps there, one is straight down the road and the other (the one we used) was to the left about 150 yards before that. Any body know the name of that place?

At the bridge we use shrimp on the bottom, but I usually kinda bump it along just a little bit every now and then, and used shrimp under a CT. Should we have been jiggin it more?

I only remember checking water temp once, it was 53 degrees. The water in the river was real dark. The water at T-point and the bay was pretty clear.

Post by **mjsigns** » December 13th, 2005, 2:22 pm

Koenig-

I know that ramp, but ike you I don't remember the name of it right off hand. I remember a bunch of boats in storage (like and acre or two) some looking goood and others rotting. But I know the one you are talking about.

AS far as under the bridge, I'd have tried everything in the tackle box. I know it's hard to think about it while you are out there casting away having a blast. I would have jigged a little more and tried a free lined live shrimp.
I guess the key is to keep trying different tactis until you find one that works. And sometimes they just don't want to strike anything. "lock-jaw"

I am sure that Chalk could tell us about many - many a 100 trout days in mid winter. I guess he must know everything there is to know about fishing. Thanks for your input Chalk.

Post by **Fighting Conch** » December 13th, 2005, 2:42 pm

Are you'all talking about a ramp on Timber Island?

Post by **Chalk** » December 13th, 2005, 3:05 pm

mjsigns wrote: I guess the key is to keep trying different tactis until you find one that works. And sometimes they just don't want to strike anything. "lock-jaw"

I am sure that Chalk could tell us about many - many a 100 trout days in mid winter. I guess he must know everything there is to know about fishing. Thanks for your input Chalk.

I thought it was cold water, now it's tactics.....I can not tell you many - many days of 100 trout days, but I can tell you a few...When the time is right you can catch schoolie and white trout til your arms hurt in the St. Marks river...

I just asked you a question and gave you an example of my experience, no need to slam me and call me a know it all, because I debated your response...30 years of fishing the gulf would lend me some knowledge about fishing wouldn't you think...

Post by **Fighting Conch** » December 13th, 2005, 3:47 pm

On a good day my fishing skills are fair but there was a winter morning right after one of the FSU championship losses that I landed 60 of those little trout up the St. Marks.

Koenig · Post by **Koenig** » December 13th, 2005, 4:40 pm

Weather it be our tactics or the cold, we dang sure couldn't get them to bite. I do like the idea of free lineing the bait though. Just hard to cast a good distance.

Skag, we were talking about the boat landing just past the 98 bridge on the left.

Post by **birddog** » December 13th, 2005, 6:54 pm

Chalk wrote:I guess them 100 trout days when it's 20 degrees and you have ice on you rod guides are the "lock-jaw" days I am used too....

Regardless you ain't gonna catch nothing riding a horse