[dropcap]W[/dropcap]ith warmer temperatures day and night, the Island and Bay area fishing has heated up after a long, cold, wet, nasty winter. The bait fish and shrimp will be on the move and the specks will follow; The local bait shops now have good live shrimp and its worth your time to get a few for your trip. Fish these under a rattling cork or popping cork with a #8 bronze treble hook on about 2 feet of mono leader; I use 12 pound mono or flouro leader, the lighter the better.
The trout will be following and chasing bait and can be found around the flats and oyster beds near the small islands and in and around Mobile Bay as they move out of Fowl River and Bayou La Batre and the surrounding small rivers; I also use a variety of soft plastic shrimp imitation baits like the VuDu Shrimp in natural colors or a fleck color like the Cajun Pepper or a Gulp shrimp imitation in new penny like the Mantis Shrimp. Try different baits depending on the water clarity. I will also use some top water lures early and late, and a slow sinking mullet imitation in a natural black mullet pattern like the Egret Baits: Kick A Mullet, or a green or black back MirrOlure.
April is the time for the spawn of the Sheepshead; they will congregate in huge numbers around most any good structure in the bay and sound and around the gas rigs in the lower bay and near shore. Fish rock piles, bridges and the gas rigs with the live shrimp you can find. If you get lucky and find someone with live shrimp, get them! The Sheepshead love them. I fish a #1 or #2 J hook or any other small hook that is stout on about 2 feet of 15lb to 20lb Sufix flouro clear or clear mono leader, tied to a barrel swivel, above the swivel I will use a 1/4 oz, 3/8 oz or even a 1/2 oz egg sinker on the main line which is 12lb Sufix mono or 20 pound Sufix braid.
Fish as close to the structure as you can but be careful because the Sheepshead will wrap you in the structure very quickly when hooked. Use the lightest egg sinker that you can that will allow the bait to present more naturally. Check your bait often. Sheepshead are notorious bait stealers and will often steal the bait as you drop down, it takes a bit of practice to catch them but once you get it down it will be on ! There will be large Reds on Dixie Bar and around the Lighthouse and off the beaches also in the tidal rivers and bays, like Heron Bay, Portersville Bay and Grand Bay, fish the areas where small rivers flow or dump into the bays, look for water movement. Artificial baits work well here as well, jigging shrimp or minnow imitations or fishing the baits under a rattling cork.
One new thing that some of the restaurants located on or around Dauphin Island are offering now is what we call “You Hook It They cook It”, but make sure you check with the restaurant before you take the fish to them, they may have several pointers or requirements for you. We will clean the fish for you and they will cook it there.
We are still booking Spring and Summer trips but we are filling up the good dates quickly, so call us and Lets go Fishing!