Depending on where you fish inshore, clear water can either be welcome or very tough to deal with. Catching speckled trout and redfish in clear water is a matter or using the right presentation. Speckled trout are ambush predators and will utilize certain advantages in clear water. Understanding this will yield better results for the angler.
First of all, think like a predator; put yourself in that fish’s position. Every time it swims at baitfish in clear water, its forage darts away. So the savvy fish will be striking where they can gain some advantage. Cover can come in many forms from depth, bottom texture, camouflage, an abrupt depth change, or other structures such as grass, rocks, oyster or clam reefs. According to Capt. Steve Soule, even elevation changes between different species of grass can serve as an ambush point. Even slight elevation changes can be enough to give a predator an advantage, such as a sand bar and gut complex on a windy shoreline. To maximize your chance at catching fish, always look for forage species concentrations over or on these structures.
Lure selection should look as natural as possible. I find weedless lures produce better in clear water than multi-hooked hard lures. And color selection is crucial as well; choosing colors that resemble real fish will help trigger a strike. Pearl, silver and other variations of those two will be top contenders, as they closely resemble baitfish colorations.
Tobin created TroutSupport.com – Tech Support for Catching Speckled Trout and Redfish.
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