By: Alex Baumann
As we turn the calendar into October the signs of fall are finally starting to show around Pine Island. The summer heat begins to fade away and those first cooler mornings are a welcome change for anyone who spends a lot of time on the water. The cooling water temperatures also bring some noticeable changes to the fishing. Redfish are one of the species I look forward to chasing this time of year.
Redfish become more active as the water cools. October can be a great month to find them moving across the shallow flats and along the mangrove shorelines. Pine Island Sound and the surrounding backcountry offer plenty of shallow water for sight fishing. With good water clarity, a slowly cruising redfish can be an exciting target on the fly.
Early in the month, I like to focus on areas that hold bait. Mullet, shrimp, and small crabs are all important food sources. Finding concentrations of bait is usually a good place to start. Mangrove points, oyster bars and shallow flats with moving water are all worth checking. An incoming tide can push bait onto the flats. An outgoing tide can pull it away from the mangroves and concentrate fish along the deeper edges.
When I am looking for reds on the fly, I like to keep things fairly simple. Lightly weighted shrimp and baitfish patterns are both effective depending on what the fish are feeding on. In shallow water a fly that lands softly and does not immediately sink into the grass gives you a much better chance at a good presentation. Once you spot a fish the most important thing is usually making a clean cast and letting the fly do the work.
One of the biggest things to pay attention to throughout October is water temperature. After several months of extremely warm water even a small drop can make a noticeable difference in fish activity. The days immediately following a cold front can be especially interesting. Sunny conditions will warm shallow water quickly. Those slightly warmer areas can hold fish when the surrounding water is cooler.
October is also a great time to spend a little more time exploring. Rather than sitting on one flat all day, I prefer to cover water and pay attention to what the conditions are telling me. If the bait is there and the water is clean with a moving tide you are probably in the right neighborhood.
Fall is finally starting to settle in and with it comes some of the most enjoyable sight fishing of the year. Cooler water, active bait and hungry redfish make October a month worth looking forward to. Get out early and cover some water. Keep an eye out for that copper flash moving across the flat. See you on the water.