[dropcap]F[/dropcap]ebruary fishing is another cold month for you dedicated winter anglers. The colder weather will push the fish up into the canals and rivers in search of stable water temperatures. In St. Joe Bay, redfish and Speckled trout will be hanging around in the ICW again this month, so you should start there. Drifting the banks and fishing under the bridge will be your best bet. Soft plastics, fishing steady and slow near the bottom are the key. Flounder, for the most part, are still offshore in deeper waters, but can be caught off the beaches. Structure, such as stumps at the stump hole on Cape San Blas are holding nice ones, and soft plastics worked slowly near the bottom will produce. While fishing for flounder in the surf, shrimp will also produce whiting which is always a good fish to throw in with a meal.
Apalachicola Bay will have Speckled trout in the deeper areas of the bay and around the bridges. Same soft plastics work best here too. Redfish are being caught out of the passes and along the beaches at Indian Pass. Walking the beach with a Mirrolure will drum them up from sure! Remember, these fish run the beach and may take a while to catch one, so patience is key and will have a huge pay off. Good luck and let’s go catch some fish.
By Captain Hal Tarpley
Shore Thang Charters
850-227-6272
www.shorethangfishing.com
