A unique website dedicated to fishing information from Florida's Northern Big Bend. This includes the area from the Econfina River west to the Apalachicola River
Use this area to post inshore fishing reports from the area. Please try to include relevant information such as:
Location, date, time, water conditions, weather conditions, baits, techniques, species caught, etc.
5-9-03- Launched at Keaton Beach at 7:00 am with my Daughter and 12 year old Grandson. Water temp was 83 degrees and still stained. Wind was calm. Seas were flat. Ran north to Spring Warrior. Fished 8 hours without a keeper Trout. Fished with every lure in the box. Grandson hung a Redfish in 18" of water, I'd estimate at about 8-10 pounds on a Redfin plug. Expertly fought the fish a good while, then the fish pulled off. When he reeled the lure in we realized the fish didn't pull off, but the back treble hook broke. (lesson of the day) Always change hooks on a redfin. They rust after use in salt water.
5-10-03- Launched at Keaton at 10:00 am with my wife and myself. Water temp was 85 degrees. Wind was already picking up. Ran South about 10 miles to Grassy Island. It was a rough and wet ride. Started in 3-4 foot. Decided to go strickly with fresh bait. Cought plenty of pin fish. First cast out my wife landed a 23" trout. Then the fun began. Within 2 hours, we had a limit of large trout. Smallest was 17 inches. We tried to fish on, but we kept deep sticking keeper trout, so we pulled up and went back to the camper for a fine fish dinner.
5-11-03- Launched at Keaton at 7:00 am with my wife again. Water temp was 84 degrees. Wind was 10-15. Gulf was white capping already. Ran a long rough, and wet ride back to the place we fished the day before. Had problem catching pin fish small enough. As the day before, started catching 18-19 inch trout right away. By 11:00 am, we had 9 large trout to include a 26" and a 24". My wife caught a 29"(to the fork) Spanish. Handle broke off the reel half way in the fight, so she hand lined the fish to the boat for me to net. The fish made a couple fast runs and the line cut her hands, but she wanted that fish and hung on. Tried till 2:00 pm to get the 10th Trout. Finally at 2:00 we landed a 19" Trout to finish off the limit. By this time we had 2-4 seas white capping, with the wind blowing at 15mph, gusting to 20mph. There was not a dry thread in our clothes by the time we got back to the landing. But we was still grinning because the long wet run paid off with one of the finest limits of trout I've had in a while. It was a fine weekend on the Gulf. I miss it already!
Sounds like a fine trip ta me To bad the younguns didn't get in on the fun like ya'll did
“Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them and you have their shoes.”
Ask Tin Can about one of those big trout I caught saturday. He ran the pinfish to the top, missed, turned around, hit the CT, then went and grabbed the pinfish. As I was reeling him in there was another one with him trying to hit the CT.
Tom, that's just the way they acted with us. I've had lots of trout jump, but almost every big trout we caught this weekend jumped. They acted like lady fish they were so aggressive. Man it fun to catch these Trout with Tarpon hearts.
Boyz & Girls this is not a fishing tale, I just saw a cooler full of big trout and that hand lined spanish ....Nice report CSMarine.....I told you them crickets would work
I wonder how they would react to a big ol earthworm
“Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them and you have their shoes.”
I went out on Sat. from Keaton. Didn't unload till 9:30, went north to Sprinf Warrior. Just me, the wife and daughter. Only brought home 5 trout but they were 2-18's 1-19 1-22 and 1-26 inch. We caught a lot of shorts. My daughter was using cut bait so the catfish was plentyful. The only problem I had was we were catching catfish on c/t using grubs. Got to be aggravating. We had 2 trout break off at the boat well over 20 inches long. Was a great day to be out, was back in the truck at 1:30 so the daughter could make her date that night.
Sounds strange catching hardheads on lures, but it's true cause I caught two on grubs Sat. That's a first for me. Friday the 9th we fished Spring Warrior, Fishing was terrible. What did you catch them on Ragansm1?
I wonder how they would react to a big ol earthworm
I used to fish with a guy out the Aucilla a lot and we caught some nice trout. He said his dad was going to bring his boat down the next weekend. His dad, a nice black gentleman, had only done freshwater fishing before and as such brought freshwater tackle and bait including Earthworms.
We left him at the mouth of the river and went fishing and had a decent day, and met him at the same place we left him. He had a limit of trout (10 back then) with most in the 20" range, a 5 pound redfish and 2 sheephead.
He caught most on a 15' can pole with a cork and earthworms, and a zebco 202 with a carolina rig with earthworms on the bottom. I could do nothing but laugh. It goes to show that you don't need the high dollor boat and tackle to catch fish.
I know the Sheephead love them worms I think I'll take a can of worms on my next outing and give um a shot
“Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them and you have their shoes.”
To bad the younguns didn't get in on the fun like ya'll did 
