Cooler Weather, Hotter Fishing!
Well, it looks like Mother Nature finally remembered what November is supposed to look like on the Gulf Coast! The hurricanes a couple of years ago seemed to throw things out of whack, so it’s nice to see things getting back to normal. The water is cooling, fish are showing up where they’re supposed to, and we can finally pretend we know where they’ll be!
Trout are already making their presence known, and boy, are they hungry! As water temperatures drop, these fish will stack up on the grass flats from Anclote north toward Hudson. Drifting the flats, throwing paddletails or shrimp imitations on a light jig head, is one of my favorite ways to find them. Look for sandy potholes and areas with moving water. As the cold fronts roll through, expect them to push toward deeper channels and creek mouths.
Redfish haven’t gotten the memo that October is over, and the bite should remain strong throughout November. The bigger schools will continue roaming the flats, but cooler water will push more fish toward the mangrove shorelines, creeks, and canals. Cut pinfish is still hard to beat, but live shrimp will become increasingly productive as the water cools.
Cobia are milling around the rocky areas and nearshore structure, so keep a rod rigged with a bucktail jig or large swimbait. There’s nothing worse than watching a big cobia swim past while you’re scrambling to tie something on!
Lastly, the convicts are already showing up! Sheepshead are moving back into the bridges, docks, and rock piles and will only get thicker as winter approaches. Small shrimp or fiddlers on a size 1 hook with 15-pound fluorocarbon is hard to beat. November gives us a little bit of everything, so get out there before we’re all complaining about how cold it is!