Red Hot Trout Bite On The Flats - Mega-Bite Inshore Charters
Capt. John Rivers
April 19, 2013
Pensacola - Saltwater Fishing Report
Back in the saddle again…Ok, I know it's corny, but being back on the flats is where I love to be. Watching the sun come up over the horizon or slowly fading away behinds the trees in the afternoon while hooking trout and reds is my sanctuary. I took some time on April 17th in the afternoon to check some areas for reds and trout. My first stop was an area I've not visited in years and I was happy to see so many reds cruising this area. However, the reds were really spooky, and although we managed to hook a few, we didn't want to sore mouth them much as I've got some trips over the next few days and I want my clients to enjoy this style of sight fishing.
Went back again in the morning of the 18th, and when I got up the wind was blowing a good 15-20 knots and it got rougher as the morning progressed. So we only stayed a few hours to check a few spots. I wanted to get out early enough to see if the early morning bite was better than afternoon. The morning bite was ok. I can say that conditions were much better the day before and since the higher tide was later in the afternoon, I think that's why the bite was much better.
I'm happy to report that the big trout are on the flats and the fishing is exceptionally good. It's been pretty good for a while now, but I probably missed out on the start of the good bite a few weeks back while I was sheepshead fishing, but that's ok, I'm ready to play catch up.
From now until about the middle of June, lots of big trout will be on the flats and they will be very aggressive. We only fished for trout for a couple of hours the first day, but we landed around 30 fish and all of them were 17" –22". With the wind so bad on Thursday we didn't fish as long, but we still caught some nice fish.
We were tossing a few baits, such as the ones that follow:
MirrOlure's Paul Brown and MirrOdine XL (808) and the other was Zman's PaddlerZ (bad-shad)& Minnowz (Mudminnow). The soft plastics were rigged on a 1/4oz jig head.
To all my bass fishermen out there, this type of fishing is right up your alley. If you want to catch a gator trout over 20 inches, springtime in Pensacola is the time for that. As a former bass fisherman myself I can relate to your needs.
I love artificials and you'll love this style of fishing. These are hard-pulling redfish that will make your drag sing and big trout that will crush a top-water bait.
Here is a link to my instructional fishing charter.
www.saltwateracademy.com
As a veteran captain of the area for 10 years and with 38 years of fishing experience, I can assure you that you'll enjoy a professional trip and have a ton of fun.
Stay tuned for more Pensacola inshore fishing reports.
Tight Lines.
Capt. John
www.pensacolainshoreguides.com
www.saltwateracademy.com
850-341-9816
Pensacola Fishing Forecast:
Day one overcast 13-15 knot wind
Day two windy 17-20 knot winds and very cloudy
Target Species:
Trout, Redfish
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