We have plenty of cold weather coming and with that we’ll have dropping water temps. Fish are going to be moving from the grass flats to deeper water and areas with darker mud bottoms. Live shrimp will start becoming the bait of choice as the menhaden schools start disappearing. There are three ways I like to rig live shrimp: 1) free-lined with a size 2 or 4 circle hook, 2) under a popping cork with size 2 or 1/0 circle hook and 3) Carolina-rigged with a 1/4- to ½-oz egg sinker and a size 2 or 1/0 circle hook. A 15- to 30-lb test fluorocarbon leader should be used on those rigs depending on what type of structure is around.
Flounder should be moving around as well and live bull minnows on a Carolina-rig are a good choice for them. Fish very slow and methodically along mud bottom, seawalls and shorelines. If you want to gig some, we have Cosson gigs, Jerry’s LEDs and Boutwell bamboo gigpoles so you can have the best setup out there. If you need bait we’ll have live shrimp and bull minnows here at Bay Baits throughout the winter, open every day 6am-6pm.
EVAN SOROKA
Bay Baits
24295 US Hwy. 331
Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459
(850) 278-6292
www.baybaits.com