By Capt. Michael Savedow, Edgewater River Guide
Summer is knocking at the door, May is the first month with summer fishing patterns. It’s that time again to start serious trips before sunrise, to take advantage of the first light feeding period. More baitfish will be appearing in the ICW, Edgewater Backcountry, and Mosquito Lagoon. The baitfish will include: finger mullet, pigfish, croakers, spots, small menhaden, and pilchards.
Early morning is topwater lure time, use smaller and quieter styles when conditions are calm. Try larger and louder lures on choppy water, walk the dog types or chugger heads. I like Skitter Walk, Super Spook Jr, Chug Bug, and Zara Puppy. You want to work top waters tight to oyster bars, shorelines, shallow back bays, and flats. Fish the top waters early, then switch to sub surface lures after the sun is up a bit, like twitch baits, Mirrodines, spoons, soft plastic jerk baits, and DOA or Gulp shrimp. Finger mullet will again be coming into shallow water, fish them free-lined, tail hooked, around the shallow oysters, flats, and shorelines for redfish and trout. On deeper drop offs fish lip hooked mullet, mud minnows, or live shrimp with split shot or 1/4 oz sinker.
Tarpon and Bull Redfish return to the intracoastal waterway, backcountry and Lagoon waters. Tarpon will show themselves on the surface by rolling and gulping air. As they roll, their dorsal fin and tail break the top of the water, they are notoriously picky so patience is a must, a live shrimp, silver dollar blue crab, live finger mullet, plastic swim baits or lures are good to try. Tarpon is a top challenge for fly fishers, with the sight casting chance at a silver king hookup. Larger Redfish will again be along the ICW channel, watch for surface activity with a lower profile, big boils and surface strikes as they eat drifting blue crabs or baitfish, a free lined whole or half crab, large live shrimp, pinfish, pigfish, croaker, spots. Use heavier tackle for the big Reds and Tarpon for a shorter fight and healthy release. Hold these bigger fish horizontally for a photo not hanging from the lip which can damage these valuable breeder size fish, remember only Tarpon under 40″ are legally allowed to be removed from the water so a photo with the fish in the water is needed on bigger fish.
Summer is the best time of year for night time dock light fishing, the lights attract bait fish and shrimp which in turn bring in the trout, jacks, ladyfish, snook, and redfish to name a few, a free lined live shrimp can be the go to bait or match the hatch of which type of bait you are seeing, try a small size lure, swim bait, jig, twitch bait, or soft plastic shrimp. Anchor just up the tide and cast out from the light, throw your bait up current from the circle of light on the water and allow it to “swim” naturally through the target area. Outgoing tide can be best, but a moving tide in either direction is a must for a good bite.
