By: Dan Carns
In my opinion, April is the month that truly defines spring fishing in Southwest Florida! It’s the equivalent of the fall run of October when the fish are fattening up for the pending winter, transitioning inshore eating everything in sight. March is warmer than February but the fish were still in a bit of a protective mode in case it got cold again. These fish were still hovering around sheltered environments in canals and deeper in-shore hideouts but starting to transition out a bit. Now that spring has arrived, all these hunkered down predator snook, red fish and of course tarpon are on the move. Having spent the winter in a somewhat low state of energy and therefore food consumption, it is time to fatten up for the spawn run.
This means for us kayakers, we will be particularly suited to meet these fish in the protected backwaters that define shallow water sport fishing. All too often, I see kayakers trying to catch fish in open water bays when all they simply need to do is tuck in behind the keys that dot the shoreline here. Sure, you will find fish out there but the beauty of kayak fishing is our ability to travel in very skinny water. As the tides rise, just watch all the power boats try to get closer inshore. We are now out of the very low negative tides of winter where even kayaks or the fish for that matter cannot go. Along with the rising tide come the fish, big fish as a matter of fact. These large predators are hunting in super shallow water as the bait have no chance of escape and if your observant you’ll see them crashing into schools of bait or targeting individual baits as they try to escape.
Deep into the mangrove lined channels are hidden coves and deeper cuts that offer cover for the larger fish as they are far less likely to encounter dolphins and sharks. Make sure that you are pushing hard into these backwater haunts. Even if you need to get out and walk in, it should payoff. There is a lot less pressure on these fish as well, so you may have an entire day all to yourself with schools of fish that haven’t seen any artificial lures or bait presentations. Be super stealthy back there, make long casts and keep your approach relatively quiet at first. Once you’ve dirtied up an area in front of you, do try some noisier presentations. It may seem counter intuitive but fish can be attracted to the right kind of noise. Popping corks and top water are two splashy options that will draw fish out of their hideouts if they didn’t respond to your first offerings.
The modern fishing kayak is an amazing tool if used to its fullest so use its ability to go way back and find those unsuspecting fish in very shallow water for the month of April!
It’s A Wild World-Get Out There!
Paddlinandfishin
Dan Carns